How to Make a Monthly Budget (Build Your July 2026 Money Plan Step-by-Step With Us) | 582

0:00Have you made your July budget yet? Guys, July is the second. It starts the second half of the year. Can you believe it? We're already there. If you haven't gotten gear yet and ready, like maybe you completely messed up the first six months. It's okay. You still can. You can get it right right here. Yeah. July is the perfect time to get your budget going.

0:25And if you're going to stick with us today, we're going to walk you through creating your July budget. So just grab your budget, sit down, work on it with us. And then by the time we are done with this podcast, you'll have a budget. Yes, you will. Okay. So what do we do every single time we make a budget? Shana, the first thing that we do in the current month before we move on to the next month is what? We have to wrap it up. And y 'all raise your hand if you're excited to wrap June up. Because we've had a lot in our Facebook group. We've had a lot of clients. Like June just seems to have so many things going on.

0:55and you're just trying to tread water to get to the end of the month. So many people. I had somebody say, Ryan, dads and grads. Like that's one thing that you had to do. And then there's a lot of things going on. So we just want to go through June, wrap it up, put in the budget, what actually happened. You know what? Let's take a moment here, Vanessa, because people say, well, how do I put the actual numbers? You change the numbers that you budgeted to the actual numbers, and then that's all you do. It's that simple. It's really – and listen, I know if you're looking at our budget, we don't have an actual column.

1:28The reason is because nobody used it. Let's be real. And so all you have to do is just delete, erase whatever it is, the budgeted amount, replace it with the actual amount, and now you have a more realistic number for next month. That's the whole point. Yeah. And if something maybe went up a little bit, you're going to know that. And you have, in our budget at least, you have months of history. So if it was groceries that went up one time that you changed, you can put it back to a different amount. But the point being, you're going to update your budget. You're going to see what actually happened.

1:53You're going to update your accounts, make sure they're where they're at. You're going to do all the things to see where you stand before you move on for July. So on our signature budget template, that means check boxes, y 'all. So just go through and check your boxes. And we tell people if you want to do this throughout the month, some people check in five minutes a week or five minutes a day or whatever. It depends on where you are with your trust level with your budget. So just check those boxes and then change the budgeted amounts of the actuals if they're any different. And then you close it out.

2:22Yeah. Yeah. So as we move into July, I want to go back to something that Vanessa said in the intro. This is, you know, the second half of the year. Okay. So you may have set, you know, a lot of people found us in January. That's a big month for, you know, for our podcast. You may have set some goals in January and maybe you feel like not exactly as on track as I want. This is a great moment to reset. Look at what your goals were. Look at what your plan, what your vision is. And then let's get back on track in July. You have a whole half a year. What is possible? What can you accomplish in the next six months?

2:56And I want to piggyback on that and say, if you didn't accomplish everything you wanted to accomplish January through June, that is okay. That does not mean give up. It does not mean I suck. It does not mean I'm terrible with money. I can't budget, blah, blah, blah. Like that doesn't mean any of that. It just means life happened and you were focused on it. It just didn't happen the way that you maybe specifically wrote on paper that you wanted it to happen. That is okay. Dave Ramsey once said in a conference, he said, I wrote all my goals down for my business, and I didn't hit any of them in the timeframe that I wanted to hit them.

3:30However, I have now surpassed all of them. So that's the idea here. It is okay that maybe something didn't happen. Like Shana said, this is now July. Let's go. Let's go. And we're going to go. We're going to go. We're going to go by setting up the July budget. So you know we have the five simple categories that you have to budget. Okay? You have your income, your debts, your bills, your spending, and your savings. Those are the five things that you're putting into your budget and that if you already have a budget that you may be tweaking and updating for this month. Now, Shannon, we have a lot of people that want to put subscriptions and things like that in their spending section.

4:04Why is that a no-go? Oh, well, bills are something that you're invoiced for monthly, right? They're a recurring exact same basically monthly expense, and that's what you want to put in your bills, right? Not the spending and different things that are going over there. So first of all, go ahead and update your income. Like, hey, I hope that you're getting a race. Okay, maybe you're getting a race. Maybe you're getting a bonus. It's like, are we getting a bonus in July? I think we get one in July. Yeah. I'll have to talk to your CFO. So we get a bonus in July. Maybe, you know, maybe you filed your taxes late.

