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A Balanced Family Budget
27
If, however, the longest time between any bills is three
months, then your list need only cover three months.
Whatever the time, put down all expenses, regular or
irregular, that you know you will have during this period.
This must even include money spent on recreation, odds and
ends and the continuing expenses of rent, food and utilities.
Next, adjust every bill to the length of time between your
paychecks.
If,
for example, you are paid twice a month, then
monthly bills
will
have to be divided
in
half and weekly bills
doubled. A yearly bill should be divided into 24 parts.
Now, make a new list of these adjusted parts (i.e., one–
half monthly
car
payment, two weekly food bills, one-24th
property
tax).
This list is central to the budget.
If
you have
included every expense, it will tell you exactly how
to
spend
each check; every one will be spent the same way. In other
words, each time you get a check, this list will tell you exactly
how much to put away for each future expense, so that you
will
have precisely what you will need to pay the bills as they
arrive.
By saving a standard amount for each biD from each
check, the worry of budgeting disappears. Your list of stan–
dard amounts automatically tells you how to do the job. Once