Exercise: Household expenses
Exercise objective:
To learn how to categorise expenses and to realise how many categories of expenses we have in our budget.
Instruction:
Below, write down all the categories you spend money on during the month. Create your list, which you will then use when creating your own household budget template. The more detailed your list is, the better you will understand where your money goes. You can use both general categories (e.g. “Food”) and more specific ones (“Vegetables and fruit”, “Meat”, “Sweets”).
My spending categories:
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Compare your list of saved expenses with the list below – you may find inspiration to expand your categories or discover expenses you hadn’t thought of before!
Expenses – sample categories:
- Housing: Rent, utilities (electricity, gas, water, heating, refuse collection), internet, TV.
- Food: Grocery shopping (supermarket, bazaar), eating out/delivery.
- Transport: Fuel, public transport tickets, taxis, car maintenance (servicing, insurance, tyre changes).
- Health: Medicines, specialist visits (doctor, dentist, physiotherapist), supplements, health insurance (additional).
- Education: School supplies, after-school activities for children (languages, sports), adult courses, books.
- Children: Children’s clothing, toys, nappies, nursery/nursery (school fees), pocket money.
- Hygiene and Beauty: Cosmetics, hairdresser, beautician, hygiene items.
- Clothing and footwear: Shopping for clothes and shoes for the whole family.
- Entertainment and pleasure: Cinema, theatre, concert, restaurants, hobbies, weekend trips, subscriptions (streaming platforms).
- Family support: Sending money to relatives in another country, financial assistance.
- Pets: Food, vet visits, pet accessories.
- Gifts: Birthdays, holidays, other occasions.
- Insurance: Housing, car, life, accident insurance.
- Taxes: Property tax, other local levies.
- Loan instalments: Mortgage, consumer credit, instalment loans, car loan.
- Emergencies/unforeseen: Repairs (minor), white goods/RTV repairs, unforeseen medical appointments.
- Family celebrations: Weddings, communions, baptisms, anniversaries (often requiring major expenditure).
- Charities/Religious worship: Donations, contributions.
- Mandates: Fines for offences (e.g. traffic offences).
- Fuel: If applicable (e.g. coal, wood, pellets).
- Contributory events: Contributions for gifts, group outings.
- Other: Takeaway coffee, cigarettes, small impulse purchases.
Summary
There will always be more expenditure categories than income. We can spend endlessly, and it is much harder to find new sources of income. Therefore, it is really worth taking a detailed look at your spending.
IMPORTANT
Rational management of personal finances is possible by increasing and diversifying sources of income while reducing unnecessary expenditure. It’s a balance you should strive for.