3 Key Steps to Maintaining Your Budget

[@johninglis5519]

I'm a YNAB semi-failure (semi-success?)--I keep trying it and then . . . fall off the wagon. I've now watched a bunch of your videos. You are so encouraging and clear, with a nice understated sense of humour, that you got me back on the wagon. Thanks.

[@erikahagan8767]

Saturday reconciliation ritual - me, coffee, YNAB, weekend ahead. Love it.

[@YNABofficial]

GURL SAME. Same time next week 😉 -Hannah 🌻

[@Noneya2224]

I love reconciling daily in the morning! It is the best to just stay updated and it keeps you mindful throughout your day to know where you are before you take action.

[@benc3726]

I make sure all my transactions are accounted for and categorized every day. I held off on direct linking accounts because I didn't want to go on autopilot and not notice when I was going over or getting close on stuff. But with nine different accounts (savings + checking + credit cards), it was taking 15+ minutes even on a good day just because of all the time logging in to all of the accounts. When I realized it was okay to not pay such close daily attention to the ones that don't have very frequent transactions, I direct-linked up my savings accounts and certain store rewards cards and was able to drop that process down to just a couple minutes a day. Of note: Production team (or maybe just Hannah? I don't know who all is involved in making these videos...) continues to impress with smooth PiP transitions and sharp lighting. Love it, lookin' fresh. Keep up the good work!

[@fsmoura]

1:53 _"So, what you wanna do Friday night, babe?"_ _"Let's just YNAB and chill."_

[@KGBos]

[@AnaTirolese]

I look at and reconcile my budget daily. Some days there is nothing to reconcile, but I still look at it to make sure no errors have occurred. I find that when I don't do it daily I am more tempted to do impulse spending.

[@YNABofficial]

Same! I reconcile daily just to get that little rush from knowing my budget is all up to date. Gets me hype just thinkin' about it 😎 -Hannah 🌻

[@JeffWurst]

I'm OCD about those notification icons that show up on my phone. I disable them for most apps, but allow the import notifications for YNAB. I deal with them immediately and that pretty much makes everything else fall into place.

[@Theo_Caro]

Oh yeah. That sold me on the service. I love that even if you dismiss it, it'll come back later. There's no getting out of this, buddy.

[@HaroldMetzel]

Well done, Hannah! Learning to budget by habit has been so helpful. Good job of explaining it all.

[@YNABofficial]

Thanks Harold! So glad those habits have helped! Every good thing takes time-solid budgeting is no exception :) But it sure is worth it, eh?? -Hannah 🌻

[@patwatt8943]

This is the best advice - suits me to a T. Find something you do at the same time every day and “pin” this habit to it. For me, it’s when I update my Bullet Journal in the evening before going to bed. Thank you Hannah!

[@YNABofficial]

Oh, well that's PERFECT. And wow, bullet journaling I've heard takes a lot of time and dedication, so I'd argue you already have a pretty good hand on habit formation!! 🌻 Hannah

[@Theo_Caro]

I reconcile every 1-2 weeks. And that seems fine to me. While there us less to deal with the more often you reconcile there's also fixed costs on time and attention for every time you do it.

[@Hinz2005]

This was very helpful. I just set mine up yesterday, so I used your instructions to reconcile my first transaction. Thank you!

[@YNABofficial]

Woo hoooo!! Way to go!! 🌻 Hannah

[@ebonieprater2883]

I use the YNAB widget for my 3 most used categories!!! Love it!!

[@Ksmithy1080]

I reconcile every single night, makes me feel better O_O

[@Oscar-vd4cv]

What if ynab is more accurate? Say you have 2 monthly bills via ACH transfer on the same day, I would deduct them immediately from YNAB so I don't spend them but my bank account won't be updated for several days.

[@Ksmithy1080]

@@Oscar-vd4cv Yep that’s what I do!

