Household budget

• Combine trips for shop- ping, entertainment • Consider car pooling. • Get car serviced regular- ly for better mileage. • Buy air tickets online. • Book taxis online. YOUR MONTHLY V EXPENSE A Learn & Keep 18 The Economic Times Wealth, April 9-15, 2012 ANEY TIPS Car loan EMI Car insurance SAVING POTENTIAL Fuel costs 10-15% Education YOUR MONTHLY EXPENSE Routine maintenance SAVING POTENTIAL School/college fees YOUR HOUSEHOLD BUDGET Repairs 5-10% Books and stationary Air travel Tuition charges Taxi and car rental Uniforms and accessories Public transportation Transportations TOTAL Miscellaneous charges TOTAL • Give tuition at home if possible. Clothing and furnishing SAV • Car pool with other par- ents if dropping child to school. TIPS YOUR MONTHLY EXPENSE Clothes and apparel Soft furnishings Dry cleaning SAVING POTENTIAL Appliances and gadgets Furniture 25-30% Budgeting does not mean cutting down on expenses. It merely helps you spend according to your plan. Use the worksheet below to track your monthly expenses. It will help you identify where you are overspending and need to cut down. Miscellaneous Provisions and TOTAL Entertainment personal care YOUR MONTHLY EXPENSE • Shop for garments during sales. • Buy gadgets online. • Consider used furniture • Go for smaller brands YOUR MONTHLY EXPENSE Cable/satellite TV MONEY SAVING TIPS Groceries Movies and theatre Fruits and vegetables DVDS and CDs Personal care expenses Dining out Life insurance Parties at home Health insurance Miscellaneous SAVING POTENTIAL Wages of sweeper, household help TOTAL Match the allocation with the actual expenses under the same heads. Use an 5-10% TOTAL • Choose basic satellite TV plan. 602 average of at least three months' actual expenses. This allows for monthly fluctuations • Go for annual payment dis- • Buy in bulk to avoid fre- quent trips. MON • Buy only as much as you can store in fridge. • Use smaller packs of MONEY SAVNG TIPS Review the heads that counts. have deficit or surplus for more than three consecutive months. • Use coupons, discounts when eating out. • Rent DVDS, CDs instead of buying. TIPS SAVING POTENTIAL 20-30% Make an products you use rarely. approximate allocation to the 7 • Buy insurance online for discounts. HOW TO USE THE WORKSHEET different heads of expenses. There is no ideal allocation as it depends on spending priorities of your family. Change in spending priorities and amount of current and future savings may become necessary after a few reviews. Communication Housing and utilities YOUR MONTHLY EXPENSE YOUR MONTHLY EXPENSE Internet 59% have Home loan EMI or rent SAVING POTENTIAL Mobile phone down- sized their Maintenance charges 15-20% 38% have Landline Home insurance SAVING POTENTIAL cut down Courier charges vacation Electricity bill 10-20% on Postage plans 49% are economiz- Cooking gas expenses on auto- mobiles Miscellaneous Water bill 72% ing on TOTAL Miscellaneous house- 65% are home TOTAL holds have cut spending less on • Bundle phone, TV and internet with one operator. applianc- es • Use energy saving lamps • Monitor power usage and control wasteful use. MONEY SAVNG TIPS • Switch off modem when down on clothing not in use. eating out MONEY SAVING • Analyse usage before choosing a plan. • Shift to prepaid cell phone plan if usage is low. 32% have How Indians are budgeting TIPS • Check water leakage from faucets, pipes. shelved plans to buy real estate • Adopt fuel saving habits while cooking. THE ECONOMIC TIMES A recent Assocham survey of 500 people across nine cities indicates that more than 82% of households are feeling the pinch due to rising prices. Here is how they are coping: wealth Transportation WID