1. A plan for how to spend your money What is a budget?

2. How do you spend your money each month? Work with a small group to make of list of things you spend money on each month. For example: Rent Groceries

3. Work together with a partner to figure out Mark’s budget.

4. Please help Mark make a budget. Mark earns $3700 per month at his full time job. He rents an apartment for $1560 per month. He commutes to work in his new Toyota 4Runner. He has to pay 350 per month on the car. He also spends at least 40 dollars per week on gas. The insurance on the car is 200 per month. Each month he pays $25 for the water bill. The electricity bill is about $50. Mark pays $70 for cable because he likes to have lots of channels. Between his home phone and his cell phone he spends $120 per month. Mark is single and eats out a lot. He spends 80 dollars a week on restaurant lunches. He is interested in finding a wife so he is dating a lot. He has a date every Friday night and spends $70 on dinner and a movie or the theater. He doesn’t cook, so his grocery bill is only about 100 dollars per month. Mark is trying to save every penny he can for a down payment on his first house. How much is Mark able to save per month?