Budget Nerds

It's a common story: a person finds YNAB and starts using the software, only realize months (sometimes years) down the road that they weren't actually following the YNAB method. They were just tracking expenses using YNAB's software. Tracking expenses is not a bad thing -- tracking brings awareness of your spending habits and where your money and energy is going -- but the magic of YNAB is in the method, encapsulated in the Four Rules:   Give every dollar a job Embrace your true expenses Roll with the punches Age your money   Here's a primer on the Four Rules if you are new to this way of thinking about money.   Most personal finance tools are all about tracking your expenses. What the Four Rules do, however, is make you feel tradeoffs. Tradeoffs occur all the time whether we know it or not. By choosing to spend on one thing, we choose not to spend on other things, or we go into debt because we did not make a tradeoff! When we only track expenses, though, we only discover the tradeoffs after they have already happened. You get the spending report at the end of the month, only to realize that you had overspent your restaurant category, for instance, by the end of week two. Tracking expenses after the fact does not give you enough information to make decisions going forward.   As Ben and Ernie explain, YNAB asks you to assign your current money to spending in the future. In this way, you save up money in categories for expenses you anticipate ahead of time. Instead of going to a fancy restaurant and hoping that you have enough money to pay for your other bills afterwards, or worse putting it on the credit card and taking on new debt, YNAB would ask you to assign dollars to the meal ahead of time (Rule One). If you don't have enough cash lying around to assign to this, then you will have to pull money from another category to cover it. In doing so, you have made a tradeoff. Importantly, you made the tradeoff ahead of time, so you can determine if it's worth it to you, rather than potentially regretting the decision later.   YNAB is all about tradeoffs, and bringing awareness to the tradeoffs you make every day in your spending. By following the Four Rules, you can move beyond tracking expenses and finally get ahead with your money. Most importantly, the Four Rules can help you spend with less stress and anxiety, and more joy.   Budget Nerds episodes referenced in this show: Find the Money First: https://youtu.be/InTcf78558A?si=FqaIb6fc2t5wGvkj YNAB Is All About Tradeoffs: https://youtu.be/tfIk5UTYDtg?si=ACLRM3rC_6775gCf   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Ben and Ernie chat with Jeremy Schneider, an entrepreneur turned personal finance teacher who aims to demystify the confusing world of investing with simple, unbiased information. In his early 20's, Jeremy founded an internet startup and ran it for 12 years, never taking home more than $36k/year -- while living in San Diego, CA! This experience required him to get surgical with his spending, and during this time he became an avid YNAB'er (using the old YNAB 4 software). At the age of 34, Jeremy sold his company and became a multimillionaire. After this windfall, Jeremy continued to work for a few years while figuring out how to manage his newfound wealth. This experience, along with his YNAB habits, drove him to found Personal Finance Club, a site with simple, easy to understand information for beginners learning to invest their money.   In this episode, Jeremy shares his tidy YNAB plan, with possibly the fewest categories of any guest so far! As a long-time YNAB'er, Jeremy organizes his categories using some of the logic from YNAB 4, but he also shares how his categories have evolved over time and how he has simplified his budget as he became more comfortable with his financial position.   Find more about Jeremy Schneider and the Personal Finance Club: Nectarine Investing Advice: https://hellonectarine.com Personal Finance Club: https://www.personalfinanceclub.com/author/jerschneid/ Personal Finance Club IG: @personalfinanceclub   YNAB Fan Fest - September 21, 2024 https://www.ynab.com/events   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Ben and Ernie open their inboxes for another mega round of YNAB wins -- stories from YNAB users about positive outcomes, reduced stress, and newfound confidence with their money. In today's mega episode, they have broken up the wins into several themes: Partner wins Gaining control Getting a month ahead Paying down debt Clarity Stress reduction Building confidence Simplifying Priorities Saving   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

