For many millennials burdened with student debt, budgeting has become an integral part of their lives. However, when setting up a monthly budget it is easy to forget smaller or less regular expenses that can pop up. Hence, in this post, I have collated a list of 11 expenses you may be forgetting to budget for, that you should keep in mind when going over your monthly budget.
Electronics Updates & Repairs
Whether its cracking the screen of your smartphone after dropping it on a booze night out or getting your Macbook fixed, because it won’t start up again for some unknown reason, taking electronic repairs into account when budgeting is important. And even if you take good care of your electronic devices, at some point you will want to upgrade them and that will usually cost you several hundred dollars. Keep that in mind when creating your budget.
Medication
Whether its prescription you take regularly or the way too regular trip to the pharmacy, to buy aspirin to make your hangover more bearable, it’s easy to forget to add medication to your monthly budget. However, it’s something that needs to be on that expenses list, as it’s most likely be part of your monthly expenditure.
Personal Care Products
Whether it’s lipstick, foundation and organic shampoo, or razors, beard oil and hair gel, it’s important not to forget to add personal care and beauty products to your monthly budget. It’s definitely an easy one to forget, but will almost certainly make up part of your monthly expenses.
Junk Food
When putting down a number for how much you spend on food shopping each month it’s easy to forget to add those cheeky burgers, kebabs or hotdogs you grab on your way home from a night out partying.
Gifts
If you like to buy your friends and family members birthday gifts, then you have to take that in consideration when doing your monthly budget. I generally recommend not to spend too much on gifts, but even if you buy small gifts for the people who care about it will still add up. Include that in your budget.
Household Supplies
Don’t forget to put household supplies into your budget. Things such as cleaning products, garbage bags, tissue paper, etc. can easily be forgotten when creating your budget.
Car Repairs
Car repairs and maintenance is another easy one to forget in your expenses column for your budget. But car maintenance is a fairly regular expense, especially if your car is a little older.
Credit Card Interest
If you have credit card debt, remember to add those interest costs to your monthly budget. You are being charged interest on your outstanding debt and that adds to your overall debt, when you are (hopefully) paying off each month.
Banking & ATM Fees
Banking and ATM fees will not add hugely to your monthly budget, but if your bank charges you account fees, or you take out money from ATMs at convenience stores regularly, then you need to consider those expenses when creating your monthly budget. However, if your bank charges you a fee for having your checking account with them, I highly suggest you call them up threatening to leave the bank if they do not cancel those fees. You should never pay money to your bank so that they can hold it.
Spontaneous Purchases
If you are on a strict budget you may think that you will not end up making spontaneous purchases, as they simply aren’t in your budget. However, it is so easy to buy an extra bottle of Pinot, grab that cool t-shirt you saw in a trendy store or treat yourself to fancy dinner. It is probably best to budget for those purchases also.
Emergencies
If you currently do not have an emergency fund, then it would be wise to at least budget for emergencies on a monthly basis. Ideally, though, you want to budget for an amount that you put into your emergency fund each month until it reaches a size that you are comfortable with. (I suggest a minimum of $1000.)
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