Student Loan Dodgers

Making a budget is easy. Sticking to a budget is hard. If you’re new to budgeting, one of the most common ways you can get knocked off track is by underestimating how much money you’ll need for your expenses.

Unplanned and under-planned expenses can wreak havoc with your spending plan. If you find that your budget just isn’t working, and you have some savings to play with, track where your money is going. If you’ve budgeted $15 per week for entertainment, but consistently spend $30, you’ll either need to revise your definition of “entertainment” or you’ll need to increase your entertainment budget to $30 per week.

Most students have a limited amount of money to spend each month, so increasing the budget for one thing means taking money away from another spending priority. For the most part, budgeting is about making choices, so figure out what’s most important to you and budget accordingly.

If you still can’t make ends meet after you’ve cut or reduced your expenditures, your only other option is to increase your income. You may need to take a part-time job, pick up extra hours at work, or find ways to cover your expenses. Locating grants to help pay for your books, for example, may free up money in your budget for other things and prevent your from having to resort to student loans.

No one gets the hang of budgeting right away, and most people overspend themselves when they’re first starting out. Keep receipts, study your expenditures and avoid your temptations as much as possible while you’re attempting to establish a workable spending plan. Refine your budget as often as you need to while you learn to balance your income and expenses.