YNAB is well known for the Four Rules, or what many YNAB'ers are now calling the Four Habits, which describe the process of gaining control of your money and learning to spend with joy rather than shame or regret. The Four Rules are: Give every dollar a job Embrace your true expenses Roll with the punches Age your money In today's episode, Ben and Ernie discuss a concept that is implicit in the rules, but perhaps should be it's own rule -- find the money first! Findng the money first means that when you want something that is not in your plan, you need to find the money somewhere else in the plan, that is, re-allocate money from one category to cover your new purchase. This action makes it clear that you are making a tradeoff -- in order to get one thing, you must give up another thing. It may seem arbitrary, but it's an important move! All too often, people will buy something they want without finding the money first, which sets of a cycle of anxiety and fear over whether they can afford it, or whether they will be able to pay off the credit card bill when it comes due. At the very least, spending before you find the money distances you from your money and your priorities, because it obscures the tradeoff.   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

In today's episode, Ben shares a story about swimming at the YMCA. One of Ben's favorite forms of exercise is swimming laps at his local YMCA, and while it's a great solitary form of exercise, sometimes you can't help but notice how your pace compares to others in the pool. One day Ben started swimming laps only to notice an older lady absolutely hauling in another lane. Which was... discouraging, to say the least. However, as she was exiting the pool Ben noticed she was wearing swim fins, and her blazing performance began to make sense.   This woman had a huge advantage, but it was hidden under the water. In the waves and froth of the water, Ben couldn't see it. It's a good analogy for financial circumstances. For the most part, we only see the outward indicators of other people's financial life -- the things they can afford to buy, the places they can afford to live -- and even those obversations can be greatly skewed if those people are buying things with debt! It's important to realize that other people have different advantages in life, and those can significantly influence their financial circumstances. So Ben urges you not to compare yourself to others, because you don't know what advantages they've had, and you can't see their full financial picture from your standpoint. As the saying goes, comparison is the thief of joy!   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Ben and Ernie respond to a recent survey reported by Jill Schlesinger on CBS Morning about American's 2024 financial resolutions. The top responses: save more money (41%), pay down debt (38%), and spend less (30%). BORING! Ben rants about why "spending less money" is not a good financial plan, and Ernie highlights the importance of putting a why behind goals like paying down debt. There's nothing wrong with paying down debt, of course, but to be successful, and to to truly practice the YNAB habits, there needs to be a reason why you want to pay down the debt. Maybe it's to fund a vacation that you haven't been able to take before, maybe it's to buy something big for your favorite hobby, or maybe it's to fund a charitable cause. As Ben explains, your spending is part of the way you express yourself in the world, so you need to be clear with your priorities and values.   To that end, Ben and Ernie share some of the most interesting financial goals and resolutions sent in by fellow budget nerds. From buying a forever violin, to founding a college endowment, to traveling the US in a custom-built bus, there are very creative and meaningul responses!     Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

In today's episode, Ben and Ernie discuss what to do with cold, hard cash money. For many YNAB'ers debit and credit card spending fits nicely into the YNAB paradigm, since YNAB can interface directly with financial institutions and pull online banking data. Cash transactions, on the other hand, can create a stumbling block since they exist outside the easily trackable, traceable online banking system. Some decide to just not track cash at all. Cash is money, however, and it probably should be part of your spending plan, so Ben and Ernie recommend tracking it in YNAB. It's not that hard!   There are essentially two ways to track cash in YNAB: in a "cash" category, or in a cash account (there's a special cash account type you can select in YNAB). Ben and Ernie break down the pros and cons to each approach.   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

