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Well I mean you're 24 and you make pretty decent money. Cool thing about budgeting is that beating yourself up about past decisions is counter productive because at this point it's a sunk cost. However that doesn't excuse to to head in sand this situation. I'd post your budget in the newbie thread/budgeting thread and figure out a reasonable budget to stick to. You have a very expensive car that given the numbers I see isn't really in your price range, and a big hill ahead of you to reach financial security. Though you could reasonably hit your 401k match and pay off 10k a year in debt comfortably from the numbers you've shown.
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Jul 15, 2014 22:54
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HonorableTB posted:Should I open more savings accounts (eg, one for medical/dental, one for vacation, etc?) No. I mean, you can, but you don't need to. Here's how it works:  Those are all of my savings goals. You can see how much I budgeted and how much I have saved up for each goal. The number on the top left ($485.35) is how much I need to move into my savings account that month. The number on the top right ($4529.38) is the total balance of my savings account. It's really helped me out as I have always just thrown money into savings and then used it for whatever. Now all of the money in my savings account has purpose.
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Jul 15, 2014 23:15
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HonorableTB posted:- Groceries are split between me and my girlfriend; we each put in half for each payment, but I raised it to $200. These things are not really top priority but they still are common things that you will eventually need a budget for. Maybe not weddings and home down payments but gifts and travel (like having to get a hotel room for a friends wedding or something) are probably in your relatively near future. While hitting the debt hard is a great idea, it's not so great an idea to totally lock yourself out of everything and not have any spending money. While you do have "spending money" budgeted, that's a big nebulous category, and you'll find it can be really easy to accidentally fritter it away. Breaking it up into a few other categories might help. Even if you're only sticking $5-10 a month into those categories, they're there. So when your girlfriend's birthday comes around you have $20 in the gift category to take her to Taco Bell or something.  As for opening up multiple savings accounts, unless you have no self control, there's really no need. Just have checking, savings (with whatever piddly interest you can find). Keep the YNAB categories as the "individual" savings accounts. EDIT: VVVV Yeah, that's WAD. If you don't have it, don't budget it. YNAB is not for forecasting. LogisticEarth fucked around with this message at 00:27 on Jul 16, 2014 |
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Jul 15, 2014 23:19
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Is it normal to be overbudgeted when you don't have your second check yet? I feel like I'm falling into a trap of only budgeting what I have, right that second, to the point where I don't want to allocate budgets to things I know I'll be able to fulfill in two weeks. Edit: The savings categories are exactly what I'm hesitant about
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Jul 16, 2014 00:16
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HonorableTB posted:Is it normal to be overbudgeted when you don't have your second check yet? I feel like I'm falling into a trap of only budgeting what I have, right that second, to the point where I don't want to allocate budgets to things I know I'll be able to fulfill in two weeks. It's not normal to be over budgeted ever. IT"S ALSO NORMAL to feel trapped into budgeting what you have. That's the point. That's the feeling you're supposed to feel when using YNAB. It's not a trap! It's just the way the program is designed to have you focus on not counting your chickens before they hatch. Veskit fucked around with this message at 00:22 on Jul 16, 2014 |
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Jul 16, 2014 00:19
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HonorableTB posted:Is it normal to be overbudgeted when you don't have your second check yet? I feel like I'm falling into a trap of only budgeting what I have, right that second, to the point where I don't want to allocate budgets to things I know I'll be able to fulfill in two weeks. If you already have your one-month buffer, sure. I get paid twice a month, but do my budget one month in advance. I'm negative 2 paychecks "overbudgeted" for next month until my paychecks start coming in this month. I just "overbudget" myself next month for the sum of 2 of my payechecks.
