You have worked through your monthly household budget. You have been tracking on paper what you spend each day or saving your receipts and tallying them up methodically. After tracking your spending for several months you now have a good sense of what your cash flow needs are.
The hard work of compiling the numbers and getting a sense of your spending can be a tedious process. Yet it is important to take the time to really dig and see where your money is going. If you know where your money is going it allows you the freedom to decide how to spend it.
Perhaps you have been thinking about easier ways to track your spending going forward. It is simple to say that now that you know where your money is going that you do not need to continue to monitor your spending. Remember that tracking your spending should continue. Situations adjust and spending changes so it is important to keep your numbers up to date. Continuing to track your spending also helps to keep overspending in check.
Using technology to keep track of your spending makes the process much easier. If you use software such as the popular Quicken it can help you to keep track of your investments as well as making tax time much easier by having all your financial information in one place. You can download your data from your bank, credit card and investment accounts so you do not have to enter the information manually.
One easy website that helps make tracking your budget almost effortless is Mint.com. This free online service downloads and categorizes your transactions automatically daily. It downloads bank accounts, credit cards and investment accounts. You can access your accounts on the web and even from your phone.
Mint.com helps you to automatically set up monthly budgets and even irregular one-time expenses. They will also send emails notifying you if you are over budget in a category or if there is unusual spending in one of your accounts. This automated service can help you keep on top of your spending with minimal effort.
Now that you have a sense of your spending look for ways to make the budgeting process automatic and ongoing. Making the process easier means it is more likely to continue.
