Why I Don't Budget

[@brucewayne3892]

yeah if you are already a saver you don't really need to budget. You already know you are spending less than you make. Don't need a budget to tell you that.

[@xo7454]

Exactly

[@FIRED13]

I don't budget, but I've been keeping track of expenses for the past 30+ yrs. It's a hobby for me now.

[@BeatTheBush]

Sort of like after the fact just to see where its going.

[@FIRED13]

@@BeatTheBush yes, and having this data also really helped when it came down to deciding when we hit our number (you know the Expense x25 calculation (or whatever factor you want to use).

[@mateor7302]

​@@FIRED13yep tracking my spending was critical in planning my early retirement

[@mohamedhasan6264]

Me too 7 years and going

[@Dracomies]

I was initially skeptical because I’ve watched many of your videos, and you definitely seem to be budgeting! 😄 But I get what you’re saying-you’re not tracking every little thing anymore. I can relate to this. In the beginning, when money is tighter, it makes sense to track all your purchases. Over time, though, you start seeing where you’re spending inefficiently, like on eating out or unnecessary gadgets, and gradually change your habits. Eventually, saving becomes automatic, and the issue solves itself in one of two ways: either you make more money, or you avoid the wasteful habits. It’s kind of like the LoseIt app-at first, you track every calorie, but after a few months, new habits form, and you can mentally estimate without tracking everything. Same with budgeting: over time, you can calculate whether a purchase is worth it without needing to track every cent.

[@TheSimArchitect]

I don't budget anymore because I automatically do whatever I can to save as well. I follow my personal asset balance closely, though, and I believe I'd budget again if I saw problems there.

[@berniceacquah1495]

I also use to do my net worth sheet monthly, but these days I do it quarterly and it's been the perfect schedule for me.

[@joesmith942]

We budgeted for about two years, when my income was low and we were cashing flowing my wife's master's degree. After that, our natural cheapness and our income created enough margin that it was not worth it. Pretty much repeating what Bush said. Agree completely. The bucket flowing in and out is classic algebra nerd thinking! 🤣🤣🤣

[@faheeta5036]

Plus if you budget ahead of time, you make your spending restrictive and that's stressful.

[@LilA-zl6tf]

It is beneficial to know where your money is going. But budgeting beforehand - is too much hassle for me. I try to keep track of my spending sometimes for a couple of months, and then act accordingly - if something needs fixing.

[@berniceacquah1495]

As far as the budgeting, I no longer do it at all. I stopped many years ago. But I do think it's important to do it if you are in debt or are in the early stages of your financial journey.

[@NicksDynasty]

I understand the change. I used to watch it like a hawk, but now I add transactions much later. I'm just focused on how much I invest, save, and travel. On track to become a multi millionaire

[@midnightbudgets]

I do budget but really just tracking spending. Great content as always BTB!!

[@FIRED13]

@@midnightbudgets they'd what I do, just track the spend

[@CentsibleLivingWithMoneyMom]

I do not budget either, but I am debt free and do not spend much. Excellent content like always.

[@Davewhipped]

Agree. I don’t “budget” like on a spreadsheet, but I know approximately how much I spend each month. Majority of my bills are reoccurring or predictable. So If I spend a little extra, then I just spent a little extra and mentally account. But I obviously save, invest, and look at my transactions periodically. My credit card statements are usually in a certain range each month unless I travel or spend extra that month.

[@NewGuy2024]

We've never budgeted as well since we always had two stable paychecks and steady monthly expenses.....made more than we spend. Now that we are much older empty nesters and saved for 20+ years as should slow down our savings, I am seriously considering a "fun/burn budget".

[@BeatTheBush]

Sort of the other way around. You have an extra amount you 'should' spend up to since you are targeting not saving on purpose.

[@vevenaneathna]

i used to track and categorize every single purchase like a business. it was very helpful in guiding me on which credit cards to get and in what order so i could calculate the opprotunity cost of all the options, not just going in blind. I now have the right mix of cc to get 5% in every category every quarter. I still add up exactly how much i spend in total every month and how much of it was disposable spending, but now im kind of in a steady state where i cant get my expenses any lower, and im in my last year of medschool so I cant really work to make more money. ya once its in place, it just kind of keeps going like u said. bottom line spending for me is about 700$/mo on everything like gas, food, insurance, utilities and another 600$ on rent. maybe once im back to stacking cash this will be helpful to avoid lifestyle creep like you used to preach about lol

[@FIRED13]

$600 rent, where is this?

[@BeatTheBush]

I would think lifestyle creep is not all bad as long as you intentionally do it to purposely increase standard of living and promote trying new things.

[@vevenaneathna]

@@FIRED13 yakima WA usa right now currently. share a 3 bd with 2 roommates. kind of in the middle of nowhere but good home base for medical school rotations which are spread out all over rural areas of WA state.

