By utilising your surplus income on a monthly basis this type of saving is simple and painless. To people who don’t have time or the inclination to arrange their finances on a regular basis this method is an ideal way of instilling a form of discipline into saving towards a goal. Invariably surplus income is left in a bank account which attracts very unfavourable rates of interest, but the money is safe and available. However that can be a problem in itself. If cash is too readily available then there is always the temptation of impulse purchase!

Why not carry out a simple income and expenditure budget to assess your surplus income. We would never recommend that this entire surplus is invested but it could be apportioned to different areas of financial need. You must still keep some money in the bank to take care of unexpected costs, but begin saving regularly to achieve your financial goals.

A format of a budget is listed below. A more comprehensive one can be found in the Income / Expenditure forecast which can be downloaded and completed.

Income		Expenditure
Salary -Self		Housing
Salary - Partner		Household
Bonuses/Comm		Utilities
Rental Income		Personal Exp
Investment Income		IEntertainment
		Car
		Insurance
		Taxes
		Savings Plans
		Other
Total Income		Total Expenditure

Net monthly surplus/ deficit $

Consider the different areas of your financial affairs. What major costs might you face in the coming years? We have mentioned a few areas where there can be high value expenditure that need planning for. Try to put a time frame on when this is likely to occur and how much the cost will be. Then decide on how much of your disposable income you would wish to commit to each item. You can use our calculators to give you an estimate of the likely values achievable. If you prefer you can contact us and we can give you a more definitive figure.