by Hope
I just reviewed my forecast for the month. Thought you might want to see my planned spending and known income:
| Payee | Amount |
| Mortgage – part I | -$599 |
| Health Insurance | -$76 |
| Income | $684 |
| Amazon CC | -$96 |
| Gas/Water/Trash | -$150? |
| TX Savings | -$20 |
| TX Stash | -$20 |
| Income | -$20 |
| Electrician | -$1,210 |
| Sam’s Club CC | -$33 |
| Electricity | -$43 |
| Upwork | $500 |
| TX Savings | -$20 |
| TX Stash | -$20 |
| Verizon | -$350 |
| Auto Insurance | -$737 |
| Mortgage – part 2 | -$500 |
| Income | |
| TX Savings | -$20 |
| TX Stash | -$20 |
| USAA CC | -$181 |
| Beauty – phone | $71 |
| Gymnast – phone | $75 |
| Frontier CC | -$157 |
| Princess – phone & internet | $114 |
| Income | |
| TX Savings | -$20 |
| TX Stash | -$20 |
| Storage | -$79 |
| Internet | -$63 |
| Apple CC | -$ |
| Total | -$3,010 |
If the amount is blank, it means I don’t know it.
Some notes:
The total looks scary with just two weeks of income left to be calculated. However, my mortgage (part 1), the electrician, and health insurance are already covered from last month’s income.
There is no budget for gas or groceries this month. That is intentional as I am moving completely out of the house at the end of the month, so I want to eat through everything here. And I have no plans to leave a 3 mile radius of my home so my current full tank of gas should last me easily. I believe I have enough food to last me even if I am down to peanut butter sandwiches by the end of the month. (My loaf bread is kept frozen now and just toast it as needed so it doesn’t go bad.)
I do have additional income, but it is not predictable as far as amount or when I will get paid. It also goes into my business account. I have several business related bills that are covered from that account. The current balance of that account is right at $250 so it’s got enough to cover this month’s bills and some. When business is good, I would typically set up my Verizon and Internet bills to be paid from my business account. (Note: Upwork income, as seen here, requires that it be paid to a personal checking account so I cannot set it up to go to my business account.)
The TX Stash and TX Saving line items are weekly transfers to my ROTH account and my savings account. It’s not a lot but it’s something.
Things are tight. But nothing is late, nothing is over drafted.
Hope is a resourceful and solutions-driven business manager who has spent nearly two decades helping clients streamline their operations and grow their businesses through project management, digital marketing, and tech expertise. Recently transitioning from her role as a single mom of five foster/adoptive children to an empty nester, Hope is navigating the emotional and practical challenges of redefining her life while maintaining her determination to regain financial control and eliminate debt.
Living in a cozy small town in northeast Georgia with her three dogs, Hope cherishes the serenity of the mountains over the bustle of the beach. Though her kids are now finding their footing in the world—pursuing education, careers, and independence—she remains deeply committed to supporting them in this next chapter, even as she faces the bittersweet tug of letting go.
Since joining the Blogging Away Debt community in 2015, Hope has candidly shared her journey of financial ups and downs. Now, with a renewed focus and a clear path ahead, she’s ready to tackle her finances with the same passion and perseverance that she’s brought to her life and career. Through her writing, she continues to inspire others to confront their own financial challenges and strive for a brighter future.
What does this actually mean in the real world? “my mortgage (part 1), the electrician, and health insurance are already covered from last month’s income.” Does this just mean your checking account balance right now is $1885? Does this mean you have paid these bills in advance of the due date? Why in the world are you making it so confusing?
Definitely getting that it’s too confusing. These are the items that were budgeted/forecasted for this month. Those items are already paid, in advance. I’ll do better at laying this out next time around.
Why not do better right now instead of waiting a month?
Reality check: this ‘forecast’ shows your finances are in CRITICAL condition!
Even if Mortgage part 1, Healthcare Premium, and Electrician are already paid, and your bank account isn’t overdrawn, then with the sequence of payments…you run out of money BEFORE the Auto Insurance and Mortgage part 2 payments. And everything after that too. Even with some income.
