Everything’s Coming Up Weeds | As spring planning gets serious for the 2010-11 city budget, the outlook isn’t rosy …

Everything’s Coming Up Weeds | As spring planning gets serious for the 2010-11 city budget, the outlook isn’t rosy …
While acknowledging he doesn’t know how his proposed municipal budget will be received by city councilors when it is presented to them as soon as April 29, Mayor Dewey Bartlett Jr. didn’t paint a rosy picture when asked to describe how it might look. “It will be our job to educate the councilors an… By Mike Easterling.

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Tags: 201011, budget, City, Coming, Everything's, gets, isn't, Outlook, Planning, rosy, serious, spring, Weeds

Planning your Household Budget

Writing out a household budget can be a complicated thing. While some people just look at their immediate rent or mortgage, food, transportation and entertainment budget, there are many more factors in a family budget. A family with two or three children must plan for the future of those children. If they are healthy, it is expected they will eventually be self-supporting, but the educational process can last until age 25 and beyond in some professions. Family savings can also be quite complicated. Social Security is worth only so much, and under new budgeting plans will not go into effect at full value until a person reaches the age of 70, for young people now entering the workforce. This means that it is necessary to set up an IRA plan or a 401k or other retirement investments.

Savings can be a tricky subject as well, because there are both short-term and long-term savings. There is the $100 a month you have to put away for Christmas/Holiday presents for friends and family, and more money for that if you plan any major purchases. Every family needs some amount of immediately accessible emergency fund in addition to insurance, in case there is sickness, unemployment or accidents in the home or to the family vehicles.

Healthcare expenses as well can be tricky. Many health plans on the surface look comprehensive, but watch out for extra expenses. Even a little thing like a $30 deductible can easily add up. If infants need to go to the doctor once a month, over a year, that will be a $360 expense just for the office visit deductible. Unfortunately today, there are many health plans that in the case of operations or prolonged hospital stays require 5 percent to 20 percent out-of-pocket expenses for these extremely expensive medical procedures. Surgery, even of the run-of-the-mill type can easily approach and exceed $50,000. To pay 10 percent of that would require $5,000.

People tend to look at personal budgeting as something difficult, which it is, but this can be surmounted with careful planning. Admit that you are going to need $100 or more for even occasional childcare, don’t lie to yourself that the aunt or grandmother will always watch a child for free. Look at your expenses in terms of different categories. For example there are fixed expenses such as housing, clothing, transportation and food, and there are more variable expenses such as entertainment and vacations. Identify what your income and expenditures are in a general sense and get them to match.

Tags: budget, Household, Planning

Low Budget Party Planning

A great party doesn’t have to be done on a great budget. It is possible to throw a memorable party that costs next to nothing. Be honest about your budget and work with it.

Even a low budget party has to have a budget. For example, if you are unable to spend more than $10.00 per guest and you have a $200.00 budget you can only afford to invite 20 guests. It is pretty straightforward. If you want to invite more people, you either need to decrease your expenses or increase your budget. Neither one of them is easy, but you are going to have to make a decision.

You have to make sure your budget covers the venue, the food and drinks, the decorations, the party favors, and everything else you may deem necessary. Be realistic about determining the expense per person. If you have a $10.00 per person budget, you are not going to be able to afford gourmet catering and Don Perignon champagne.

If you would like to host an elegant party on a small budget consider inviting less people. Your guests will reap the benefits of having less people, but better quality food and drinks.

You could have a small dinner party by inviting two or three couples. For such a small cook you can afford better ingredients, such as fresh seafood and a bottle of fine wine. Since most guests will bring a bottle of wine you don’t need to worry about spending money on several bottles.

Potlucks or barbeques are great low budget party options. If you plan correctly, your party is sure to be a big hit with your guests regardless of your budget. Your attitude, creativity, and effort will have as much to do with how successful you party is as your budget. You may not have a budget for an all around first class event, but you may be able to afford gourmet dessert, or the freshest local caught fish. Upgrading some aspect of your party can help your guests perceive your party as pricey and classy.

Final tip: If you are undecided about how much to spend per guest set your total available budget and divide it by the number of guests you want to invite.

Tags: budget, Party, Planning

Tips for Budget Planning: Paying Off Your Debt

One of the most important things to include in any budget is the payment you make toward any debt you have beside your mortgage. This includes credit cards, student loans, and any other personal loans. According to the April 2009 Nilson Report, in 2008 over seventy-eight percent of American households had one or more credit cards. The Nilson Report also states that at the end of 2008, the average American household had an average credit card debt of $8,329.00. In today’s economy these numbers aren’t helping anyone and we as Americans are only sinking deeper and deeper into debt as we are being laid off from our jobs and our savings.

