What would be a fair amount for a food budget for a family of 3 with a monthly income of 2500?
927292
I spend approximately 350 to 375 for a family of 5. I buy bulk when certain things are on sale. Buy meats and dry stores when they are on special. I pre-cook meals that can be frozen and take them out as I need them. Eating out adds up quick even if you are only eating lunch. Prepare extras when you are cooking supper and use that for your lunch the next day.
1113192
I would buy some food for a hungry family I saw this past weekend. By their looks, they certainly need the food more than anything I can think of to buy for myself..\nThe fact is, I don't have your imaginary $100, but I still bought them some food.\n\n(I am not competing for the best answer)
374182
First you need to know what your net income is.  In case you don't know what this is:  Net income is the income after taxes (remember we have to pay Uncle Sam first) and other deductions.\n\nYou'll also need to know the expenses you have per month. \n\nI'll give you a typical budget.\n\nExample for a Monthly budget:\n\n2500.00 Net Income\n\n0850.00 Rent or Mortgage\n0100.00 House insurance\n0100.00 Gas\n0050.00 Phone\n0050.00 Electricity\n0040.00 Cell phone\n0250.00 Food\n0100.00 Clothes\n\n1540.00 Total expenses\n\n0960.00 Balance\n\nThere are expenses that you cannot change.  For instance, the rent or mortgage do not vary  unless you move somewhere else or get a new mortgage.\n\nEverything else on this budget can be changed.  \n\nIf you see that you don't have enough money to pay the rent, then don't eat out that much, don't buy those extra pair of sneakers just because they were beautiful.\n\nIn the above budget, you have 960.00 extra per month.  You can choose to spend it all on beautiful sneakers.  I would advise you to save some of it for a rainy day. After all, 950.00 on sneakers is pretty high.  Don't you think?\n\nBesides, if you don't own a house now, maybe you'll want to save it for a house. I don't know.  Maybe you prefer to go on a vacation.  My point is:  DO NOT SPEND ALL YOUR MONEY UNLESS YOU HAVE TO.  ONE DAY YOU MIGHT NEED IT.\n\nOf course, your budget might differ from above.  I  did not take diapers for your toddlers into consideration.  Neither did I take medical costs, babysitters, or entertainment into consideration.  \n\nI figure that this is enough for you to see how a budget works.  \n\nRemember, if your income is greater than your expenses, don't spend what you have left on stupid things.\n\nIf your income is less than your expenses, you are in big trouble.  Therefore, cut down on the expenses.\n\nKeep in mind, however, that sometimes you need to spend money on stupid things.  They nourish your soul.
967095
You will need at least first, last months rent and maybe enough for a security deposit. That could be anywhere from 1400 to 2100 dollars. Turning on your utilities usually has a charge as well so save about a 100 for that. I would also suggest saving the 400 that you will need to your already existing bills plus another 200 for food and miscellaneous items. I am assuming that your boyfriend will split the apartment costs with you evenly so you need $1,100 each for the apartment and an additional $600 on your part for your food and outstanding bills. I would aim for about $2000 in case it takes longer to find a job or at least so you can guarantee paying your second month of rent if you had just gotten a job when rent was due. Good Luck!
892330
A 3:1 debt ratio isn't too bad. Here's how you work it out:\n\nGather all your bills and add them up. Do not include rent or a 1st mortgage. Total them up. \n\nDivide this total by your GROSS pay. The result is your debt ratio.\n\nExample:\nTotal of expenses: $300 per month\nGross Pay: $1000 per month\n\n300 divided by 1000= .30\n.30 = 30%
583838
Try download.com and search for 'household budget'. They should have some free ones to suite your needs. I did a search and a few came up. You may want to mix up the search terms to get some more results.
