By 2 Cents on October 4th, 2010 | Category: Planning | Success is getting what you want; happiness is wanting what you get.
~Author Unknown
If you’re new to Balance Junkie, I outlined our annual financial plan for 2010 back in January. I update the plan each quarter so that readers can have an idea of how one family handles their finances. I don’t claim that the way we do it is the right way, but offer it as a sample for beginners who may not know where to start. I also use it as a way to make sure I actually review our finances every quarter!
Budgets and financial plans should be as unique as the lives that define them. Our life has included some very fortunate years followed by a recent period of tumult. Things have settled down and Mr. Cents likes his new job. Still, as I mentioned last quarter, we continue to worry [...]
Read on and enjoy … 2010 Financial Plan: Q3 Update
By 2 Cents on October 1st, 2010 | Category: 20 Cents | Another month has passed all too quickly and it’s time to round up a few of my favourite articles from September. How quickly 2010 is slipping away! It seems like just yesterday I was writing up a few ideas on 2010 What Ifs for the New Year. Now it’s time to start thinking about what 2011 might hold!
I read a lot of great articles everyday. I can’t include all of them here, but I usually highlight them on Twitter. You can follow me @BalanceJunkie.
1. Canadian Finance Blog has recently launched Money Index, a website that aggregates all kinds of financial content for you. It’s a great resource for anyone interested in personal finance and investing. I’ve added a widget to get you there on the right sidebar. In case you’re interested, you can find Balance [...]
Read on and enjoy … 20 Cents from September 2010
By 2 Cents on February 23rd, 2010 | Category: Debt | No man’s credit is as good as his money.
~ E.W. Howe
Update: This post is included in the March 1st, 2010 Carnival of Debt Reduction. Thank you!
When we take on debt, we’re essentially borrowing from our future earnings in order to have the things we want right now. There’s a cost for that. It’s called interest and it can exact quite a toll on the balance sheet. I’m always writing about how you need to do the math in order to make good financial decisions, so I thought I would give a few examples here of how much various types of debt can cost over time.
In general, there are 3 main types of personal debt that we tend to incur: mortgage, vehicle, and credit card loans. Each carries with it a unique cost structure that’s worth looking at. The chart [...]
Read on and enjoy … The Cost of Debt: Doing the Math
By 2 Cents on February 22nd, 2010 | Category: Debt | He looks the whole world in the face for he owes not any man.
~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
I’ve been writing a lot about sovereign debt and the dangers it poses to the global economy lately. Debt in general is a frequent topic in the personal finance blogosphere and it is often painted as the enemy – a nefarious villain, evil incarnate.
I happen to agree with the contingent that says that there is no such thing as good debt. That doesn’t mean you can’t ever have debt. It just means that you need to control it so that it can’t control you.
Debt, by its very definition, is negative. It means below par, under water, less than zero. On your balance sheet, it’s a liability. Liability is defined as “the state of being legally obliged and responsible” or [...]
Read on and enjoy … The Lexicon of Debt: Is Debt Evil?
By 2 Cents on January 21st, 2010 | Category: Giving | To give and then not feel that one has given is the best of all ways of giving.
~ Max Beerbohm
Giving is something that most of us like to do. We love to buy great gifts for our loved ones, and we want to support charitable institutions that are close to our hearts. But sometimes when we look at our budget, there just doesn’t seem to be anything left over, or we forget to include giving altogether.
When an occasion to give comes up, it can be a real budget-buster, and may even force us to take on unplanned debt. We’ve been talking about budgeting a lot lately, and the crisis in Haiti has put giving on our minds, so I thought I might go over some ways to incorporate giving – without breaking the budget.
Pay It Forward First
Giving: How to Budget for It
By 2 Cents on January 20th, 2010 | Category: Budgets | There is no one giant step that does it. It’s a lot of little steps.
~ Peter A. Cohen
Update: 6 Remedies for a Debt Hangover is mentioned in today’s Money Hacks Carnival #100 @ The Ultimate Money Blog. Thanks Mrs. Money!
Over the past 2 years, I have had to rework our budget a half a dozen times or so, in addition to running various budget scenarios for potential job changes. So this stuff is pretty fresh for me. For what it’s worth, this post describes how I handle our budget. I don’t decide on percentage allocations up front. This might work for someone just starting out, but most of us have spending commitments that are well-entrenched. Rather, I start by looking at our net income and all of our expenses in detail.
Tools of the Trade
Quicken: I use [...]
Read on and enjoy … How to Make a Budget: My 2 Cents
By 2 Cents on January 19th, 2010 | Category: Budgets | The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are.
~ John Pierpont Morgan (Yep, it’s that J.P. Morgan)
Update: This post is included in the Money Hacks Carnival #102 at Passive Income Now. It’s also in the carnival Personal Finance: Third Edition. Thanks!
A lot of people hate the idea of budgeting. They say it’s too constraining. They need more flexibility. I’m not going to lie to you and say I love working on the budget. But I do love it when it’s done. And I love it when an expense pops up and I don’t have to get stressed out about it because our emergency fund covers it. I love it when my kids ask for something and I can tell them definitively whether or not we can afford it and [...]
Read on and enjoy … How to Make a Budget: Your One-Stop Shop
By 2 Cents on January 18th, 2010 | Category: Budgets | Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm .
~ Winston Churchill
There is no single right way to make a budget. Like most other aspects of personal finance and life we just need to figure out how to make the one that works best for us. Usually, this will mean trying a bunch of different things before arriving at the one that suits us the most. The only thing that is certain is that we do need some type of budget. The key is not to give up after the first few tries. Persistence pays. Here are 5 factors to think about as you prepare your budget:
1. Your Income Structure
The way in which money comes into your income statement is critical for planning cash flow. Here are some [...]
Read on and enjoy … Your Budget: 5 Factors That Will Determine What It Looks Like
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