Step 1 of 4:

Learn about budgets

Introduction

There is nothing mysterious about a budget. However, it is one of the most important tasks to be undertaken in addressing your financial situation.

• Work out a budget
• Keep track of your spending using the Spending Diary
• Fill in a budget sheet
• Prioritise your spending
• Possibly increase your income

What is a Budget?
A budget is simply a plan of money you expect to receive and how you plan to spend it...
A budget is important because it will show you:

• How much money is coming into your household
• How much money is going out
• How much you can afford to offer to those you owe money to
• How you can best plan your spending in the future

How to work out a personal budget
A personal budget sheet is an essential tool to help you tackle debt problems and manage your money into the future. The information and tools in this section will help you work out how much you have coming in and what you have been spending it on. It will also show you how much you have left over to pay your debts

How to fill out your personal budget sheet
The Personal Budget Sheet allows you to work out your income and outgoings in a safe and secure environment and will also illustrate how much money can be allocated to repaying your Priority and Secondary debts.

By following these steps you will be able to see exactly how much money is coming into your household and how much is going out on a monthly or weekly basis.

Weekly or monthly?

Remember to fill in either weekly or monthly figures on your budget sheet-whichever suits you best. Don't mix the two. To work out a weekly payment on a monthly basis, multiply the payment by 52 and divide by 12. Be careful not to mix up weekly and monthly figures - stick to one when filling in your budget sheet.

To work out a fortnightly payment on a monthly basis multiply the payment by 26 and divide by 12.

• Increase your Income (opens in a new window)
• Reducing your outgoings (opens in a new window)
• MABS Leaflets (opens in a new window)

Step 2 of 4:

List your income

How to fill in your Income Sheet

Add up the income for you and your household. Include:

• Wages and salary after deductions. Only include overtime if you receive it regularly
• Check your tax and tax allowances/reliefs. Visit www.revenue.ie for more information
• Add all social welfare payments you receive
• Include your child benefit
• Include contributions from other people who live in your home
• Are you entitled to Living Alone Allowance, Family Income Supplement, etc.? Check with your local Citizens Information Centre
• If you are sick or disabled you may be able to claim a range of illness benefits. Check with your local Social Welfare office or Citizens Information Centre or visit www.welfare.ie

• Increase your Income (opens in a new window)
• Reducing your outgoings (opens in a new window)
• Useful Contacts (opens in a new window)
• MABS Leaflets (opens in a new window)

Step 3 of 4:

List your expenditure

How to fill in your Expenditure Sheet

How much do you spend each week on basic living expenses? Use the MABS Spending Diary to keep track of your spending.

At this stage, don’t include any debts or arrears or loan repayments. You can organise your spending under these general categories:

• Mortgage (including mortgage protection insurance)
• Rent
• Food and Housekeeping (including groceries, toiletries, cleaning materials, etc.)
• Utilities, such as gas and electricity (bills issue every two months). Multiply the total for your last bill by 6 to get an annual amount then divide that figure by 52 (for a weekly budget) or divide by 12 (for a monthly budget). If your usage is high, you can find out about energy efficiency from Sustainable Energy Ireland at www.seai.ie
• TV licence. Divide the total cost of your TV licence by 52 (for a weekly budget) or divide by 12 (for a monthly budget). This is a priority payment - if you don’t hold a current licence you may be fined
• Hire purchase car loans. If you bought a car for work purposes using a hire purchase type of arrangement, you will need to include these payments in your expenditure or the car may be repossessed
• Clothing and footwear. Estimate how much you spent on clothing and footwear last year and divide the amount by 12 (for a monthly budget) or 52 (for a weekly budget). If you have children, don’t forget the cost of school uniforms
• Education costs. This amount can be high, particularly if you have more than one school-going child
• Telephone: Include only your ongoing bill. If you have been disconnected, treat the bill as an unsecured debt

Make sure you are realistic with your expenditure and only include items that are essential - but do allow something for a social life.

• Increase your Income (opens in a new window)
• Reducing your outgoings (opens in a new window)
• MABS Leaflets (opens in a new window)

Step 4 of 4:

Calculate your available money

• Increase your Income (opens in a new window)
• Reducing your outgoings (opens in a new window)
• Useful Contacts (opens in a new window)
• MABS Leaflets (opens in a new window)