118493
all the same services a citizen gets. Welfare, medical, etc. The cost I would do it like this. \n\nfind out how much a person with one child gets in foodstamps, cash, section 8 housing, and medical.\n\nexample: per month ( depends on state)\n\n$250 food stamps\n$50 cash\n$600 rent assisance or sec \n$130 medical ( using what someone would be paying into an HMO)\n$20 school lunch program free/reduced lunch\n$150 daycare vocher. \n\nThese are only examples look up the costs
566194
Could you provide a little more detail please? The approximate amount that you are short by?\n\n\n\nOne good way to start is to start saving. That sounds very obvious, but please hold on. In the US there is not much emphasis placed on saving, no one teaches you how to save. Small things go a long way, for example a coffee everyday costs you $100 a month depending on where you live: so dropping that habit saves $100! And its good for your health and heart. Smoking is another example, but unfortunately its harder to let go. \n\nSaving on fuel: try using the bus for medium distance commutes. Its not bad, trust me! I take the bus to work everyday. I get my commute done in $40 per month.\n\nYou pitched in to help your family, so its time for them to help you back. Don't hesitate to ask them to babysit your kid once in a while. That I believe saves a lot. If they don't, or if you think they are neglecting your kid, its time to break that parasitic relationship.\n\nTry looking for a job that permit you to work from home, so that you don't need a babysitter. Anything that involves typing for example. But beware of internet job sites, a majority of them are hoaxes. For example, the secret-shopping thing is a hoax 99% of the time. If an offer sounds too good to be true, it is probably not true. \n\nIf you have a kid old enough to do math, it is good idea for you and him/her to let him/her calculate your credit vs. debit everyday. Initially it may be cumbersome and more tiring than doing the darn thing yourself, but it pays off in the long run. Maybe you can ask him/her to sit down while you are cooking, and you recall today's expenses and earnings. He can enter them in two columns, add entries in each column and subtract to give nett daily savings. My mom did that to me :-)\n\nhttp://answers.yahoo.com/question/;_ylt=AtScV0GM2DTZVRGW1tmxxuYezKIX?qid=1006050319925\nlooks to be a professional answer.
958664
Any salary that gets you through the day without worrying about food or other nessesities is enough. You should learn to enjoy life without breaking it rich.
255296
Rule of thumb, 2.5 times income
75013
If you go here there is a chart of the recommended daily allowance \nhttp://www.tshc.fsu.edu/he/nutrition/MSVM/recommend_daily.htm
514740
It should be about $500 month plus your rent and tuition.  That includes groceries, beer, electricity, beer, pizza, beer, phone, beer, did I mention beer :)
268358
I would recommend spending $19.95 on a book Called “Financial Peace” Written by Dave Ramsey. “More than Enough” is also a good second book if you like the first written by the same author. The book is written on an easy to read (6th grade level) It covers budgeting and gives sample budget's it also encourages you to sit down with your spouse to establish and keep a budget. I do not use all Dave Ramsey's suggestions but anyone that does will not go wrong. The base of his teachings is very valid and useful. I firmly believe anyone starting out with these tools will not go wrong. Remember in life though a little common sense goes along way Good luck to you
62913
around $5000. per month depending on the location
404671
Well that really depends, people over there get by with 150-200 /month but obviously this is not a very luxurious life. These people shop at the marketplace (not super makets) and never eat out...\n\nIf you want to live decently (like you are used to in the US) you would probably need about $300-$400 /month (including rent for a decent place)
452198
depending on how far you want to go. You can make it simple and cheap, or you can go all out and spend thousands. I would keep it around 500 dollars and keep the other money you were going to spend to live on.
671726
With a variable income, that is going to be a very big challenge. First, I would figure out what is the minimum I would bring in and use that as my "salary". Anything extra then would be saved for emergencies and big purchases. Then, I would identify all of my current financial commitments: house payment/rent, utilities, and monthly payments including food. You must get that number under your minimum check. A few tips that really stink but are critical:\n\n1) House payment or rent is your biggest expenditure. Is there some way to reduce this by getting a roommmate or moving in with someone. When I was in school, everybody lived with someone. It was just too expensive living on one's own. \n\n2) Eating out is deadly. Even fast food is more expensive than eating food from a grocery store. I would ban all eating out if I was this pressed for cash.\n\n3) Car payments. If you are driving a car that is killing you with the payments, sell it. Chances are you can dump it and try to get something for a couple of thousand. When I sold cars for a living, I saw people get car loans that were completely beyond their ability to pay. The banks don't mind  if you are eating spaghetti every day to drive your SUV.\n\n4) Luxury items like cell phones, recreational shopping, cable tv, high speed internet, all have to go too.\n\nBest of luck to you.