Reconcile your budget, that is! Ben and Ernie discuss their budget reconciliation habits, and make a case for why you should reconcile every day, especially if you are new to YNAB.   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Follow Ben and Ernie on the Budget Nerds Podcast Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/budget-nerds/id1606054345 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0H1u8pqYrvz6zj6noHbkB3?si=fc181a82b8d540a6   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Ben and Ernie share a tip for making the budget feels a little less constricting -- leave a little margin in your categories! This is not an emergency fund, Ben says, but a way to give yourself some flexibility and fun.   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Follow Ben and Ernie on the Budget Nerds Podcast Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/budget-nerds/id1606054345 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0H1u8pqYrvz6zj6noHbkB3?si=fc181a82b8d540a6   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

We all know we need to save for retirement, but it can feel a long ways away. Savings can always wait while you deal with something more urgent, it seems, until all of a sudden retirement starts staring you in the face!   The most important factors in saving for retirement are starting early, and consistency, Ernie reminds us. How do you create consistency? There's an easy trick. If you're not yet, start contributing something -- anything! -- to your retirement accounts now. That amount will be some percentage of your income. Each quarter, increase that percentage of your income you are contributing by 1%. It doesn't seem like much, but it adds up fast! And most importantly, it's a slow enough change that it gives you time to adjust. As one YNAB listener writes in, it doesn't even feel like you're missing the extra money, while at the same time it's encouraging to see your retirement accounts going up.     We want to hear your YNAB stories! Please take a moment to tell us about your biggest budgeting wins here: https://youneedabudget.typeform.com/ynaber-stories     Follow Ben and Ernie on the Budget Nerds Podcast Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/budget-nerds/id1606054345 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0H1u8pqYrvz6zj6noHbkB3?si=fc181a82b8d540a6   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Ben and Ernie ask a question that strikes fear into those who don't budget (and sometimes to those who do): can I afford this? At least for YNAB'ers, this question isn't about whether you have the dollars and cents in your bank account to make the purchase, it's about your emotion, how you feel about buying the thing in question versus something else. As Ben explains, it's about opportunity cost, and luckily YNAB is very good at helping you understand opportunity costs with your money.   We want to hear your YNAB stories! Please take a moment to tell us about your biggest budgeting wins here: https://youneedabudget.typeform.com/ynaber-stories     Follow Ben and Ernie on the Budget Nerds Podcast Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/budget-nerds/id1606054345 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0H1u8pqYrvz6zj6noHbkB3?si=fc181a82b8d540a6   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Ben and Ernie tackle the big credit card question (should you use them?) that Jesse has been wrestling with this year, with a slightly different take. Ben, of course, does not use credit cards as he shared with Jesse in episode #621. Ernie, on the other hand, has done it both ways, cutting up the credit card during times of his life where he was busy paying down debt, and now using it judiciously to accrue travel points that he can use on family vacations.   We want to hear your YNAB stories! Please take a moment to tell us about your biggest budgeting wins here: https://youneedabudget.typeform.com/ynaber-stories     Follow Ben and Ernie on the Budget Nerds Podcast Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/budget-nerds/id1606054345 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0H1u8pqYrvz6zj6noHbkB3?si=fc181a82b8d540a6   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Jesse is taking a break for the summer, so Ben and Ernie (from the Budget Nerds podcast) are stepping in to guest host.  Today, they talk about paying off debt... sustainably! So many personal finance resources urge people to pay off debt as soon as they can, and white knuckle their way toward financial freedom. While this can work for short periods of time, for many people paying off debt is a marathon, not a sprint, and white-knuckling has many pitfalls.   For one, when you're throwing every dollar and focusing all of your energy on paying off debt, it's easy to ignore Rule Two -- embracing your true expenses. If you get hit by an unplanned expense and you've thrown all your extra cash at your debt, then you may find yourself reaching for the credit card... and thereby accruing more debt. So, Ben and Ernie urge you to take things a little slower. Work the Four Rules, budget for true expenses, and have some cash reserves set aside, so that your journey to pay off debt doesn't start going backwards.   And more importantly, taking things at your own pace can help you avoid burnout and stay focused on the long term goal. As long as you are aligning your money with your priorities, you are doing it right!   We want to hear your YNAB stories! Please take a moment to tell us about your biggest budgeting wins here: https://youneedabudget.typeform.com/ynaber-stories     Follow Ben and Ernie on the Budget Nerds Podcast Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/budget-nerds/id1606054345 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0H1u8pqYrvz6zj6noHbkB3?si=fc181a82b8d540a6   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Beef is pretty good aged, but you know what's even better? Aging your money! That's Rule Four -- aging your money. Basically, increase the amount of time between when you earn the money and when you spend it. By following Rule One through Three, you can accumulate cash in your categories and pre-fund future expenses, thereby increasing your options.   When you have a lot of cash available, you have options for handling unexpected expenses, taking advantages of opportunities (which require money/investment), or simply changing your strategy. It's easy to re-assign dollars that are already in categories, but you have to have the dollars there in the first place. That's the essence of aging your money.   Facebook: @iYNAB Instagram: @youneedabudget Twitter: @ynab Tik Tok: @ynabofficial   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Be like the reed... blowing in the wind. It's not a haiku, Jesse is talking about Rule Three -- rolling with the punches. Life happens, and unexpected things are going to pop up that could break the budget. When you roll with the punches however, you check the budget, find the money for the unexpected expense in another category, and fund the expense by moving money from that category.   The key here is that you check the budget and find the money first! You don't simply spend the money and try to figure it out later.   Facebook: @iYNAB Instagram: @youneedabudget Twitter: @ynab Tik Tok: @ynabofficial     Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

It's back to basics time! Rule Two in the YNAB method is "embrace your future expenses." In short, think about the things you will have to buy or pay for in the future, and act on them NOW. Car going to need new tires in six months? Don't wait till they need replacing to budget for them, start budgeting now! Save a portion of the replacement cost each month until you've reached the replacement cost for those tires.   Really Rule Two is Rule One again, give every dollar a job. You're giving your dollars jobs today, to pay for expenses tomorrow.     Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Jesse is going back to basics and reviewing the Four Rules, which are the foundation of YNAB. The first rule: give every dollar a job. What does that mean exactly? YNAB wants you to live and spend according to your values and priorities -- the things that are most important to you. In order to do that, you first have to start giving your dollars jobs that are in line with your priorities. That's the heart of Rule One.   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com   Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: @iYNAB Instagram: @youneedabudget Twitter: @ynab Tik Tok: @ynabofficial