Budgeting Advice for the First Time Budgeter

Budgeting is difficult at the best of times, but especially when it's your first time. That's why we’ve come up with budgeting advice to walk you through the things you need to know about financial planning from finding out why you want to budget to holding yourself accountable.

We'll even give you an easy way to get money when you need it most!

So, without further ado, let's begin.

Top 5 Budgeting Advice Tips for the First Time Budgeter

1. Find Out Why You Want to Budget

Surprisingly, only ? of households live according to a strict budget. By deciding you are going to create (and stick to) a budget, you're joining the elite.

And trust us, it will pay off.

However, our first piece of budgeting advice is to figure out why you want to budget. There is no wrong answer here, but the most popular ones are as follows:

• Getting out of debt
• Ending financial fights between couples
• Saving for a vacation
• Avoiding overspending
• Staying on track toward a long-term goal
• Preventing the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle

2. Figure out Your Current Spending Habits

Now that you have your goal(s) in mind, our second bit of budgeting advice is aimed at your current spending. You can't create an effective budget without understanding how much you spend at the moment.

Ideally, you need to track your spending for 30 days to get an accurate picture of your habits.

There are plenty of ways to keep track of this, but our favorites are:

• Use an app like PocketGuard or Mint. These are dedicated budgeting apps that track your spending automatically once you link them to your bank account.
• Use an Excel spreadsheet or notebook. This can be pretty time-consuming but effective as long as you don't forget your expenses.
• Use your bank statements. This isn't as effective since you can't always tell what each transaction was for. However, if you want to get started now, you can use your last month's statement.

3. Make Good Use of Your Calendar

Our third piece of budgeting advice is to use your calendar to track your irregular expenses. These are outgoings that either happens on and off or once a year like birthdays, vacations, and:

• Annual insurance premiums
• Car inspections
• Property tax
• Professional dues
• Annual veterinary exams
• Hanukkah/Christmas

4. Decide Your Preferred Budget Type

Once all this has happened, it's time for our fourth budgeting advice tip. Here, you need to figure out what type of budget makes sense for your lifestyle.

The main budget types are as follows:

• 50-30-20 Budget — In this budget, 50% of your income goes toward needs (food, rent, etc.), 30% goes toward wants (entertainment, trips, etc.), and 20% goes toward savings. This gives you loads of flexibility, but you may still end up spending irresponsibly.
• Zero-based Budget — This style consists of making your income minus your outgoings equal zero. In this case, each dollar is assigned a task. It can be restrictive, but it ensures you meet your goals.

5. Always Hold Yourself Accountable

Our final bit of budgeting advice involves making yourself accountable — always. While you're probably disciplined enough to do it, here are some approaches to help you out:

• Envelopes — You need to put cash in an envelope for each spending category. You can only spend money from the correct envelope. Once the envelope is empty, that's it for the month.
• Automation — Putting bills on auto-pay ensures you never miss a payment.

Emergency? Take Out Louisiana Payday Loans

Unfortunately, no one can predict when emergencies strike. And the chances of something happening while you're taking our budgeting advice are relatively high.

But don't lose hope.

Louisiana payday loans are always here for you when you need to pay medical bills, fund urgent travel costs, or make necessary home repairs.

What Are Payday Loans?

They are a type of financial aid that allows you to borrow between $100 and $300 to fund emergencies. The best part: all credit scores are welcome. You shouldn't be punished for past money problems, so we've ensured you can still borrow cash when you need it most.

How to Get Louisiana Payday Loans

The application process is quick and easy if you apply with Cash Cow in Louisiana; it will be over in as little as 30 minutes if you follow these steps:

1. Fill out a short inquiry form on our website or give us a call.
2. Wait for one of our friendly loan representatives to call you back once you've submitted your information. They'll discuss the rest of the process.
3. Head to your nearest storefront with your state-issued ID, most recent paystub, and a blank check from your checking account.
4. Relax while one of our loan specialists walks you through the documents and examines your paperwork.
5. Once you're approved for our Louisiana payday loans, you'll receive your money on the same day!

Begin Today!

Taking our budgeting advice will be the best thing you d\o all year. But if emergency strikes, you know you can always take out Louisiana payday loans. Get started right away by filling out an online form on our website.

Need a bigger amount for your emergency? Try pawning a title for cash to get up to $1,400 with Cash Cow in Louisiana.

Note: The content provided in this article is only for informational purposes, and you should contact your financial advisor about your specific financial situation.