4:34Maybe you're going to get money from somebody who's giving you money. I have a client. She buys sports season tickets and then people reimburse her. And don't you know how much I love that? Monthly. They reimburse her monthly. It's fine. She buys them all up front and then people reimburse her monthly. Yeah, it's not my favorite. We're working on it. She listens to the podcast. Love you. We're going to get all of her friends to be having a savings bucket for this thing. I was just going to say that. I called her savings bucket. Yeah. But anyway, we have lots of clients that have parents or kids reimbursing them for things and that's in their income section.

5:06So make sure you get the income section all filled out and good to go before you move on. Yeah. And so the next section is your debts, right? So you want to update all of your debt balances in the debt tracker on our signature budget template. and then you want to come over and update any minimum payments that have changed so maybe you put you know five thousand dollars extra on debt in june and now your minimum payment is significantly different for july so you want to update all your minimum payments hey maybe you paid something off oh delete delete delete that is deleted from the july budget it's so fun yes it is fun okay and then you're going to go over to the bills and for the most part those are going to be the same right which is kind of cool we like that they're the same go ahead and update those some of them that might change for the month of July would be, you know, maybe some of your utilities would be different.

5:47Maybe you have a different lawn care, maybe kids started a different sport or you joined a gym because you realized you have to wear a bathing suit outside or whatever. We don't know. There could be anything that's changing in your bills, but make sure you go through your bills, update. And again, they bounce. One of my favorite things is when people just get their bills increased. Have you noticed that like bills are just increasing by a dollar or two every other month and nobody's acting like anything's happening. I'm like, what is going on? Exactly. all quietly like in condito because you don't notice and if you're if you're like us and you're looking at everyone like hey why did that go up and they're like oh i'm like oh they just that's fine they just increase it like nobody's looking and maybe we do have some people you know now that it's summer and their kids are home more so maybe you've added a couple of different subscriptions for just summer months so make sure all those are added on there okay so then you get to the fun part it's a fun part of the budget this is where you live this is the part of your budget where you live, right?

6:38So this is a spending section. So we got your gas and groceries, we have your pocket money, maybe you have haircuts in there, your family fund money, all of the things that you're spending money on throughout the month goes in this section. And as we alluded to, maybe last month you went over and you realized, well, that wasn't realistic. So make sure you adjust the spending amounts to what is realistic. The other thing is, during these months, you might have college kids home, your budget might go up for different things, or maybe you're not driving as much or in our case you're driving just as much it's fine and your gas film your gas for your car might need to change so just look at those different spending accounts um maybe you do you do more waxing in the summer so if you go if you need a budget a wax or something because you don't do it that often whatever so go ahead and make sure yeah and then so but hold on nobody in florida is getting a blowout in july because it would last it wouldn't last i i bet yeah it would not it would be like just all this humidity and so last but not least we're gonna update that savings column or input it whatever it is the savings column is having everything that you're saving for if you're brand new at it it's going to be the emergency fund and annual bills probably and then you get to add all kinds of fun ones yeah so these are about all your savings buckets for travel and medical maybe your pets maybe you have christmas in there gifts holidays things like that i have probably way too many it's fine i love knowing that everything is funded and it's very organized in my bank account.

8:01So however you're doing it, this is the fun part where you get to save money for future expenses. And this is a good time. July is a good time. I have a lot of clients that are, well, I don't have a lot of clients that are just starting, but I have clients that are just getting to the point where they can do savings buckets and they have school clothing, clothing coming up. So whether it's a uniform or the school year, you have to get new things coming up. So this is a good time to set up that savings bucket. Even if you can't necessarily fully fund it. It's going to make it more possible in August.

