With the end of the year closing in fast, now is the time to review your budget and determine where things stand. If you like what you see, everything can remain the same for 2016. However, you may soon find that a few changes could do you some good.
Here are three budget related tasks to complete before the end of the year:
1. Review your income. Did you earn as much as expected in 2015? Did you fall short of your goal? Along with these questions, here is another: what type of income are you expecting next year? Income is what drives your budget, so you need to know how much you are bringing in.
2. Review your expenses. In simple terms, you need to spend less than what you earn. If you do this, you should be able to cover your bills every month. Of course, there is a lot to be said for widening this gap, as it allows you to save money.
Review your expenses to see how much you are spending on each category. From there, decide if there are any areas in which you can cut back.
3. Set goals. Knowing your income and expenses is a good start, but you don’t want to stop here. It is imperative to set goals for the new year, as this can go a long way in keeping you on the straight and narrow. Here are some common goals:
• Keeping your expenses, as a total, under a certain threshold.
• Eliminating a particular expense.
• Saving a set amount of money each month.
Goals keep you excited about your budget. They also keep you focused.
These are just a few of the many budget related tasks to complete before the end of the year. Do you have any others to add to the list?