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Jul 16, 2014 00:28
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spinst posted:Those are all of my savings goals. You can see how much I budgeted and how much I have saved up for each goal. The number on the top left ($485.35) is how much I need to move into my savings account that month. The number on the top right ($4529.38) is the total balance of my savings account. its been said before, but its worth repeating. YNAB doesn't care which account the money is in. You shouldn't need more than one savings account (or you can make do with just a checking just fine), YNAB splits it into virtual accounts regardless of how many accounts/banks its actually put into. And as someone not on salary, I fill in the budget for the month based on expected income, and adjust as needed when I know actual amounts. Just remember to spend "fun money" after everything else so the bills get paid. Its not quite how YNAB is designed, but it works fine. ilkhan fucked around with this message at 06:34 on Jul 16, 2014 |
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Jul 16, 2014 06:31
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We're moving this month, and to do so we have to pay August's rent on the day we move (23rd of July). What would be the best way to do this? Put that we paid this second rent as the 1st of August and push the amount we need forward to August? Or should we just show that we're paying a gently caress ton on rent this month and then none next month?
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Jul 16, 2014 21:12
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Knyteguy posted:We're moving this month, and to do so we have to pay August's rent on the day we move (23rd of July). What would be the best way to do this? Put that we paid this second rent as the 1st of August and push the amount we need forward to August? Or should we just show that we're paying a gently caress ton on rent this month and then none next month?
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Jul 16, 2014 21:22
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Knyteguy posted:We're moving this month, and to do so we have to pay August's rent on the day we move (23rd of July). What would be the best way to do this? Put that we paid this second rent as the 1st of August and push the amount we need forward to August? Or should we just show that we're paying a gently caress ton on rent this month and then none next month? In this particular case I would just budget the rent in August as usual and enter the payment on the day of the payment. This will give you a negative for July, then click on the red arrow next to the red negative number in the balance column and change it to handle overspending by "Subtract it from next month's category balance". I also do this for reimbursement of job-expenses where my boss pays me back after the end of the month.
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Jul 17, 2014 06:36
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I agree with that approach.
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Jul 17, 2014 10:12
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In YNAB if I budget $200 for education in July and end up spending $300, in August if I again budget $200 will education have $200 or $100? Does a negative balance on a category rollover like a positive balance?
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Jul 23, 2014 15:04
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Suspicious Lump posted:In YNAB if I budget $200 for education in July and end up spending $300, in August if I again budget $200 will education have $200 or $100? There are two ways to handle this in the software. Option 1 is to deduct the overage from your category balance in the next month. Option 2 is to deduct the overage from your total available to budget amount in the next month. That wouldn't impact your categories, just your overall Available money. The preferred approach is Option 2. http://www.youneedabudget.com/support/article/rule-three-roll-with-the-punches http://www.youneedabudget.com/support/article/overspending-vs.-over-budgeting lament.cfg fucked around with this message at 15:12 on Jul 23, 2014 |
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Jul 23, 2014 15:09
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Suspicious Lump posted:In YNAB if I budget $200 for education in July and end up spending $300, in August if I again budget $200 will education have $200 or $100? It can do one of two things. By default, overspending in any one category will subtract from your total amount available for next month. However, if you click on the overspent item value, the program will give you the option to roll over the overspent amount specifically to the item's budget for next month, while leaving the overall monthly available budget unchanged. I recommend just going with the default option and taking it out of you overall available budget. That will better represent the money you have available. I only use the "rollover" option for work expenses that will be reimbursed. I don't see those as real personal expenses that influence my budget.
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Jul 23, 2014 15:12
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Thanks for the links AWU and thanks for the explanation LogisticEarth.
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Jul 23, 2014 16:14
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I always carried the negative balance forward to the same category. Go $40 over in Restaurants? I get $40 less next month. Never really thought about doing it the other way. I guess it would be useful for bills, such as gas/electric, where it varies each month.
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Jul 23, 2014 16:18
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If any of you are moving soon or staying in a place for more than a year, ask your gas company about doing an even pay. They charge you the same amount every month, based in the past usage, and you either get money back or owe a little at the end. Instead of paying 3$ for service fees in the summer, you'll pay like 30$. But that also means you won't be getting handed 150$ bills in the winter. Obviously this is if you live in a place where you use gas for your furnace. I don't know if any other utility companies might offer similar things. Keeps at least one thing really predictable. Sure, you could do it yourself by just overpaying during the summer and creating a credit with the company, but if you're with roommates or something, that might be harder to... Convince them to do.
