Is your budget on track?
“A budget isn’t something you can set at the start of the year and then forget about,” Ms Ross said.
“It needs to be regularly reviewed and updated to ensure it still represents your personal financial circumstances.
“You should especially be looking into your budget if your employment or income has changed. Have you moved jobs, retired, increased or reduced hours at work? Or maybe your personal circumstances have changed, have you had a roommate or child move in or out?
“Anything that impacts your income or living expenses should prompt you to check your budget.
“Look at all of your expenses and break them down to weekly, fortnightly, or monthly. Matching this with how you’re paid can make things easier.
“Hopefully that expenses figure comes in less than your income. If so, that extra money can be put aside for saving or used to pay off any debt.
“If your expenses are higher than your income, you should try to prioritise important bills and cut out any unnecessary spending.”
Ms Ross said while sticking to a budget was important, it shouldn’t mean you have to give up everything you enjoy.
“It’s not about just stamping out everything you love, it’s about prioritising and being smart with your money,” she said.
“If you can’t live without your daily café coffee, then maybe pack your own lunch that day or walk to work and skip the taxi.”
Queenslanders looking to set or review a budget could find helpful tools online including RACQ’s Budget Planner and Living Expenses Calculator.
For more information and tips for managing your money, visit RACQ’s Financial Wellbeing Hub.
The information in this article has been prepared for general information purposes only and not as specific advice to any particular person. Any advice contained in the document is general advice and does not take into account any person's particular investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on anything based on this advice you should consider its appropriateness to you, having regard to your objectives, financial situations and needs.
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The information in this article has been prepared for general information purposes only and is not intended as legal advice or specific advice to any particular person. Any advice contained in the document is general advice, not intended as legal advice or professional advice and does not take into account any person’s particular circumstances. Before acting on anything based on this advice you should consider its appropriateness to you, having regard to your objectives and needs.
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RACQ Operations Pty Ltd (ABN 80 009 663 414 AR 000234978) and Members Travel Group Pty Ltd (ABN 45 144 538 803 AR 000432492) are acting as an Authorised Representative of the issuer of the insurance, Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd. (ABN 80 000 438 291 AFSL 246 548). Any advice set out above is general in nature only, and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Before purchasing any travel products, please consider the RACQ Travel Insurance Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and the Target Market Determinations (TMDs) that apply to these products. Whilst the PDS outlines the Terms and Conditions of these products, the TMDs outline the intended class of customers that comprise the target market for these travel products. This will allow you to consider which products best suit your objectives, financial situation and needs and consider the products appropriateness to your personal circumstances. TMDs also outline matters involving the distribution and the review of these products. The PDS, Supplementary PDS and TMDs for each travel product can be found here.