Making the Most of a Small Budget

Making small budgets go further

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A lot has been made of austerity over the last few years. Whether it be here via the Conservatives pledge to address the deficit, or the much maligned measures in Greece; everyone seems to have had their say on the issue. A big part of this theme of austerity has been budgeting, both in parliament and by you, the consumer. Indeed, better budgeting and being less frivolous has been the key to the UK’s recent resurgence from financial instability.

Some have seen the viability of such measures and some have not, but what are the best ways to make the most of small budget as we start to just think about life outside of a recession? Have a look at the following quick and easy guide to making the most of the limited resources…

Prioritise Your Spending

First and foremost, anyone looking to live on a small budget needs to start prioritising their spending. Although we would all love to have the latest smart television, hair straighteners or jet off on exotic holidays; these are quite simply things one cannot consider when running a tight ship. Once you have paid essential things such as rent, council tax and grocery shopping, the remainder of your wages should be saved for a rainy day, preferably in a high interest savings account.

Create a Budgeting Plan

If this is the first time you have had to live on a budget, or perhaps the first time you have faced the fact that you need to, it may be a little bit alien. Like most things, the prudent way forward with budgeting is to create a plan. As boring as this may sound, this is a failsafe way of ensuring that once your wages have gone in and your direct debits have gone out, you know exactly where you are going to stand. You can go old school with this by using pen, paper and a calculator or if you are comfortable, why not set up a spreadsheet? This way, if your credits or debits change, you can see at a glance how much money you will be left with and even start planning month and even years ahead.

Food for Thought

Perhaps the biggest expenditure you will have when living on a tight budget, depending on the size of your family, is food. You can go one of several ways with this and these days, you can shop extremely frugally and still pick up some fantastic items. If you have accepted that you need to start being more sensible with your cash, then the time has probably come to stop shopping at expensive supermarkets. Despite being very cheap and basic, you can still pick up opulent foods and they often come up trumps during taste tests. If you are still to take the plunge and try one of the cheaper supermarkets then there is no time like the present, your bank balance will thank you for it!

There you have it, our three top tips for starting life on a tight budget. There are obviously many more ways that you can save you and your family money, but these give you a good idea of the kinds of things that can really make a difference. It’s all about organisation and giving up some of the luxuries in life until you are back in control of your finances; done properly it is a lot easier than one would think.