The short answer is yes. But why? Ben and Ernie dig into the reasons why giving every dollar a job is essential to creating a stress-free life around money. As Ben explains, the point of YNAB is to ruthlessly root out self-delusion, and be honest about both what you want your money to do for you and what tradeoffs you will have to make to accomplish that.   When you leave money in the Ready to Assign category, you are putting off making decsions about tradeoffs, and thus obfuscating the real purpose of that money. It's even the same with cash buffers in checking accounts or emergency funds held outside YNAB -- these wads of cash actually obscure what your goal with the money is, because it's unclear how much of it is allocated to each job. That money can create a false sense of security, when you assume that the amount is big enough to handle any emergency that could arise. What if the water heater, the fence, and the roof need to be replaced in one year? The totals can really add up, and leaving cash in an amorphous blob in a checking or savings account does not give you clarity on what and how much it can cover.   So, to truly follow YNAB's Four Rules is to, first, give every dollar a job, and start making tradeoffs. Understanding your tradeoffs helps you get clarity on what you really want your money to do for you!   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Rule Two of YNAB's Four Rules is "embrace your true expenses." True expenses are expenses that may not be regular, but are a normal part of life: new tires, HVAC repairs, emergency doctor visits. Sometimes they are expected -- every car and house will need repairs eventually -- and sometimes they are unexpected, like a trip to the emergency room. All the same, we usually end up cursing them when we have to pay up!   In today's episode, Ben and Ernie invite you to change your thinking about true expenses, especially unexpected expenses. With a shift in mindset, unexpected expenses can be a wonderful expression of the things your value. Need a costly tree removal in your backyard? Perhaps that's the price of giving your kids a safe place to play outside. Frustrated about an expensive birthday party? Maybe it's something your spouse really values. As Ernie points out, embracing your unexpected expenses can be an exercise in thinking outside yourself and your own desires.   So, the next time you get hit with an unexpected expense... take a deep breath, then consider how you could not only accept it without anger, but even love it.   Ben's blog post:  https://www.ynab.com/blog/how-to-embrace-your-true-expenses   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Ben and Ernie invite Kath Younger, Registered Dietitian and popular nutrition and wellness blogger, onto the show to discuss how her health journey led her to seek financial health and wellness. Kath started her blog katheats.com in 2007 to record her experiences exploring healthy foods and healthier eating habits, and has now expanded to cover natural beauty products as well as lifestyle topics like fitness and motherhood. In 2016, Kath began using YNAB and started improving her financial health. Today she is a bona fide budget nerd!   In today's episode Kath breaks down her financial plan in detail, including her groups and categories (the structure of which was inspired by Ramit Sethi), how she manages checking and savings accounts, how she and her husband share spending and planning responsibilities, and much more!   You can follow Kath at the links below: Blog: https://www.katheats.com/ Kath's YNAB categories: https://www.katheats.com/budget Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katheats/   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Behind every rule, there's a habit. In today's episode, Ben and Ernie explore YNAB's Four Rules, but in the context of the habits they build. After all, budgeting well is not so much about following (or breaking) hard rules, but rather consistently following certain habits, to help you plan and make better tradeoffs with your money.   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Through 80 episodes (and counting!), passionate YNAB'ers have been sharing their personal finance wins, big and small, with Ben and Ernie. Whether it's paying off debt, handling an emergency expense, or simply feeling more relaxed and at peace about money, we cherish each win and love to put a spotlight on them all. In today's episode, Ben and Ernie catch up on their backlog of YNAB wins with a mega episode of stories from YNAB'ers across the globe and from all walks of life.   Ben and Ernie classified today's wins into five categories, including: Clarity Giving Priorities Peace of mind Options   Here's to many more YNAB wins in 2024. Happy New Year!   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

