Budget Nerds

• #129 - YNAB for Singles: Lauren's Categories

  In today's episode, Ben and Ernie interview Lauren, a single mid-30's physical therapist living in Arizona. Lauren is already a legend in the Budget Nerds community for YNAB'ing for years completely manually, without ever connecting a bank account. A true budget nerd, she logs in daily to enter transactions and reconcile. She's never even done a file import to enter transactions!   Lauren shares her YNAB story which began with graduating from school and working her first job. Her newfound income felt like a financial safety blanket, and she began spending, unbeknowst to her, well beyond her means. She found herself deep into debt from both credit cards and student loans, and had to ask her mother for help making ends meet. Eventually Lauren discovered YNAB, learned how to spend more thoughtfully with cash on hand rather than debt, and slowly began to take control of her situation. In just a few years she paid off well over $100k of debt!   Lauren also shares her challenges planning as a single person, including the hidden costs of being single. Housing, taxes, products and services... many aspects of personal finance today are geared toward couples and families, and may not offer good options for single adults. Single people also face unique emotional challenges. While they may only be accountable to themselves financially, they also solely bear the burden of saving for potential job loss and other unforeseen events that could impact their cash flow. Many couples and families  have the peace of mind of two incomes, as well as the emotional stablity of two people working toward a common goal of financial stability.   Finally, Lauren breaks down her YNAB categories as well as her daily habits, including using a checkbook and reconciling her balances by hand in the register!   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube Budget Nerds Livestreams: https://www.youtube.com/@YNABofficial/streams Budget Nerds Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! [email protected]  

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• #128 - Setup Your Plan Like a Budget Nerd: Advanced YNAB Concepts

  A few episodes ago, Ben and Ernie walked through how to set up YNAB for the first time, focusing on the basics. Today, by popular request, they are covering the advanced setup, exploring every feature YNAB has to help you setup a spending plan that fits with your life. There's a lot here, so strap in nerds!   As with episode #123 on the basic YNAB setup, this episode relies heavily on screensharing of the YNAB app, so we recommend heading over to YouTube to watch the video version of the podcast.   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube Budget Nerds Livestreams: https://www.youtube.com/@YNABofficial/streams Budget Nerds Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! [email protected]  

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• #127 - Pay Off Debt vs Get A Month Ahead: Which Should You Do First?

  Ben and Ernie take up arms in the age old personal finance battle -- pay off your debt first, or get a month ahead on your bills? While they have discussed this topic before, in today's episode they approach the two paths with a balanced view, weighing the pros and cons of each. While they have an obvious bias toward getting a month ahead on your bills, there are certain scenarios where really buckling down on paying off debt might be the best move.   The beautiful thing about this problem is that either way, you are making progress toward a better you. Simply thinking through your approach and evaluating your emotions around debt, financial resilience, and day to day expenses helps align your actions with your priorities -- and at the end of the day, that's what YNAB is all about.   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube Budget Nerds Livestreams: https://www.youtube.com/@YNABofficial/streams Budget Nerds Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! [email protected]  

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• #126 - Spending A Life of Adventure with Ashley L. (Live from FF Minneapolis)

  At Fan Fest Minneapolis in June 2025, Ben and Ernie recorded their first ever live podcast of Budget Nerds! They invited friend, mentor, and fellow YNAB creator Ashley Lapato, who also runs @theorganizedwallet account on TikTok. Ashley tells her story of discovering YNAB after an especially embarassing failure to pay her bills on time while her husband was traveling for work. She resolved to finally learn how to take control of their money and become a positive finanacial contributor to their marriage. Ashley discovered YNAB, and, as you can see now, the rest was history!   Ashley also walks through her categories, including setting aside money for fostering new relationships and leaving room for "side quests," as she calls them -- adventures and experiences that help you grow and learn new things.   Follow Ashley L. on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@theorganizedwallet?lang=en     Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube Budget Nerds Livestreams: https://www.youtube.com/@YNABofficial/streams Budget Nerds Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! [email protected]  

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• #125 - All the Ways to Easily Add Transactions

  You may have noticed some recent changes to the YNAB app, starting with no more "add transaction" button in the bottom row of the screen. It was a little jarring for Ben and Ernie at first, but they quickly realized that you can still add transactions easily within YNAB, and in fact, there are many ways to add transactions quickly within the app. In today's episode, Ben and Ernie walk through all the ways you can add transactions in YNAB, on all platforms, including: iOS shortcuts and widgets iOS spotlight Using voice commands via Siri Android widgets From the lock screen of your phone   Whether you're new to YNAB or a veteran, there's probably some new ways to add transactions you haven't explored yet, including ways to auto-populate categories and payees. This episode relies heavily on screenshots and visual references, so we encourage you to watch it on YouTube as well.   Follow Budget Nerds on YouTube Budget Nerds Livestreams: https://www.youtube.com/@YNABofficial/streams Budget Nerds Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuIUGmbCDklkDCDm-cQqv2g   Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie! [email protected]  

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