Personal Budget Project

Standard 9: Develop effective money management strategies and understand the role and function
of financial institutions.
9.1: Develop a budget including all essential elements for personal and business use.

Step 1: Develop a SMART goal for your budget and type in text box below:

$1,458

Step 2: Salary, Lifestyle, and Taxes

What is your given salary? 45,310

Do you have children? If so, how many and no
what are their ages?
Are you married? Congratulations if you are no
because you can combine your income with
your spouse’s income!
What is the state you are choosing to live and GA
work?
What is the estimated tax you will pay each year $2,915
based on your salary? (Remember to combine
incomes on tax calculator if married)
(use www.tax-rates.org calculator)
Based on the tax information you found, what is $572
your NET income? (Remember to combine
incomes if married)

Step 3: Find somewhere to live! This can be a house/apartment/condo

You have not saved enough money yet to purchase a home, so everyone will need to find somewhere
to RENT! Use the following site to find somewhere to live:
• www.rent.com

What is the address of the 6366 Gordon ST Lithia Springs, GA 30122

house/apartment/condo you
found to rent?
Insert an image of the
housing.

$573
What is your monthly rent
payment?
no
Are any utilities included in
your rent? (HINT: it will say on
the listing if anything is
included!)

Step 4: Buy or Lease a Car and Calculate Payments

Use the following site to find a car to purchase:

• www.autotrader.com

Are you buying or leasing a car? leasing

$737
What is your monthly payment?
15 City / 24 Highway
What is your fuel consumption per week?

Use the following formula:

*For the purpose of keeping this simple,
everyone should assume they drive 50 miles
per day.
___50_ total miles to drive per week ÷
___15__ miles per gallon = _24____ gallons
per week × average cost of gas/gallon
$___3.50____= $_____85____ estimated
amount of money you will spend per week on
gas.
For the purpose of keeping this simple,
everyone should assume they drive 50 miles
per day.

Step 5: Additional Expenses

Here you will decide on any other expenses you need to take into consideration when planning your
budget. These may include groceries, utilities, leisure/entertainment, savings, etc. Use your
resources and your brain to figure out costs for each additional expense.

Cell Phone Monthly Cost: If you will be using a cell 50

phone, choose one of the packages below to add to
your budget. (These are estimated costs)
“Go” phone: $20/month (no internet or text
messaging)
Nice phone with texting/internet: $50/month
Smart phone (android or iPhone): $100/month (LTE
data & texting)
Power Bill Monthly Cost: research an average power 864 sqft
bill based on the square feet of your
Price per Sqft
house/apartment. Estimations given below:
$173
8,00-1,800 sq. ft. = $120/month
1,801-2,800 sq. ft. =$220/month
2,801-3,800 sq. ft. =$320/month
3,801-4,800 sq. ft. = $420/month
4,801-5,800 sq. ft.=$520/month
>5,801 sq. ft. =$1,000

Water Bill Monthly Cost: typically ranges between Septic Tank

$20 and $100, depending on use and sewage.
Cable & Internet Monthly Cost: Research prices for Price starting from $20.00 a month
cable and internet from Comcast, DISH, AT&T, or
xfinity
any other cable/internet provider. Consider using
Hulu/Netflix instead of cable to save money (you
still must pay for internet and the monthly
subscriptions fees for Hulu/Netflix).

Health Insurance Monthly Cost: average $456 for an individual and $1,152 for a
$183/month (for an individual) you can use this or family per month.
research to find another price. This website has an
interactive map with costs for each state:
http://americanactionforum.org/research/premium-
increases-for-young-invincibles-under-the-aca-and-
the-impending
Car Insurance Monthly Cost: $175 estimated…car $1,339 per year
insurance always depends on your age, what you
drive, and other factors.
Groceries Monthly Cost: (Choose based on your $600
given lifestyle)
 o Single: $300/month
o Family with 1 child: $400/month
o Family with 2 children: $500/month
o Family with 3 children: $600/month
Dining Out Monthly Cost: estimate this! Think about 45
how many times a week you want to go out to eat.
Twice? Three times? About how much will you spend
each time? $15? If you eat out 3 times a week for
around $15 each time, that is $45/week or $180 a
month!
Pets (optional) Monthly Cost: Think about medical 0
costs, food, toys, etc. Example: Golden Retriever
Costs: $30/month on food, about $200/year on vet
costs which divides out to about $17/month.
Travel Monthly Cost: (optional) plan a trip, research 0
costs, and estimate this if you choose to. Road
trips? Weekend trips? Keep in mind airfare, gas for
a long trip, food, hotel costs, activity/excursion
costs…
Gym Membership/Club Memberships (optional) 0
Monthly Cost
Childcare Cost: (choose based on given lifestyle) 0
o Children age 4 and under are $150/week
for childcare.
o School aged children (5 and above) are
$50/week for afterschool care
Leisure Monthly Cost: movies, concerts, clothes, 300 a month on clothes
what you do for fun, etc.
Movies= $10, Concerts=$15-$100 depending on
the artist! Think through what you like to do and how
often you’ll want to do those things each month. Do
you pay a monthly fee for a website or gaming
system? Do you subscribe to Netflix in addition to
paying for cable? Include any additional monthly
costs in the entertainment category here.
Savings Monthly Cost: If you choose to set aside 15% off my pay checks
money each month for savings, record that here.
Many financial planners recommend that you save
10% to 15% of your annual income for retirement,
starting in your 20s. So, take your annual income,
divide by 12 to find monthly income. Now multiply
your monthly income by 0.10 or 0.15 to find the
dollar amount you are recommended to save each
month.
Step 6: Create a budget!

Using all the information you have gathered, create a budget for your chosen lifestyle using the Excel
spreadsheet found on Canvas under the Personal Budget section. You must categorize each of your
expenses under the fixed or variable expense sections. You will turn this document AND your
PowerPoint on Canvas.

Step 6: Once you have completed your budget, answer the questions found on the next page. Answer
each question in 3-5 sentences. Questions are worth 3 points each.

What Did You Learn?

1. Was the lifestyle you chose (the size of your house, the car you bought) reasonable for the salary
you were given? Why or why not?
Yea it is cause I’m single have no kids, so I have a small house one car and a good job so im
very well taken care of

2. After completing the budget, would you change any of your spending choices? Think about fixed
vs. variable expenses and wants vs. needs.
No, I wouldn’t do it the same way cause I think it’s a good plan for a single man that only has his
self to look after

3. What makes a budget an effective money management tool?

When you put yourself on a budget and follow the budget the amount you say you going to spend.
Spend that amount and you will be good
4. Are you able to meet the SART goal you set in Step 1? Why or why not?

Yes I am because I make good money and it doesn’t cost that much to live my life
5. What are 3 things you learned in doing this project? Explain thoroughly!

How to buy are car how to buy a house and how to keep credit up