MAKE A SINGLE MOM BUDGET

There’s no denying it; being a parent is hard. Raising a child in a household is hard. It has many challenges, including toiling day and night with little to no rest to provide your kids with the best life possible. Although it’s beautiful, it is emotionally, physically, and mentally exhausting. It’s already a tough job when there are two of you, but it gets a lot more challenging if only one does all the work, especially for single moms. While this may sound biased and unfair to single dads out there but when it comes to parenting, women are way more vulnerable and subjected to financial strain since they earn lesser than men do. In the United States, 80% of single parents are moms; 45% are currently separated or have filed a divorce, 1.7% are widowed, and 34% have never been married and not planning to.

Furthermore, single moms bear the weight of tackling huge piles of laundry, cleaning the entire house, tucking the kids into their beds, formulating =meal planning and grocery shopping strategies=, and agonizing over parenting decisions or missteps all by themselves. Not only that, but the burden of calming your kids down when they insist on sitting on the store’s floor, throwing a tantrum over toys or candies that you refused to buy because it’s expensive and you don’t have enough money, triples up because of three reasons:

The guilt of not being able to give your kids what they want will creep you up, so you will need to think about how to save money.
No one with strong arms will lift them for you, so you’ll have to pull them over your shoulder while they are kicking and crying.
Saving money as a single mom will be difficult since the financial responsibility lies solely on your shoulders.

This is where single moms should know the importance of being financially savvy. Making a single-mom budget will put you well on your way to being financially aware. Also, you will undoubtedly face many unique challenges along the way, including earning less than men. To be financially savvy means you must plan for the future and manage your cash flows with a budget. It will open many doors for you and guide your day-to-day behavior so you can avoid adhering to a tight budget and spending erratically. This, therefore, relates to why single moms should make a single-mom budget and know the importance of being able to support their children financially.

Make A Single Mom Budget

Being a single mom comes with many demands. From struggling to manage your daily expenditures as a single-income household, you are shouldering the financial burden for your family to wondering how you can pay for your children’s education. Fortunate are those who still receive child support from their ex-husbands, but for those who might not have the assistance of a partner to help along the way, it could get five times more difficult. However, if you need support, you have to get to the point where you won’t need it anymore because support like this is only sometimes reliable. Either way, you have to be financially stable. One way to reach that goal is to make a single-mom budget. Only then will you get to have control over your finances and worry less about the future.

Here are some top tips if you want to learn more about making a single-mom budget.

• Track your spending. Understanding your spending habits is the first step towards making a single-mom budget that works for you and your family. As a single parent, knowing where you spend your money is essential. Keeping track of your expenses will help you get a clear picture of your money and where you would prefer it to go. You may then precisely account for all the bills you must pay moving forward.

• Make emergency funds a priority. It comes as no surprise that emergency funds are an absolute necessity. It must be as important to you as grocery shopping. A common problem is as a person starts to get ahead and a small emergency occurs; it causes them to look for funds to handle the crisis. But if one already has emergency funds, they need not panic and would immediately have the money to handle the situation. Additionally, emergency funds will stabilize your finances, thereby stabilizing your family.

Debt Free

Innumerable questions are probably formulating in your head because it is almost impossible to be debt free if you’re single parenting. But as you know, debt is bad for several reasons. You have less to spend each month and waste money on interest. Moreover, you could be saving money from your debt for something you need or emergency funds. And since debt restricts what you spend now and in the coming days, it leverages your future. If you’re debt-free, chances are your savings and financial security increase, and you are most likely relieved from anxiety. This is the importance of a single mom budget.

So, how can you be debt free? Well, you can start by lowering your interest rates on credit cards. You should also cut out unnecessary or redundant things like high-interest loans. Of course, this exercise could get tricky at first but remember, the faster you get debt free, the higher the chances of obtaining financial freedom.

Prioritize Your Expenses for You and Your Children

Determining your priorities is essential to making a single mom’s budget. Meaning being able to distinguish your needs from your wants. We all have different needs, and somebody needs to take care of these needs. Get a piece of paper, list down the most important to the least important, and deal with the needs as they arise.

In building a budget, you must consider the expenses for yourself and your children. That means prioritizing your needs to survive the demands of daily life instead of squandering your money. And those needs should include tuition, educational materials, and other financial commitments of your children when you enroll them in school. Trust me; this is critical for your financial success as a financially independent woman.

Free Entertainment for You and Your Children

With so much happening in your single mom’s life, there is little to zero chance of having fun. And by fun, I meant the less expensive and affordable kind. Joy also comes in the form of recreation, which we all need. But it doesn’t need to cost a lot. There are a lot of recreational activities you can do for free or almost free. These include organizing a picnic date with your kids, attending free concerts hosted by your local park district, visiting public libraries, and fishing. Of course, books are the highlight of a library, but there are other things to do. You can look for art, check them out, and take it home. Libraries also often host events for children or moms like you; take advantage of that and shake that stress off.

In addition, somebody should take long-term goals into account. The same goes for your bucket list, which primarily includes what you want to do or own. As a single mom, you must always consider the following to put on top of your list: send your children to school, buy a house, start a business, and then retire. You need to set money aside for these things. That is why you must make it a goal to create and constantly look at your long-term goals.

Automate Your Finances

Automating your finances is a great way to handle paying bills and eliminating debts. It is also a contributing factor in saving money which is crucial in your journey towards a successful financial future as a single mom. By automating your finances, you can easily set up to pay your rent or mortgage, electric bill, and car payments, saving plenty of time and stress. Almost all payments can be automatically made by the bank for no charge. And with this comes more good news, including an easier life. You can also have money automatically deposited into your saving account. Autopay is indeed a real-time saver. But beware, because although the bills are being paid automatically, you still need to do the footwork of tracking where your money is going.

Increase Your Income

Do you earn enough? Probably not. To combat a financial crisis, learn how to increase your income. This is an excellent strategy for single moms struggling with a tight budget, even after cutting expenditures. The most convenient way to increase your income is by asking for a job promotion or raise, especially if you have been working for a while and performing well within that timeframe. Check if there are any opportunities for advancement and grab the chance if you manage to find one.

Likewise, you can look for a better-paying job. See if you can find roles similar to those in your current position in other businesses or organizations that offer higher salaries. Or you could also start a side gig. Own a business and work for yourself. Do you have a talent or hobby that could make you money in addition to your regular income? If so, make use of it and start building your own business. In no time, your income will surely increase and will get you a step closer to achieving that financial stability goal.

Conclusion

Being a single mom is undoubtedly a difficult task. Along with it are responsibilities that could often lead you into a pit of despair and exhaustion that comes in various forms. There are many gray areas and the game changes as your children grow. Budgeting can also get complicated, especially if you haven’t had any education in personal finance. That’s why it is crucial for single moms raising their kids on a single income to make a single-mom budget to meet their financial goals. Having a single mom budget can take a lot of pressure off managing your finances solo; thus, it helps you sleep better at night. But ultimately, committing to it makes it much easier to keep up with your finances and brings more accountability into your single mom’s life.