That’s not “tight”, it’s an emergency!!!
Sorry things are so bad, but you won’t answer hard questions. Where did the $9000 go in Jan/Feb. What’s the deal with your mortgage increasing. Why can’t your child take a student loan for her apartment so you don’t risk your house. Many more…
This is NOT my bank account balance. These are my budgeted items for the month.
What does that actually mean?
Simple yes/no question: with your current bank balance, can you make all of the payments on this list by the end of the month, without additional income, and without more borrowing on a credit card — or from any other source for that matter?
If the answer is no, that’s an emergency. If the answer is yes, better — but only punts to next month.
And you have added a new debt, to the painter, on top of everything else. It’s implied you can’t afford to pay for that right now.
Why are you ignoring questions about your debt and mortgage? Why are you saving $20 randomly when also in credit card debt? Why has your mortgage payments increased and what is your current debt?
Where did the additional 9k of debt come from in the past few months? Why are you not answering questions about your debt on a debt blog?
What is TX savings and TX stash? These line items might mean something to you but this forecast is so unclear. I would encourage you to go back to the beginning of your blogging here where you promised to be open and transparent because this is anything but. You have many readers here who have followed since the beginning giving you excellent advice but you won’t even answer a straightforward question on why your mortgage has almost doubled.
I explained in the notes below. These are transfers to my savings account (rebuilding my EF) and my ROTH investment account. I transfer $20/weekly to each.
This is so difficult to understand, very confusing. This “forecasting” thing doesn’t even read like a real budget. That’s what would show the full picture, such as…income, expenses, debt and savings (budgeted/actual). And then, what’s the bottom line…
Not sure what this tells us, but there’s no sense of what the real picture truly looks like.
I understand it’s confusing.
This is literally just where my money is going this month. That’s it, that’s all.
Hi Hope – you have several lines for income on this list. That’s why people are confused too. It seems like your only income this month is 700 bucks.
What you’re describing then is expected expenses. That is only part of a budget and you’re also just guessing or estimating at some things. You will never get a handle on things until you start tracking actual spending, actual income, etc.
If you know it’s confusing, and you understand that it’s confusing, why do you keep posting it like this? Do you not understand how to make a readable list of income and expenses?
But what money do you actually have? your numbers don’t make sense? you can’t just list bills with questionable income. And last month you put a bunch on your credit card? Where is that?
Hope,
I too have a variable income and I forecast similar to what you are doing here. I list out my income on a calendar on the dates I’m expecting it as well as list all my bills on the dates they are due. Then I allocate the money to the bills that are due prior to the next influx of cash.
However, most people do not budget this way because they have consistent income and so it’s confusing to people who are reading this because they have to do the math themselves. Maybe including a summary would be better. Something as simple as including the forecast as you have it now and then underneath you summarize that in the following format:
Total funds in reserve going into the month of May (this would be the money you have prepaid already toward May’s bills plus any liquid cash you have in reserve toward this month’s bills).
Total income for the month of May: Add up everything you plan to earn this month.
Total expenses for the month of May (include anything you have already prepaid since you included that in the reserve funds above).
Remaining funds that will carry into the month of June (this could be a negative adding to debt if your income does not cover your expenses for the month).
That simple summary would solve most of the issues here.
Also, I suggest if the house mortgage increase and/or debt occurred due to something personal that you don’t want to share with the internet simply say that. It seems sneaky and like you are hiding something on a debt blog. Simply addressing the elephant in the room by basically saying you were forced into the situation by something that you are not comfortable disclosing to the internet would at least address the problem and close the loop. Maybe it’s something with one of your kids or your health or something similar. Lots of people might think that’s a bad financial move and maybe they are right but we all know money isn’t the only reason you make decisions. If it’s something like that…just own it and make a post that admits you aren’t going to answer the questions, acknowledge it wasn’t a smart financial move and move on with your life. It’s causing friction because it isn’t being addressed at all.
In February you mentioned that your car insurance was going to be 200s for you and Princess. What changed?
Hope, if you had a nickel for every time someone explained to you that you need a budget not a “forecast” you would be a very rich woman.