Creating a Budget for 2012

It’s hard to believe that 2011 is coming to a close. Christmas is already over, but if you overspent this year, you might be paying for your Christmas purchases for months to come.
That’s not a great way to start the new year, but you can get your finances on the right track by creating a budget for 2012 and sticking to it. But first, let’s talk about that credit card bill.

Experts recommend laying out everything you owe. Gather up all of your credit cards, for example, and write down the balance on each. What is your minimum payment for each card and which card do you owe the most on? Concentrate on paying more on the higher-balance card until it’s paid off. Then continue this process until all of your cards have a zero balance. Ask yourself if you really need more than one credit card. If you don’t, cut up everything you don’t need so you won’t be tempted to use it.

Now for the budget. Create a simple worksheet in Excel and write down every bill you receive each month along with the amount due. Total up your bills then subtract that total from the income you bring in each month. What’s left over represents how much extra money you have to spend. Once you know exactly what you have to operate on, you can better organize your finances and know what you can and cannot afford to buy. Don’t forget to include things like groceries, gas, child care, and money to put into savings when creating your monthly budget.

Some people may be shocked at how much money they don’t have left over each month. What can you get rid of? Maybe you can you lower your cable bill by selecting a different plan, or cut coupons and stick to a strict grocery list each week.

Make 2012 a year of good financial decisions. A little discipline can go a long way.

Happy 2012!

How to keep a clean checkbook

How organized is your checkbook? Do you know your balance, know your budget, and know what you can’t afford to buy?

Some people are careless when it comes to their checkbook, but that’s one area of our lives we should work hard to organize. For personal use and especially for business, being meticulous here will pay off—and save you money in overdraft fees from the bank. Here are a few tips when it comes to keeping a clean and accurate checkbook.

• This might seem obvious, but don’t forget to write down all receipts. Few people carry cash these days, so you could have five receipts or more in one day from small purchases like stops to the gas station, the drive-thru at lunch, or a mid-day coffee run. Even though these small amounts aren’t likely to overdraw your account, if you fail to write them down, your book will be out of balance, making it hard for you to know exactly what you have to spend.
• Fraudulent activity is commonplace, and you’re especially vulnerable if you purchase a lot of items online. For this reason, be sure to log into your bank account online and balance your checkbook. I would suggest doing this at least twice a week to see what debits have cleared and which are still outstanding. Then, make sure your book balances to what the bank says you have available. Make sure nothing has come through on your account that you didn’t buy. If it has, contact your bank to get more information on that transaction.
• If you have automatic debits set up on your account for certain bills or fees each month, don’t forget to write those down, especially if they’re for large amounts. Try to remember when these come out each month so you can plan accordingly and make sure the funds are in your account before the debit is scheduled to come out.
• Don’t be afraid to ask the bank teller for help. That’s what they’re there for. If your account is out of balance and you can’t find the culprit, go to your bank and ask the teller to balance it for you. She might be able to find an error that you’ve overlooked and can look up your account in much more detail than what’s available to you online.

Managing cash flow for your small business

Being on top of your small business means being in complete control of its cash flow. What goes into the cash register at the end of the day is the lifeblood of a small business and needs to be properly handled.
Losing money is only one problem when it comes to mishandling cash. Without proper controls and procedures in place, valuable information about your business is lost, too. Ideally, a good small business cash flow plan will achieve the following:

• Daily, weekly and even hourly sales reports
• Customized reports to identify the least and most profitable products or services
• Month-end sales reports to be used in determining business and occupation taxes and other local taxes and fees
• In retail environments, the point of sale system should also directly aid in creating purchase orders and invoices
• Track checks, cash, and credit card sales and reconcile with actual deposits

For small businesses, bad checks can lead to hours spent trying to recover the funds and reconcile the accounting. Banks often charge the merchant a returned check fee as well. Accepting checks without proper protections in place is a risk for your business.

Partnering with a company like CheckCare can reduce the risks involved with accepting checks. With services such as check verification and check guarantees, credit and debit card processing, and online payment systems, your business will be protected. And as a small business owner, that’s one less thing you’ll have to worry about.

Having a small business cash flow system like the one listed above will help to keep your business running smoothly.