50/30/20 Budgeting Rule: How to Use It [Instructions + Calculator]

February 10, 2021 by Liam Lane Posted in Money Basics Tagged apartment, budget, Budgeting, budgeting software, Buy, car, Career, Credit, Credit Card, Debt, deposit, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, Grow, Home, house, housing, How To, keep, Life, Lifestyle, Luxury, Make, money, More, Pay Off Debt, paycheck, Paying Down Debt, Personal, Popular, Retirement, save, Save Money, Saving, Saving Money, savings, Savings Account, second, Security, Spending, studio apartment, Style, sustainable, Transportation, Travel, trends

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The 50/30/20 rule (also referred to as the 50/20/30 rule) is one method of budgeting that can help you keep your spending in alignment with your savings goals. Budgets should be about more than just paying your bills on time—the right budget can help you determine how much you should be spending, and on what.

The 50/30/20 rule can serve as a great tool to help you diversify your financial profile, reach dynamic savings goals, and foster overall financial health.

50/30/20 Budget Calculator

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Wants$0.00

Savings$0.00

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In this post, we’re taking you through the steps of budgeting using the 50/30/20 approach so that you can learn how to set up a budget that’s sustainable, effective, and simple. Use the links below to navigate or read all the way through to absorb all of our tips on how to budget using the 50/30/20 method:

What is the 50/30/20 Budgeting Rule?

Popularized by Senator Elizabeth Warren and her daughter, the 50/30/20 budgeting rule–also referred to as the 50/20/30 budgeting rule–divides after-tax income into three different buckets:

Essentials (50%)
Wants (30%)
Savings (20%)

Essentials: 50% of your income

To begin abiding by this rule, set aside no more than half of your income for the absolute necessities in your life. This might seem like a high percentage (and, at 50%, it is), but once you consider everything that falls into this category it begins to make a bit more sense.

Your essential expenses are those you would almost certainly have to pay, regardless of where you lived, where you worked, or what your future plans happen to include. In general, these expenses are nearly the same for everyone and include:

Housing
Food
Transportation costs
Utility bills

The percentage lets you adjust, while still maintaining a sound, balanced budget. And remember, it’s more about the total sum than individual costs. For instance, some people live in high-rent areas, yet can walk to work, while others enjoy much lower housing costs, but transportation is far more expensive.

Wants: 30% of your income

The second category, and the one that can make the most difference in your budget, is unnecessary expenses that enhance your lifestyle. Some financial experts consider this category completely discretionary, but in modern society, many of these so-called luxuries have taken on more of a mandatory status. It all depends on what you want out of life and what you’re willing to sacrifice.

These personal lifestyle expenses include items such as: your cell phone plan, cable bill and trips to the coffee shop. If you travel extensively or work on-the-go, your cell phone plan is probably more of a necessity than a luxury. However, you have some wiggle room since you can decide upon the tier of the service you’re paying for. Other components of this category include gym memberships, weekend trips, and dining out with your friends. Only you can decide which of your expenses can be designated as “personal,” and which ones are truly obligatory. Similar to how no more than 50 percent of your income should go toward essential expenses, 30 percent is the maximum amount you should spend on personal choices. The fewer costs you have in this category, the more progress you’ll make paying down debt and securing your future.

Savings: 20% of your income

The next step is to dedicate 20% of your take-home pay toward savings. This includes savings plans, retirement accounts, debt payments and rainy-day funds—things you should add to, but which wouldn’t endanger your life or leave you homeless if you didn’t. That’s a bit of an oversimplification, but hopefully you get the gist. This category of expenses should only be paid after your essentials are already taken care of and before you even think about anything in the last category of personal spending.

Think of this as your “get ahead” category. Whereas 50%(or less) of your income is the goal for essentials, 20 percent—or more—should be your goal as far as obligations are concerned. You’ll pay off debt quicker and make more significant strides toward a frustration-free future by devoting as much of your income as you can to this category.

The term “retirement” might not carry a sense of urgency when you’re only 24 years old, but it certainly will become more pressing in decades to come. Just keep in mind the advantage of starting early is you will earn compounding interest the longer you let this fund grow.

