Starting out as a married couple often means going through
some tight times. In this case, it may be a good idea to
create a good budget that works. It is actually very simple
to do, even simpler if you have a joint bank account.
In fact, if you sit down to make a budget before the actual
marriage preparations begin, you will likely succeed in
lowering your wedding cost. More importantly, you will establish
good communication with your spouse along with a realistic
money management plan.
Creating a budget is actually very simple:
1. Gather all your records of expenditures (checkbook,
credit card statement, etc).
2. Open a spreadsheet or graph and assign a category to
each column.
3. Record each expense under its corresponding column.
4. Calculate and record a total for each column.
5. Add all the column totals.
6. Compare that number with your income.
7. Revise your expenses and prioritize them.
8. Eliminate those expenditures that are low on the priority
list.
9. Don’t forget to budget 10 percent of your income
for savings.
You see, it’s not all that scary. More importantly,
if you create a budget together, you will eventually see
your money grow, especially if you transfer a portion of
your income into a savings account.
