Tips for Expense Tracking & Establishing an Effective Budget

Budgeting can be boring difficult to stick to, but establishing one is the basic foundation of personal finance. Think about it: How can you save money each month if you don't know the ins and outs of your spending habits? To set a budget, start tracking your expenses. You can write down all of your expenditures - from a pack of gum to your monthly rent - that's tedious, but still effective. Or you might want to use your smartphone to take pictures of a receipt after making a purchase. There are plenty of apps to help you with that. Regardless, it's important to know exactly how much money you spend each month and where. Once you figure out your monthly expenses, you can begin to cut costs slowly. Budgeting and expense tracking allows you to visually see where your money is going each month. That's key to getting your finances on track.