How I Got My Family’s Budget Under Control: 3 Things That Made a Difference
Written by
Cynthia Measom
Edited by
Laura Bogart
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Making money is one thing, but if you’re not budgeting and financially planning, then your finances could still be in trouble. Budgeting can be difficult, but getting into a habit and getting a budget in control is important.
Daniel Roberts, owner of Lava Roofing, a Hawaii-based company specializing in roofing services, including new roof construction, reroofing and repairs, has a business that allows him to earn a big income. However, he explained that he has 10 kids and raising them is “a whole different level of financial responsibility.”
He told GOBankingRates that he did not want to live paycheck to paycheck — especially when they were making enough income to have financial stability. However, he knew if they did not get smarter about their spending, they wouldn’t be able to make their money work for them.
“The turning point that made me realize our family’s budget needed a serious change was when I sat down and looked at our spending over six months. Groceries alone were hitting $4,000 a month and between extracurricular activities, medical bills and random household expenses, we were burning through over $12,000 monthly,” he said. “No matter how much money came in, it was going out just as fast. The funny thing was that the big expenses were not solely the problem. The small, unnecessary spending added up like a lot!”
Here are the changes they made to get their budget under control.
Cutting Out the ‘Just in Case’ Purchases
Roberts said that he used to justify buying extras because he thought they would come in handy, so this was one of the first changes he made.
“A few extra snacks in case the kids got hungry, an extra tool I might need one day or more clothes for the kids even though their closets were already full — it all seemed reasonable at the time, but those small purchases added up very quickly,” he explained. “The problem was that most of these things were not necessary, and we did not even use half of them. That was when I decided to stop buying anything unless it was absolutely needed at that moment. No more stocking up. No more backup purchases. If it turned out we really needed something, we would find a way to make do or borrow it first. This has saved us thousands, the house is now less cluttered and we are no longer spending money on things that do not add value to our lives.”
Treating Weekends Like Weekdays
“Weekends used to be the biggest money drain,” Roberts said. “Like, every Saturday started the same way. The kids wanted to go somewhere, we wanted to do something fun and before we knew it, we had spent hundreds of dollars on food, gas and activities. It was as if every weekend was a mini vacation. So, we changed how we approached weekends.”
Roberts said that his family began planning their weekends just as they planned their weekdays — by setting a routine to keep things structured.
“We cooked at home, found free activities and made sure there was a plan in place instead of making last-minute decisions that led to extra spending,” he explained. “We still had fun, but we were not wasting money just because it was the weekend. Within a month, our budget looked completely different.”
Fixing Instead of Replacing
“With 10 kids, things break all the time, and for years, my first instinct was to replace whatever was damaged,” Roberts said. “If a pair of shoes wore out, I immediately bought new ones. If a chair wobbled, I got a new one. It became a cycle of spending that I never really questioned.”
However, Roberts said that one day, he started adding up how much his family was spending on replacements, and he realized that they were throwing away money on things that could have been easily repaired.
“That was when I decided to stop replacing things without trying to repair them first. I taught myself how to patch shoes, fix zippers, sew up torn clothes and reinforce furniture. It took some trial and error, but it saved us money almost immediately,” he said.
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