National nonprofit American Consumer Credit Counseling shares important tips on how to best allocate a budget to achieve a healthy financial life.
Boston, MA – February 17, 2017
Life is full of financial temptations. While the occasional splurge can be fun, the key to enjoying such luxuries comes from creating and maintaining a budget to cover all necessary expenses first. Consumers should consider creating a Household Budgeting Worksheet when allocating their budget to lay out their take-home income, expenses and total disposable income. In order to enjoy a life free of financial stress, national nonprofit American Consumer Credit Counseling has provided tips for how consumers can most effectively allocate their budgets.
“A budget can help consumers determine where they are overspending and help them identify – and hopefully change – bad spending habits,” said Steve Trumble, President and CEO of American Consumer Credit Counseling, which is based in Newton, MA. “Managing and allocating a comprehensive household budget can help consumers save more, make timely payments on their debts or have a little extra money to splurge when you need it.”
According to a previous survey by American Consumer Credit Counseling, 57 percent of consumers polled have a working budget, but many do not follow the recommended spending guidelines related to housing, transportation, personal expenses, debt and investment and savings. Of these respondents, 37 percent with a budget are not aware of the recommended spending guidelines. Although many were previously unaware of the recommended spending guidelines, 66 percent said they would now make budget adjustments based on the guidelines.
American Consumer Credit Counseling provides consumers with tips on how to allocate their budget:
- Housing Expenses – 35 percent – Everyone needs a roof over their head so setting aside funds to assure that you will have a safe home is essential. These expenses can include rent, mortgage, and utilities.
- Other Living Expenses – 20 percent– Food and clothes are necessities of life. These living expenses should include those necessities along with the ones that help create and maintain a happy and healthy lifestyle. Included in these other living expenses are groceries, clothing, personal care, education, and medical care.
- Transportation –20 percent – For the majority of us, getting to and from work costs money. Make sure to set aside funds for auto loans, insurance, gas, or public transportation.
- Investment and Savings – 20 percent – It is always good to be prepared for the future and for unpredictable circumstances. Allocating a percent of your budget towards emergency funds, savings, retirement and other financial goals allows for financial security moving forward.
- Debt – 5 percent – While the smallest percent of your funds should be allocated to debt it is an extremely important aspect of your budget. These expenses include credit cards, personal loans, student loans and medical bills.
ACCC is a 501(c)3 organization that provides free credit counseling, bankruptcy counseling, and housing counseling to consumers nationwide in need of financial literacy education and money management. For more information, contact ACCC:
- For credit counseling, call 800-769-3571
- For bankruptcy counseling, call 866-826-6924
- For housing counseling, call 866-826-7180
- Or visit us online at http://www.ConsumerCredit.com
About American Consumer Credit Counseling
American Consumer Credit Counseling (ACCC) is a nonprofit credit counseling 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to empowering consumers to achieve financial management through credit counseling, debt management, bankruptcy counseling, housing counseling, student loan counseling and financial education concerning debt solutions. In order to help consumers reach their goal of debt relief, ACCC provides a range of free consumer personal finance resources on a variety of topics including budgeting, credit and debt management, student loan assistance, youth and money, homeownership, identity theft, senior living and retirement. Consumers can use ACCC’s worksheets, videos, calculators, and blog articles to make the best possible decisions regarding their financial future. ACCC holds an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau and is a member of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling® (NFCC®). For more information or to access free financial education resources, log on to ConsumerCredit.com or visit https://www.consumercredit.com/debt-resources-tools/
