Managing your money

Budgeting, saving and spending

 About MoneySmart
MoneySmart is a free website from the Australian Securities and
Investments Commission (ASIC) that helps you make the most of
your money.
It has calculators, tools and tips to help you with:
• budgeting, saving and spending
• banking and insurance
• credit, loans and debt
• investing and financial advice
• superannuation and retirement
• avoiding scams.
For simple guidance you can trust, visit www.moneysmart.gov.au
or call ASIC on 1300 300 630.

2 Managing your money

Take charge of your money
Want to know the secret to being good with money?
In just a few simple steps, you can take control of your money,
instead of feeling like it controls you.
Whether you have a little money or a lot, this booklet will help you:
• get off the treadmill of living pay-to-pay
• ease money stress and stay on top of your bills and commitments
• direct your money to where it matters most
• set goals so you can enjoy more of the good things in life.

Steps to taking control of your money

TRACK COMPARE PRIORITISE ACT

your money in where you to make your

day-to-day and want your money work
spending money out money to go for you

see page 4 see page 7 see page 13 see page 23

3
 Step 1: Track your
day‑to‑day spending
Where is my money going day-to-day?
You may think spending up on big things is what gets you into trouble
with money.
But often it is the everyday little things that end up costing more
over time.
Where does your cash go each day? It’s easy to lose track of $5 here,
$10 there.

Do a spending diary
The way to find out where your money is going is to do a spending diary.
Make a note of everything you spend for one pay period or at least a
week. This will only take a few minutes a day.
You can do this just for
yourself, or together with
a friend or partner.

Get to know your habits

Tracking your spending is a
reality check.
It’s not about judging yourself,
it’s about getting to know
yourself better.
By looking closely at your
daily money habits, you will be
able to make realistic choices
about where you want your
money to go.

4 Managing your money

Track your spending
Understand your daily spending habits.

5 minutes a day

Choose how Decide how long to track your spending:

long to track
• one week (minimum)
• two weeks (if you get paid fortnightly)
• four weeks (if you get paid monthly).
The important thing is to do it every day.
Get a Get a small notepad to use as your spending diary.
notepad Take it with you wherever you go.
or app
Or, if you have a smartphone, download the free
MoneySmart TrackMySpend app.
Record what Record everything you spend. Do this straight away.
you spend
Keep receipts if you buy a few things at once.
Don’t try to alter your spending habits. Just notice
where your money goes.
Add it up At the end of the tracking period, add up everything you
have spent.
Now you have a good snapshot of your current
day-to-day spending.

Smart tip

Get MoneySmart’s free spending tracker app

Got a smartphone? Download the free
MoneySmart TrackMySpend app.

5
 Sample spending diary
Day Amount What I bought

Mo n 23 rd $3 0 w e e kly t ra i n tic k et
Mo n $3. 5 0 co f fe e
Tu e s 24 t h $5 m a ga zi n e
Tu e s $3. 5 0 co f fe e
Tu e s $59 s hirt

Maria saves for a holiday

‘I am planning to go for a beach holiday
next year.
After doing a spending diary, I made a few
small changes to reduce my daily spending.
I am now saving an extra $100 a month
towards my trip.
Sun and sand, here I come!’

Smart tip

Fine-tune your spending habits

Anything about your daily spending habits you would like to change?
See www.moneysmart.gov.au for simple ways to save money.

6 Managing your money

 Step 2: Compare money in
and money out
Where is my money going month-to-month?
Now you know where your cash is going day-to-day, the next step is to
look at where your money is going month-to-month.

How much money is coming in? How much is going out?

Think about where your money goes each month:
• weekly basics like food, groceries, transport
• regular bills like rent or mortgage, electricity, phone, insurance
• less frequent spending like clothing, holidays, car registration,
medical expenses.

Do a budget
The best way to take control
of your household finances is
to do a budget.
This is a simple tool that
helps you understand the
money going in and out of
your household.
It shows you if you are
spending more or less than
you can afford.
You can then take action to
find the right balance between
spending and saving.

7
 Smart tip

Use MoneySmart’s free online budget planner

Want your computer to do the hard work for you?
Go to www.moneysmart.gov.au to get MoneySmart’s free
budget planner.
It is easy to use and you can save and print your results. You can use
either the online version or the downloadable Excel spreadsheet.
No calculations to do – the budget planner does it all for you.

8 Managing your money

Do your budget
Understand the money going in and out of your household each month.

30 minutes

You will need:

• the budget planner from www.moneysmart.gov.au, OR
• the tear-out planner at the back of this booklet.

