My favorite budgeting hack
You’ve heard me wax poetic about mi amor para los budgets. The deal is, a love of budgeting doesn’t mean it was always easy. In fact, we found budgeting extremely frustrating at first, as do most new budgeters. That is until we began using my favorite budget hack: just think ‘it’s next month’s rent.’
Allow me to explain.
Best way to budget
It does not matter if you plan your cash digitally or on paper, in an app or, on an excel file. Moreover, all that matters is that you (and your spouse if you’re married) actually do it. The only thing that matters is that you record your income before you earn it, and how you’re going to use your money before you spend it.
For the record, I think the best budgeting app in the galaxy is Everydollar, and yes, we use the paid version. #worthit
BTW, no, this is not sponsored content. We believe in the app that much.
Problems persisted. We needed a budgeting hack!
Despite budgeting for a while and using the best budgeting app there is, we had problems. Essentially, we would stress about making rent and felt like we needed to use the rent grace period. How could I be late on rent if I was still budgeting every single dollar? I knew I was going to earn plenty of money for rent. Why was getting rent on the first of the month such a struggle?
Drumroll, please, for the best budgeting hack there is
Here’s the budgeting hack: This month, you are earning next month’s rent. In my family, we typically receive a paycheck every other week. That means, some months our first paycheck wouldn’t hit direct deposit until the 11th of the month, the 12th of the month, the 14th of the month! That’s two weeks after it was due – not good. In other words, in February, you’re earning March’s rent. In April, that money you’re earning is May’s mortgage payment.
So how do you get to earning next month’s rent, this month? It’s simple: it just takes one single month of budgeting for rent, twice. Literally, write down in your budget double rent. Then you keep whatever the amount your rent costs, say $800, in your bank account. That way, when the first of the month rolls around, but your paycheck won’t show up for another week or more, you will have the cash to cover your expenses.
Start smooth sailing and lose the headache
This simple hack – earning next month’s rent, this month – has saved us a ton of stress and headache. It has made budgeting smooth sailing for us, and I’m confident it will help you, too.
Sign up here and I’ll send you more great budget hacks to your email right now, and fresh ideas to keep your budget game strong every month after that!
Me before budgeting: I’m going to hate this.
Then me, budgeting: I hate this I hate this I hate this.
Me after budgeting: Athena herself has blessed me. No debt can defeat me. Fire runs through my blood and my bones are crafted from steel. Tremble, mortals, for I shall LIVE FOREVER. 🔥