[@AF-gb6ed]

I find manually tracking my transactions makes me sooooo much more aware of where our money is going

[@YNABofficial]

Yes! You're making contact with the spending each time it happens! A surefire way to increase your spending awareness. Love that it's working for you! 🌻 Hannah

[@mommacaron90]

Love your videos. I just found YNAB and I am still working in setting it up. Your videos keep my attention. Love your energy

[@YNABofficial]

YAY! Thanks Darlene!! Make sure to come back here for any questions you have, or check out our slew of blog posts for help too!! 🌻 Hannah

[@rafaelcastillo7212]

I'm new to YNAB, but I'm loving it and this content on KZbin. Hannah's an amazing instructor. Also, where can I get one of those cute, smirking piggy banks?

[@YNABofficial]

Hey Rafael! YES! LOVE to hear it!! And unfortunately (but maybe fortunately for me?) Banksy is one of a kind!! Although, honesty hour-all I did to make him was buy a white piggy bank from Michaels, spray paint him Ballet Slipper pink, and paint his cutey patooty little smirk on! With a little creativity and a steady hand, you can have your very own Banksy too!! 🌻 Hannah

[@dwainhamilton4757]

One frustration we have is when companies like Amazon or Nordstrom will split an order into multiple charges based on when they sent things. For example, we make a $100 order on the 1st, but they charge my account $50 right away and wait till the 7th for the next $50. If an item is back-ordered, the delay can be significant. Any tips/tricks for handling these situations?

[@Oscar-vd4cv]

I buy online from Walmart and they do this all the time, especially since one order can be added to, or shipped in different orders, or they may alter it after the fact if some items are out of stock.

[@YNABofficial]

This is a great question! With Amazon, this is usually because the items in your order are being shipped out from multiple different warehouses, so you're paying one warehouse for fulfilling part of your order and another warehouse for fulfilling the remainder of your order. It's frustrating for the purchaser, but when you think about it, it makes sense and the seller has to do it this way. My one tip would be to make use of a combo of flags and memos to keep track of the situation. For example: I spend $100 on Amazon and I initially only get charged for $50 of the order (like in your example). If you're someone who only uses direct import on your budget, I would mark that $50 transaction with a red flag so I know to keep an eye on it, and add in the memo line something along the lines of "first $50 transaction of $100 purchase." At that point, even if you don't typically enter transactions yourself, I would manually enter in the second half of the Amazon order (with a memo like "second $50 transaction of $100 purchase") so that my budget is accurate and up to date. Then when that second charge clears the bank and your budget imports that second transaction, it will link it up to the transaction you entered yourself, you can approve them, remove the red flag, and you're done! Or, if you're someone who always imports transactions yourself, follow the same process as above but make sure to delete the initial $100 transaction you entered into your budget. I hope this made sense! Long story short: it's just inconvenient for the *budgeter* when companies do this, but it's an unavoidable situation for us and a necessity for them. Just keep an eye on it, and adjust your transactions accordingly! -Hannah 🌻

[@dpayne1943]

I chose to reconcile every couple of days and so don't feel I need to direct link. Of course, that is because I love to budget.

[@YNABofficial]

Same, dude. Same :) -Hannah 🌻

[@evangelenestrohschein1622]

Is it possible to delete a transaction like a transfer between accounts or something that will be reimbursed?

[@roxyb714]

Ooo I'm now motivated to get back into YNAB

[@YNABofficial]

Yeahhhhh Roxyyyy!! That's the spirit 😎 -Hannah 🌻

[@brenttaylor8680]

If you enter the transaction while the gas is still pumping how do you know what the total is

[@annettepaul7129]

Can you do a video of how you would set up a budget template for someone who gets paid fortnightly? Not twice a month, but every 2 weeks. It's so hard to do the goal tracking properly when there's no fortnightly option and I've got 5 Wednesdays in a month. Especially since half my bills are due fortnightly not monthly

[@jordanhoman0212]

You may be able to set a weekly goal for half the amount you need in 2 weeks, but as far as getting paid every other week, set your goals as if you only get paid twice a month. Then the 2 extra paychecks you get in the year can be treated like a bonus, a tax return, or any other windfall to give a nice boost to your long term goals.