Put your details into the budget planner

Gather details How much money is coming in?
of your income
Check pay slips, bank statements and investment
statements.
If your income is variable, make an estimate based on
your past year’s earnings.

Gather details How much money is going out?

of your
Look at bills, bank statements, credit card statements,
expenses
your spending diary (page 5), receipts and
shopping dockets.
Use your best guess if there is anything you can’t find,
or if bill amounts vary across the year.

Put your What is my current situation?

income and
Put your income and expenses into the budget planner.
expenses into
the budget Save your budget as ‘Budget Month Year’, for example
planner ‘Budget January 2013’.

9
 Neal stays on top of a variable income
‘I run my own business as a landscaper.
So my income and expenses go up and
down through the year.
At first, I found this hard to manage.
But doing a budget helped a lot.
To work out my monthly cash flow, I looked at the total of what
I earned across the year. Then divided by 12 to get an average.
When I earn more than usual I put the extra into savings, to get me
through the leaner months.’

Compare your income and expenses

Once you have done your budget, it is time to compare your income
and expenses.
Is your income higher or lower than your expenses?
That is, are you living within your means or spending more than you
can afford?

I am spending less than my income

That’s great, now you know how much money you have to put
towards your goals and lifestyle choices.
Your next step is to fine-tune the balance between your spending
and saving. See Step 3 (page 13) for guidance on how to do this.

I am spending more than my income

This is not the end of the world, but you do need to take action to fix this.
Keep spending more than you can afford each month and you risk
sliding into debt – easy to get into, harder to get out of.
Your next step is to reduce your expenses to an affordable level.
See Step 3 (page 13) for guidance on this.
When you’ve got that sorted, you’ll be able to move on to planning for
your future goals.

10 Managing your money

Smart tip

Get free help with sorting out debts

If your debts are getting out of control or you are struggling to
make ends meet, it is important to act quickly. Help is available.
A financial counsellor can help you get a clear picture of your
situation, understand your options and work out a budget.
To find a free financial counselling service near you, go to
www.moneysmart.gov.au. Or call the National Financial
Counselling Hotline on 1800 007 007.

Suzette and friends talk about money

‘Being on my own, it can be tough having to make every decision
about money by myself.
Recently, I’ve been finding it really hard going.
So I decided to talk to a few of my friends. What a relief!
It turns out that all of us have had money issues at some time.
Now we can support each other.’

11
 Smart tip

Simple ways to save money

There are many ways to make your money go a bit further.
Here are a few:
• Join your local library – borrow books, audio books, magazines,
CDs and DVDs for free.
• Look for pre-loved bargains – check op shops, free online swap
meets and local markets for bargains.
• Join a food co-op – see if there is a local community food co-op
or farmers’ market in your area where you can buy fresh produce
and dry goods in bulk, reducing costs and wasteful packaging.
• Be creative – involve friends or family in coming up with ideas
for fun, low-cost entertainment such as picnics and outings, free
concerts and exhibitions, half-price movies and shows.
For more simple savings tips, go to www.moneysmart.gov.au.

12 Managing your money

 Step 3: Prioritise where you
want your money to go
How do I make my money go where it matters most?
The next step is to refine your budget and direct your money to where it
matters most.
This will help you find the right balance between spending and saving.

How does a budget work in practice?

It might sound simple, but using buckets is a good way to sort out your
money priorities.
Imagine you have a big bucket filled with water. This represents all your
money coming in – the total income you entered into the budget planner.
Then you have three smaller empty buckets to help you work out where
you want your money to go.
Of course you can’t pour out more water than you have. So, with the
amount available, you decide how much to put into each bucket.

Money out
Money NEEDS WANTS
in basic necessities – lifestyle choices –
need these to live on want but could live without

BASICS GOALS EXTRAS

all income daily living expenses paying down your spending

such as rent and food debt, building choices
up savings

13
 How to use the budget buckets
First, put in enough money from your income bucket to take care
of your needs.
These are the basic necessities, the expenses you have to pay in
order to live.

Money in Money out

YOUR INCOME NEEDS

• Your take-home pay BASICS

• Your partner’s take-home pay • Rent or mortgage
• Centrelink benefits • Food and groceries
• Family benefit payments • Gas and electricity
• Child support received • Transport
• Health care

BASICS

14 Managing your money

Then, work out what you can afford for your wants.
Divide up the rest of your money between your saving and spending.

Money out
WANTS

GOALS EXTRAS
• Paying off debt • Eating out
• Building savings • Entertainment
• Holiday • Recreation
• Car • Personal spending or
pocket money
• Education
• Gifts and donations
• Superannuation

GOALS EXTRAS

15
 Prioritise your needs and wants
Identify where you can reduce your expenses and save money.

20 minutes

You will need:

• a print-out of the budget planner OR the hand-written planner you
created in Step 2 (page 9).

