What people have to say about Judy’s
Budget Kit Workbook …
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Media Reviews
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“A foolproof way to organize and maintain a personal budget.” — Publisher’s Weekly
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“I recommend The Budget Kit over other budget books because it doesn’t just give you blank spaces to fill in. It really explains the hows and whys. Even if you’re already in debt it can help you pay off those debts when you know where the money is.” — Terry Savage, Huffington Post blogger & author of “the Savage Truth on Money”.
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“The Budget Kit” is a budgeting workbook that is truly usable” — Kiplinger’s Personal Finance
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“One of the most usable resources we’ve ever seen.” — Money magazine
Reader Testimonials
Thank you for the email. Your budget kit is the only system that works for me. This is the 2nd time I have used it when I agreed to do the bills in our 32 year marriage. We always have extra money due to the ability to plan and see where money is going. Thanks again for your wonderful product.
– Tina Berry
“This book makes organizing your finances very easy. It’s easy to understand and lets you create and keep records flawlessly. If you use it with a financial software product, it cannot be beat.” – Jesse Mitchell
“I have looked at a lot of systems for tracking money and this is definitely the best! The book is actually a whole money management system. You can use it to figure out your debt and create a get out of debt plan. You can use it to manage everyday spending and use it to plan for financial goals. I really loved how easy the worksheets are to get started using. The instructions walk you through the process.”
– Margery Ellsworth, Amazon Reviewer
“I have to tell you that I love your “Budget Kit” workbook which I have just recently purchased and look forward to putting it into action. Your workbook is the most thorough, form laden, and practical publication of its kind that I have ever seen. Thank you again. You are the very person to save the world.
– Joe Garrett Aeronautical – Engineer, Staff
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co.
“This book makes organizing your finances very easy. It’s easy to understand, and lets you create and keep records flawlessly. If you use it with a financial software product, it cannot be beat.”
– Jesse Mitchell Amazon Reviewer
“My wife and I have used your book “The Budget Kit” book for several years now and have become quite good at controlling our income and expenses using this wonderful book- thanks to you! Your budgeting techniques have revolutionized our financial lives and we are grateful to you, to say the least. Incidentally, we’re Dave Ramsey fans too, but we like your Budget Kit better than his.”
– Andrew Hardin
“Thank you again for the Budget kit, it literally saved my own financial life and gave me financial power. I use it along with a monthly planner I started using it in January of this year. I was able to cut 8 lines of credit into 4…”
– Sasha
“I recently picked up “The Budget Kit” at a bookstore, and saw hope that it may be possible to get a handle on our finances. I also ordered the Excel spreadsheets (as you know), and also your 7 week eCourse. Following the advice in the eCourse, we started tracking our monthly finances manually (i.e. on paper). After a few weeks of that, I decided to move to the spreadsheets instead. We’ve been trying to track our November expenses using them. We’ve found that it really helps to enter them on a daily basis, and not let the receipts pile up for too many days. I love the set of worksheets, and the way they provide a practical and comprehensive financial picture/record.”
– Jeff Lowe, Software Developer
“You can bet on that feedback! This is the only budgeting system my head can wrap around! Thank you again!”
– Moa Moe
“I love your book by the way, so helpful and easy to get tracking your money and saving it.”
– Kat K.
“I have struggled with budgeting for years, and this has been giving me a great sense of relief. Finally something that works! Overall I am very happy using both the book and the Excel program. The Reserve Savings has brought some peace of mind. Too often, when it was time for a gift I had not budgeted and so I either shopped under strain or skipped the occasion. I was happy to send someone a small gift from that account, without strain. Since using the book and Excel program I am becoming more careful and conscious of spending. I am getting a clearer idea of what I have to spend, so it is easier to say no to favorite temptations instead of relying on diminishing savings to cover my spending mistake”
– Christina
“I love the worksheets and am thrilled to have found your book! I work on budgets daily, but these (for personal use) are really wonderful. Thank you!”
