TAKING CHARGE OF YOUR FAMILY BUDGET
Got problems with the family budget?
Most families have some money problems at one time or another, but problems are different for every family. Making out a family budget depends on:
- How many are in your family — boys, girls, men, women? How old are they?
- Are you newlyweds, a young family, a middle-aged family, or senior citizen? Are you married or single, divorced or widowed?
- How is your family's health? Is it good — or have you had a long illness or lots of doctor bills to pay?
- What kinds of jobs do your family members have? Are their jobs dependable? Have they been affected by strikes and layoffs?
- What keeps your family going? — paycheck from jobs, aid to dependent children (ADC), other aid, food stamps, supplemental foods?
- What does your family own — a home, car, washer and dryer, TV?
- Have you had bad luck, accidents, lawsuits, fire, or theft? Did you have insurance to cover these mishaps?
- Who is in charge of saying how the money gets spent? Whoever earns it? Whoever thinks they need it?
- Who buys the groceries? Who buys the clothing? Who decides where the family will live?
- Who keeps track of where the money goes? Who pays the bills?
Keep track of your money by finding a place to keep all sales slips, cash register receipts and bills you've paid. Write what they're for on the
receipts (for example, groceries, clothes or medicine). On grocery receipts, be sure to separate food from non-food items to better know
where your money goes.
Use an "IN-BOX" to keep receipts and paid bills. It could even be a decorative container.
Here's how you make a simple "IN-BOX."
Take a clean, dry coffee or shortening can. Cover it with anything you want — cloth, wrapping paper, pictures from magazines or paint. Glue or paste
cloth or paper in place. Put a plastic lid on the bottom so the can won't rust on the counter. Now you're ready to keep track of your money. Ask
all family members to help.
Revised by Carolyn McKinney, Ph.D., Family Resource Management Specialist, The Ohio State University from the "Budget Bugs"
series originally prepared by M.Yearns and M. Groves of the Iowa State University Cooperative Extension Service and reprinted, with
permission, by the Ohio Cooperative Extension Service.
Written material may be reprinted provided no endorsement of a commercial product is
stated or implied. Please credit University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension and
the Nebraska Health and Human Services System.
Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, Acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Kenneth R. Bolen, Director of Cooperative Extension, University of Nebraska, Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension educational programs abide with the non-discrimination policies of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the United States Department of Agriculture.