Establishing good habits will last a lifetime. You don’t need a high income to follow the tenets of the 50/30/20 rule; anyone can do it. Since this is a percentage-based system, the same proportions apply whether you’re earning an entry-level salary and living in a studio apartment, or if you’re years into your career and about to buy your first home.

A note of caution, though: Try not to take this rule too literally. The proportions are sound, but your life is unlike anyone else’s. What this plan does is provide a framework for you to work within. Once you review your income and expenses and determine what’s essential and what’s not, only then you can create a budget that helps you make the most of your money. Years from now, you can still fall back on the same guidelines to help your budget evolve as your life does.

Ask Yourself: Why is a 50/30/20 Budget Necessary?

According to Consumer.gov, there are plenty of different reasons why people start a budget:

To save up for a large expense such as a house, car, or vacation
Put a security deposit on an apartment
To reduce spending habits
To improve credit score
To eliminate debt
To break the paycheck to paycheck cycle

Identifying the reason why you’re budgeting with the 50/30/20 method can help you stay motivated and create a better plan to reach your goal. It’s kind of like the “eye on the prize” mentality. If you’re tempted to splurge, you can use your overarching goal to bring you back to your saving senses. So ask yourself: why am I starting to budget? What do I want to achieve?

Additionally, if you’re saving up for something specific, try to determine an exact number so that you can regularly evaluate whether or not your budget is on track throughout the week, month, or year.

How to Budget with the 50/30/20 Rule

To make the most of this budgeting method, consider following the steps below:

Deep Dive Into Your Current Spending Habits

Before implementing a 50/30/20 budget, take a long, hard look in the mirror (or maybe your wallet, rather). We’re talking about analyzing your spending habits. Do you overspend on clothes? Shoes? Food? Drinks? Figuring out your spending vices from the very beginning will help you learn how to use a 50/30/20 budget that effectively cuts spending where you need it most.

Take a look at your bank and credit card statements over the last few months and see if you can find any common trends. If you find that you’re overspending on going out for food and drinks, come up with a plan for how you can avoid this scenario. Cook dinner at home before, have a potluck with friends, find happy hour specials around town. There are plenty of ways to budget and save money without compromising your social life.

Pro Tip: Using Mint’s easy budget categorization, you can identify where you can cut back on unnecessary expenses.

Identify Irregular Large Ticket Expenses in the “Wants” Category

Of course, there are expenses in life that we simply can’t avoid. Maybe you need to make a repair on your vehicle, or perhaps you’re putting a down payment on a house in the next six months. Oftentimes these bills are necessary expenses, so you’ll have to factor them into your budget.

When you’re coming up with your 50/30/20 budget, take a moment to look at your calendar so that you can plan for these expenses and adjust your spending in the time before and after you incur the expense.

Add Up All Income

Totaling your income is an important first step when learning how to budget your money using the 50/30/20 rule, but it’s not always as simple as it sounds. Depending on your job, you might have a relatively steady paycheck or one that fluctuates from month to month. If the latter is the case, collect your paychecks from the last six months and find the average income between them.

Is the 50/30/20 Budget Right for You?

The 50/30/20 budget isn’t the only option. Other popular methods include:

Zero-sum: The principle of the zero-sum budget is that you must allocate each and every dollar you earn toward a specific expense, savings account, debt, or disposable income account. This style can help deter unnecessary spending because you’ll know exactly how much you have to spend on what items.

Envelope budgeting: Swiping your card left and right is easy—but the envelope method doesn’t let you succumb to this temptation. Rather than using your card to spend, you use a predetermined amount of cash as your spending pool, nothing more.

Choosing a budgeting style that works for you depends on a variety of factors; there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to budgeting and saving money. That said, the 50/30/20 tends to be a simple yet effective option for getting started on your budgeting journey.

