• Budgeting Can Improve Your Life - 12 Good Reasons
• WARNING SIGNS - Too Much Debt

Budgeting Can Improve Your Life - 12 Good Reasons:

1. A budget is a guide that tells you whether you're going in the direction you want to be headed in financially. You may have goals and dreams but if you don't set up guidelines for reaching them and you don't measure your progress, you may end up going so far in the wrong direction you can never make it back. Can you imagine the government or a major corporation operating without a budget? No, and neither should you.
2. A budget lets you control your money instead of your money controlling you.
3. A budget will tell you if you're living within your means. Before the widespread use of credit cards, you could tell if you were living within your means because you had money left over after paying all your bills. The use of credit cards has made this much less obvious. Many people don't realize they're living far beyond their means until they're knee deep in debt.
4. A budget can help you meet your savings goals. It includes a mechanism for setting aside money for savings and investments.
5. Following a realistic budget frees up spare cash so you can use your money on the things that really matter to you instead of frittering it away on things you don't even remember buying.
6. A budget helps your entire family focus on common goals.
7. A budget helps you prepare for emergencies or large or unanticipated expenses that might otherwise knock you for a loop financially.
8. A budget can improve your marriage. A good budget is not just a spending plan; it's a communication tool. Done right, a budget can bring the two of you closer together as you identify and work towards common goals and reduce arguments about money.
9. A budget reveals areas where you're spending too much money so you can refocus on your most important goals.
10. A budget can keep you out of debt or help you get out of debt.
11. A budget actually creates extra money for you to use on things that matter to you.
12. A budget helps you sleep better at night because you don't lie awake worrying about how you're going to make ends meet.

* To assist in your budgeting efforts, Shell Geismar FCU has compiled a Budget Worksheet you can print (CLICK HERE).

** You can also use a Free Online Budget Worksheet at Kiplinger.com (CLICK HERE)

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WARNING SIGNS - Too Much Debt

Do you know the warning signs of too much debt? Credit is great when it's used wisely, but more and more Americans are getting in over their heads and threatening their financial futures. Don't allow yourself to be lulled into a false sense of security that you have your debts under control just because you're not late on any payments and you can manage the monthly minimums. Here are some of the warning signs that you have a credit/debt problem:

Warning Signs of Debt Problems:

1. You don't have any savings.
2. You make minimum payments on your credit cards.
3. You use credit cards for things you used to buy with cash, such as groceries.
4. You use increasing amounts of your total income to pay off debts.
5. You have more than two or three major credit cards.
6. After you pay your credit card bill, you increase your balance by the same amount (or more) the following month.
7. You're at or near your credit limit on your credit cards.
8. You count on the float in order to pay your bills, writing a check hoping that you'll be able to cover it by the time it clears the Credit Union.
9. You're unsure of the total amount you owe on all your debts.
10. You take out cash advances on your credit card to pay other bills.
11. You've tried to make a purchase with your credit card and been declined.
12. You've been denied credit.
13. You bounce checks.
14. You get calls from collectors.
15. You lie to your spouse or other family member about your spending or hide credit card statements from family members.

If you realize that you are in over your head, the sooner you act, the easier it will be to get out from under the burden of debt. Beware of companies that promise to fix your credit or debt consolidation companies. There's no easy fix, but it is possible to turn your finances around if you work at it.

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