When it comes to your income you need to have money to pay bills, you might want to have money to have fun, plus it needs to cover food and clothing too. If you’re going to school or you have school aged children you also need to be able to afford those costs. You might have rent, or maybe you have a house payment, or maybe you just have property taxes.

Loans, credit cards, utility bills, and rent are all things that have a monthly bill attached to them. Groceries and clothing and other household items are things that you may need weekly or monthly or in the case of clothing a little less often. Depending on your lifestyle you may have a work wardrobe, clothes for home, workout wear, and even clothing for hitting the town at night.

That’s a lot of stuff to spend money on. That’s why it’s important to have a good money management plan.

Keep Your Credit Clean

If you want to be in control of all of the money you have coming into your home you want to make sure that you are doing what you can to stay out of debt. Once you end up with creditors coming after your money you are no longer in control. They can take your paychecks, take your tax refunds, and they can even take you to court.

Not sure what your credit looks like? Get your hands on your credit report and take some time to look over your credit score. If you score is low there are things that you can do to bring it back up to something more reasonable that will give you a better credit rating.

Prioritize Your Expenses

Your expenses include the things you need and the things that you want. The idea is to take care of your needs first. Pay your bills, buy your groceries, then have some fun if you have money left. Keep a list of your monthly bills, how much they are, and when they are due.

By having your priorities straight you always know your bills are paid on time. That will help you stay out of debt in the first place. You can still have fun, just don’t have it at the expense of your credit or having your heat on.

Learn To Save Money

Do you really need a weekly date night? Can you cut that down to once a month and maybe only take the kids to the theater once a month? These costs can add up quickly, and there are things that are just as fun you can do from home or do for free.

Additionally, a limited quantity of food and other supplies, such as fuel, can also be purchased to reduce expenses and prevent overstocking. In the case of heating oil, you can enroll in a budget plan (click here to Learn more about signing up) that may help you decide the quantity of oil required for your usage. In the same way, you can calculate the minimum quantity you need for all the other materials too.

If you find you toss out a lot of food at the end of the week or month, try shopping for less but doing it more often. Maybe go to the store twice a week to buy things like fresh produce that goes bad faster while keeping your pantry stocked with shelf-stable items you only need to replace every month or so.