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Plan a One-Page Money Calendar for the Year

4 min read

Summary: Some costs come once or twice a year and still catch people out: car repairs, holidays, gifts, insurance. A one-page money calendar shows them in advance so they can be planned for.

What it is

A money calendar is a single page with the 12 months in a row. For each month you write the costs you expect that are not part of your usual monthly bills. The name is ours, not an official term.

This is different from the guide on sinking funds. That guide explains setting money aside for yearly bills. This one is about seeing the whole year at once, so you know which months are heavy and which are light.

Why it helps

The US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) says that if you come up short at the end of the month, the timing of your bills and income may not match, and suggests a bill calendar to see due dates and the weeks to be careful. For holidays, it suggests deciding how much you can afford, estimating your income until then, and setting aside a fixed amount from each paycheck.

Steps

1. Draw 12 boxes. One for each month, on paper or in a spreadsheet.
2. Look back. Check last year's statements for big or irregular payments. Add them to the matching months.
3. Add what you know is coming. Insurance renewals, annual fees, birthdays, school costs, a trip, a service for your car.
4. Add a line for the unknown. Repairs cannot be dated, so choose a rough yearly amount based on what happened before. You are guessing here, and that is fine.
5. Add up the year. Divide the total by 12 for a monthly amount, or by the number of paydays you have.
6. Mark the heavy months. If several costs fall in one month, you can plan to have money ready ahead of it.
7. Review every few months. Cross off what happened and fix your estimates.

Example (made-up amounts)

Sam expects these yearly costs:

• March: car service 200
• May: gifts 120
• August: holiday 900
• October: insurance renewal 300
• December: gifts and meals 350
• Repairs, month unknown: 400

Total: 200 + 120 + 900 + 300 + 350 + 400 = 2,270. Divided by 12, this is about 189 a month. Sam sets aside 190 each month in a separate account. August is the heaviest month, so Sam checks in July that the holiday money is on track.

Tips

• Keep it to one page. If it gets long, it will not get read.
• Put it where you will see it, such as the fridge or the front of a notebook.
• For a holiday or gifts, the CFPB suggests a limit for each person.
• If you spend less than planned in one category, the CFPB suggests moving the leftover to another category or saving it.
• A cheaper plan is allowed. The CFPB mentions low-cost options such as drawing names for a gift exchange or giving your time.

Limits

Your numbers will be off at first. Treat the first year as practice. Costs may also rise, so look again at the estimates when something changes.