Main Takeaways: How to Budget Using the 50/30/20 Rule

Here are the key tenets of the 50/30/20 rule of budgeting:

This budget rule is a simple method that can help you reach your financial goals
This budgeting method stipulates that you spend no more than 50% of your after-tax income on needs
The remaining after-tax income should be split up between 30% wants or “lifestyle” purchases, and 20% to savings or debt repayment

Mint offers budgeting software and a helpful budgeting calculator that makes it easy to live in accordance with the 50/30/20 rule (or any budget that suits your lifestyle) so that you can live life to its fullest. After spending just a little bit of time determining which of your expenses fall into which category, you can create your very first budget and keep track of it every day. And when your situation undoubtedly changes, Mint lets you adjust, so your budget can change with you.

Sign up for your free account today, build your 50/30/20 budget, and make this the year you build a strong foundation for your future.

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Source: mint.intuit.com

What Does a Fed Rate Cut Mean for My Finances?

February 10, 2021 by Liam Lane Posted in Budgeting, Home, Money Basics Tagged 5-year CD, Auto, Auto Loans, Banking, big, borrowing, Budgeting, Buy, car, cars, CD, CDs, Credit, Credit Card, credit cards, Debt, deposit, Education, employment, existing, Federal Reserve, Finance, Financial Education, Financial Goals, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, High-yield Accounts, Home, Home Projects, How To, industry, Interest Rates, investment, Loans, Make, Make Money, market, money, Money Market, money market accounts, Money-saving Tips, More, Mortgage, mortgages, Moving, News, Online Savings Account, Paying Down Debt, Personal, planning, Podcast, Products, Purchase, Rates, refinancing, save, Save Money, Saving, savings, Savings Account, savings accounts, Savings Tips, Spending, tax, trends, vehicles

How to make smart financial decisions in a low interest rate environment.*

The Federal Reserve, a.k.a. the Fed, was in the news for more than a decade for raising the federal funds rate. But the headlines have changed. In July 2019 the Fed finally cut its benchmark interest rate. The Fed raises or lowers the federal funds rate to influence the direction of the U.S. economy toward strong employment and stable inflation.

Alright, this may all seem pretty high level. It’s just a bunch of news for policymakers, economists and investors playing the market. Right? Not so fast. While it may sound like a fancy finance term, the federal funds rate is the interest rate banks charge each other to lend funds overnight. When that rate goes down (or up), the effects trickle down to you and the financial products you use every day—think credit cards, loans and savings accounts.

What happens when the Fed lowers rates? You could see the effects trickle down to the financial products you use every day.

Even if you don’t typically follow financial headlines, understanding what happens when the Fed lowers rates can help you make smart financial decisions when it comes to borrowing, saving and spending. Read on to answer the question: What does a Fed rate cut mean for my finances?

What goes up and what comes down when the Fed cuts rates

What happens when the Fed lowers rates? One of the Fed’s goals with a rate cut is to make borrowing less costly. Translation: You could see lower interest rates on credit.

Economist and podcast host John Norris says that a Fed rate cut could actually be helpful to the average consumer. “If history serves as a guide, the prime rate will fall by the same amount as the Fed’s actions,” Norris says. “This means credit cards and home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) will be a little cheaper for consumers moving forward.” The prime rate, which is based on the federal funds rate, is the interest rate lenders charge their most creditworthy customers.

You might feel how a lower Fed rate impacts you if the prime rate also falls, making it cheaper to borrow money for big purchases.

Broken down simply, here’s how a lower Fed rate impacts you and the various types of credit you may already have or be considering:

Credit cards: “Credit cards are almost exclusively variable APR,” says Greg Mahnken, analyst at Credit Card Insider. “This means that as the prime rate goes up and down, the interest rate of the card will fluctuate as well. Your card issuer must tell you the margin rate—that’s the margin added to the prime rate to get your credit card’s APR,” Mahnken explains. If you’re wondering how a lower Fed rate impacts you and your cards, you could be charged less to carry a balance and may see smaller minimum payments.
Mortgages: What happens when the Fed lowers rates? For mortgages, it depends on the type of loan. The rate could drop on adjustable-rate mortgages, for example, meaning a reduced monthly payment. How a lower Fed rate impacts you could be different for a fixed-rate mortgage. This type of mortgage may not be as directly impacted by a Fed rate cut and is influenced by other factors.
Home equity lines of credit: If you have a HELOC or are in the market for one for home repairs, you could see a rate decrease following a Fed rate cut, lowering monthly payments.
Other loans: If you’re wondering how a lower Fed rate impacts you, know that it could influence lower rates on auto loans for car owners, but factors including industry sales and financing offers also come into play. If you have a private student loan and a regular payment schedule, you could see a lower monthly payment.

