Assignment Instructions:

Using the Attached Personal Monthly Budget Excel Template (and the Budget video) hyperlinked in the resources area, create a monthly personal record of your personal or family income (all money coming in) and expenses (money going out) by completing entries under the Projected column of the spreadsheet. You will NOT be submitting this spreadsheet as this is your personal information. For this Assignment, write a summary of what you learned from this exercise using the following sections.

Be sure to advise that you have completed the Excel Budget and what you learned from the Experience. The Excel budget exercise is a key part of this assignment, and your instructor will be looking for evidence that it has been completed and the spending/savings analyzed in some detail. Then address the following bullet points in your essay:

• Does my (our) income exceed your expenses?
  • If so, how much are you saving each month, and is it enough? How do you know it is enough?
  • If not, what are your goals for addressing the deficit (i.e., job change, cut back on expenses, etc.)
• How is my (our) short-term savingsif I (we) had an emergency, would we have enough in savings to handle the situation?
• Why is a savings account important? Research how much you should keep in short-term savings. What are your goals for long-term savings?
• What advice do you have for the class regarding how to accumulate savings?
• What else did you learn from this budgeting exercise that could help you and/or your family finances going forward?