How to reduce your expenses

First, highlight the most important things in your budget – your needs or
basic necessities.
Then, identify the things you want but could do without, if you had to.
What can you cut out or cut back?

16 Managing your money

Switch or save

Switch • Are there memberships or subscriptions you could cancel

or get for a lower cost?
–– gym, clubs
–– magazines, online gaming
• Is there a cheaper mobile phone plan?
• Can you shop around for a better deal on car or
contents insurance?
• Are you paying for more health cover than you need?
• Could you switch to a super fund with lower fees?

Save • What can you get for free or cheaper elsewhere?

–– use the internet at the library
–– watch freeview instead of cable TV
• How could you spend less on groceries?
–– take a list and only buy what is on the list
–– look for home brand products and items on special
–– buy in bulk and only go shopping once a fortnight
• Can you reduce your spending on eating out?
–– make lunch instead of buying takeaway
–– have a dinner party and get everyone to bring a plate
• Can you save on your electricity bill?
–– switch appliances off instead of leaving in standby mode
–– use a fan instead of air conditioning
–– pay in instalments, so you have less to pay in one go

Smart tip

How to increase your income

• Are you getting all the Centrelink benefits you are entitled to?
• Could you earn more money from part-time work or hobbies?
• Do you have any unwanted goods you could swap or sell?
• If you have adult children living with you, are they contributing
towards household costs?

17
 List your savings and cuts
Make a note of all the items you could cut out or cut back.
Then check:
• Is this realistic?
• Do you need to cut back on all of these items, or just some?
• What are the most obvious ones to start with?
Even if you need to reduce your expenses a lot, try not to cut out
everything in your ‘wants’ bucket.
By allowing yourself a treat now and then, you will find it much easier to
stick to your budget.

Smart tip

Shop with cash instead of credit

With a credit card, it is easy to spend more than you can afford.
Keep in mind that a credit card is really a debt card.
If you don’t have the money to pay cash for something today, will
you have the money next month when the bill is due, plus interest
and charges?
It is often easier to keep to a budget if you use cash, EFTPOS or a
debit card when shopping.
Try saving up or using lay-by instead of a credit or store card
to make big purchases like a TV or washing machine. Pay your
purchase off in instalments, and avoid extra fees or charges.

18 Managing your money

Set goals for the future
Set goals for the future and make a plan to achieve them.

20 minutes

Having worked out ways to reduce your expenses and save money, you are
ready to start planning your future goals.
What do you want from life? Why?
Setting goals for yourself – whether large or small, short or long-term –
is exciting and motivating.
You may surprise yourself with how much you can achieve when you put
your mind to it!

What are some possible goals?

Reduce your debt... Start to save...

Pay off: Save for:

• your credit or store card • a holiday or weekend away
• a personal loan • Christmas presents and
• a car loan celebrations

• your mortgage. • a ‘rainy day’ fund, for big bills

or emergencies
• your wedding
• a home deposit
• your children’s education
• starting your own business
• voluntary super contributions
• your retirement.

19
 Set your goals
Think for a moment, then write down some possible goals.
Now:
• What is your top priority?
• How much will it cost?
• When would you like to achieve it?
If you have borrowed money on a high interest rate, make paying off that
debt your first priority, before taking on other goals.

Make your plan

Be specific about what you want to achieve, how much you intend to save,
and by when.
If you would like to save for several goals at once, fill in these details for
each goal.
Make sure this is realistic and affordable.

Goal 1

What

When

How much

Goal 2

What

When

How much

20 Managing your money

Smart tip

How to achieve your goals

• Start small – begin with something small (for example,
a weekend away).
• Be specific – work out exactly what you want and why.
• Be realistic – set yourself a reasonable amount of time.
• Share it – talk about your goal with a friend, partner and/or
children, to stay motivated.
• Reward yourself – celebrate each step along the way to reaching
your goal.

21
 Refine your budget
Create a household budget that works for you.

20 minutes

You will need:

• your saved budget OR
hand-written budget planner
(page 9),
• your list of identified cuts and
savings (page 18),
• your future goals plan (page 20).

Update your budget planner

Set your Go through each part of your budget in turn.

spending
Update the amounts in your budget to match your chosen
targets
cuts and savings.

Add in Add in the amount you are going to save for your goal
your goal (or goals).

