im having trouble keeping a budget... i need some help any wesites out there ???

Answer 1

The reason you may not be able to keep your budget is that you are making/planning a budget you can't live with. The problem have with budgets is that people assume budgets are all about denial. Denying yourself luxuries; no it's not about denying yourself luxuries, which is why you probably can't stick to your budget.

What you should do is keep track of your regular spending for a month without changing your lifestyle. After month review your spending list and then build a budget you can live with while minimizing frivolous spending.

For instance, if you are spending are now buying 5 cups of capuccino per day, rather than limit this luxury you could reduce your spending to 2 cups of capuccino per day. In other words, do not eliminate or deny yourself the things you like, just spend less on them. This way you will be able to construct a budget you can live with and can stick to. Consult a financial planner, they can usually help people construct a budget they an actually follow and live with.

In a nutshell, a budget is not about denying yourself thing, but about constructing a financial plan you can live with, a plan that elps you spend your money wisely and helps ou eliminate frivolous spending. It helps you track/monitor your spending habits, not about making your lifestyle sub-standard.

Answer 2

I wrote an application to solve my own budgeting issues since nothing existing did what I wanted. It lets you enter your expenses in a calendar format and plan ahead for purchases and for balances in your bank account. Its much better than the standard biweekly or monthly budget, which tell you nothing about a given day when you go to make purchases.
Give it a try. I'd love to hear feedback also.

Answer 3

Budgets are tough too keep. (Learned that the hard way with experience myself.) I don't have any good websites to offer, but I do have some tips:

* Take a piece of paper or a spreadsheet program on your computer. (The advantage of the spreadsheet is you can manipulate your numbers with greater ease. Microsoft Excel works really well for this, but thats just the one I use. Others will work equally well, I'm sure.)

* record each of your regular monthly expenses in two columns. Things like rent, mortgage payment, car payment, telephone and internet services and utilities, credit card payments (hopefully, you are paying more than the minimum payments!) and any other regular monthly payment which is roughly the same from month to month. The first column should list the expense by name, and the second should list the expense by amount. Some of these might vary slightly from month to month, but give a close estimate if that is possible.

* total these expenses. That is your base budget. At the end of the month, you want to have more money left over from your paychecks than you have expenses to cover.

* Now the hard part: Its okay to add on additional expenses, but only if you know you will be able to afford to pay for them at the end of the month. Its so easy to splurge (been there, and done that) but you really do need to not let temptation get the better of you. I've been wanting to get DSL service for my internet connection for over 4 years now, but my budget simply hasn't allowed me to afford to do it, so I haven't done it.

Thats "the basics". Sometimes, it simply helps to see all of this stuff on paper (or on the computer screen, if you've done it that way). Now for some extra tips, consider opening up a savings account. This works a lot better if you put money into your savings account on a regular basis, and it works even better if it takes some time to get the money out of the savings account. As a compulsive gambler myself, I can attest to the value of having this type of account. I use ING Direct ( http://www.ingdirect.com ) which requires a linked checking account so that you can send and receive money via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) to and from your checking account. It typically takes 2 to 3 business days for a funds transfer to go through to your linked checking account. You'll have to experiment with this yourself to find out exactly how long it can take for you. For a long time, I was paying most of my bills directly out of this account on a monthly basis. Many companies will allow you to debit funds from such accounts directly. Keep in mind, though, that as this is an interest baring savings account, you are limited to no more than 6 withdrawals on a monthly basis. If you exceed that number of withdrawals on a regular basis, they could close your account on you.

I hope this helps.

Answer 4

Check out Dave Ramsey's "Total Money Makeover". I can't even begin to say how much his book and information has helped me not only become completely debt free, but make and stick to a monthly budget. Within 13 months I have managed to wipe out just over $28,000 in debt including my motorcycle and my primary vehicle. Just to let you know, Dave's website looks like a bunch of propaganda, but the information within is and was a financial lifesaver for me!

Answer 5

I use an Excel spreadsheet. It's clear, concise, and easy to use/update. I'm more than happy to forward you a copy if you're interested. Just email me!

Answer 6

What about the Quicken software?

Answer 7

A buddy of mine recommends http://www.aidfinancial.net

Answer 8

you can take a peack at this site:

hope it helps