Waffle
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Post by Waffle on Jan 15, 2011 21:02:12 GMT -5
If so, how?
I've noticed in another thread people talking about how much money they've spent so far this month. I think maybe it's just variable expenses but I'm not sure.
In addition to generally curiosity, I'm wondering if you think this is a necessary part of being frugal?
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Apple
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Post by Apple on Jan 15, 2011 21:07:45 GMT -5
I don't normally do it and don't think it's necessary to do so to be frugal. It can help to figure out where you are "bleeding" money and that can help you avoid it in the future. I think just being aware of what you're spending money on is good enough though, personally.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 15, 2011 21:07:59 GMT -5
I track just about everything in Quicken.
I just looked... and for 2010, I only have $130.00 unaccounted for.
It really helps to know exactly where your money goes!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 15, 2011 21:13:28 GMT -5
If so, how? I've noticed in another thread people talking about how much money they've spent so far this month. I think maybe it's just variable expenses but I'm not sure. In addition to generally curiosity, I'm wondering if you think this is a necessary part of being frugal? That's me and it is just my variable expenses. I am doing it to get back on track. I was spending recklessly and it was showing up on my bottom line.
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Waffle
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Post by Waffle on Jan 15, 2011 21:29:53 GMT -5
LuAnn, I am truly impressed.
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motherto2
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Post by motherto2 on Jan 15, 2011 21:39:54 GMT -5
I don't know if others are having trouble tonight, but I just got booted out, and have had my computer freeze whenever I try to post something.
Anyhow, I keep a handwritten budget (I didn't want it on the computer because kids could get to it) and I could take it with me to work on when I had time. I write down all the fixed bills, and all but the water bill are automatically withdrawn. I keep track of variables like food, gas, fun money, dog. I do have a freedom account that I put money in every payday that pays for irregular things like association dues, car expenses, unexpected, wants, etc. I've noticed when I keep up with my expenses, I don't tend to waste money. When I give it up for a couple of months I go haywire and can't account for where it went, and I start pulling out the cc.
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Jake 48
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Post by Jake 48 on Jan 15, 2011 21:54:04 GMT -5
My online banking lets me put everything in categories, can track 95% of my spending this way. I am frugal w/money, so not a lot of bills every month, so I know each week what is coming up.
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Waffle
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Post by Waffle on Jan 16, 2011 8:57:53 GMT -5
Jake - I love your Avatar!
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Post by suzwantstobefree on Jan 16, 2011 9:39:01 GMT -5
I track almost everything using mint.com. For me, it is necessary so that I can go back and look at where my money has gone and if I overspend I can easily see what I need to do to get back on track. It also has a budget on it and when it gets in the yellow zone, I know I have to be careful with that category.
I also have a "low tech" way of paying my bill - a checklist on a piece of paper in my checkbook. Whenever I get paid, I look at the list and pay the things that I need to.
When I don't track my spending, it is really easy for me to overspend.
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Sharon
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Post by Sharon on Jan 16, 2011 10:55:39 GMT -5
I have been tracking every penny for the last two years. This is the start of year three. It has helped me get my spending under control and I am finally making a dent in the credit cards. It also makes you think about what you are spending.
I am hoping that once things are under better control I will be able to just do periodic checks to make sure that I am keeping things under control rather than this day in day out tracking.
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Gardening Grandma
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Post by Gardening Grandma on Jan 16, 2011 12:38:21 GMT -5
I've been tracking our spending ever since DH started thinking about retiring. We cannot afford to spend more than we take in. He has a spending allowance that I don't track - it's his business how he spends it. I also have a spending allowance that is outside the budget (but I do track where it goes).
Tracking is a tool for me to know where the leaks are; a way to identify overspending on things that aren't really that much of a priority so that we will have enough for the things that are really important.
It's not really all that difficult nor time consuming, but it helps to be detail oriented - I use Quicken and we put most purchases on a rewards CC. DH gives me the receipts and they stay next to the computer until they've been entered. I can download transactions and tweak the categories if necessary.