Sometimes its hard to grit your teeth and write the check for your credit card payment, but the best thing you can do for you and your family when creating a budget is to push as much of your income as you can toward paying off your credit cards, especially high interest credit cards. This is definitely an area of your budget that I would encourage you to invest the money you are saving in other areas of your budget. One way you can do this is by figuring how much you are saving in other areas of your budget. Maybe you’ve cut your utility bill in half by switching to energy efficient appliances or you could be saving $100 a week in fuel because you choose to start carpooling to work with a co-worker. No matter where the savings are coming from, after you get a figure, you should take that amount and start putting it in a separate savings account along with the money you use to make your monthly payments on your debt. That way when it comes time to make a payment on that high interest credit card, you can start paying a little extra on it. Even if paying extra on it every month decreases your monthly payment on your statement, you should still keep paying the same amount and you will be amazed at how easily it will be to pay down those credit cards.

You may be wondering where are student loans in all of this? Student loans are a priority, but not as much of a priority as your credit card debt. This is because student loans usually have a reasonable interest rate and they may shoe up on your credit report, but I don’t believe they hurt your credit as much as credit cards do. You should still be actively making payment on your student loans if you have any, because even though the interest may be reasonable, interest is interest and the longer it take you to pay them off, the more you’ll end up paying on them in the end.
This is an important part of any personal budget and should be consider as much of a priority as making your house payment. You will be amazed at not only how much it will help your credit to pay off your personal debt, but also how much stress it will relieve knowing that its being taken care of and you are doing something that won’t just benefit you now, but it will also benefit you in the future.

Tags: budget, debt, Paying, Planning, Tips

Planning: Sample Wedding Budget Worksheet

When forming your wedding budget, decide first how much to spend for the wedding, then how the expenses will be divided. If you search around, you will be able to find other sample wedding budgets and wedding budget worksheets. Paying for wedding expenses can be handled in a variety of ways. The responsibility can be:

(a) assumed primarily by the brides parents
(b) assumes primarily by the grooms parents
(c) shared equally by both sets of parents
(d) shared by both families together with the bride and groom
(e) assumed entirely by the bride and groom themselves

Wedding Budget

Final responsibility for wedding costs has been stated by tradition, but there is really no right or wrong way to handle the costs. It is a matter of choice. It is appropriate to discuss the budget with both sets of parents, especially when they bear some or all of the financial responsibility. Be sure everyone involved agrees on the budget.

Wedding Budget Worksheet

A spirit of compromise should lessen the possibility of hurt feelings as your families agree together on the wedding budget. When setting your budget priorities, compromise on quantity, not quality. The amount of your budget will not necessarily determine the style of your wedding; you can have a formal wedding and reception on a limited budget with careful planning and a smaller guest list. You do not need a wedding budget worksheet to get an idea on how much to spend. The following percentage estimates may be useful in breaking down your total wedding budget into categories:

reception 48%
bridal attire 13%
flowers 10%
photography 9%
dj entertainment 8%
rentals 3%
miscellaneous fees 3%
bridesmaids gifts 2%
transportation 2%
stationary 2%

These percentages are a starting point for developing your budget and can be used as a tool when selecting various wedding vendors. To determine a guideline figure for each category in your budget, use this equation:

Your total budget x each items estimated percentage

Sample Wedding Budget

Okay, here is a sample wedding budget. Assume that your total budget is $10,000 (below the national average for how much a wedding costs, and you want to know a guideline for determining how much to spend for DJ entertainment. Using the formula above, you multiply $10,000 times .08 = $800. Therefore, as a guideline for a $10,000 wedding budget, $800 would be an appropriate amount to spend on DJ entertainment.

You can change the percentages given above, depending on what you want to emphasize in your wedding. Be sure to prioritize the following aspects of a wedding according to what is most important to you:

– number of guests to be invited
– wedding site (church, synagogue, hotel, club, at home)
– reception location (church hall, hotel, club, at home)
– bridal attire (what you will wear)
– food and beverages (what kind, and how will they be served)
– flowers (what kind and how many)
– photographs (which professional photographer company to choose)
– music (soloists, live music, DJ entertainment, dancing)
– transportation (a limousine, a luxury rental car, friends new car, or family car)

After having computed the amounts for each category, you may want to reevaluate your priorities. Make whatever adjustments are necessary to more closely meet your expectations. Once you have determined the amounts for each category, keep track of them with wedding planning forms. For some expenses that are traditionally the groom’s responsibility – such as certain flowers and his wedding attire – the cost will be determined by the overall wedding style. Other items in his budget will reflect his own preferences.

