Tips from Sarah & Cyndy –Budgeting: A Process

by Sarah Chisholm Financial Advisor, O’Farrell Wealth & Estate Planning | Assante Capital Management Ltd.

by Brandon Mayer

After concerns about potholes and poor road conditions became a hot button issue in North Dundas earlier this year, it seems that many residents now have something to smile about. Several roads in North Dundas have been undergoing maintenance this summer, including culvert replacements and paving, though it is unlikely that public outcry had much influence on these decisions since road maintenance requires significant pre-planning.

One local road which was given major upgrades was Clark Road in Mountain. Clark Road first had a culvert replaced in July, followed by pulverization in early August, and full paving later in August. The road was paved from the railroad crossing on the edge of the town of Mountain, up to the Boundary Road which boarders North Dundas and North Grenville. The improvements to Clark Road came less than a year after a resident of the road went public with the news that he had a sign stolen from his front yard. The sign had encouraged those who were unhappy with the road to contact Mayor Tony Fraser with a complaint, and the Mayor’s Township email address was written on the sign. The resident alleges that he witnessed a Township marked vehicle steal the sign from his yard, and that after complaining about the theft to the Ontario Provincial Police, his sign was recovered at the municipal office in Winchester.

Another road which has seen significant improvements is Development Road, from Van Camp Road to the

This year’s road improvement projects have also included the paving of Belmeade Road and Marionville Road, both on the Township’s northern edge. Culvert’s have been replaced in other roads as well, though the Township is only responsible for work completed on local roads, not county roads. In one case, a culvert replacement by the United Counties on County Road 1 in Hallville became a collaboration, as additional space was left for a pedestrian pathway which will be installed as part of the Hallville Community Park project.

It is common for municipal property tax payers to lodge complaints about road conditions, since the state of local roads is often one of the only visible signs of tax dollars at work – or not at work. However, paving and improving roads is very expensive, and improvements to local roads are therefore taken on as small projects, with only a few completed each year.

As inflation and gas prices continue to be at historic highs, individuals are turning back to budgeting as a tool to live within their means. Budgeting can be a very challenging and even disheartening experience and should be thought of as a process that needs to be reviewed consistently.

Step one is to create a list of incomes and expenses. For those handy with excel, it can be a very useful tool for tracking. The income section of your budget captures your various sources of income: pay cheque, money from a side hustle, rental income etc.

On the expense side, it is important to look at expenses as they come in. If possible, build your excel budget so that you can list expenses as daily, weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annually and then tag those expenses to specific months. This helps you estimate the expenses you will have each month. Not every month is created equally, and knowing the breakdown is an important aspect of budgeting.

Step two is to review. Tally up your total income versus your expenses. If expenses are higher than