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Post by writer88 on Jan 16, 2011 13:03:33 GMT -5
I've been tracking all of my spending ever since I joined the WIR Racers. I use Excel. Originally, I tracked according to general categories, until I realized that I needed to break those main categories (such as food) into their individual components (Food= grocery store + health foods + bakery + fun foods).
Then I started accounting for all my income. A few more months down the road I added in a bank transactions list because I wanted to "dry-run" different debt-payoff scenarios before choosing the ones that were right for me. Then last year I started tracking percentages for my Big 3 expenses (food, debt repayments, car) because I was interested to see my progress over the long term. Recently I've started using the spreadsheets to estimate/plan for known expenses coming due one - four months down the road because I never, ever want to be caught unprepared ever again.
Important note: Make sure your categories are right for YOU.
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❤ mollymouser ❤
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Post by ❤ mollymouser ❤ on Jan 16, 2011 13:52:59 GMT -5
I monitor my spending, but I can't say that I track it with some sort of system or program. But I'm freakishly detail-oriented and I monitor (daily) my power usage/power bill, and check the credit card balance (we pretty much put everything on the credit card and pay it off several times a month, on paydays), and I know where my cash goes, as well.
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rubyslippers
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Post by rubyslippers on Jan 16, 2011 15:07:16 GMT -5
I track what I spend and save using coupons and that's almost everything I spend money on with the exception of monthly bills. I also have all my different savings' accounts there too, divided by categories. I keep track of my rebates, coin savings and savings deposits all in one place. Like Molly, I'm detailed too. I do a monthly chart of all the savings I've accumulated throughout the year. I like to look at it and project where we could be financially a few months down the road. I'll tell DH that by June we'll have X amount saved for his new vehicle.
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Apple
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Post by Apple on Jan 16, 2011 15:44:08 GMT -5
Wow, you all are much more "careful" with tracking than I am. I just check my account once a month to make sure charges are correct, glance at my credit card statement every month (found out last month a company tried to charge me for three magazine subscriptions at $33 each, I pay it off in full every month and I always know about what I should see for it. This time the total seemed off so I checked it closer). But, I'm pretty happy with how I spend now that that's enough--since the total is very sparse (and I don't have anyone else spending my money since I'm single).
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vonnie6200
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Post by vonnie6200 on Jan 16, 2011 16:08:16 GMT -5
I monitor my spending, but I can't say that I track it with some sort of system or program. But I'm freakishly detail-oriented and I monitor (daily) my power usage/power bill, and check the credit card balance (we pretty much put everything on the credit card and pay it off several times a month, on paydays), and I know where my cash goes, as well. How do you monitor your power usage?
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Post by bobbysgirl on Jan 16, 2011 17:21:56 GMT -5
I tell myself I'm going to, but I never follow through. My budget is simple. I take a set amount each week for food, gas and whatever else I want, then if I don't use it, I put it in savings. So I know my savings, but not my spending. (other than fixed bills like heat etc)
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Post by tiredboomer on Jan 16, 2011 19:02:47 GMT -5
I use Quicken so I can track many catagories with that. I don't tend to track the cash we use. Last year we had one month in which we wrote down every bit of cash that we spent. There were a couple of surprises so we cut down on those items, but everything else was good.
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jan 16, 2011 19:27:46 GMT -5
Nope, I don't track it all. I always try to spend as little as I can for the things that we buy. We don't have to worry about leakage because we don't spend little bits of money here or there.
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museumgal
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Post by museumgal on Jan 16, 2011 23:10:12 GMT -5
I use an Excel spread sheet budget -- one with the budget for the month and one with what I've spent so far. I update the "spent" one daily. Hopefully they match at the end of the month! One catagory might be more (like say, gas) and one might be less (food) but the overall amount is usually close. Any overall surplus goes to the emergency fund.
