In most cases, I wouldn’t take the time to write a post that toots my own horn, but the news I’m about to share — which I’m sure you’ve already surmised by reading the title — is pretty awesome and worth spreading!
My book, How to Make a Budget, has rocketed up Amazon and as of this morning, is the number two best selling book in the “Personal Finance” category! And, it’s not like I’m shilling garbage, either. Of the eight reviews posted thus far, seven have been five-star and the other is a four-star review!
So, long story short, thank you to everyone who has purchased the book!
First off, if you’re expecting I’d like to say congratulations; if you’re getting ready to “start trying” (which is a term I’ve always found sort of odd) I’d like to say best of luck!
Having a baby and starting a family is certainly an amazing and exciting time in your life. Unfortunately, it can also be an incredibly expensive time, with increased insurance costs, baby food, clothes, diapers, etc.
That’s why it’s critically important for your family’s financial future that you begin making a baby budget prior to the arrival of your child/children. In fact, it’s probably pretty important that you create and stick to a budget well before you start planning to have a family.
So, to that end, I highly recommend that you check out my sample budget spreadsheet and start working on a budget today, regardless of whether or not you’ve recently had a child, are expecting, or are getting ready to start trying. Currently, the budget is very generic, but can be easily tailored to fit any growing family’s needs!
You’re going to be stressed enough as it is, don’t let money worries become another problem.
I’ve always taken the data reported by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) with a grain of salt, especially during the downturn in housing. They’ve always seemed to have a Pollyanna view on things, routinely telling us that the worst was behind us and better days were ahead, only to see sales and prices of homes continue to plummet.
Looks like NAR was pretty far off with their original estimates.
If you don’t feel like getting into the details of the report, the graph to the left (courtesy of NAR and CNN Money) should do a good job illustrating just how far off NAR was with their original sale estimates.
Here’s a quick blurb from Les Christie’s article on CNN Money:
Existing home sales during the housing bust were actually 14.3% worse than previously reported, a revision to Realtors’ group numbers shows.
On Wednesday, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) revised home sale counts back to 2007 due to flaws in their original data analysis.
Print CommentIn 2007, there were actually just 5.04 million existing home sales, 11% less than the 5.65 million originally reported. Even worse were 2008 and 2009, when there were 16% fewer sales than originally reported. Sales in 2010 were 15% lower.
“The errors started in 2007 and continued to accumulate over time,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist.
I guess the silver lining in all of this is the fact that their estimates on home prices weren’t revised downward. But, that is a much more localized concern, and is much easier to check by simply looking at recent sales in your neighborhood or community. That’s not to say sales volume isn’t somewhat localized, but considering we’re in a national housing funk, I think volume is a much better national metric than price.
Here’s a video, which is also posted on NAR’s website, of NAR’s Chief Economist, Lawrence Yun, discussing the revising – or “rebenchmarking,” as they call it – of the housing data.
Editorial note – Yun is the biggest Pollyanna of them all.
Moral of the story – we thought housing was bad, turns out it was worse.
What are your thoughts? Leave your comments below and let me know what you think!
We’ll keep this post short and sweet since you’re liking finishing up your holiday shopping, and I wouldn’t want to keep you from the endless lines at your local mall!
Since we’re heading into 2012, I’m sure plenty of you are beginning to think about your New Year’s resolutions. If you’re like most people, chances are your resolutions will involve either or both of the following things: money management and weight loss.
Obviously, I’m not here to help you with the latter, but if you’re hear for the former, I certainly can help. If you catch yourself saying, “In 2012, I want to make a budget and stick to it!” then you my friend have come to the right place!
(Trust me, it’s not as bad as it seems. I promise!)
I’ve put together a simple budget format in Excel that has helped me — and will hopefully help you — take a lot of the “pain” out of creating and tracking a budget. You can get the sample budget format by clicking here.
If you have any questions related to the post or setting up a budget in general, please feel free to contact me via email or by leaving a comment on this page!
Disclaimer: All information provided at Saving Without A Budget is for informational purposes only. Per FTC guidelines, this website may be compensated by companies mentioned through advertising, affiliate programs or otherwise