8:28You can start that savings bucket. But so there might be some, you know, like Vanessa said, if you maybe you paid off the debt, maybe now there's a savings bucket you can open, you know, maybe you maybe you can have a little bit more wiggle room. So just adjust the savings buckets, you know, because we teach don't start with 20 savings buckets, start with what you are already definitely gonna spend money on that we we can't talk you out of anyway, right. And you're going to start with those. And then as you get better at budgeting as you learn the system as you pay down debt as you have more wiggle room then you start to add more savings buckets I have a client that hopefully she'll come on and do a testimony about this like at the very beginning our very first meeting she was like I need to do my savings buckets I need to do it and I'm like hold on and so you know we talked her we talked about all the debt she had and everything and paying that down and she was really mad at me I'm not even kidding she was like mad at me that we weren't doing the annual bills because I actually had a lot of annual bills.

9:20But now it's been, I think, a year later, and she is funding every single bucket and her annual bills. And she's like, I get it now. I see how we couldn't do it before. And that was okay. And now we're doing all of it and paying down debt because they have more wiggle room. So it's just a win-win. You just have to know, even if you start off with five bucks, 10 bucks or something, start off with a couple so you can feel that win of being able to save a little bit of money while paying off debt. But it's okay if you can't full on do it from the beginning. Yep. Alright, budget besties, it's time for some real talk.

9:52You don't need another budget, you need a budget system. Our simplified budget system is what you've been looking for. It's going to allow you to be bougie on a budget. You'll be able to easily set up a system that runs automatically and shows you exactly where your money is going. And it's going to give you permission to spend. Everybody loves that. It's straightforward, pretty, and packed with walkthrough videos that break down the exact methods we use with our clients to get out of debt, set up a bills account, separate spending, build savings buckets, and end the paycheck to paycheck feel.

10:23If you're new to budgeting, this is the perfect way to jump in. And if you're already a budget nerd like us, you're about to meet your new obsession. This is the upgrade to your finances that you need. Now back to today's show. Okay, so that's your basic budget template, right? That's the overall what you're going to have. And then there is July. What's happening in July to my money? What are some specific things that are going on? Yeah. So you might have vacation. Vanessa's son will be in Portugal. So his budget, hopefully, well, it's probably cheaper for him to live over there. But anyway, he better reflect in his budget that he needs to, you know, go skydiving or whatever he's going to do over there.

10:59I'm just kidding, mom. He is not allowed to do that. Like I have to be able to see that for the first time. Anyway, sorry, I threw that out there. But We might go to one of our friends that's retiring, so we might go to do that or something. So we need a budget for that. You might have summer supplies. Listen, you have to budget for sunscreen. Okay? Like, it is not cheap. Like, months in advance, y 'all. Yeah. We need a savings. Why don't we have an investment in sunscreen companies yet? But the bug spray, the yard supplies, like all of the summer sort of supplies, you might need to throw that in there because if you try to take it out of your grocery budget, then you're going to, you know, be less.

11:37Somebody ate eating. Yeah. Yeah, because they're not cheap. No, they're not. Okay. So what are some other things you might be budgeting for in July? Hey, 4th of July, y 'all. It's like the 4th. It is. Of July. It is every year. Very soon in the month, so make sure you put that in there because either if you're going to a party or you're hosting a party, you might need to bring a dish, make a dish, whatever. Fireworks. Fireworks. Gosh, my brother-in-law one time brought like$1 ,000. Oh, yeah. If you let the men have control, they're going to spend all the money. Oh, yes. But now here is a hack for that.

12:07now I have a friend they everybody puts money in the pot and they do one big show and then you don't have to spend so much money and you still get to watch it and love her it's at her house I don't have to clean anything well I do but but you know what I mean anyway so that's my hack has to have a friend that has a fireworks show the other thing is you know if you've been saving up or if you're planning to buy something there are a lot of great sales on fourth of July or around that fourth of July area or time period I mean any holiday but we know one is coming in July so we're telling you about it.

