Budget?

I'm assuming you are including grocery shopping and fuel for the car in 'bills'? Well, at the end of last month I got a tax rebate so that put me in the 'just enough' category but, this month I have had to take 2 weeks sick leave so have missed out on weekend enhancements and the chance of overtime so that will put me back in the 'not enough' bracket when I next get paid.

I dont have enough income to pay the bills at this time,but since I have money in savings that's what we use. It's concerning though and I want to find a regular online job to defray costs. I dont spend alot of money. I usually shop at Aldi and dont really go out to dinner much anymore. Most of my money seems to go into the gas tank.

There are more and more people who are encountering financial problems. We are always told to tighten our belts. But that is easier said than done. In my case, I get to pay all my bills on time and still have extra money. I must admit though that it's getting more difficult to do this as time goes by. While it is important to remember our obligations, we should also think about other necessities.

As prices continue to rise on just about everything, you'll realize that many people are in the same situation that you're in...or about to be. This is what we did to get a better grip on our finances. Make a list of every single cent that you spend. Carry this list around with you and enter each time you spend money and what the expense is for. Take a look at the list at the end of each week and see what you might be able to cut out of your weekly expenses (things like buying coffee outside the house, buying lunch or a soda or 3, etc. can all be cut out of your weekly spending. I would keep track of daily expenses for at least 2 months. Other ways we've cut down on our expenses are... we have cell phones, so we drop our long distance cover on our home phone (along with all the "extras" like call-waiting) and we now pay around $14 a month for our land-line phone. During the day, we turn our air conditioner off in the summer (same with heat in the winter) We plan trips in the car to include running errands in the area we are going. Later today for instance, I'll be taking my boys to their Aunt's for the day, we'll also drop off their videos and books at the library and I'll make my trip to the Post office and stop at the grocery store on the way back to pick up the food we are going to need for the next few days. If you have children, visit the local library. Our library has events for children of all ages scheduled throughtout the summer. They're all free and my boys take out videos and books to keep them occupied. It beats going out to the store or Blockbuster and spending money. Plan on running any type of errands in the area, so you don't need to make several trips. Make money online! I have a handmade jewery store online and I make money with several free online programs. I get paid by many of them each month and the money I make pays for the internet bill and a few extras. Like one of the posts above already mentioned, it's time to tighten your financial belt. Watch where every penny goes, cut back on every single expense possible, do activities without having to use your car (board games, wiffle-ball games, etc)You don't have to be unhappy about cutting back. Our boys are having as much fun as they've had during any other summer...maybe even more fun and trying to not spend has sort of become a game for them. We've gone from a family that didn't make enough money to cover our bills, to a family that now has the money to pay the bills. Our income, other than online income, hasn't increased at all. But we are aware of our spending and getting smarter about trying to save each month. Good luck to you...I know you can do it!!!

Well...I have to say I'm in the position where in general the bills are paid and i have "extra" but then theres surprises like car repairs that set me back. However as i get my beef from my parents who raise cattle...steak is pretty cheap. Its things like chicken and pork i go omg you have to pay what for this???

Right now we fall into the Bills are paid and have a few extra category but, as the cost of everything continues to go up, it's getting tighter and tighter. My husband is on disability and I don't have overtime available unless I can explain why I stayed late so we're not in a position to increase our income by very much to compensate for the rising prices.

Our bills was over $2,000.00 a month, luckily we finally paid off our truck. We are lucky that my husband is in the guard, an extra 200 once a month. We have enough to pay the bills and have a little left over. When we get extras left over, we put it in our savings to build interest. Now if something pops up and it costs money, we are screwed. I'm hoping now that the dentist under our health plan will work with me on a payment plan when I take my kids to see them. Ugh, when are things going to get better. Won't be long we are going to have to take out a loan to get gas and food.

In our family we have enough to pay the bills and a little extra. I think the trick is to not get more bills then you can afford. I see so many people buying large houses and brand new cars then complaining about the bills. Sometimes what we want isnt really what we need.

steak? what's that? i fall into the not enough.so,i have learned to juggle like a madwoman,and take extra part time work when i can get it.our utilies keep voting themselves rasies,and the state is doing nothing to stop it.they just approved a ridiculous 22% raise at one time to power.