Your budget should be flexible enough so that unexpected costs will not ruin it. You can usually expect to pay from 10 to 50 percent as a deposit for services. This deposit is often required in cash. You may want to consider opening a new checking account allotted for your wedding and reception expenses.

Wedding Budget Planning

Together you and your fiancé can use the ideas and formulas mentioned in this article for healthy wedding budget planning. You should keep a close tab on the budgeted amounts, total costs, deposits made, and the balance due in each category.

Tags: budget, Planning, Sample, Wedding, Worksheet

Tips For Planning A Wedding On A Budget

Having a restricted budget doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get married. In fact, most people are planning a wedding on a budget… it’s just that some wedding budgets are larger than others. Now, if your wedding budget is a bit tight, don’t despair. There are many ways to plan low budget weddings and still have it be the best day of your life.

Now, when you’re planning a wedding on a budget, the number of guests you invite can be a critical factor in whether you’re able to stay within your alloted budget. Inviting tons of people to the ceremony itself isn’t usually a major budget concern. If you’re paying for the location you’ll have the ceremony in though, then of course you’ll pay more for a place large enough to hold large numbers of people in the ceremony.

When it comes to the reception though, how many people you’ve invited to your wedding can make a huge difference to your budget. Most people plan to have food catered at their reception for instance, and if you’re planning a wedding on a budget, you’ll quickly learn there are huge cost differences between having 100 people or 1000 people at your wedding reception.

It’s still possible to keep within your restricted wedding budget while having many people at the reception: You simply have a non-food wedding reception. When planning a wedding on a budget, if you simply must have hundreds of people there then you can drastically reduce your wedding expenses by providing entertainment and possibly snacks at your reception instead of a fully catered sit down meal.

Another alternative for food at the reception when you’re planning a wedding on a budget is to do a family cook off. Gather together various family members who enjoy cooking, and ask them to create easy casseroles and various other foods for your wedding reception. You should budget for buying those food ingredients of course, and you can even ask them to give this to you instead of buying wedding gifts. They can then get together and create a pot luck style wedding dinner, and your wedding reception can be pulled off in a buffet style form instead of having people served by waiters and catering crew.

A great creative idea when planning a wedding on a budget is to simply have a picnic or barbecue style wedding reception. This can be done at a local park or in someone’s back yard, and it will save the expense of renting a reception hall.

Music and entertainment are another way you can reduce costs when planning a wedding on a budget. Instead of hiring a live band for your reception for instance, consider creating your own special song mix to have playing on CDs during the reception.

You can reduce the cost of flowers when planning a wedding on a budget too. You don’t have to forgo having wedding flowers completely, but consider ordering only half as many wedding flowers as you originally intended. Better still, order the flowers you want for the wedding bouquet, but choose less expensive flowers for the rest of the ceremony and reception. There are many flowers which compliment each other in shape, size and color – so choose those that compliment the bouquet if you want the wedding to have a specific color scheme for instance, or go with a variety of inexpensive flowers to create a more spontaneous effect. Either option will still look beautiful, all while helping you to stay within the alloted wedding budget you’ve set.

Tags: budget, Planning, Tips, Wedding

Personal Budget Planning Software – Best Alternative to Budget Planners

Most of us hate to budget for our daily expenses; but the truth is that efficient budget management can get us out of debt and give sound financial backing for many years to come. To stay clear of debts and increase personal savings, here’s a list of must-do activities.

Collect your current financial statements from all possible sources – banks, credit agencies, investment documents, and regular utility bills.

Segregate them into fixed and variable components. Some kinds of income like rentals and regular work income are fixed in nature.

Variable incomes may come from garage sales or from some internet based activity.

Monthly home budget is a fixed component while weekend eat outs and entertainment come under variable expenses.

Analyze which income sources are being used to pay fixed and variable expenses.

At this point, you will be able to recognize whether you are using up a major income generator or any other source of income. This will give you an alarming insight into how the finances have been eroding over the past few months. An alternative solution to this is to use a robust budget planner that can help in segregation of incomes that need to be saved completely and incomes that can be used to pay fixed expenses.

Budget planning software is the best suited for all reasons and seasons.

1. Helps to review all accounts from one place

2. Helps to track monthly bills – they also send reminders to avoid late fees and charges

3. Above all, it helps to know how much is left to spend after the bills are paid

Budget planning software aids in managing our funds efficiently and easily. But, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to budget planning. The idea lies in choosing the one that suits our current financial status and utilize them effectively to manage our funds.

