Budgeting for 2011

Have you made a resolution to stick to your budget in 2011? So far this year, I have overspent in my budget category of snow removal.  I am sure I am not alone.  What do you do when it’s only January 20 and you have overspent? You have some tough decisions to make.

You have several options.  If you decide that you want to continue having your snow removal done by someone else, you could find another way to pay for this expense.  You would have to give up something else that would free up the money for more snow removal.  You could do it yourself, if you are physically able.  You can access your emergency savings account.  Remember that savings account that I have been asking you to build up so you have one year’s worth of expenses to spend on life’s “what if’s” – now could be one of those times.

Budgeting is only as good as your projections and sometimes we project too little.  That is why you need to be flexible with your budget, so that when you have unexpected expenses or more costs than you have planned, you can deal with it.  Overages in one category mean shortages in another.  Determine what you can lessen to have the extra money for the overages.  Build that emergency savings for those overages so you have a cushion to fall back on.  Because you never know how much snow we are going to get in a season.