First off, I want to congratulate you if you’ve already fixed the time on your microwave clock after daylight savings. If you haven’t yet, not to worry. You’ve got six months until that deadline comes around again.
There are some deadlines you need to prioritize now, though.
We’re just over a month away from the filing deadline. If you haven’t scheduled a filing appointment yet, it’s time to get on my calendar. Space is limited but I am happy to make room for my Houston friends.
Your window is closing fast: calendly.com/postalplustax
Now, I want to address what’s happening with our federal tax system currently but only for the sake of helping you know how to act with your taxes. I’m not here to be partisan. My goal is awareness and strategic support.
The IRS is facing a big slimdown come May. Last month, thousands of IRS employees were laid off (though many will remain on payroll through tax season). And how there’s talk of even more cuts happening soon.
This means less manpower in the IRS, which will put a strain on those who remain to handle the same workload. Prepare for potential delays with customer service, processing, and refunds.
There’s also a government shutdown looming. House Republicans are introducing legislation to prevent it, but if that doesn’t go through, a huge chunk of federal workers will be forced to stop working. It also means services deemed “nonessential” (like food inspections and some health programs) could be put on pause.
Anxiety is a normal response when hearing these kinds of things. But don’t let the unpredictability of legislation and life circumstances cripple you with anxiety about your finances. There are financial choices you can make consistently that will help you stay steady through these storms.
And where are those day-in, day-out financial decisions mostly made? Your personal budget. It’s the financial groundwork underneath you when things are shaking.
Now, I know I’m not your personal Houston financial advisor. But after years in this industry, I’ve seen what happens when people don’t manage their money wisely (and the happy converse). I want to see you succeed – not just in taxes, but in every part of your financial life. So, in that spirit, I’ve got some personal budgeting wisdom to share…
Leveling-up Your Personal Budgeting Template: Postal Plus, Tax & Bookkeeping Services’s Tips
“Managing your money effectively doesn’t always mean following conventional wisdom.” – Ray Charles Howard
Time for a check-in: How’s your 2025 budget going so far? We’re now three months into the year – that’s enough time for a decent go of the budget you set for yourself in January.
How far off are you from the targets you set for yourself?
If your answer is, “farther off than I’d like to admit,” that’s okay.You haven’t failed. You only fail if you don’t adapt your approach now.
Pick your poison
So, you’ve got a baseline budgeting system set up, likely using a personal budgeting template like the zero-based template, the 50/30/20 method, or even old-fashioned envelopes. Or maybe you’re using software like Google Sheets, Excel, or a personal finance app.
I’m not here to tell you which way is superior – that’s decided by your preferences and your financial goals.
I AM here to tell you that using a personal budgeting template is a baseline — not an end goal. Stopping at the baseline won’t guarantee success. It’s simply a tool – and if you’re struggling to stick to your budget, you’re probably not aware of how to wield it most effectively. I’ve got a few tips for you on adapting your personal budgeting template to best suit your situation…
Tip #1: Be more optimistic. A recent study found that setting a tighter budget led to a 22 percent reduction in spending. Why? Because when you aim REALLY high, even if you miss, you’ll still accomplish more than if you aimed lower.
So, when you’re plugging your expenses into your budgeting template, set your spending goal about 20-25 percent lower than what you estimate you usually spend.
Tip #2: Automate. Any to-do you can automate means one less tedious task on YOUR plate. Spreadsheets and apps have built-in functions for things like calculating totals, categorizing your expenses, and tracking remaining budgets. It’s also helpful to create conditional formatting to help you see where you’re overspending or under-budgeting. And you can even connect it to your bank account to automatically pull in your transactions.
Tip #3: Make savings a fixed expense. You need to add savings to your category of fixed expenses, because it really is THAT important. It needs to be a non-negotiable line item in your regular financial habits. If you treat it like a fixed expense, you won’t skimp out on it.
Tip #4: Crack down on the lattes. Little regular expenses really add up – and every one of them needs to go in your template. Yes, I’m talking about those caramel macchiatos you treat yourself to once a week. You might think it doesn’t make a difference, but it does. And you make your budget template weaker by leaving it out.
Tip #5: Review and update. What you’re doing right now… do it more often. Regularly take a good, hard look at your budget. Find what’s not working and make changes. Think about how any recent life changes are affecting your finances and pivot accordingly. Your budget should never be written in ink (or gathering dust).
Tip #6: Budget for taxes. Most people don’t budget for taxes – and it gets them into trouble. Which is why it’s crucial to understand your tax liability and save accordingly. An example I see all the time is property taxes. A lot of people get blindsided by them, and it really sets them back in their budgeting.
So, if you’re a homeowner, make sure to include an “annual property tax” category in your personal budgeting template and contribute to it over the course of the year. Or, if you have a mortgage, you may be able to use an escrow account.
Tip #7: If you’re self-employed – budget for MORE taxes. If you don’t have a previous year’s tax payments to look back on, set aside about 30 percent of your income for federal taxes. This will cover your estimated taxes and self-employment tax, which is 15.3 percent of your net business profit + Social Security and Medicare on the first 160.2K you make + 2.9 percent on whatever you make exceeding that.
(Don’t forget to account for state taxes as well!)
Let’s make sure we’re talking about deductions you can take for next year’s filing before tax time rolls around. Then you can adjust that amount in next year’s budget.
Bonus add for your budget? The cost of professional tax services with your favorite Harris County tax preparer (*wink wink*).
In all seriousness, you’ve only got about a month left to file. And if you want your filing done RIGHT (aka – more savings and less chance of IRS problems), I’d recommend jumping on that immediately:
calendly.com/postalplustax
To your budgeting success,
Dominic Nguyen