Balance Check that the way you have put your money into each
your category looks and feels right to you:
spending
and saving • Have you been realistic in allowing enough money for
your everyday needs?
• Have you made enough cuts and savings to free up the
money you want for your goals?
If not, adjust your amounts until you are happy you have
the balance working across all categories.
Then save the new version of your budget and you
are done.
Congratulations!

22 Managing your money

 Step 4: Act to make your
money work for you
How do I make my budget happen?
Now that you have your budget working, it is time to take the final step
and put it into action.
The trick is to make this as easy as possible for yourself, by making things
happen automatically.
That way you won’t have to work at your budget – you will make your
money work for you.

Pay important bills by direct debit

If you are regularly paid a salary or benefits, set up a direct debit from your
bank account for the day after the money is deposited.
This works well for things like:
• rent or mortgage
• personal loan or car repayments
• paying off a backlog of credit or store card debt.
If your income varies, or
the bill amount varies,
keep a close eye on your
bank balance to ensure
you have enough money
in your account.

23
 Smart tip

Easy ways to save for your goals

• Start now – no matter how small the amount you can put aside.
• Pay yourself first – get savings deducted from your pay or
benefits automatically; most people don’t miss what they
don’t see.
• Keep your savings separate – put your savings into a separate
account with no ATM access.
• Add in your windfalls – try to save any pay rises, bonuses or
tax refunds.

Antonia and Rudi simplify their extras spending

‘After doing our budget, we didn’t want to try to track every dollar
in every category – especially personal spending.
So we set up each member of the household (two adults, three
teenagers) with their own cash card account, with a set allowance to
spend however they like.
Not only is this easier for us, our kids are now taking more
responsibility for their spending.’

24 Managing your money

Smooth out your big bills
Do you find that some months are more expensive than others – due to
big bills, birthdays or unexpected events? Here’s how to smooth out the
ups and downs of your expenses.

Mark your • Go through your budget (page 22) and highlight the
calendar big bills that come less often, like contents insurance,
car registration or school fees.
• Work out when (month/day) each bill is usually due.
You may need to look back at the bills you collected in
Step 2 (page 9).
• Mark each bill on your calendar or a yearly planner –
together with birthdays and periodic events – so you
know when you are going to need more money.

Set aside • Add up how much your big bills cost in total
money for the year. If you wish, add an extra amount for
gifts and celebrations.
• Work out how much this is per pay or benefit period
(for example, per fortnight).
• Put this amount aside each time you are paid – by direct
debit into a separate ‘big bills’ account or whatever
works best for you.
• Then you will have the money ready to cover the next
big bill or special event.

Ask • Contact your utilities providers (gas, electricity, water)

about bill and ask about ‘bill smoothing’.
smoothing
• See if you can arrange to make fortnightly or monthly
payments to them, instead of having to pay the whole
bill in one go.

Arrange • If you receive Centrelink benefits, ask about Centrepay.

Centrepay
• This free service enables you to pay your utilities and
other bills by having a regular amount deducted from
your benefit payment.

25
 Stay on track
After all your good work putting your budget in place, how do you ensure
you stay on track?

CARE for your money

CHECK your budget at least once a year to see how you
are tracking, and update amounts if you need to.

ADJUST your budget if your circumstances change

(for example, if your pay goes up or down, you fall ill or
lose your job, get married or start a family).

REWARD yourself with regular treats, so that living with a

budget does not feel like a chore.

ENTHUSE yourself by putting a picture or chart of your

goals on the fridge as a daily reminder.

Go the distance
If you keep your budget going, you can progressively achieve bigger
goals, like:
• going on holiday,
• buying a car,
• putting your kids through school, or
• saving for retirement.
Taking charge of your money means less stress, more control – and a
feeling of moving forward with confidence and ease.
Now you know the secret to being good with money.
A few simple steps really do make a difference.

26 Managing your money

Other useful publications
Visit ASIC’s MoneySmart website at www.moneysmart.gov.au for
calculators and tips to give you fast answers to your money questions.

Credit, loans and debt Super decisions

Stay out of trouble when you borrow money

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Financial decisions Investing between

at retirement the flags
How to make the most of your money A practical guide to investing
and avoid costly mistakes

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Download these free publications and more from www.moneysmart.gov.au

or order them from ASIC on 1300 300 630 (at no charge).

27
Budget planner
Understand the money going in and out of your household each month.

30 minutes

Gather details of How much money is coming in?

your income Check pay slips, bank statements and investment statements.
If your income is variable, make an estimate based on your
past year’s earnings.

Gather details of How much money is going out?

your expenses Look at bills, bank statements, credit card statements,
your spending diary, receipts and shopping dockets.
Use your best guess if there is anything you can’t find,
or if bill amounts vary across the year.