Well, shuffle the less important bills around and pay one one nonth and another one the next. If you have credit cards, call them and tell them you simply CAN NOT aford the interest rate you ahve and ask nice for them to lower your interest or get rid of it. They will usually be noce and work with you and..they would rather get OSME payment that none. CUT UP your credit cards then and never use them again. You need to learn to live IN CASH off what you make. What can you cut out? INTERNAT service for a while unitl you can aford it again? How about cable for the TV? Cel phones? Let them go. A "land line" can be gotten for 28-32 dollars a month , if you don't get long distance. (Get a phone card for long distance and use that, instead.) You have to down size. Forget the steaks! You need to think more along the lines of weenies and hamburgers for a while. It won't kill you. It does not have to be for long and could bring down the food bill until you are more fiinancially stable again. (Trust me..the kids will love oyu for it abyway! HA!-It does not have to be for long.) Here's anohter thing..can you cut out more entertainment? Like..no movies for a while? Instead, get out for more walks and garden or ride biles for entertainment. If oyu have a basketball hoop or board games, pull those out instead. And NO trips on the car (gas prices are too high) except to get food or to go to work and back. These are all good ideas to use until you get back on track. AHve a yard sale and get rid of your old stuff you won't use or need again and ut it toward your bills. You might be suprised at how much you could get out of that old junk! Time to tighten the belt! We did here and finally ahve a little left for savings. It was HARD and we felt bad at first..but now are used to it and are happier as a family without the stress. Good luck! GO for it!

Just enough to pay bills, but having to play cathcup with past bills which couln't pay b/4....lol but still make sure I get a few extras...little ones that is.

That is a coincidence ...I just redid my budget yesterday. We have just enough to pay our bill, buy gas and groceries. That is it!!! nothing else...anything else goes on a credit card..unfortunately. I am trying to cut back on groceries and put my clothes line back up so hopefully that will help a little. I honestly do not know how people are living because the way I see it most of us aren't living we are surviving!

Right now, we fall into the bills are paid and a little extra. But things could get bad. My husband had retired, bought a big truck and was leased out. The jobs began to get slack and he had to park the truck because of the gas prices. Didn't pay enough for him to do a job and buy gas. So he got another job. I don't worry right now about paying bills or eating. But the prices are going to get to the point that nobody is going to be able to buy gas to drive to work. Then, what do people do? Those of us that live a long way from work are the ones who will be hurt more. We can grow some food, but we can't grow money.

Used to be we had plenty to pay the bills and eat steak too. Today we have the money to pay the bills but never know what we will or won't have next month. Very nerve racking! So, I pray for my daily bread and get it, sometimes on the last day, non the less I get it. Praise God!

Well you may considering renting out your common rooms to collect some rental so as to lighten the loads a bit. Children nned not have a room of their own. I didn't when I was young. You can also take up some partime work like for example giving tuitions or provide nanny services. Whatever you do, please do something about the bill. Do not let it roll until such an big amount, then start to act on it. It will be too late. Act now!

well i'll reduce my bill to $1,800. that's the logical thing to do right? there must be something that i can do to reduce my bills. for example, i can start getting generic brands instead of good brands. i can also cancel my cable subscription or change to the lowest plan. if i've done everything i could and i still can't afford my bills, i'll take on a second job to make ends meet. i'm grateful to say that i'm under the third category. the bills are paid and have a few extra. not much but at least i won't stress out too much worrying about the bills. it's not an easy journey and i've been through days that i worry a lot about the bills. i'm frugal just so that i can have the few extra to prepare for rainy days. cheeres ;p

we're the lucky ones, both of our industries are thriving and we just bought a condo. right now, i have a lil left over after bills, but thats cause i'm trying to pay down credit card debt so the big chunk of my money goes towards that... anything left over goes toward the mortgage.. try doing the lil things, recycling gets us about 50 a month, saving our change gets us $200 a quarter, coupons save us about $350 a month.. yes we're only a family of two (plus two cats) but we only eat out with a coupon, i only buy something if its on sale and i have a coupon, my mom just got laid off as did my girlfriends mom.. so we know people are struggling..

I'm in the "enough to pay the bills with a bit extra" ... but only if nothing breaks down. I was in the "bills are paid and we are eating steak" (except I don't really like steak). For me the "steak" was being able to buy books, books, and more books. Love my books!!! I has been very interesting and self-educational, this transition I have been making between "lots" and "not so much". But the trade off has been worth it. I am learning what really matters for me. And I am enjoying puttering in my yard and around the house. I will be increasing my cash flow as I get back into work mode. But, for the time being, I am enjoying my luxury of doing whatever the mood moves me to do.

Pray. That's what you do if you are having trouble paying the bills. We are at the bills are paid and have a few extra, but sometimes it's just enough to pay the bills. Usually right right before payday it get's like that.

We would be a "just enough to pay the bills" with a side of "sometimes things come up and we do not have enough to pay all the bills". We are a paycheck to paycheck household as most people are. I really just stopped worring about it and if things get really tight I will pay in order of precedence.