Now, what does a Fed rate cut mean for my finances when it comes to saving? Savers could see interest rates decline on deposit accounts like savings accounts, money market accounts and certificates of deposit (CDs). A lower interest rate here means you’ll earn less in interest on your savings balances.

“Banks make money by making a spread between what they pay for deposits and what they charge on loans,” Norris says. “When what they can charge on a loan goes down, it makes sense what they pay on deposits will eventually do so as well.”

How to manage a rate cut as a borrower, saver and spender

What does a Fed rate cut mean for my finances is only half of the puzzle. The other half is determining how to manage your finances in a lower rate environment so you can achieve your financial goals. Follow these tips when you consider how a lower Fed rate impacts you for borrowing, saving and spending:

If you’re borrowing:

Look for lower rates on new credit cards: “Credit card users should always be on the lookout for lower variable rate formulas, and a rate cut or two is a perfect time to do a little homework when looking for new cards,” Norris says.
Ask for lower rates on existing credit cards: When you’re learning what happens when the Fed lowers rates, consider that negotiating better rates on borrowed money could be easier in a lower interest rate environment. For example, you can check with your credit card issuers to see if you can get a lower interest rate on the credit cards you have already.
Refinance high-interest debt: “If your issuer/lender won’t lower your interest rate despite a cut to the Fed/prime rate, look into refinancing or consolidating your debt with a lower-interest loan,” Mahnken says.

If you’re saving:

Find a competitive savings account rate: Even though lower rates on savings is often what happens when the Fed lowers rates, banks could still offer competitive savings rates. For instance, online banks can often pass savings on in the form of higher interest rates on their deposit accounts because they save money by not maintaining brick-and-mortar locations. Discover, for instance, offers a high-yield savings account with an interest rate over 5x the National Savings Average.¹ So while rates may go down on average, you can possibly earn a higher interest rate on your savings than you had in the past with a high-yield account.

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Lock in a higher fixed rate: If you anticipate more Fed rate cuts in the future, then explore savings vehicles with a rate that you can lock in. With a fixed-rate certificate of deposit, for example, the CD rate is fixed for the entire term. If you open a 5-year CD, your savings will continue to earn the same interest rate despite rate cuts. Note that CDs often come with an early withdrawal penalty if you withdraw your funds before the end of the account’s term, so they’re best used for savings you won’t need to touch for a set period of time.

If you’re spending:

Decide to buy, but do it wisely: Since one answer to “What does a Fed rate cut mean for my finances?” is that borrowing costs less, it could make sense to go ahead with that large purchase you’ve been planning for ages. “When it comes to spending, lower interest rates can encourage bigger purchases, such as home improvements, cars and homes,” Mahnken says. “But before making a big-ticket purchase, make sure you have a budget so you can see how the purchase will affect your monthly cash flow.”
Pursue a passion that requires capital: If you can get access to borrowed money at lower rates, some of your personal goals that require credit could be more achievable. Maybe you’ve been preparing to start a business endeavor or pursue higher education to advance your career. Now could be the time to set things in motion.

Fed rate cut or not, there’s always room for financial improvement

Even if financial news isn’t your thing, paying attention to trends like a Fed rate cut (or hike) can help you manage your money most effectively. Despite the interest rate climate, though, it’s still important to remain disciplined in your financial strategy. This includes setting financial goals, creating a plan to reach them and educating yourself on tools and methods that can help you in the process. Whether interest rates are low or high, you’ll always win with this approach.

* This should not be considered tax or investment advice. Please consult a financial or tax advisor if you have questions.

¹ The Annual Percentage Yield (APY) for the Online Savings Account as of 02/01/2021 is more than five times the national average APY for interest-bearing savings accounts with balances of $500 as reported by Informa Research Services, Inc. as of 02/01/2021. Interest rates and APYs are subject to change at any time. Although the information provided by Informa Research Services has been obtained from the various institutions, accuracy cannot be guaranteed.

