popular budget strategies

A budgeting plan refers to a strategy that helps you manage your finances effectively. Here are some of the most popular budgeting plans and how they work:

50-30-20 Budgeting
The 50/30/20 budget: This plan suggests that you allocate 50% of your income to necessities like rent, food, and bills, 30% to discretionary spending such as entertainment and hobbies, and 20% towards savings and debt repayment.

• 50% Non-Negotiable Needs
  • Housing (mortgage/ rent)
  • Groceries
  • Utility Bills
  • Minimum Loan Payments (includes credit cards)
• 30% Wants
  • Dining out
  • Entertainment
  • Travel
• 20% Savings
  • Emergency Savings
  • Retirement 
  • Debt Repayment (payments that exceed the minimum required amounts)

Pros: Allows room for wants and personal enjoyment.
Cons: Only requiring minimum payments on loans extends the life of your debt, costing you more in the long run. 

Envelope System
This involves allocating cash for different expenses into separate envelopes, such as rent, groceries, and entertainment. Once an envelope is empty, you cannot spend any more money on that category until next month. If you have remaining funds at the end of the month you can

• Roll the funds into the same envelope for the next month
• Transfer the remaining funds to a different envelope
• Put the remaining funds into a savings for a later date

If you find certain envelopes empty consistently before months end, you may need to make adjustments for the next month. 

Pros: This method is very visual and tangible. Seeing an empty envelope can be eye opening, while having cash leftover at the end of the month can be motivational.
Cons: Cash outside of a savings or checking account is NOT insured. If you misplace cash, it’s gone. 

Zero-Based Budgeting
This plan requires you to account for every dollar you earn, assign it to a specific expense or savings goal, and ensure that your income minus expenses equals zero. The main categories are typically food, housing, utilities, and transportation. Other common categories include debt repayment, other bills, savings, entertainment, and miscellaneous.

Pros: You have an in depth understanding of exactly where your money goes each month. 
Cons: The process of tracking, categorizing and balancing is much more labor intensive and complicated using this method.


Pay Yourself First
This approach prioritizes your savings. At the beginning of the month, you will transfer a predetermined amount into your savings account, or accounts depending on how you divvy up your savings. What’s leftover is your money to “spend” on bills and other monthly expenses. 

Pros: Less constraints and more flexibility for monthly expenses.
Cons: The lack of structure can make it harder to track spending. This is not an ideal budgeting method for someone with high-interest debt. 

By choosing a budgeting plan that works for you, you can gain control over your finances and achieve your financial goals.

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