[@conureron3792]

Love the linked accounts feature - but one of my credit Unions no longer likes “plaid” - so now I do a lot of reconciliation.

[@franceturgeon9122]

Great Job Hanah, thanks also to YNAB....

[@taylorwhaley9901]

Ugh I was all into YNAB for years and I went on a trip to Disney a few weeks ago and I completely got out of the budget habit so I'm doing a fresh start. I also started a new job

[@YNABofficial]

Taylor-we all fall off the boat (wagon?) every once in a while, but your attitude is totally and completely on point! Fresh starts can actually be so, so good. Sometimes we need to re-question our priorities all over again-it's super healthy and gives us new motivation all over again! Blessing in disguise. And congrats on the new job!! New jobs and big life changes can also do a number on our budget or budgeting habits, so seems like it's the perfect to pause, reflect, re-evaluate, and start anew! You got this 😎 -Hannah 🌻

[@taylorwhaley9901]

@@YNABofficial thank you so much! (Side note I’m literally fan girling Hannah responded to my KZbin comment) hahaha I love your content I binge your videos all the time since the beginning 😂😂❤️

[@YNABofficial]

Ha! Thanks Taylor!! So glad you enjoy the content (I do too 😉). Have fun fresh starting! -Hannah 🌻

[@thenoobpianist9527]

4:55 We're not that close yet 🤣🤣

[@Antiik2]

Oh, reconciliation meant THAT! Now I get it! And now my life will be so much easier when trying to find those pesky 10 cent differences in my budged and bank account :D

[@YNABofficial]

YES! When it clicks, it makes the most sense in the world. Hopes this helps to relieve your 10-cent-searches just a little bit! -Hannah 🌻

[@paigebowen1945]

I'm struggling with something here. Say I go to Walmart and I spend $25.00 on dog food, $50.00 on groceries, and $25 on shampoo, ect. How to I categorize this in my budget to actually take $ out of each of those areas? I don't want to have to do 3 separate transactions when I go to the store. Does that make sense?

[@YNABofficial]

Yes! When you categorize the transaction, you can choose to "split" the categories (you should see the option when you select "category" in the transaction register). This lets you assign money to multiple categories within a single transaction. Hope that helps! - Ben M 🎨

[@paigebowen1945]

@@YNABofficial I had no idea thats what that button was for. I have seen it. Ok, I'll start doing that instead. Thanks so much!

[@YNABofficial]

🥰🙌

[@fmaransatto]

I'd like to link my bank account but I'm still waiting for ynab to add the Brazilian banks

[@Peridot81848]

How are payments made every two weeks set up in YNAB? I cannot see a setting for that.

[@YNABofficial]

Howdy! If you'd like to create a target that prompts you to set aside the perfect amount of money for this expense, there's a couple different ways to handle it! First, if you need to pay a $100 bill every other Monday (every two weeks), set the weekly target amount to $50. This will not only ensure you have $100 every two weeks, but will even factor in those months that have five Mondays instead of four. Alternatively, if you need to pay a $100 bill every 1st and 15th (twice a month), you can set a monthly target for double the expense's amount. This would look like setting the monthly target amount to $200 instead! I hope this helps! 🌻 Hannah

[@waschosen-]

Because in the past expenditures exceeded income, now whenever I input income for each month, the 'Ready to assign' amount is always 0, which has no meaning. I hope YNAB can consider providing a monthly budget functionality so that users like me can continue using the system in a sustainable way.

[@YNABofficial]

Hey there! Sounds like there might be some overspending or mis-assigned dollars in your spending plan that is messing with your Ready to Assign dollars. If I were you, I'd write into our customer support team because they can help you figure out where the issue is happening and make sure you're getting the most out of YNAB! You can email them at [e-mail] or live chat with one of our support team members by scrolling to the bottom of www.ynab.com/help-center to get that conversation started. 🌻 Hannah

[@waschosen-]

If I use a credit card for spending, if at the same time I assign to the credit card payment category and various expense categories, it will result in duplicate entries.

