Simple Tool for Earmarking Savings Goals

This is a guest post from Tisha Tolar. She is a finance writer providing content for Vertex42.com – a site offering a large selection of free money management templates, including a savings goal tracker.


It is ideal for all consumers to commit to paying themselves first each month as part of their workable budgeting system. By paying yourself a percentage of your monthly income, you are helping to ensure a financially stable future. However, as with many things within personal finance, even the best intentions can get complicated. There are many reasons people set aside money into savings. Goals that include retirement, vacations, emergencies, and even rainy day funds are common among those working with a budget.

The complication comes in managing the cash that goes into one or two accounts. People typically have multiple goals but only one or two locations where they store their money for future use. It is not enough to just keep depositing funds into your accounts. It is wiser to outline the deposits made into each account and allocate it accordingly.

How to Track Savings Deposits
To stay on track with savings goals, it is important to first create those goals. For instance, many families want to go on vacation each year. A little bit of research will provide estimates of how much a specific vacation will cost. This will allow you to establish your savings goal.

Say the amount for a vacation is estimated to be $3000. You’ll need to tally the number of weeks prior to the trip where you have time to save. If there is 30 weeks to save, divide the price by the time and you’ll know how much each week you need to put away. For the vacation, you’ll need to put $100 to the side each week to reach your goal.

If you are putting that $100 a week into an account where you also deposit funds for emergencies, retirement, and other savings reasons, you can easily get lost in transactions and end up unsure of what is what. Tracking your deposits is especially important if you are working on a tight budget and may not always able to come up with the correct amount of money to satisfy your goal.


Using Your Budgeting Smarts
The only way to make an accurate account of your savings and be able to meet your savings goals is to start tracking your deposits. A simple money management spreadsheet makes it simple not only to see your goals on paper but also to help you understand the progress of your savings goals. A savings goal tracking worksheet allows you to differentiate between the different goals you set and the different amounts you have accumulated.

Additionally, it is essential for you to track your progress with deposits so that when you are ready to make a withdrawal once your goal has been met, you can make the proper amount adjustments without worrying the effect on your other savings funds. A savings calculator helps you estimate the future earnings of your savings with periodic deposits so you have a better idea of when you will reach your savings goals. In some cases, you may need to access your money before meeting certain goals. You will be able to use the money management spreadsheet and savings calculator to make relevant notes.

When you are ready to restart deposits on met goals or add new goals to your savings plan, the worksheet will serve as a reminder of where you have been and where you want to go. As you earn additional income in the form of a bonus, pay raise, or windfall, you will be able to allocate funds accurately across your savings goals without confusion.

The more organized you can stay financially, the more in control you remain with your money management. Financial stability is affected by a person’s commitment to handling the details. Using simple spreadsheets and daily evaluations of your finances can help change bad habits and incorporate smarter financial tools into your daily life.