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Jul 23, 2014 16:27
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Henrik Zetterberg posted:I always carried the negative balance forward to the same category. Go $40 over in Restaurants? I get $40 less next month. Never really thought about doing it the other way. Intuitively it makes sense to take the money out of next month's category. However, if you roll it all into next month, then it makes it easy to accidentally overdraft. If you have enough liquidity, it works fine, but if you're on a tight budget it can be dangerous. I'm lucky enough that my household income is more than my current budget, so for now I just leave some extra money in "available to budget" and use that to round out the categories towards the end of the month.
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Jul 23, 2014 17:35
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Holy poo poo, I was just playing with my favourite video game, YNAB, and was looking at my reports... I've gone from my new worth being $-4000 to $-700 since I started using it earlier this year... next month I will be net worth positive for the first time since 2012! TY SA for getting me onto this, YNAB is a lifesaver. I can't believe how much it has changed my spending habits. Once I get my home cooking under control (I eat at restaurants and get takeaway farrrr too often) I will be totally in the clear!
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Jul 23, 2014 23:05
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Panzer Attack posted:Holy poo poo, I was just playing with my favourite video game, YNAB, and was looking at my reports... I've gone from my new worth being $-4000 to $-700 since I started using it earlier this year... next month I will be net worth positive for the first time since 2012!
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Jul 24, 2014 01:35
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And I'm finally a month ahead! Woo, rule 4. The method that has you partition your income out between this month and next month seems to be the way to go versus filling a "buffer". The next step is automatically sending money off to investment accounts.
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Jul 31, 2014 14:02
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tuyop posted:And I'm finally a month ahead! Woo, rule 4. Congratulations, this is huge! Now prepare to experience no excitement from when you get paid.
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Jul 31, 2014 16:36
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Zteuer posted:Congratulations, this is huge! Yeah, it's been kind of like that for a few years now. I don't really want anything new with the vast majority of my income, and now debt's gone so there isn't a graph to make crawl toward zero. Just a mundane detail of life that has to be managed, like really complicated flossing.
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Jul 31, 2014 16:47
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I just started using YNAB last week. Already I am trying to be careful about useless spending, which in my case is soda; I've already cut down significantly so hooray. I was at the store the other day, considered buying a twelve pack but realized it would put me over my allotted grocery budget so I skipped it. I'm looking forward to sharing success stories.
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Jul 31, 2014 17:06
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Transmogrifier posted:I just started using YNAB last week. Already I am trying to be careful about useless spending, which in my case is soda; I've already cut down significantly so hooray. I was at the store the other day, considered buying a twelve pack but realized it would put me over my allotted grocery budget so I skipped it. I'm looking forward to sharing success stories. That's great! Just keep in mind that budgeting is a lot like dieting. It's pretty easy to do for the first few weeks / months, but can become difficult in time if you're not fully invested in making a lifestyle change. Don't let YNAB be an Atkins diet, let it be a natural part of your life. The goal isn't to budget yourself to misery, but save yourself to happiness.
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Jul 31, 2014 22:26
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Bugamol posted:That's great! Just keep in mind that budgeting is a lot like dieting. It's pretty easy to do for the first few weeks / months, but can become difficult in time if you're not fully invested in making a lifestyle change. Don't let YNAB be an Atkins diet, let it be a natural part of your life. The goal isn't to budget yourself to misery, but save yourself to happiness. Thanks for the cautionary warning.  I am feeling really optimistic about sticking with it given I've been attempting to make other lifestyle changes and have been pretty successful so far. For me, I think it will be a case of making checking my budget and working in YNAB a part of my daily routine. I'm really glad for the mobile app since it will definitely help.
