I’d like my software to be able to pull bank account transaction information (obviously securely) into a budgeting database. Its possible that customers will come from many different banks. What is the best way to go about doing this?

Web Services. You must make some arrangements with the banking company for details on their exposed web services to get the bank transactions of specific users.

Once you get the specific web services, you can just call these on your application.

Managerial Accounting SFCC Fall 2007 Chapter 7 Videos

Duration : 0:6:23

Hi, I am writing an article on budgeting. I am looking for unique budgeting ideas. For example, I talked to a lady today that only uses cash and she organizes her cash in one of those coupon organizers. For example, she puts money for food under one tab, car insurance under another, etc. Let me know if you have a helpful budgeting tip. Ideally, be sure you allow email in your preferences. If I decide to use your technique, I may need to contact you for more information. Thanks.

Ok the way my husband and my self do it is simple. We have a total of two different banks we use. At each bank we have 1 checking and 1 savings. One checking account is strictly bills. The other checking account is for groceries, gas, and play money- what ever is left over we divide into the two savings accounts.

1. First I make a list of all our monthly bills–rent electric, gas, car pay, etc. say 1000. Since my husband gets paid twice a month. We divide this number by 2 and get 500.

2. Now each time he gets paid we put 500 into our "Bills " checking account. That way by the end of the month we have all our bill money–and dont have to stretch for a few weeks like we did before.

3. The rest like I said goes into our other account that we use for gas, groceries, fun or whatever.

4. That way we know each paycheck that 500 is for bills and we get it out of the account that we are spending out of.

5. This works out nicely because we know we will never be broke one week because of paying bigger payments like the rent. And that we will have plently of money till next payday.

6. Also, at the end of the 2 weeks right before my husband gets paid again. We take whatever is remaining from the play account and divide it into our savings accounts.

7. This helps us stay on track since Im in school right now–even though some weeks its only 20 bucks into savings its a nice tool using separate accounts because I have found since we pay more attention to our money because of the two accounts and actually spend less on useless junk.

Hope this helped.!

email at cole060783@yahoo.com

Overview of the financial reports available through Event Manager, an online registration system for event planners.

Duration : 1 min 38 sec

More cruise advice…

http://www.petergreenberg.com

Think that once you board your cruise ship, you won’t be paying for anything until you disembark? Think again. With most cruise ship experiences, you’ll have to budget carefully in order to keep your spending low. Here are some simple tips and things to watch out for when budgeting for your cruise.

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Interested in using an Envelope System for managing your cash? Check out this step by step tutorial.

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Ken Boyd, owner of St. Louis Test Preparation (www.stltest.net) presents part seven of his course on Understanding Cost Accounting. Boyd points out that students can have success with Cost Accounting concepts by making connections to actual examples from business. As a former CPA, College Accounting professor and Auditor, Ken has a wealth of experience to bring to the subject.

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Post your response to the following questions: How are budgeting systems used to weigh the efficiency and effectiveness of a health and human service agency? Why is this important

You figure out the efficiency by looking at a program’s total budget and then dividing it by the number of people who will participate in the program. (Unit cost).
The effectiveness is determined by designing program outcomes. Initially you measure your outcomes against other similar programs, then you develop a baseline and begin to measure against yourself. For example, if your program provides tutoring, you would want to measure how many students achieved a passing grade, how many were promoted, how many had completed homework, etc. You convert this to a % and try to achieve at least a 50% success rate. The next year try for 60% and so on. Then determine what the program costs per student and try to lower your unit cost each year.

I’m one of those people who does the impulse buying and I don’t realize just how much money I’ve spent until it’s done and over with. I really need tips on how to budget and save my money before I completely lose control of the situation.

Tips:

1- Avoid using credit cards. Credit cards make it too easy to spend what you don’t have.

2- If you must use a credit card, only buy items for which you know you already have the money for.

3- Make a list of your fix expenses for a month (rent, phone, electricity, heating, etc.). Then, compare that to your income for the month (salary, tips, investment income). If you make less money than your fixed (regular) expenses, then you must cut back on fixed expenses (e.g. get a smaller apartment or a roommate, a cheaper phone plan, etc.). Also, you could get a second job earn more income. If you make more money than your fixed expenses, after including food and a minimum for clothes and transportation, then you have what is called discretionary income, that is the remainder of your income after deducting all of the above.

3- Limit yourself to a certain amount of cash a week, depending on your discretionary income. For example, if you make $500 a week, and you deduct your fixed expenses (1/4 of rent, 1/4 of utilities, 1/4 monthly transit pass, etc.) and determine that you have $100 left, then put that amount in an envelope in your bedroom. Take out half at the beginning of the week and put it in your wallet. This way, you will force yourself to live within the cash in your wallet, but still have some left over if you spend it too fast. This discipline forces you to make choices when your out (not ordering wine at a restaurant, not buying those expensive shoes, etc.)

4- If you occasionally need to make a large purchase, deduct it from your weekly envelope and put it in a second envelope. Don’t make the purchase until you have most of the money saved up. In this example, say you wanted a $199 iPod, you would take out say $20 a week (plus found money like birthday cash, extra tips, etc.) and put it in the second envelope until you had enough money to buy it (at most 10 weeks).

5- You also need to build up savings for a rainy day (new bed, vacation, retirement, etc.). This must come out of your discretionary income. So, if you have $100 extra a week, take $20 or so and put it into a savings account. The Rule of Thumb is to pay yourself first (i.e. save) between 5% and 10% of your Gross Income (or salary before taxes).

6- To discipline your expenses. Avoid shopping unless you have the money. When you don’t go to stores, you can’t get tempted. If you must go ‘see what’s out there’, leave your credit and ATM cards at home. Should you find something that you really like or think you need, you could always return another day. At least you’ll have 24 hours to think about it.

7- Try to figure out why you ‘impulse buy’. Is it because you spend to much time shopping? Is it because you’re bored? Are you unhappy with some aspect of your life (job, relationship, etc.)? Then you might want to substitute shopping with other activities, such as sports, outings with friends, a new hobby, a course at school, or in activities to meet new people. Consult the newspaper listings for community events and inexpensive or free activities (open museum days, public pool, bowling, biking, tours of your home town, etc.). If you find that you are depressed, consult a therapist to get to the source of your unhappiness, if you think this applies to you.

Managerial Accounting SFCC Fall 2007 Chapter 7 Videos

Duration : 0:4:15