Budgeting + Bill Paying

I added an updated Budget + Bill Pay Kit to my shop and I've received a lot of questions as to how I use it in my own home, so that's what this post is about.  As a little disclaimer, the reason I created the kit was to help me track bills and budget a little better.  I am not an accountant, banker or financial guru, I am an former art teacher/artist but I do like my bill paying to be as easy as possible and cute to boot. 

(Also, I made up a fake budget to demonstrate how I use the kit - these are not my financial documents.)

I use a small file tote (found at Office Max) - with four hanging folders

Have you seen these (also from Office Max)?  I used these to label the folders - they're removable so if I change my mind I can still use the folders.

I label the four folders accordingly for my incoming bills - 1-15 for bills due the 1st - 15th, 16-31 for bills due the 16th - 31st and then I have a folder for the next month's bills and bills that have been filed and need to be paid.  (I do the majority of my bill paying online, but still do the paying the old fashioned way.)

Then I put the labels on the files, like this.

On the outside of the tote, I clip my Receipt Tracker and Bill Pay Checklist.  The receipt tracker is a place to write down daily dollars spent, add them up and track outgoing cash flow.  This is super helpful to do when establishing a budget and how much is being spent on a daily and monthly basis.

My favorite items in The NEW Budget and Bill Pay Kit are the Bill and Payment Checklists (I just added a second one and didn't increase the price - if you previously ordered this NEW kit from me, please contact me and I'll send you this printable for free.) 

I need help remembering what bills I paid and when I paid them,  this document is great for that - and you only need one sheet for the whole year!

Here's a snapshot of what the kit looks like in use:

 The Budget + Bill Pay Kit