[@YNABofficial]

Great question! First of all, make sure your credit card is set up as a credit card account type, not a checking account type. Setting up a credit card account will automatically generate a new "credit card payment" category in your spending plan for that specific credit card. Then when you record spending to that credit card, YNAB will move the money you spent out of the category your categorized it to and into your credit card payment category! This is because you haven't physically spent that money yet (it's still sitting in your account), but you want that money set aside and ready to pay your credit card bill whenever it comes due, which is why YNAB reallocates it to the credit card payment category. For instance, if I buy a pack of toilet paper for $20 with my credit card and record that spending to my Household Goods category, my credit card account will move $20 OUT of my Household Goods category and INTO my credit card payment category. Now I have all the money I need to pay the credit card bill whenever it's due. All that being said, you shouldn't need to be "assigning" money to your credit card payment category via the "assign" column very often-YNAB's credit card system will do all the assigning and money moving for you. The only time you might need to assign money directly to the credit card payment category is if you've accrued some interest and need to assign some extra money to the category to pay for that interest. I hope this helps answer your question! If you're still not feeling 100% clear on the credit cards process, feel free to write into our customer support team and they can help walk you through the process or show you where the duplication is happening! 🌻 Hannah

[@Loosgroov10]

if you cover Overspending, or move money around, like she did at the end with the coffee money, does that change your target for the next month? Or does it stay what it was? thanks. I'm on day 2 and i'm obsessed with figuring all these things out.

[@YNABofficial]

Nope! Your targets will always remain the same from when you initially set them, unless you decide to edit them! And, on a similar note, any extra money left in a category at the end of a month will just roll on into the next month. 🌻Hannah

[@Loosgroov10]

@@YNABofficial Thank you, Hannah :)

[@audreyshaffer2830]

Hi Hannah, how do I download a file of cleared transactions from my bank account onto my computer? Thank you

[@YNABofficial]

Hey Audrey! It looks different for every bank, so I can't give you a detailed step by step, but generally you want to head to your banks website, log into your accounts, click on the account you want to download transactions for, and you can typically find some sort of "download" button that will help you export the transactions you want. If you're unable to find it, chat with your bank or give 'em a call so they can give you a specific step by step for navigating their website and downloading your transaction file! -Hannah 🌻

[@lauried2164]

Don't worry Hannah....many of us get the "nerdy thrill" too. It's ok...

[@waschosen-]

If I pay my March expenses based on the income I received in February, let say I received my salary on the last day of February, which was recorded as income in February. In Budget page, there's balance to be assigned in February. In the end, I discovered that the total available Budget for March was shown as 0. But actually I do have money that I can use in March. Please advise how I can resolve this? I tried pre-input the salary that I will receive at the end of March, but the 'Ready to Assign' amount for March was still 0.

[@YNABofficial]

Howdy friend! The catch with YNAB is we only enter the dollars we already have-we never add money to the budget that hasn't hit our bank account yet! When we budget money we *expect* to receive but don't already have yet, this is called forecasting, which can get sticky if we don't end up receiving all the money we thought we would. When we forecast, we end up thinking we have more money than we do, which in turn makes our spending plan inaccurate-based on something that's not yet true and could change. Instead, only enter a paycheck into YNAB *once* you've received it. If you received a paycheck on February 28th, enter into YNAB that day and you can assign it directly in the month of February (which you probably wouldn't need to do much, seeing as the month is already over-just enough to cover any overspending that happened throughout the month or bills that are paid on the 28th), or click ahead to March and start assigning those new dollars there. Repeat that process when you receive your next paycheck or inflow in March, only assigning those new dollars to the current month and/or a future month (if the current month is already fully funded). If you have dollars in "Ready to Assign" for February, but you're not seeing them in March, this might mean you have some overspending in February that needs to be dealt with, so YNAB is subtracting what is overspent in February from your "Read to Assign" dollars. I'd recommend writing into our customer support team to get your questions answered! They are SUPER helpful, personal, and can walk through your budget or questions with you and make sure you're using YNAB with peek efficiency. Send your questions over to [e-mail] or scroll to the bottom of www.ynab.com/help-center to get connected with a team member through our live chat! 🌻 Hannah

[@waschosen-]

@@YNABofficial Thank you for your reply. Therefore, I tried to post the money received on 28 Feb into 1 March, trying to use February's salary to cover March's expenses, but doing so would cause the records in YNAB and the bank account to be inconsistent.