[@RB78545]

I have a plasma tv from 2011 that could probably help out with my energy usage if I were to offload it. Works perfectly fine though and probably helps heat my living room in the winter 😂

[@tdgdbs1]

Go out early on trash day; you'll see plenty TVs in perfect condition being dumped.

[@BeatTheBush]

Yeah, plasma tvs use a lot of electricity. Perhaps 5 years of plasma use will pay for a new LCD TV already.

[@cashmonyz]

watching this video after i refilled my hot water heater lol

[@BeatTheBush]

I dare you to calculate the yearly cost of that thing. =D

[@cashmonyz]

@@BeatTheBush lol noooooooo

[@Trakusenpai]

Loving the OG videos. Keep these style of videos coming. About to watch your video on “Selling out” 😂

[@ClassyJohn]

I generally agree with this. Not everyone's numbers will be the same or even the things they do to try to save money. A low or middle class family (especially with a newborn) might have tighter margins. People should really hone in on their personal situations to make that evaluation. Some cannot afford to not budget because there is no alternative

[@simmosideways]

setup a new bank account, send certain amount of money there each week and pay all boring stuff, bills/groceries with that acc. The amount that goes in takes about 15 mins just going over transactions for the past few months and averaging it out. I found this way its very simple to know how much money is required to survive, how much to save (sent to another account) and how much you have for fun.

[@Baiyoubai]

Yup, just like many other commentors, I don't budget because I'm already quite frugal and my monthly expenses are quite consistent.

[@LukerativeLion]

I realized I have a TV plugged in that I NEVER use; I just unplugged it, thank you for the simple tip!

[@BeatTheBush]

Get this: amzn.to/4dzhcoU It's cheap. Measure EVERYTHING in your house to check what it's using on standby.

[@richard1113]

I used to budget and got into some extreme cases like not buying lunch because "I want to retire someday". Now that I am early retired I just check my balances and net worth and as long as I'm mostly going in the positive direction I'm ok. I use Quicken so unfortunately I'm aware of my net worth all the time. I might change that so it's not prominently displayed and only check in on it once a month like BTB does.

[@patrickr2686]

It would be cool to see Caleb Hammer audit you

[@nixpix814]

Dude, you've got so much wisdom and insights here. Why not make longer videos? Go into more details in a slower pace maybe? Love your stuff but 4 minutes is just a stressful format and it's hard to focus when you're going so fast.

[@english2me694]

No. Monthly I just keep total spending under a cap. Once a year or so I'll tally up how much I spent on whichever categories the past two or three months. Saving is automatic so I don't even see that money, and excess accumulation can go to either additional investments or one time expenses

[@HelloWorld-hb7yt]

I put the everything on a credit card. That does everything for me. I see what i spend monthly and yearly.

[@raymondctchow]

The one concern of budget is when u make more you spend more if your budget is percentages based on

[@BeatTheBush]

I do not see that is a big problem. It's actually a good thing to strategically improve your standard of living.

[@raymondctchow]

@@BeatTheBush inflation creeps

[@0hN0es203]

I don't budget but I do track my income and spending monthly in a simple spreadsheet. Works for me.

[@17napps38]

I've been subbed for years now... You said you live in a townhouse, right? How do you manage the maintenance fees as they rise over time? I'm thinking about buying a townhouse as well due the low maintenance and typically appreciate along with the rest of the market. Do you still think a townhouse was a good option, and would you ever consider selling and purchasing a regular house? Would it be worth it? Sorry, lots of questions haha.

[@BeatTheBush]

I manage the fees by doing most of the repairs myself. When you contract out, make sure to get multiple quotes. I did my roof and fence this way and the price I pay is around 1/4 the highest quoted price.

[@17napps38]

@@BeatTheBush Oh wow, I thought there was some kind of management fee for maintenance. Thanks, you explained a lot.

[@paralyzdtheory]

It burns a ton of mental calories to budget. Just live below your means, and dont blow money on stupid things

[@kauigirl808]

Not really sure what budgeting really means but i know I'm broke enough to use coupons 😂😂 and buy only whats on sale.

[@7SideWays]

Wasting time managing little nothing expenses will wear you out.

[@Jon-yo4wj]

I don't budget as well but I do know how much I spend vs earn

[@gulden_lover]

It's called "skill".

[@_Wai_Wai_]

you basically keep low maintenance habits.

[@YumJJJ]

calcuating my net worth turns me on though.... so I do it everyday..

[@otocinclus]

no budget but you're still too cheap to use air conditioning!

[@tdgdbs1]

Budget is for undisciplined people.

[@SteveJohnson-ht6kv]

Cool video, now get back to making crappy junk product reviews 😂