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dcmetrocrab
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Post by dcmetrocrab on Jan 17, 2011 0:09:25 GMT -5
I do, but I let My Portfolio in Bank of American online (powered by Yodlee, same as Mint) do all the heavy lifting. It works because I don't use cash. I don't feel it's necessary to be frugal and it can be overwhelming/a chore if you don't naturally swing that way. I DO think it's necessary to do so for 1-3 months if you're just starting out with a budget and want to keep track of where your problem areas are.
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Post by westerngal on Jan 17, 2011 12:52:55 GMT -5
I have set a goal this year to try and track everything I spend. I do it by hand in a notebook, but copied off some budgeting forms from Dave Ramsay's page. I hope I can stay at it. I will pay off a couple of loans this year.
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Waffle
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Post by Waffle on Jan 17, 2011 13:11:03 GMT -5
Thanks for all of the ideas. I think it would definitely be helpful for me to do tracking for at least a month. Hopefully, once I get a system in place, I'll want to stick with it.
I know I eat less when I write down everything I eat, maybe it will work with money too.
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Post by toservewithlove on Jan 17, 2011 18:02:47 GMT -5
My one New Year's Resolution/Goal was to begin tracking my spending. As much as I've loved reading about personal finance and smart spending, it's not something I've been good at doing lately and my lack of aweness/accountability has definately affected my current financial state. I am happy to report that I am up to date on my tracking. I just paid my bills online that are due to come out of the paycheck I received Friday. I am keeping things simple right now and just writing everything down. I prefer to use my debit card instead of cash and that helps me have another record incase I do forget to write something down. It was humbling to add up the amount of money I've already spent on food this month, especially eating out.
Good luck!
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Jan 17, 2011 18:34:11 GMT -5
I track everything. I don't know if it's necessary, but 1) I am incredibly anal-retentive and 2) I've done budgets and financial analysis for a living for a long time and it's in my blood now to know where $$$ is going and why.
Lena
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pepperdoo
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Post by pepperdoo on Jan 17, 2011 18:35:47 GMT -5
Yes, definitely. Use the old fashioned notebook and pen I keep on the counter, and keep a running total at all times. I started this, because when Paul passed on, I have had the attention span of a gnat, and was forgetting a lot of things. It helped to keep things in focus and brought back a bit of discipline and order.
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Post by kygirl on Jan 17, 2011 20:09:44 GMT -5
I check my bank account every day to ensure that it's what it should be. I also use Quicken, but I'm kind of bad about remembering to do it, so when I finally remember, it takes awhile.
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Apple
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Post by Apple on Jan 17, 2011 20:28:47 GMT -5
I monitor my spending, but I can't say that I track it with some sort of system or program. But I'm freakishly detail-oriented and I monitor (daily) my power usage/power bill, and check the credit card balance (we pretty much put everything on the credit card and pay it off several times a month, on paydays), and I know where my cash goes, as well. How do you monitor your power usage? I'm not sure how Molly does it, but I'm sure you could check your meter every day (at approx the same time) with notes about what you used for how long to get an idea (oven on for __ hours, ran drier for ___ hours, etc). There is also a device called kill-a-watt that is supposed to meter how much electricity you use for something you plug into it, but none of it is worth tracking for me...
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museumgal
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Post by museumgal on Jan 17, 2011 23:34:24 GMT -5
One thing we do is keep $50 a month in a "misc" fund, so if we have something extra that comes up or we spend a little more on food we don't have to be "we went over our budget".... it gives us a little leeway so we're not constantly freaking out if we go over $5 on a catagory, we have a little padding. It keeps us sane.
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coffeegrl
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Post by coffeegrl on Jan 18, 2011 15:51:58 GMT -5
Not currently, but I am going to begin February 1. Gonna do it the old fashioned pen 'n paper way. After a couple months of recording, I hope to go to the envelope system and use mainly cash for purchases. That way, I'll have a pretty good idea of how much I need. Plus, I can look at the months I recorded and say, "Ok, do I REALLY need this much for groceries, or did I buy stuff I could do without?"
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