[@YNABofficial]

Oh, I see what you're saying! It sounds like you were receiving a paycheck on February 28th, but when you recorded the inflow to YNAB you were recording it to March 1st instead of February 28th. You're right, this will mess up your records! We want YNAB and the bank to match perfectly. First, you always want to record transactions for the *true day* they happen, and not "future-date" them. For instance, if you receive your paycheck on February 28th, still record that inflow as happening on February 28th, because that's truly what happened-you want those records to be accurate. From here, that money will be sent up to Ready to Assign. If you still have categories in February that need money assigned to them, assign those dollars to whatever February categories you want! BUT, if you've fully funded February and you're ready to start funding the next month, go up to the top of YNAB, select the dropdown month-picker, and click one month ahead to March. Whatever money is left in Ready to Assign, you can then assign to the month of March. If you click ahead to March and the Ready to Assign amount diminishes, this likely means you have overspending left in February that needs to be covered. Click back to February and move money around however you need to cover that overspending. I hope this helped address your question! I totally see what you were doing there, there's just that one minute difference of when you're dating the inflow that should solve your problem. 🌻 Hannah

[@waschosen-]

@@YNABofficial Thank you for your detailed explanation. So that means if I have an income Shortfall in February, the 'ready to assign' amount in March, April and May will also display as 0 or negative, unless I earn back enough money to cover the overspending amount in February.

[@YNABofficial]

​@@waschosen- We're always happy to help! When each month rolls over in YNAB, any overspending from the previous month is resolved-YNAB simply reduces the overspending from the previous month from Ready to Assign in the current month. That being said, I'd say the best way forward is to cover all red in the *current month* and assign all the money in your accounts to categories until Ready to Assign is zero. However, I'd really recommend you write in with our customer support team just to make sure you're utilizing the app and method correctly! YNAB is a little unintuitive to some because most people are tempted to fully fund a whole month at once, not realizing that they should only be budgeting the dollars they already have in their bank account, and sometimes those dollars aren't quite enough to fund a whole month up front. Also, if you're utilizing credit cards within YNAB, the overspending functionality works a little differently than it does for cash accounts (like a checking account), so I'd definitely encourage you to run you're budget by one of our support members! They are super skilled in identifying where any confusion might lie and get you back on track real quick! 🌻 Hannah

[@vincentapa1376]

"My partner"? .... at the Accounting Firm of Budget, Budget, Budget and Transaction?

[@autymnahner8887]

Need help my husband and I have seperate bank accounts and if on of us transfers money to each other it doubles the amount we have available when we add it to YNAB and I don’t know how to fix it.

[@YNABofficial]

Hey Autymn! Let's say your husband's name is Mark and you're recording a transfer of money from your checking account to his. Click on your checking account, create a transaction, enter the amount you transferred to him as an *outflow* of money, then you'd click "Payee" and select "To/From:Mark's Checking" in the payee dropdown box. That's you telling that budget that you are sending money *out* of your checking account and *into* Mark's checking account. You'll also want to click on Mark's checking account and make sure there's a transaction with an *inflow* for that same amount, with the payee being "To/From:Autymn's Checking". I believe your budget should automatically generate this transaction, so all you should have to do is go to Mark's checking account, "import" that transaction, and approve it. If this is the process you were following and you're *still* running into issues, definitely write into our support team and they will get it all sorted for you! I'm sorry that's been a frustrating obstacle for you guys. :/ I'm glad you asked! -Hannah🌻

[@uptbug]

I married a human too!! Twinsies!!!