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Jul 31, 2014 23:55
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tuyop posted:And I'm finally a month ahead! Woo, rule 4. Maybe I missed it but what is the method you are talking about?
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Aug 1, 2014 09:07
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Rule 4 is living on last months income.
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Aug 1, 2014 11:06
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I meant the alternative to the buffer method.
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Aug 1, 2014 11:46
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Oh right. You can either set up a buffer budget category to transfer into rule 4 or you can start taking parts of your salary for this month and parts for next month (by splitting the income transaction in YNAB). For each month you increase the portion that goes int next months budget until you completely have transfered into living on last months income. You will get there either way.
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Aug 1, 2014 12:21
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I put a buffer in July and a negative buffer in August to budget for August's bills, which is how I think I'm supposed to use this software. And now that it's August, the negative balance is still there...is that how it's supposed to work? I just started using this software like four days ago.
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Aug 1, 2014 14:28
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I forgot about a refer-a-friend promotion on my credit card, and noticed a $100 credit was posted this morning. How should I handle this in YNAB? Just a $100 inflow to my CC as income available for August?
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Aug 1, 2014 18:07
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Grouco posted:I forgot about a refer-a-friend promotion on my credit card, and noticed a $100 credit was posted this morning. How should I handle this in YNAB? Just a $100 inflow to my CC as income available for August? That's what I do.
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Aug 1, 2014 18:10
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Grouco posted:I forgot about a refer-a-friend promotion on my credit card, and noticed a $100 credit was posted this morning. How should I handle this in YNAB? Just a $100 inflow to my CC as income available for August?
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Aug 1, 2014 18:14
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Rexim posted:I put a buffer in July and a negative buffer in August to budget for August's bills, which is how I think I'm supposed to use this software. And now that it's August, the negative balance is still there...is that how it's supposed to work? I just started using this software like four days ago. That's the method I found ineffective. Another way is to just split the income from July as partially available in July and partially available in August.
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Aug 2, 2014 14:53
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ilkhan posted:I have a general interest/fees catagory that it would fall into, but your way sounds fine.
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Aug 2, 2014 22:34
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I'm starting to dislike YNABs monthly centric approach to budgeting. I get paid every 2 weeks, I've tried forecasting my budget but that seems like a bad idea but I keep switching back. Currently I have reoccurring income but they are not exactly evenly distributed throughout the month. When the money comes in I allocate it where needed but I'd prefer to simply setup a budget and not touch it for a while. Is there any option that simplifies this? I'd prefer to have a fortnightly budget. I think it's a major flaw/limitation in YNAB.
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Aug 5, 2014 03:06
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Suspicious Lump posted:I'm starting to dislike YNABs monthly centric approach to budgeting. I get paid every 2 weeks, I've tried forecasting my budget but that seems like a bad idea but I keep switching back. Currently I have reoccurring income but they are not exactly evenly distributed throughout the month. When the money comes in I allocate it where needed but I'd prefer to simply setup a budget and not touch it for a while. Yeah, treat YNAB categories like a series of envelopes full of cash you can carry with you. I find that keeps me from getting frustrated with it. If you don't need to min/max your finances like that and keep yourself on an envelope system forever, then YNAB may not be the best thing for you. For forecasting just start a google spreadsheet and use the values you get from it to inform your YNAB categories.
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Aug 5, 2014 03:35
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Suspicious Lump posted:I'd prefer to simply setup a budget and not touch it for a while. The solution, I think, is to get one month ahead. Then you budget the previous couple of paychecks together at the same time. When the next month comes along, you can simply copy the previous month's numbers (under the lightning bolt symbol at the top, next to the month's summary). I think that's basically what you want, if I'm reading you right? It's not good at forecasting, no. It's for getting your spending under control, and living within your means of what you've already earned, not what you think you might earn.
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Aug 5, 2014 04:33
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It's mostly frustrating cause I get paid once a month and it's always around 28-29th. I wish I could just set YNAB to start the month on the 28th or something dumb.
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Aug 5, 2014 04:43
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