Let’s face it – it’s really easy to spend money these days. We can buy anything online with the click of the button. We can have almost any food delivered to our house. We can sign up for myriads of streaming services to watch all the shows we love. We can subscribe to online newspapers, music services, and gaming programs. There are so many seemingly mindless “push of the button” costs we incur that financial stability is becoming, well, not so stable. In fact, at the end of 2022, the average American household had over $8,900 in credit card debt! Our spending habits are becoming unsustainable and without really realizing it, many of us are drowning in a sea of debt.

It’s no wonder that many people go into a new year with resolutions to better track their finances. Afterall, having a financial plan forces you to map out your goals, save your money, keep track of your progress, and make your dreams a reality. Our Finance Plan, as well as the various other budgeting inserts we sell, have been marching out our doors lately to a variety of customers who want to reel in their debt and take control of their financial situations. So, we thought we’d dive a little deeper into this set of inserts, covering what's included and how it’s useful.

ACCOUNT TRACKER

What’s included?
Seven front-to-back sheets with space for 70 accounts. (We also sell Account Tracker pages as a separate set of inserts.)

What is it?
A tool to log information for various accounts, with space for account name and website, basic contact details, and important financial information such as account, routing, and card numbers. There’s also space for username, password, and pin number.

Why is it helpful?
All of your accounts, all in one place. No more searching through scraps of paper or having to reset password and pin information.

DEBT SNOWBALL

What’s included?
Three front-to-back sheets with almost 200 total lines to track your debt reduction plan. (We also sell Debt Snowball pages as a separate set of inserts.)

What is it?
A tracking method to help pay off your debts from smallest to largest.

Why is it helpful?
These pages can help you create new habits to dig yourself out of lingering debt so you can free up your budget for bigger and better things. You start by creating a list of all your debt and tracking your essential expenses to identify a monthly “debt smasher” amount that you can put towards paying off your debts one by one. (Want to learn more about the Debt Snowball method? Check out our blog here.)

BILL TRACKER

What’s included?
Two front-to-back pages with about 125 total lines to track your bills.

What is it?
Each page contains space for you to log your bills, with a section for the payee, amount, due date, and a check box for the month the bill is for.

Why is it helpful?
One of the first steps in creating a budget and having a sound financial foundation is visually listing out the essential bills you need to pay each month – and perhaps identifying which monthly bills you can decide to get rid of. (We’re looking at you streaming services and online subscriptions!)

MONTHLY BUDGET

What’s included?
Seven front-to-back pages, with space to account for over a year’s worth of budgeting. (We also sell Monthly Budget pages as a separate set of inserts.)

What is it?
A place to set monthly budget goals, list out income and expenses, and track budgeting progress. Each page has five lines to list income (both gross and net); two areas, with 17 lines each, for expenses – one for fixed expenses and one for variable expenses; and a space to analyze end-of-month budgeted amounts versus actual amounts.

Why is it helpful?
A budgeting log, in conjunction with the bill tracker and expense tracker, is the perfect tool to visualize, on one clear sheet, what money is coming in and going out each month. Without concrete, personal financial data, you can’t create reasonable spending habits, set up a debt reduction plan, and work to save money for your future.

EXPENSE TRACKER

What’s included?
Seven front-to-back pages, with over 225 total lines to track your expenditures. (We also sell Expense Tracker pages as a separate set of inserts.)

What is it?
Each page has a place to write down various monthly expenses, with sections for the date, a description of the expense, the category it belongs to, and the amount spent.

Why is it helpful?
Monitoring your expenses throughout the month holds you accountable for your finances by helping you stick to your budget, revealing spending issues, and setting up financial objectives. Thus, tracking expenses is the first step in creating both a budget and a debt reduction plan. You can’t work to curb expenses or be intentional about spending until you know what exactly you spend your money on. (Want to learn more about Expense Trackers and see how they can be used to track specific spending areas or even earnings? Read our blog here.)

VEHICLE MAINTENANCE TRACKER

What’s included?
Two front-to-back pages with space to keep track of up to four vehicle’s maintenance plans.

What is it?
These pages have a place to list important information for your car, truck, motorcycle, boat, etc., such as the year, make/model, plate number, and insurance information. There’s a location for listing the date and mileage for maintenance on brakes, tires, oil and fluids, belts, filters, and more.

Why is it helpful?
As with the other trackers we’ve mentioned, it’s helpful to have all your information, all in one place. With the vehicle maintenance tracker, you can make sure you are keeping your vehicle in good working order. It is also a good reminder to budget for regular maintenance and unexpected repairs before they happen.

Setting up a finance plan allows you to rethink your spending habits and refocus your financial goals. It helps you realize exactly how much money you earn, how much you can afford to spend each month, how much you need to save, and how best to include a “banked” emergency fund to ensure that you don’t spiral into the depths of debt after a life crisis. Get started on the path of your financial journey today!

Sources:

https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/1109/6-reasons-why-you-need-a-budget.aspx

https://journalrecord.com/2022/12/08/credit-card-debt-growing-average-household-has-8900/