[@YNABofficial]

Oh my gosh!! Aren't they great?! -Hannah 🌻

[@morganerickson439]

To reconcile, I download my transactions to excel then mark them if they are in ynab and mark the ynab entry as cleared. Is there a better way?

[@janetownley]

I just compare them every day or two, fix anything, and reconcile.

[@ViolaGrl19]

Fun fact - my iPhone has a YNAB widget - so I don’t have to pin my top three categories. They show up in the widget. Easy peasy.

[@YNABofficial]

Niiiiice!! That's smart smart smart! Love it! 🌻 Hannah

[@ItsTOUGHtobeFascinating]

Is there a way for ynab to not include my savings accounts in my money available to spend? Telling me I have $8000 to spend on my budget is not accurate

[@gregnstuff1118]

Just create a savings category and stick the $8000 into it, that will give your money a home and it will not longer be available.

[@lizp.9513]

Technically you DO have that money to spend, you're just choosing to save it rather than spending it. My savings are in their own categories and account so I can separate the money.

[@NewbieSoaper]

Hannah uploaded a video! She listens

[@KGBos]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/g4bKdYSdmsd5pdk This will explain to you exactly what to do about your situation.

[@SirDavidKahn]

Is doubling the price of YNAB for lifetime members part of maintaining your budget?

[@JasonValade-TSC]

Settle down. It is worth every penny.

[@VikkiB1]

Don't forget doubling the price for some legacy YNABers who still can't even USE the import feature...

[@janetownley]

It’s still quite cheap paying yearly

[@thehappyskeptic]

"The year is 3073. The remnants of human population shift restlessly across the wasteland, moving from hovel to hovel. In the distance, a billboard dimly flickers with the complaints of a disgruntled ex-YNABer who still takes issue with the Great Price Increase, the mortal offense of a commercial organisation pricing their product as they see fit seared into the collective consciousness.The last remaining bridge crumbles, since in over 1000 years noone has built a bridge and gotten over it."

[@lizp.9513]

I'll admit it was a shock to wake up and find out I was no longer getting the grandfathered price of $50/year. However, once I digested it, it's still a bargain considering the peace of mind it brings me. Just means a small increase to my yearly expenses category each month. No biggie ❤️

[@CodrutaChira]

❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@FaithWolper]

Actually, I think it’s a spa day for your LEFT side of the brain. 😉 Hehe

[@YNABofficial]

Ah, darn! I tried googling which side of your brain dealt with numbers. To no avail! 😂 -Hannah 🌻

[@maggiebookworm]

Eee I almost never reconcile. New Year's resolution I guess?

[@YNABofficial]

Ha! That's a GREAT idea for a New Years Resolution! I love it!! -Hannah 🌻

[@SkyChopper]

There's only 1 key step to maintaining your budget, and that's doubling the price for lifetime members of YNAB with 1-month's notice.

[@139660713]

Get over it or leave man.

[@PatrikKron]

What is lifetime members? Can you pay once?

[@linep.akamhagnus9773]

@@PatrikKron This concerns people who bought the YNAB4 standalone version for PC some time ago. When the software was no longer supported the company gave us a lifetime discount applicable now to the yearly subscription. Hope this clarifies a bit.

[@PatrikKron]

@@linep.akamhagnus9773 okay thank you, so it's still subscription pricing for you, just with a discount?

[@wpuymac]

So you’re free to still use ynab4 right?

[@EricMcIntosh]

Bring back the plain white background!!

[@YNABofficial]

Oh, don't worry Eric, it's not gone! This video was released in a "YNAB workshop" style and isn't technically a "Heard it from Hannah" video. HIFH will stay environment-less and void-ish as she always has 😂 -Hannah 🌻

[@NewbieSoaper]

Y’all do what you like. I like sharing Hannah. I’m able to reach people who still out there winging it with their money!!!! Unbelievable…

[@RethaMitchell]

Don't do that, leave your phone in your car while fueling.