We all have things that come naturally for us, but other things just don't seem so obvious.  Don't you hate it when there is something you want to do, but somehow you just can't seem to get started?

Some people are just naturals when it comes to saving, and others seem to find that it is really difficult.  Are you one of those people that keeps putting off saving for retirement?  Or maybe you are retired and want to curtail your expenses so your money lasts even longer.

Regardless of what point you are at right now, putting together a budget may be something that you just have difficulty doing.  If you are one of those people, how do you get started?

First of all, categorize your expenses.  Separate them into three categories. 

Fixed expenses are the ones that you have to pay each month, such as your mortgage payment or rent.  These are the most difficult expenses to change.

Flexible expenses are the ones which fluctuate from month to month, such as your food bill and gasoline expenses.  You know you have to eat and drive each month, but the amount you spend can vary.

Discretionary expenses are the ones you can choose to do or not, such as entertainment expenses and travel.

Put together a list of all the expenses you incur including insurance, utilities, and taxes.  You may want to look at an entire year so that expenses that come only a couple of times a year are not forgotten.

Once you have everything covered, you can figure out what your average monthly expenses are.  Now that you know what your expenses are, how can you save money to put towards your retirement? 

Your first step should be to see what discretionary amounts you can cut, such as meals eaten out, those cups of coffee at Starbucks, or entertainment nights out with your friends.

Once you have exhausted all the discretionary savings you can find, you may even be able to cut back on your flexible expenses such as your food bills and gasoline expenses.

The dollars you can save can be put in your budget to start your tax-deferred or tax-free retirement account, add more to the account you have already started, or reduce the amount you have to spend during your retirement years.  All these options will help protect you from outliving your money.

If you have additional questions, please call the office at 914-997-7724 and set up an appointment to discuss this in more detail.