– Karen C
“I just wanted to let you know how much your book changed the way I look at our money. In particular, the yearly budget made a HUGE impact on my thinking….it is amazing how much yearly expenses can increase your overall expenses and how planning out in advance can make such a difference. I absolutely love the Budget Kit book and have given it as gifts to friends as well as my mother who is now on a fixed income. I have been looking at different programs for quite some time to help with our family budget. Quicken, for example, has too many features and does not get down to the point: pay yourself, pay your expenses, save what is left over like your book does. Also, the other programs focus too much on assets already in your possession rather than focusing on acquiring the assets.
By the way, the spreadsheets are awesome! It is so much easier to work with on an electronic format than it is by hand. I also think that having the electronic versions will make compliance in entering the monthly expense records easier. Another thing I like is that it is much easier for me to make a “projected” budget in the future, yet still be able to make changes if needed without having to start over.”
– Jennifer Menniti, Esq.
“The most profound result of using your tracking system is discovering how many OLD IDEAS we had about our spending/income. We are retired, with a good fixed income (not spectacular, but better than average pension) which is randomly supplemented by both of our hobbies/ professions. After a lifetime of buying what we want/need within reason, but often impulsively, we have a lot of tired old ideas and a sense of long standing entitlement about how “we live” and what “we buy.” We had a mentality of instant gratification along with a mistaken and vague impression that we “knew” approximately what we had and how we could spend.
After just 2 1/2 months of accurate accounting we see clearly (and are surprised) to discover in what categories we:
1. spend impulsively
2. mistake wants for needs
3. actually have MORE resources than we imagined! (our poor spending habits left us perpetually feeling scarcity instead of stability and predictability)
4. realize that we have real CHOICES and are not victims of the economy or our circumstances Old ideas hit unexpectedly. Last week I spent a couple of days fighting off the impulse to buy patio furniture on credit! Seeing the numbers in front of me AND having a new sense of well-being kept me out of trouble. But I have many little epiphanies about how sloppy records perpetuate bad choices. Probably the most surprising lesson for me was to see that it really is the SMALL choices that drive the big financial picture. Thanks so much for your work! I would recommend your system to anyone.
– Margaret M.
“My husband and I really like the spreadsheets. We’ve been looking for something like this and had tried other programs/systems but yours seem to make the most sense to us. Yes, we are using the Yearly worksheet as well. But it is a work in process. I sure wish I had seen this system sooner perhaps we would not be in the sad shape we are in. Regardless of what happens I feel like we have something to help us manage our money for the future.”
– Torie C.
“I was checking online for a good book on budgeting and your book came up as a top choice. We have been fortunate to have done reasonably well financially but felt that we could do better by squeezing out lot of unnecessary expense and increase our savings. Trying to get our arms around building and sticking to a budget which is the missing link in our plans.
I am very excited to have found your book and the templates. Thank you so much for your offer to help, I will go over the material and reach out if I have any questions or need help.”
– Raj M.
“As we discussed, I have found your budget software to be really great. I have tried several in the past. However, I found your software and book to be outstanding!!”
– Larry Hensley
“We have just completed one month of following our finances with your Budget Kit spreadsheets in Excel. For us the Yearly Budget Worksheet was key and filled out first. We have so many expenses that pop up at different times of the year, and I had already been dividing up our savings account into separate “mini-accounts” to keep track of how much was saved for taxes, vacation money, etc. . .
By tying that in with the monthly budget and monthly expense worksheets, we were able to get a better idea of our spending this month, which was important, since we just started contributing to my husband’s 401k, and therefore had less income this month with the pre- tax deduction.” I really have to credit your worksheets for getting us into the budget mode and getting things started.
Months later…
I still use your Yearly Budget Worksheet and review this quarterly to make sure that we’re on track with the expenses that we can reasonably plan for. And we have a nicely padded emergency fund for the surprises. In addition, by following a budget, we have eliminated all debt except for home-related debt, and have been able to make extra payments to shorten these loans as well.
I hope that you are still influencing lots of other families to start taking charge of their finances by walking them through the steps to create their first budget.”
– Christine Row