Most ERC clients have difficulty in preparing project budgets for inclusion with their proposals. The following tips will help you prepare a project budget that enhances the fundability of your project.

• Priorities are the major initiative of the funder: aging, AIDS, children, families, housing, minorities, youth, etc. For example, the major priority of the Retirement Research Foundation in Chicago is "aging".

• The budget income and expense totals reconcile, that is, the total project income equals the total project expense

• The project budget is in tandem with the agency budget. Income and expense line-items should have correlating line-items in the agency budget. If it is a capital (building, renovation) project, the agency budget should have a separate capital budget as well as an operating budget.

• In the income budget under the "Individual Contributions" category, include a line-item entitles "Board of Directors" that shows thte total amount of board member gifts. Funders want to know that you have a fund raising board of directors that financially supports the project (remember the maxim: who gives moeny, gets money!)

• Make a proper funding request in the income budget under the appropriate income category. For example, if the proposal is addressed to a foundation, under the foundation income category list all pending and received foundation grants and finally, the funding request.

• "TOTAL REQUEST TO THE XYZ FOUNDATION..............$XXX
  If the funder is a corporation or a congregation, place the fund request under the corporations or congregations income category, respectively.

• The project budget (and the agency budget) should be divided into three sections: administration, fund raising, and program. After each category, indicate the percentage spent on the expense area, i.e., administration (8%), fund raising (3%), project (89%).

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