2023-06-06 10:48:06
Inflation is every home’s nightmare. With the dizzying rise in prices, many Tunisians are finding it increasingly difficult to make ends meet. With stagnating incomes and galloping inflation, rational budget management is the ideal solution for optimizing expenses. Here are the tips to follow.
Inflation forces many Tunisians who are now struggling to make ends meet. The rise in food and energy prices has dealt a severe blow to household purchasing power, often forcing them into debt to make ends meet.
Failing to improve his income, a more responsible management of the monthly budget would make it possible to make significant savings. Economists and specialists give their advice on how to better manage your monthly budget.
According to them, one of the best ways to manage your expenses in times of inflation is to establish a budget. You have to know your priorities, eliminate superfluous expenses and, above all, build up savings to avoid going into debt in the event of the unexpected.
A table or workbook budget
“The easiest way to keep a budget is to draw up a table listing monthly income and expenses, without forgetting to anticipate any occasional expenses. Above all, a hierarchy of expenses is an essential step, in order to avoid excessive purchases and superfluous expenses,” they explain.
The second method is that of the budget workbook which consists of putting money in cash, at the beginning of each week or month, in envelopes allocated to specific expenses. By distributing your money in this way according to each category of expenditure, this technique makes it possible to constantly monitor your budget and, therefore, to better control it.
“Tight budget does not necessarily mean zero savings. Quite the contrary. Rent, bank drafts, bills, children’s schooling, shopping and then leisure… You have to know how to distribute your monthly income in a balanced way to be able to put money aside in case of the unexpected. It is important to have savings. Above all, you must not take out consumer credit to make ends meet, it’s a vicious circle”.
Moreover, faced with the inflation that has plagued the country for several months, specialists suggest always allowing for a safety margin of 10% when defining budgets. “We are still seeing a variation, from month to month, in the prices of essential products. To avoid being taken aback when bills increase, it is advisable to always provide a safety gap. If this margin is not spent at the end of the month, it can always be converted into savings,” they note.
When you want to cut your budget due to inflation, cutting spending is only part of the equation. It may be equally important to increase income to expand the family budget. There are, according to experts, several ways to achieve this. You just have to be creative.
To show creativity
According to the specialists, a simple solution exists, ask for a raise. “This technique is unfortunately not widely practiced in Tunisia, but in developed countries, this solution is completely legitimate and it is not unreasonable to ask for a salary increase which would make it possible to cope with rising costs”.
Also thinking regarding professional retraining and finding a better paid job is also a solution to consider. “If it is not possible to obtain a satisfactory increase soon, it would be time to look for a better job or find a side job. Earning extra income through a side job can have a big impact on your family budget. Starting a business in an area you are passionate regarding is always a good place to start. Working in areas such as online sales or outsourcing certain simple tasks are also good options”.
We have to face the facts, a budget is not fixed forever. It can evolve and you should re-evaluate your budget and objectives each time costs or revenues change.
When the situation becomes critical, a lot of people would opt for the over-indebtedness procedure. “We tend to think that it concerns large volumes of debt. In reality, if its budget structure is unbalanced, it can be useful even if the amounts are not large, ”recall the economists.
For them, the device is scary, because mounting a file of over-indebtedness can help get their heads above water, but opens the door to multiple financial problems.
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