Budget Nerds

Ben and Ernie discuss a listener question... what does your budgeting process look like when you're not chasing a goal? After you've paid off the debt, paid off the house, or achieved some other big financial goal, how do you stay on target and keep your head in the game? Ben and Ernie remind us that it's OK for the budget to be boring, but at the same time there are some ways to shake up your process and re-evaluate things even when you don't have a goal to drive your focus. Send Ben and Ernie your YNAB wins! [email protected] Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Ben and Ernie celebrate the two year anniversary of hosting Budget Nerds, and share some of the important things they've learned doing the show. They also discuss some of the ways their budgeting habits have evolved since starting the show. Get your Budget Nerds sticker here! https://youneedabudget.typeform.com/budgetnerds Big shout out to Kalix who took Ben's jingle idea and made it into reality! You can write into the show at: [email protected] Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Ben and Ernie discuss what things made their "wish farm" list, that is, the purchases they have specifcally outlined in their budget, but haven't (necessarily) funded yet. The goal with the wish farm is to put pen to paper on things you really want to save for, and see if those desires are still there in the future when you can start to allocate dollars to them. Often the process of simply writing down the things you want can help you achieve clarity around your goals and the dollars you will give to your jobs. Write into the show! Tell Ben and Ernie about your killer trick, ask questions, suggest an episode topic, or share a YNAB win: [email protected] Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Support specialist Kat joins the podcast to talk about managing credits in YNAB. Tracking and managing credit cards can be confusing in YNAB if you are new to the app, but Kat breaks down how credit cards work in zero-based budgeting and the nuances of how the YNAB app handles them. Ben and Kat also field some common questions from YNAB users about credit cards and credit strategies. Get in touch with the show: [email protected] Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Ben and Ernie compiled a big list of YNAB tips, tricks, hacks, and expert-level moves from YNAB users across the world. Even if you think you know YNAB like the back of your hand... you are sure to learn at least one new thing in this episode! Write into the show! Tell Ben and Ernie about your killer trick, ask questions, suggest an episode topic, or share a YNAB win: [email protected] Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

What if you got to work with a bunch of other budget nerds? Wouldn't it be great to talk budgets and categories around the water cooler without feeling self-conscious? Money is a sensitive topic for many people, especially in the workplace, and unfortunately a lot of workers bring their money stress with them into work. To that end, Ben and Ernie discuss YNAB's new service Financial Wellness, which brings YNAB to companies as part of their employee benefits. Aftera all, YNAB the company is full of budget nerds so Ben and Ernie know what it's like to work with fellow nerds! If you're interested in bringing YNAB to your workplace, go to: https://www.youneedabudget.com/wellness/ Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

While the folks at YNAB have no opinion on how you should spend your money (that's a highly personal decision and up to you to decide), there's one thing that just keeps coming up: restaurants! Over and over again, new budgeters find that much of their money is being spent dining out at restaurants and ordering take out, and many of those budgeters decide to cut back on it after realizing this fact. So today Ben and Ernie continue their discussion on food spending by sharing their strategies for keeping the dining budget in control without depriving yourself too much. It turns out, you CAN eat out without blowing the budget, with a little bit of planning and some careful category management. Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

If you haven't noticed it you might actually live under a rock -- groceries have gotten expensive these days! Inflation has crept into nearly every crevice of the economy, but food prices in particular have risen drastically. If anyone's up to the task of managing the budget with high food prices, it's budget nerds, and in today's episode Ben and Ernie share their strategies for keeping your grocery category under control. One key takeaway -- it's OK to spend a lot of money on groceries! Health and nutrition are important, and many people choose to buy the best food they can afford, and consequently allocate a large portion of their budget to groceries. There's nothing wrong with that approach! YNAB is all about helping you spend your dollars according to your values, and healthy, high quality food can be one of your values too.

Ben returns to the show (with a very cute baby) and he and Ernie answer viewer-submitted questions. Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Did you know you can use YNAB to track your investments too? Former investment advisor and current YNAB team member Matthew Amster-Burton joins the show to talk about how he uses YNAB to get real nerdy with his investment accounts. Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

While Ben is out on paternity leave, Ernie invites Jesse Mecham -- the founder of YNAB and therefore the ultimate budget nerd -- onto the show to answer 73 questions about life, budgeting, and whether or not Jesse will ever fix his golf swing. Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Erin Lowell, a lead educator at You Need A Budget, joins the show to replace Ben.... just kidding, Ben is irreplaceable! But while he's out on paternity leave, Ernie is hosting the show with guests. Erin has a LOT of experience budgeting, and a fair amount of experience buying and renovating houses, so she shares a recent experience buying a beautiful old home on a 15-year mortgage and renovating the kitchen on a budget, while managing the stresses of moving and being without a place to cook. Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Spend a little time with budgeters working hard to pay off debt and you'll hear the question: should you use the snowball method or the avalanche method to pay off debt? Though there are fierce proponents of both methods, Ben and Ernie say... why not both? Ben shares his hot take on this controversial question, and they discuss a third method for paying off debt: the anger method! YNAB Debt Bootcamp https://www.youneedabudget.com/debt-bootcamp/ Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Ben and Ernie confess their deepest, darkest budgeting habits in this episode, and share some confessions from listeners. Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

YNAB is a very powerful and flexible tool, allowing you many ways to build and organize your budget. Unfortunately, that means for some people it can be overwhelming when you first start! Ben and Ernie remind us that the budget should reflect how YOU see your life -- your values and your priorities -- and once you start viewing the budget in this way, your categories will follow. Links: 'Share Your Categories' Reddit thread https://www.reddit.com/r/ynab/comments/skem1f/meta_share_your_categories_fortnightly_thread_for/ Budgeting Together https://www.youneedabudget.com/budgeting-together/ Budget Nerds YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g

Break out your checkbooks and flip to the transaction registry, it's time to reconcile your account! Wait, no, never mind -- who even uses a checkbook these days? Well, reconciliation is a word that starts glaze over many people's eyes, but it's actually a powerful tool for budgeting, and it doesn't have to be tedious or boring! Ernie even reconciles in the bathtub! Linkies: https://docs.youneedabudget.com/article/1705-finding-your-cleared-bank-balance-reconciling https://docs.youneedabudget.com/article/166-reconciling-accounts https://docs.youneedabudget.com/article/1666-keeping-your-budget-accurate-on-mobile And a meme for good measure: https://www.facebook.com/iYNAB/photos/a.10150124831278703/10159139651953703 Budget Nerds on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g