How to be a better manager of your Finances
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According to the latest Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit, total household debt rose by $313 billion (2.1 percent) to reach $14.96 trillion in the second quarter of 2021 (newyorkfed.org). With the pandemic, it’s been hard for many individuals and families to budget and to not go into debt. Sometimes for students and others alike going into debt is unavoidable. So, what can you do if you find yourself in a debt situation? There are many options out there, but one of them is to start a budget and the other is work with a company to deal with the debt you have.
Sometimes a word like budgeting makes people cringe, but it can be an easy process if you have the right tools and resources. So, what is budgeting? “Budgeting is the process of creating a plan to spend your money. This spending plan is called a budget. Creating this spending plan allows you to determine in advance whether you will have enough money to do the things you need to do or would like to do,” (My Money Coach, 2020). Sometimes you just don’t have enough budget to do everything you love, so you have to create a planning process to prioritize your spending and focus on your money on the items you find important.
So why is budgeting so important? It’s all about making a plan to make sure that you have money for the things you do need. Following this plan helps you stay out of debt and for those in debt, it may help them get out of it. Budgeting is about balancing your income with your expenses. For some, they spend more than they make and that frankly can be dangerous and lead to massive debt.
What can be helpful to create a budget and keep things on track? With the invention of technology there are many applications that help create a budget based on your account and tracks your expenses. “Personal-finance programs or websites like Quicken and Mint.com offer built-in budgeting tools that can create your budget for you. Every time you make a deposit, write a check, pay a credit card bill or dispatch an electronic payment, you can assign it to a particular category, like “salary,” “clothing,” “groceries,” “childcare” or “health insurance.” Some programs will allow you to download your payments and deposits directly from the bank, rather than having to enter them by hand,” (CNN). Some people will find this helpful, while others may find this hard to do.
Those who are deep into debt, they may find that working for a company is the right way to help them to get things together. Many places locally and online have programs, resources, and tools that will help a person in debt find some peace with their finances. A little bit of research online is what you need to find the perfect place to work with. It’s not an easy road for everyone, but people should know that there are programs out there that will help them take control of their debt!