理解你的 个人支出

无论你是 做预算, setting a financial goal or planning for retirement, it's important to understand what your current 费用 are. Before people have an understanding of what their current 费用 really are, most think they'll be able to live on substantially less than they actually spend.

Understanding your personal 费用 requires being extremely honest with yourself about what 费用 you need to maintain – as well as what 费用 you really want but don't need. Just because you don't need something doesn't mean you can't spend money it – the important thing is to be honest about whether you need or want something. Being honest as you evaluate your 费用 will help you create a budget, financial goal, or 退休计划 这是现实的.

跟踪你的 费用

Most experts recommend tracking your spending for at least 30 days to get a clear picture of your spending. There are a few ways to do that:

• Use an expense tracking spreadsheet — enter 费用 in a spreadsheet either on your computer or phone. Or be old-fashioned and use a paper and pencil. Basically, whenever you make a purchase, write it down or enter it into the spreadsheet. Track 费用 as they occur.
• 使用应用程序 – your phone's app store has many apps that can be used to track 费用. Just be sure to research the trustworthiness of an app before you start entering your financial information in it. Some apps allow you to directly link your accounts electronically for easier tracking.
• Use your statements and receipts – make sure to get receipts for any cash purchases you make during the month, and then collect your end-of-month account and credit card statements. Many people find this easier than tracking transactions as they occur, but this approach is less likely to produce detailed results since you may not remember what a particular transaction was for several weeks later. 仍然, this is an effective way of getting a picture of your 费用, especially if you do it for two months in a row.

别忘了 irregular or periodic 费用

While the tracking methods above will show you where money goes on a day-to-day basis, your 费用 must also factor in irregular costs, 比如假期, 生日, annual car registration costs and annual subscriptions. Look at your calendar and your financial records from the past year to see what your periodic and irregular 费用 were.

Here's some irregular 费用 that are part of many people’s typical finances:

• Christmas, Hanukkah, or other gift-giving holidays
• 生日
• Annual car inspections and registrations
• 每年的假期
• Property taxes (if not included with your mortgage payment)
• 专业的费
• Annual insurance premiums
• Annual medical exams, including veterinary exams
• 年卡费用
• Annual 费用 for gym memberships, online memberships or club stores

If you add up all the 费用 above and divide that by 12, you’ll get an idea of how much these 费用 are costing you per month.

An even better step for your financial well-being is to save up that amount each month. 例如, if your annual irregular costs amount to $2,400, set aside $200 a month in a savings account or 货币市场帐户. Then withdraw from that account every time one of these 费用 comes up. You’ll feel less worried and have greater confidence that you can cover all your 费用.