Put your income What is my current situation?

and expenses Put your income and expenses into the budget planner.
into the budget Adjust all amounts to the same frequency (this planner
planner uses fortnightly figures).

MONEY IN:
1. Your fortnightly income
Wages Your take-home pay $
Your partner’s take-home pay $
Payments Centrelink benefits $
Family benefit payments $
Child support received $
Other* Bonuses/overtime $
Refunds/rebates $
Income from savings/investments $
Other income $

* Divide by 26 (amount ÷ 26) to convert yearly amounts to fortnightly.

Add the above for your total fortnightly income 1 Total $

Managing your money

MONEY OUT:
2. Your fortnightly spending *

Shopping Supermarket $
Fruit/vegetables $
Other food/groceries $
Baby products $
Cosmetics/toiletries $
Clothing/shoes $
Pet products $
Eating out Restaurants $
Takeaway/snacks $
Coffee/tea $
Alcohol $
Entertainment Movies/music $
Bars/clubs $
Personal Personal allowance $
Pocket money $
Newspapers/magazines $
Pharmacy/prescriptions $
Gym/sports membership $
Cigarettes/gambling $
Transport Trains/trams/buses/ferries $
Petrol $
Road tolls/parking $
Goals Savings $
Voluntary super contributions $
Other goals $
Other Other fortnightly spending $
$
$

* Multiply by 2 (amount x 2) to convert any weekly amount to fortnightly.

Add the above for your total fortnightly spending 2 Total $

3. Your monthly spending
Home Rent/mortgage $
Payments Car loan repayments $
Other loan repayments $
Credit/store card repayments $
Child support payments $
Communications Mobile phone $
Home phone $
Internet $
Pay TV $
Other Other monthly spending $
$
$

Step 1 Add the above for your total monthly spending Total $

Multiply monthly total by 12

Step 2 $
(monthly total x 12) = yearly amount

Step 3
Divide yearly amount by 26
(yearly amount ÷ 26) = fortnightly amount 3 $

Please turn over 

Smart tip

Use MoneySmart’s free online budget planner

Go to www.moneysmart.gov.au to get MoneySmart’s free
budget planner. No calculations to do – the budget planner does it
all for you.

Managing your money

4. Your quarterly spending
Utilities/fees Electricity $
Gas $
Water $
Council rates $
Body corporate fees $
Health Doctor/medical $
Dentist $
Chiropractor/physiotherapist $
Other health $
Vet $
Education Childcare/pre-school fees $
School fees $
Uni/TAFE fees $
School uniforms $
Sport, music, dance, etc $
Excursions $
Other Other quarterly spending $
$
$

Add the above for your total

Step 1
quarterly spending
Total $

Multiply quarterly total by 4

Step 2 $
(quarterly amount x 4) = yearly amount

Step 3
Divide yearly amount by 26
(yearly amount ÷ 26) = fortnightly amount 4 $
5. Your yearly spending
Car Car registration $
Car maintenance $
Household Home maintenance/repairs $
Furniture $
Appliances $
Insurance Home and contents $
Car $
Health $
Travel $
Pet $
Recreation Holidays $
Celebrations $
Gifts/donations Donations/charity $
Gifts $
Other Subscriptions/memberships $
Other yearly spending $
$
$

Step 1 Add the above for your total yearly spending Total $

Step 2
Divide yearly total by 26
(yearly total ÷ 26) = fortnightly amount 5 $

Managing your money

6. Your budget calculation
MONEY IN: Put the total from Box 1 here

A Total fortnightly income $

MONEY OUT: Add the totals from Boxes 2, 3, 4 & 5 and put their
combined total here

B Total fortnightly spending $

THE DIFFERENCE:
Subtract Box B from Box A and write the answer here

C Total income – total spending $

If the amount in Box A is bigger than Box B, then you are spending less
than your income.
The amount in Box C is the amount you have left over each fortnight to
put towards your savings goals and lifestyle choices.

If the amount in Box B is bigger than Box A, then you are spending more
than your income.
The amount in Box C is the amount you are spending each fortnight above
what you can afford.
ASIC’s MoneySmart website has calculators, tools and tips to help you
make smart choices about:
• Budgeting and saving
• Borrowing and credit
• Investing
• Superannuation and retirement
• Scams

www.moneysmart.gov.au
call ASIC: 1300 300 630
Disclaimer
Please note that this is a summary giving you basic information
about a particular topic. It does not cover the whole of the
relevant law regarding that topic, and it is not a substitute
for professional advice.
© Australian Securities and Investments Commission
ISBN 978-0-9805534-2-0 August 2012