What if... saving money wasn't actually a thing? Crazy, right?! Well, if you subscribe to YNAB's philosophy -- the Four Rules -- then money is properly understand as a spending tool. The whole point of money, and your budget, is to plan how to spend your money. Savings is really just money that you plan to spend later, whether it's three days later at the grocery, three months later for an oil change you know you need to get, or thirty years later when you retire from the workforce!   Ben and Ernie explore this idea, prompted by a blog post Ben wrote back in September. Saving money is a bummer for a lot of people, and perhaps the reason is because they were thinking about it all wrong!   There's No Such Thing as Saving Money (Blog Post) by Ben Barlowe: https://www.ynab.com/blog/no-such-thing-as-savings     Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Ben and Ernie went live on YouTube on November 29, 2023 to answer questions, share their budgets, and nerd out about YNAB. This bonus episode is a rebroadcast of the YouTube live, which you can find by following the link to the YouTube channel below.   Link to Q&A on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/live/BR8-jcK-9xA?si=Ied1f-fgnHTjF9G8   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Set your reminders, Ben are Ernie are going live on the YouTube channel today at 3:00pm EST. They'll be answering your questions and getting nerdy about finances, so join in! If you are tuning in after the Q&A, you can still watch the replay -- just go to the Budget Nerds YouTube channel in the link below.   If you want to send them a question to answer during the Q&A, send it via email here! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Everyone spends on impulse from time to time, even the most staunch adherents to frugality. According to a new study funded by YNAB, 94% of Americans admit to impulse spending. It's common nowadays to "treat yo'self" after a hard day, for instance. But is impulse spending a bad thing? Not necessarily! If your spending is aligned with your values and priorities, then spending should be fun. It should bring you joy. And with a good spending plan, it doesn't have to wreck your finances either!   Ben and Ernie explore the YNAB study that asked various questions about impulse purchases, including the various reasons it happens: emotional support, fear of missing out (FOMO), dining out, and seasonal influences (like Christmas). By understanding the nature of impulse spending, you can plan for it and set aside some money for indulgances, so you don't miss the money when other bills come due. Ben and Ernie also offer some tips for experienced YNAB'ers struggling with overspending in their categories due to impulse spending.   The YNAB Study: https://www.ynab.com/blog/impulsebuying   How to Make Your Budget More Fun by Ben Barlowe: https://www.ynab.com/blog/spontaneity-plan-yours-today     Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

The credit card float, as it has been termed, is the situation in which a person is reliant on the month-long grace period of the credit card to meet their obligations. In other words, they spend money now with a credit card, which they pay off later when their paycheck comes in. A person in this situation may pay off their card in full each month and never pay interest! But the fact remains that, if they are on the float, they are in debt -- they do not have the cash to handle their current expenses.   What's insidiuous about the credit card float is that it can happen slowly. As life changes and spending changes along with it, credit card expenses can slowly start to overwhelm the amount of cash you have coming in. Fortunately, YNAB has features to help you manage that!   Ben and Ernie walk through the new credit card alert feature in YNAB, which alerts you when overspending in a category causes you to not have enough cash to cover your credit card balance. Or, if you add a credit card to YNAB with an existing balance, it will alert you to assign dollars to cover that existing balance before handling other expenses.   Heard It from Hannah on the Credit Card Float: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3fkNO1XfpU   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

As the principal budget nerds at YNAB, Ben and Ernie have seen their fair share of elegant budgets, but the one featured in today's episode might take the cake for the most refined of all time! Long time YNAB'er and bona fide budget nerd Lee Bond joins the podcast to discuss his history of using YNAB, his category structures, his unique use of "transfers," and his various adventures trying to push the boundaries and break YNAB.   Lee has thought through every category and transaction with precision and an eye for cleanliness and efficiency. If you call yourself a hardcore budget nerd, or aspire to be one, then you will enjoy this episode with Lee!   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Forecasting is kind of a dirty word at YNAB, because the Four Rule are all about budgeting the dollars you have now, and not counting on future dollars that haven't arrived yet. However, it's still useful to plan for future expenses, and understand how the timing of those expenses will affect how much money you need to set aside each month to cover them when they come due. Expense timing can be complex, too -- some things hit weekly, biweekly, monthly, others hit at odd intervals like every 3 weeks or 6 months. YNAB has tools to handle these! Targets are a powerful way to organize and understand your expenses no matter how complex the timing is.   Ben and Ernie dive deep into the various target types available in YNAB, and clever ways you can use them to track expenses, track debt pay down, and more.   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Ben and Ernie share insightful comments from a recent conversation in the YNAB Fans Group on Facebook in which one YNAB'er asked: what's one benefit to using YNAB that surprised you? YNAB is of course all about getting your money straight, but the reality is that when you get your money right, other aspects of life tend to follow suit. After all, getting your money right means alinging your spending with your values.   Whether it's improved friendships and marriages, reduced stress and worry, discovering new insight into your behaviors through tracking expenses, or simply watching your bank account balance climb to historic levels -- there are many benefits to budgeting that affect all aspects of life!   YNAB Fans on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/YNABFans/   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! budgetnerds@ynab.com   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g