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Budget & Savings

A budget is your financial compass. If you’ve never budgeted before, or if caregiving has altered your financial situation, building a budget can help you navigate choices and challenges ahead.

Importance of Budgeting

Shawn Moore shares firsthand experience of how budgeting brings control to the unpredictable financial challenges of caregivers’ daily lives. She recommends finding the budgeting method that works best for you. “It doesn’t matter how you budget. It just matters that you do it.”

Your budget should focus on essential expenses and put you on the path toward achieving meaningful goals like debt reduction, emergency savings, or home ownership. A budget can help you:

Manage Your Money

Determine how to use your money every month
Identify and avoid unnecessary spending
Feel empowered about your money situation

Plan for Financial Goals

Save for a major purchase like a vehicle or vacation
Pay off debt
Boost your financial confidence

Save for Emergencies

Pay for unexpected expenses.
Prepare for extra medical costs
Reduce financial stress

How to Build a Budget in 4 Steps

There are many budgeting methods out there, from mobile apps and spreadsheets to simply putting pencil to paper. There’s no right or wrong answer – find a method that works best for you and stick to it. A simple place to start is the Build Your Budget worksheet, which will walk you through these steps:

Know your inflows (money coming in) and outflows (expenses going out). Review your previous month’s banking or credit card statements or save and analyze receipts for the next 30 days to establish your baseline.

Consider these guidelines as you’re analyzing your money:

Save 10-15% of pretax income toward your emergency fund or retirement savings
Keep transportation expenses less than 15-20% of your pretax income
Limit housing expenses to 25% or less of your pretax income

Build a plan that meets your current needs and any anticipated expenses like medical expenses and/or accommodations.

Budgeting is not a one and done exercise. As your situation changes, so should your budget.

Check Your Budget Baseline Calculator

Calculator The Check Your Budget Baseline online tool can provide a quick snapshot of where you are right now and help you identify areas for adjustment.