Common Cents Budgeting Tips

June 2004

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In This Month's Issue
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Inspiration for the Month
From The Budget Coach
Featured Tips or Information How Your Spending Compares To Others
Your Question for the Day
Special Offer of the Month
Recommended Resources
Contact/General & Unsubscribe Info

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Inspiration for the Month
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'Donít delay your own prosperity by being resentful or jealous that someone else has more than you...Each person is under the law of his or her own consciousness. Just take care of your own thoughts. Bless anotherís good fortune, and know there is plenty for all.' --Louise L. Hay

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From The Budget Coach
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Greetings,

Welcome to my 'Common Cents Budgeting Tips' Newsletter.

I'm delighted to have the opportunity to share these tips with you. Remember, you are a vital part of this whole exchange and if you ever have questions or some valuable experience or resource you want to share with others, please don't hesitate to let me know.

Many of the new sections that were added to The Budget Kit workbook over the various revisions these last many years, came from insightful readers and clients like you who wanted to help make a difference.

'Common Cents Budgeting Tips' is published monthly. The focus of this monthly newsletter is to provide you with some quick money management tips and ideas you can immediately begin to use. I may go bi-weekly and add a second issue soon to touch on the personal side of money and budgets.

Remember to email me judycents@moneytracker.com with any tips, resources or comments you would like to share as well as any questions. Working together is how we can all make a difference in our financial lives.

I am offering a complimentary 30 minute coaching session with me.

I would love to hear how you are doing and help in anyway I can. For your free session, email me with 'Time Slot Request' in the subject area.

Have a fulfilling and prosperous day!

To Your Success,

Judy Lawrence
Personal Budget Coach
Best-selling Author, The Budget Kit, 4th Edition
judycents@moneytracker.com
http://www.moneytracker.com

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Featured Tips or Information ìHow Your Spending Compares to Othersî ======================================

Every wonder how your spending compares to everyone else? I know people are always curious and continue to ask me how much other people spend. So, to satisfy this curiosity, listed below are some percentage guidelines for various categories as well as summaries of average annual spending amounts.

These average spending figures were taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics latest figures for 2002.
The spending guideline percentages were summarized from various sources.

Average American Spending in 2002 was $40,677
Average Income Before Taxes in 2002 was $49,433

Category Guideline Average Spent

Housing 31.8% $13,283
Food 15.6% $5,375
Transportation 17.6% $7,759
Gasoline(The 'good ole days') $1,235 Entertainment 5.6% $2,079
Clothing amp; Services 7.1% $1,749
Health Care 4.6% $2,350

Personally, I recommend you view these comparison figures as very general guidelines only. There really is no average family. The more significant figures are the ones you identify on your own. I encourage you to discover what your own true spending totals are for the various categories in your particular household. Remember, your figures may be quite different because of the variables, such as your own unique family needs and the various expenses for your region of the country. Think snow!

Reminder for the Math Challenged - If your math has gotten a little rusty and you're wondering how to figure out what your personal percentages are, here's the math. Take the TOTAL AMOUNT SPENT for a spending category and DIVIDE that number BY your NET INCOME. The answer you get will be the percentage number. For example, $5,400 (the Food Expense) divided by the Net Income of $42,000 will give you 12.8%. Remember to move your decimals over to the right 2 spaces.

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Your Question for the Day
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How long will I savor the pleasure of this purchase I made today?

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Special Offers for the Month
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FREE 'Budgeting Without Tears' e-Course

If you haven't already, sign up for my free e-course 'Budgeting Without Tears'.

You will receive a series of educational tips to help you get your finances in order and your budget plan started. Granted, you will not be supplied with all the worksheets, road maps and formulas that you get in The Budget Kit, but this will provide you with additional information that will prove to be very useful in getting started!

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Resources
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I've included some resources to help you learn more about spending guidelines and what other people spend.

On page 85 in The Budget Kit, I recommend the book Wake Up and Smell the Money by Ginger Applegarth with Leslie Whitaker (Penquin USA, 2000). You will find pages of charts showing detailed numbers of 'How Americans Spend and Save'.
After seeing this information in The Budget Kit, Kimberly from AZ emailed me with the following resource:

http://www.bls.gov Click on 'Consumer Expenditures'. Read the Report for whichever year you're interested in. Expenses are categorized by household size, income, region, education level, etc.

More Related Resources:

Report on 'Consumer Spending Patterns Differ by Region' http://www.bls.gov/opub/ils/pdf/opbils48.pdf

Another interesting look... (copy and paste if the address wraps)
http://www.clusterbigip1.claritas.com/eReports/Content/sampl
es/consspend03.pdf

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Books by Judy Lawrence
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Feel free to visit my Money Tracker website to learn more:

http://www.moneytracker.com/books.htm

The Budget Kit:Common Cents Money Management Workbook
The Money Tracker: Find the CASH to Get What You REALLY Want
Daily Riches: A Journal of Gratitude and Awareness
The Family Memory Book: Highlights of Our Times Together

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General, Contact & Unsubscribe Info
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