Avsnitt
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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.
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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!
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Saknas det avsnitt?
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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
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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/
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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.
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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 OptionsHere's to many more YNAB wins in 2024. Happy New Year!
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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
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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
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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!
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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
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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
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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!
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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.
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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/
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YNAB is all about giving dollars a job, but what about your time? Ben and Ernie poke at the edges of common budgeting practices in YNAB to determine what is really necessary, and what can be thrown out in the name of efficiency and time management. It's a fun exercise -- and often insightful -- to take practices or "rules" that you take for granted and tear them down to see how essential they are to the task of budgeting.
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Long time YNAB'er and Lead Educator at YNAB, Erin Lowell, shares her experience paying off her mortgage using YNAB principles.
Mortgage Professor loan calculator
http://www.mtgprofessor.com/ext/home2.aspx
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Ben and Ernie interview fellow budget nerd and YNAB power user Gabi Bradley. Gabi is a busy mom balancing work, family, and changing financial obligations (including daycare!). She shares her unique category structure, which she assembled using various strategies outlined on Heard It from Hannah and Budget Nerds, and how her family uses the budget to handle their ever-changing financial needs.
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Ben and Ernie discuss the exciting possibilities of a powerful new feature in YNAB called "Focused Views." Focused Views allow you to see a subset of your categories depending on what you want to learn, analyze, or review. Sometimes you just want to drill down on a particular piece of your budget to understand what's going on with your money -- like consistently underfunded or overfunded categories. Or maybe you want to share the most important parts of the budget with your parnter without bogging them down with too many category details. Perhaps you have wish farm with a variety of wants.
Whatever the case may be, you can create a focused view to help you (and your partner!) better understand your money. And you can use emojis!
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Ben and Ernie share their different strategies for applying Rule Four -- aging your money -- and specifically budgeting for the month ahead. Ben budgets for the next month in real time, allocating paychecks to categories in the next month on the calendar. Ernie, on the other hand, uses a holding category to park dollars that will be applied to the next month, and waits until the beginning of the month to actually allocate thoses dollars. They debate the pros and cons to each approach, and discuss some hybrid approaches that might be the best of both worlds!
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Ben and Ernie discuss YNAB's Four Rules, and whether they can be applied to other areas of life outside the budget. As it turns out, yes they can! Whether it's Ernie's favorite pasttime (lawncare) or Ben's devotion to good systems, the Four Rules tap into some universal principles of effective resource management that can be applied to a wide range of things in life.
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- Visa fler