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[budget]
Budget Activity
Prepare a one-month budget worksheet for yourself by completing each of the following steps. Use the left-hand column for estimated amounts. Record the actual amounts at the end of the month in the right-hand column.
|
Estimated |
Actual |
| 1. Estimate your income for the next month |
| Money provided by relatives or scholarships |
$ |
$ |
| Expected net wages (after tax withholdings) |
$ |
$ |
| Other sources of income |
$ |
$ |
Total Expected Income
|
$ |
$ |
| 2. Estimate your fixed expenses for the next month |
| Rent or mortgage payments |
$ |
$ |
| Utilities (heat, electricity, etc) |
$ |
$ |
| Loan payments (car, credit card, etc) |
$ |
$ |
| Insurance (1/12 of the annual cost for car, renter's, homeowner's, life, etc) |
$ |
$ |
| College costs (1/12 of annual costs for tuition, books, lab fees, etc.) |
$ |
$ |
| Other fixed expenses |
$ |
$ |
Total fixed expenses
|
$ |
$ |
| 3. Estimate your flexible expenses for the month |
| Food in your home |
$ |
$ |
| Eating out |
$ |
$ |
| Household items |
$ |
$ |
| Transportation (gas, oil, bus fares, etc) |
$ |
$ |
| Clothing |
$ |
$ |
| Personal items |
$ |
$ |
| Gifts for others |
$ |
$ |
| Entertainment (movies, sports, etc.) |
$ |
$ |
| Other |
$ |
$ |
| Total flexible expenses |
$ |
$ |
| Total fixed expenses (from above) |
$ |
$ |
| Total expenses |
$ |
$ |
Compare your total expected income with your total expected expenses to determine if you should anticipate a shortage or surplus of money at the end of the month. If you do, you may want to adjust the amounts you have allocated for flexible expenses. Keep careful records o your income and spending over the month and record them in the right-hand column. Compare your estimates with what actually happened. Then make adjustments to your budget as necessary and tr again next month.
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