Logging every transaction enables me to manage excess cash flow with precision. And it doesn’t take up too much of my time. This may seem like overkill, but that’s what I do. Doing this keeps my checking and savings accounts balanced every day. I also manually log every banking transaction in a spreadsheet. Not long ago, I showed you how I meticulously track dividend income in Excel. A financial modeling course during my junior year of college hooked me on Excel. I’ve used Excel spreadsheet wizardry to track my entire financial life since I graduated college. More details on that process in the follow-up post.īut without that annual spending number, I couldn’t determine my FI number at all. I’m using more of a hybrid approach by subtracting my forward 12-month investment income (F12MII) from annual spending, then applying the 4% rule of thumb to my retirement savings accounts. This is the most basic way to determine if you are financially independent. This is based on the 4% safe withdrawal rate rule of thumb ( explained here). To get your FI number, simply multiply your annual spending by 25.įor example, if you spend $60,000 per year, your FI number is $1,500,000. All I want is a single annual spending number to determine my financial independence number. But its budget functionality also takes an effort to categorize spending.ĭetailed categorization is more than I need. But I grew tired of the tool because it required so much work to get everything categorized correctly.Įmpower is awesome for tracking net worth and investments. But as your family grows and the types of transactions and accounts grow, it gets more complicated.įor years, I used for budgeting purposes. While writing about reaching financial independence before early retirement ( aka F.I.B.E.R) in 2017, I realized I didn’t know how much our family spends in a calendar year.įor single people with a few accounts, tracking spending is simple. Why I Started to Track Spending in an Excel Spreadsheet Step 2: Download CSV File of Credit Card Statement.Step 1: Download CSV File of Checking Transactions.How to Track Spending Using Excel Pivot Tables (Step-by-Step).Why I Started to Track Spending in an Excel Spreadsheet.Savings: emergency fund, RRSPs, RESPs, TFSAs, seasonal expenses (e.g. Personal: tobacco, alcohol, books, music, clothing and shoes, donations, subscriptionsĮating Out: meals, snacks, take-out, beverages (coffee, tea, juice, soft drinks)Įntertainment: recreation, sports equipment and fees, movies, concerts, hobbies, gamingĬhild: daycare, lessons and activities, allowance, school supplies and fees, babysitting, programs, tutorsĭebt Payments: credit cards, loans, leases, support payments, government debts, personal debt Health Care: medical premiums, life insurance, medication, eye care, dental, supplements, wellness costs Transportation: fuel, auto insurance, transit, parking, taxi, rentals, car sharing, tolls Living: personal care, bank fees, salon and spa services, dry cleaning, pet costs, memberships (fitness, clubs, associations) Groceries: food, baby needs, household supplies, toiletries Household: furnace, water tank, roof and gutters, decor, upgrades, storage locker, gardening, cleaning services, outdoor equipment and maintenance Utilities: phone/cell, cable/internet, gas, hydro, security Housing: mortgage, rent, strata fees, house insurance, property taxes View a sample of a completed tracker (from the previous version of our Monthly Expenses Tracker).Įxpense Categories – Know Where Your Money is Going This becomes the cash balance for the next week. If there’s a surplus, you should have money in your wallet or bank account. Total all columns and subtract actual expenses from actual income.On these pages, keep track of seasonal expenses rather than recording on your weekly pages. You also need to record weekly savings amounts on pages 14 – 15 of the Expense Tracker.You may want to track coffees, dining out, or fuel separately. You can then use the blank columns to create your own categories. List the dates down the left side and record actual money spent each day.You should also list any income you may expect to receive during each week. Record cash balances on hand or in your bank account.For example, a 7 day tracking period would be March 30th to April 5th. For each week, record dates you are tracking.The expense categories listed further below and on page 1 of the Expense Tracker will help you decide which expenses to record where.Open a copy of our Monthly Expense Tracker.
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