Tags: Alternative, Best, budget, Personal, Planners, Planning, Software

Why Planning & Budgeting is Critical to Becoming Financially Free

I can still remember my first lecture in Management Accounting. The lecturer was introducing us to the concept of budgeting and at the end he made a little joke, which went something like this: “If your budget has turned out exactly right, you have either had an amazing stroke of luck or got it wrong!” Of course, what he meant was: budgets are not meant to be accurate. They are there as a guide – an important, essential guide that should act as both a planning and control mechanism.

I try to avoid the word budget with my new clients but I would like to introduce you to the real meaning of budgeting. Forget about the concept of restriction and restraint often associated with household budgets and start thinking about your finances in the same way that good businesses do.

The glue that holds all successful business practices together is the master budget. It ties in all facets of the business – marketing, selling, financing, research and development, and personnel management. Without a good master budget that incorporates all activities of a business, an organisation will end up floundering. And a floundering business is rarely profitable.

The budget provides the cohesion between the differing objectives of diverse parts of the business and creates a unified goal for the total organisation to work towards. It enhances motivation, delegates responsibility and provides important feedback on the progress of individuals and the organisation as a whole. Not bad, for a simple system that we all thought someone installed to punish us for our mistakes.

Budgets are not punishment. They are important, useful tools that guide us to where we want to go. They allow us to plan for our future yet control our circumstances along the way. They are not meant to be exact, but rather flexible and accommodating. They should change when we change, but still be resilient enough to prevent us from going off the rails. They point us in the right direction and correct us when we fail. Without a budget for our finances, we are trying to win the 100-yard dash blindfolded.

People make mistakes. We have human weaknesses that cannot always be perfected. As good as our judgement may be, there are times when we can go off course. We can be tempted, we can be deluded and sometimes we just slip up. What we need is something that keeps us on the right road without invalidating our past mistakes yet motivates us to try again. And again, and again – until we get it right.

I have had clients who tried but left after a couple of weeks, only to return to me months or even a year later, “Sorry, can we try again?” Sure. It took me a couple of years to perfect it. Sometimes, I left it for weeks or even months, returning to my old spendthrift ways, but eventually came back with a greater knowing that the only way I could get ahead is to work within the system.

A good system will allow you to do this. This is called “Correction, without Invalidation.” In other words, keep trying and correcting your mistakes without making them wrong.

What we need is a system that allows us to deviate off course at times but builds in controls to prompt us back whenever we veer too far – a system that facilitates correction, without invalidating the mistakes we made on the way.

First, you need a plan. A plan incorporates objectives, goals and step-by-step strategies or action plans. An objective is a high-level, qualitative statement describing a desired outcome. For example:

“To be financially independent and free to travel the world.”

A goal is a quantifiable statement that is measurable and specific. For example:

“To create an independent income of $30,000 per annum, so I can leave my current employment by by a certain date.”

The action plan then becomes your step-by-step approach of how you can create the independent income by that date.

If your objective is your life’s dream – to travel the world – then the sacrifice of saving will not seem so daunting. We are all willing to make small sacrifices over time, if we have a greater goal in mind.

Another critical aspect of budgeting is comparison. We need to always compare what happened to what was supposed to happen. If you have a budget but never go to the trouble of comparing your actual expenditure to the budget, you are only using 50% of the system.

It is important that on a regular basis you compare your actual expenditure and outgoings to what was budgeted. Use the variances as a feedback mechanism to gauge your progress. It is OK to have variances. Remember the immortal words of my Management Accounting lecturer – budgets are not meant to be exact, they are used as a guide.

The variances will tell you how you fared. Was your budget realistic? Did you under-budget? Over-budget? If the budget is unrealistic, modify it. Budgets should be dynamic tools, changing where necessary until you get the right mix.

Did you overspend? Underspend? Was the budget reasonable but you simply broke the rules and fell back into bad habits? That’s OK, the variances will guide you to where you need to focus your attention.

Did you waste too much money at the supermarket? Spend too much on discretionary items? Are your fixed costs still too high? Correction. Correction. Correction. The variances will show you where.

Tags: Becoming, Budgeting, Critical, Financially, Free, Planning

Major Capital Projects Execution & Planning Engineers

Major Capital Projects Execution & Planning Engineers
Budget Planning Analyst / Cost Control, Field Development, Project Management, Upstream, Oil, Gas, LNG, Onshore or Offshore, Facilities, Construction, Greenfields, Project Execution Planning, Contracting Strategy, Organization Planning, Project Schedule Processes, Project Controls Processes, Oil & Gas and/or LNG Major Capital Projects Execution.

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Tags: Capital, Engineers, Execution, Major, Planning, Projects