To live within your means it is important that you create a realistic budget. A serious look at what your earnings are, as well as a review of your expenses. You will need to initially categorize expenses into groups.
The expense group can be broken down into:
i) essentials (mortgage/rent, utilities, food, transportation/car note)
ii) non-essentials (entertainment)
Once you have done this it will be easier to see how flexible you can be. It will allow you to view more clearly which items you have the flexibility reduce. The benefits of this reduction you can then use fund an emergency fund; increase your savings or make plans for a new financial goal.
Sometimes it is not possible to cut expenses and in such cases a look at increase the income might be necessary. Make sure you do not put yourself in a situation where your life becomes miserable.
It is always beneficial to have an idea of what your debt-to-income ratio is as it affects your credit score.
A debt ration of 36% of your monthly income is ideal. You should consider a debt-to-income ration of 40% as being too high.
It is of utmost importance that you commit to debit repayments that you can comfortably pay without stressing you out. Only count income that you are actually receiving on a regular basis - if you are still interviewing for a job that income should not be included.
Below is a link to a calculator found on Bankrate.com
Edited 10/13/2013
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