12:35Yeah. So if you have like you needed a new refrigerator or you're trying to get a new car, maybe your kid's getting a car or something. And maybe this is the time that you go ahead in and sink the money because it's going to be the best deal. Yeah, for sure. And you know, we, Shane and I have some sports camps coming up for our kids in July. So make sure those are budgeted. Maybe your kids have some last minute ones like, Hey mom, all my friends are doing this one. Can I do it? Oh, no. Oh, sorry. So maybe they have to have it with you. Maybe they have to work and be able to earn the money to be able to go to these camps.

13:04Either way, make sure those are put in the budget. Well, or just like happened to our friend that we were just talking about and one of my clients, you get done with the season and then they say, would you like to be an all-star or would you like to go to nationals or whatever the thing was with that? No, I'm just kidding. But when you say yes, because I know you will, then you got to put that in the budget because that's not cheap. It's now a new expense. Yeah, it's a new expense. So make sure you put that in there. Hey, we know that we're getting ahead of ourselves slightly because we're talking about this in June, but they're going to go back to school, guys.

13:36They are. Whether that's in August beginning, late August, September, whatever, they're going to go. So you might either buy some stuff for back to school or start setting aside a savings bucket for back to school. It might be time to do that. I mean, I know some people that will literally drop, I think it's like$1 ,000. I've had a couple of clients. It's$1 ,000 for their kids to go back school with shoes and whatever computers and all the supplies for for the classrooms and stuff so yeah luckily for us is it lucky we do have tuition we have to pay for but their school supplies are included no no they're included in the curriculum fee yeah yeah yeah anyways we don't have to do the shopping now that is lucky that is i'm excited so that is where i thought you were going with that it is not cheap for the back the back school supplies for like the classroom i just remember doing a few times and I'm like what I'm spending hundreds of dollars here and I and it gets more expensive every year yeah and and also the time that it takes to get the exact thing that's on the list that's already been picked through because let's be honest I didn't do it in the beginning I'm like this is the worst and then I know that somebody smart started a business where they will you can just order a order for the your school specific and I'm like oh that's genius take all my money yeah that's what I was well and we're doing the version of that in private school now because they get they get everything that they're going to need and then they do give us some stuff at the end of the year and i say kindly put that in the trash love you oh i know i don't need to clutter any my house i don't need any help but you know so this is the time if you're you know that you spend a decent amount on back to school shopping let's start budgeting for that in july you know some where we live they're going back to school august 10th i think so you're pretty much going to have to have all that done by july beginning of august and some people like shana said aren't going back until september but if you can save uh a thousand dollars over two months that's way better versus a thousand dollars in one month right and the same goes for if you have kids going off to college uh to the dorm we don't know what kind of mom you're going to be we see them on facebook or instagram or whatever and some of you are going to help them build the most instagram worthy dorm room that there has ever been witnessed or tiktok worthy i don't know where they are but and then some of you are going to be like just take whatever you already have and i'm not paying for that but either way just be sure if you maybe they need a mattress i don't know how that all works.

15:44We're not there yet. But if you have a dorm for the first time or even the second time, make sure that you put that in the budget so that you don't have to wonder how you're going to pay for it. Yeah, for sure. All right. Last one. Maybe you guys have some fall vacations coming up that you know, and maybe let's start ahead of the game. Let's start budgeting for that now because guess what's coming up in fall as well? You have sports, you have school, you have Halloween, you have Thanksgiving, you have Christmas. Okay. All of that is coming in the second half of the year. So if you can start budgeting for those vacations that you already know that are happening.

16:13Let's start that now so it doesn't get coupled in with all the holiday stuff. And I just want to throw one more thing out. It's my birthday. It is your birthday in July. So if you need to put my birthday in your budget, Vanessa, I'm just kidding. If you need to put my birthday in your budget, we're actually going on a trip for my birthday. Just it's for work, not my birthday. But anyway, maybe somebody has a birthday is my point in July. So you might want to save for that. Okay. Our clients, what are they putting in their budget? Just to help. we just want to keep helping you jog your memory so you don't so there's no quote unquote unexpected that you have as many things thought through and ahead of time as possible yeah so y 'all know how much we love that we're unexpected so maybe this is a chance for you to make a little bit extra money in july maybe you're scheduling a yard sale or garage sale for yourself and maybe you can get a couple families to do that on the street and you can do like a community one yeah a lot of places have community garage sales and so when we put this in there i said vanessa listen not everybody lives in Florida.

