The Budget Kit: The Common Cents Money Management Workbook

I have about 6 of these all filled up from years past. This is a complete book and covers every aspect of managing your money. I can use online budget resources, but I like being able to pull out last years book and see how may expenses have changed. I am 74 and have used budged book and quick books and others; Unless you write down every penny you spend for a few months you have no idea where your money is going. You do not have to do it every month once you know EXACTLY where you spend it. This is a simple, visual way to look at your finances.

First time in my life doing my budget!!! Its super clear, organized, explains you step by step what you need to do, has a loot of work sheets. Teaches you how to save money, prioritize, pay your debts, and plan ahead of the expenses , so, as the author states: YOU SHOULD BE PROACTIVE WITH YOUR FINANCES AND NOT REACTIVE. Definitely the best budgeting book I've ever bought!! Would recommend it to all my friends and relatives who are complaining about their financial situation. What really happens many times, says the author is that people don't live according with their situation, often spending compulsively. its really changing the way I look into money and finances!!!

I bought this book for my 24 year old son who is starting to earn his own money. Knowing that the proper handling of money is critical to a secure and successful future, I wanted to give him a chance to start with basics. This book contains good information for someone who is starting to earn money and since the advice is not coming from mom or dad, it is accepted easier. Ms. Lawrence gives enough information so that a person can allocate money for "needs" and "wants". She includes some great forms that can be copied and completed, allowing a person to set goals in different categories, and then track their expenses, income and savings. I would recommend this book as a starting point to allow a person to get their finances on track. Once they develop confidence in their ability to manage their money, they can use their savings to invest. But thats the subject for other books...

If you are looking at these reviews I think its safe to assume you've tried and failed at budgeting, whether it be self monitoring or a grandiose computer program, i.e., Money and Quicken. I've ued them both and keep coming back to this Workbook, because it works on several levels! "Know Thyself". You have to ask yourself what am I trying to accomplish in my budgeting. You have to have your own system to manage you spending habits, which could be keeepng reciepts and entering them daily or weekly receipts. For me, this was entering my expenses daily or every other day at the most. You don't have to boot up your computer and its not a chore. Place the workbook on your nightstand and pencil it in for your daily expenses. This sounds like a hassle but it takes 1 minute tops daily. Couple that with setting up a budget for your fixed expenses at the beginning of the month (15 minutes)and your set. Another great addition is that this workbook helps you budget for one-time expenses, christmas gifts,a nd on an on. If you don't want to go into this much detail, then don't. Pick something you know you can stick to and graduate from there. Ultimately, this book achieves where all computer progrmas fail. Accessibility, reality, and ease. Come'on I know what your thinkng "what if I want expense reports" we've all become LAZY! Its good to break out a calculator and get those brain juices going or you can plug your reports in Excel--see that computer is good for SOMETHING.

This kit really helped me turn my overspending around, simply by laying it all out helpfully on a page. I've used copies of this book for seven years; for the first few years I filled out the budget-planning worksheets and all that, but for the past few years I've only been using the monthly expenditures worksheets, which are worth their weight in gold. They tell you where the money actually went, helpfully broken down into a lot of categories. There's a double spread in the back where you can track your expenses in each category across the year (and I've added in my averages from the previous 6 years, so I can really track across time). This alone is such a great motivator! So I think this is an incredibly useful book even for those who don't want or need the various specialty worksheets on debt, assets, and so forth. It makes managing money easy and, dare I say it, fun.

Through the years have looked at various books and magazine articles on budgeting, but this is the only thing that has ever worked for me. Some were just unrealistically simple, and there were other issues. This book is quite comprehensive and has helpful categories I never thought of. But it is easy to get started. You don't need any sophisticated knowledge. The explanations are simple and you just start filling in the full size charts. I am using it together with the Excel program which is very inexpensive especially considering the convenience of doing quick calculations. The book includes 12 months of expense charts and becomes your record for twelve months.

I have tried many software based budget programs and most contain features that are rarely used or very specific to certain users. This book provides a customizable, no nonsense, hardcopy based, useful system that needs no batteries, power cords or laptop connection. With this system you can work on your budget in the middle of the desert or on top of a mountain...no cords attached.

I enjoy the easy flow and style of her writing. Easy to understand.

Great for beginning personal and family budget managers...Might be a perfect resource for showing youth 14-19 how to manage their money.