If you have found one of the spectacular apts in St. Augustine, then you are likely all ready to get moved in and start living in your new place. No one can blame you for wanting to settle down as quickly as possible and begin decorating your place and making it your own as soon as possible.

However, it doesn’t happen overnight and there are certain things that you need to do if you truly want to live comfortably on your own in an apartment. One of the things you must do is budget accordingly.

Now that you’re living in your own space, you have to make sure that you have enough money to get by. And getting by is about more than simply having enough money for your monthly rent.

This means that you require a budget. But don’t be alarmed or afraid! Making a budget isn’t all that hard at all. In fact, it’s rather simple and it’ll lay the groundwork for a successful and healthy adulthood.

Figure Out Your Income: To begin, ​​you will have to calculate your entire monthly income, which includes things like your wages, salaries, tips, bonuses, and any other sources of revenue. However, if your revenue varies from month to month, you should take the average to estimate your monthly earnings.

This is going to give you a good idea of how much money you have to work with, which is obviously very important as you move forward.

Monthly Expenses: Following writing out your income, you will then need to create a comprehensive list of all of your monthly costs, both fixed (think of rent, utilities, insurance, and loans) and variable (these would be items such as groceries, transportation, entertainment, and miscellaneous expenses).

You cannot be too detailed with this step and you should be adamant about writing down everything. So be diligent and list all expenses, no matter how tiny they may be.

Prioritize: Once you have a clear picture of your income and your spending, you will next need to prioritize them according to their significance and necessity. To start, address the basic things that you have to spend on, such as the aforementioned rent, utilities, groceries, and transportation before moving on to discretionary spending like dining out, entertainment, and shopping.

You might have to make some cuts and decide that some events and purchases that you enjoy might be too much but remember that this is a very healthy part of the process.

Create Goals: Finally, you also need to determine your financial goals, such as setting up an emergency fund, paying off any lingering debt, saving for a trip with friends, or investing for retirement.

Some people skip this part but it’s a vital part of the budgeting process. That is because having specific goals helps keep you motivated and focused on staying within your budget. If you have to desire to keep up with your budget, you will!