17:08Like in July. She first said it and I was like, who does that in Florida? In Florida, we don't leave the house in July, really. We just try to stay inside it as much as possible. But when I lived in Alaska, we had literally every weekend. I feel like everybody was just buying something or selling something that they had bought at a garage sale the weekend before. Like it really just felt like it was just this great exchange. But it was a small community and there was a garage sales in July because you literally can't do it the rest of the year, right? So anyway, our point is maybe this is a time you can make money and have a garage sale.

17:39But what about things that you have to – that's going to take your money? Yeah. There's other things. That was like the one thing that you can add to your income. Everything else is an expense. It's me too. So sports are coming up with your kids. So you obviously have to do sports physicals. Make sure you not only budget the money for that but also the time, guys, because it takes you away from work. It takes them away from camp or home or whatever. But make sure you get that in because, hey, they can't play the sport without the physical. Yeah. And if you have – let's say you live in a HOA and you have to have grass.

18:04you're not allowed written anything i think it is you're not i haven't really read the rules in but you're not allowed to not have grass then maybe you need to do something for your lawn in july because maybe it's gonna all die like i don't know how realistic this is for us to have a grass all year long but anyway point being maybe this is depending on where you live this is the time you have to treat it for this or that or the other right so maybe put that in there if you need to and speaking of like yards grass maybe your sprinkler bill will be higher and you need to add that in there because you have to water the yard even more.

18:34Yeah. If you live in Florida, your utility bills are going to be higher because not only sprinklers, but definitely because of the heat. So your air, your air conditioning is running more. I think I had a client tell me that they're, they owe like 300 or$400 in July for their June bill. And I'm like, Oh, I don't want to know what your bill is going to be in August. Well, the other part of that is not just the higher, not just the higher temperatures, but you might have more people living or more people at home more often so they cost you more money right than they used to when they go places they did so many a couple months ago they're eating more food they're using more electricity all the things they are eating more food they're eating more food kids are just being grazers right now and i'm like no the kitchen is closed kitchen is closed we will see you at 5 p.m for dinner think anyway okay goals what is your goal this is important so we've got the budget set up what is your big goal for july what is the thing that you want to accomplish with your money the one thing.

19:28And let's go ahead and set that intention right now. Because remember, your budget is supposed to match your goals. So it's really important to make sure you know what your vision is so you can make your budget match that. Okay. So we have some people, their goal, paying off debt, obviously. That is a huge goal for them. And we have that in there. Yeah. And then we have some people that are going on that big trip for the summer in July. So that's their big goal is to fund that in cash, which is really exciting. And then again, maybe this is a month. Like June was a mess. May was kind of a hot mess too.

19:54So it's like May was a mess because of graduation and all the end of school and then june was like getting the hangover month like right it was like kind of trying to refund all of that and now we're it's a fresh clean slate right and get back on track in july and then my goal is to buy a shed well i let me rephrase that my husband's goal for our money this month or next month is to get a shed because guess what we got approved through hoa so oh we got approved so we can definitely get it for sure now anyway so our money is going to go toward that. And that's our goal for July is to pay for that in cash.

20:25So what are your goals? Again, what Vanessa said, your goals should match your budget. Your budget should match your goals is actually what she said. So make sure that your goals are reflected in there. If you have a little extra work or put it toward that goal. Yeah, for sure. And remember, use our one page budget template, go to budgetbesties.com forward slash budget template to get that to fill this out. It helps you really organize your budget all on one page guys. It makes it easy to read. And it's pretty. That's important. All right. We'll see you next time. If you make good money but have nothing to show for it, this quiz will help you figure out what's really going on with your money and what your next step should be.

21:00You'll get a personalized result and a simple action step to help you feel more organized and less stressed. Go to budgetbesties.com forward slash quiz and take the free quiz today. That's budgetbesties.com forward slash quiz to find out what's really going on with your money.