Source: discover.com

Homebuying Must-Haves: How COVID-19 Has Changed What’s Hot or Not in a Home

February 10, 2021 by Liam Lane Posted in Cleaning And Maintenance Tagged Architecture, Blog, Buying, Coronavirus, covid-19, Debt, design, estate, existing, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, Florida, front, Grow, Home, homes, hot or not, house, Investing, living room, market, More, must-haves, real, Real Estate, realtor, selling, Selling a Home, staging, Style, trends, versus

The last two months of stay-at-home orders and quarantines have drastically changed how people are utilizing and enjoying their home. The needs of homeowners have changed and that has altered what home buyers are now looking for in a home. What used to be the “must-have” item or space in a home is changing as homes have become people’s offices, playrooms, restaurants, and classrooms. Here’s what you can expect to come back in style, and fade out, in a post-coronavirus market.

What’s In

The Rise in Home Offices

As both children and parents are now working from home, homeowners are discovering the necessity for dedicated home offices. While the new normal post-coronavirus remains to be seen, companies are already planning for employees to work remotely more often. The days of utilizing the dining table as a workspace are proving to not be functional or realistic for the new reality. With an estimated 56% of the US workforce employed in a remote work compatible field and an estimated 66% of employees currently working from home during the Coronavirus pandemic, it’s now a critical element for home buyers that a home has a dedicated home office or an area that could be utilized as one. As sellers list their homes this summer, they’d be wise to cater to this new need by staging a room or area as an office for home buyers to see the potential.

Comfortable workplace with computer near wooden wall in stylish room interior. Home office design

Taking the Living Room Outside

The yard and extended living areas have always been a factor in the home buyer’s mind. But as community swimming pools and playgrounds are shuttered due to the outbreak, the importance of ample backyard space or additional outdoor areas to enjoy and relax have risen in popularity. As quarantine grows, many are looking for ways to escape their four walls in a safe way. Since COVID-19 and food scarcity, many homeowners value the area to create their own garden. Buyers will be looking for existing gardens or spaces to create one.

A Need for Flexible Spaces

As homeowners utilize their homes in new ways, spaces that can serve double (or triple) duty has major appeal. A guest bedroom that also provides a home office area, or a bonus room that serves as a media room and an at-home classroom. Homeowners are getting creative with their spaces and needing their spaces to serve multiple purposes. For those selling in the coming months, staging to promote and define flexible spaces would appeal to home buyers!

What’s Out

Open Concept Floor Plans

Although it has been all-the-rage for the last several years, open concept makes it difficult for homeowners that are cooking, Zoom-learning, and conference calling more often. As many modern designs offer one large room that serves as the living room, dining room, and kitchen, its popularity has waned as families need more individual, quiet spaces to work and learn at home.

Stainless Steel

What has been the “gold” standard in kitchens for many years, in a post-COVID world, home buyers are looking for sanitary surfaces. If you’ve ever stepped back to look at your stainless steel dishwasher, you’ve probably seen its front cluttered with fingerprints and handprints. Having lived through Coronavirus, we know the detrimental power of transferring germs and viruses from touch. More sanitary surfaces such as copper will most likely grow in popularity with buyers. In fact, in a recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine and funded by the National Institute of Health, researchers discovered that the novel coronavirus survived for only four hours on copper versus three days on stainless steel.

While the future “new normal” is still up in the air, the real estate market is still moving homes. As with other previous events, COVID-19 has forced a change in the needs of buyers—and those needs may continue to evolve as more of our day-to-day lives are changed because of the pandemic. But, buyers are already shifting their needs and wants which we can reasonably expect to have a long term effect on home design.

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Jennifer is an accidental house flipper turned Realtor and real estate investor. She is the voice behind the blog, Bachelorette Pad Flip. Over five years, Jennifer paid off $70,000 in student loan debt through real estate investing. She’s passionate about the power of real estate. She’s also passionate about southern cooking, good architecture, and thrift store treasure hunting. She calls Northwest Arkansas home with her cat Smokey, but she has a deep love affair with South Florida.

Source: homes.com