Budgeting Help

[jbcheerchick93]

Hi there! I am a YNAB fanatic. I believe that it is worth the cost, and more. I can go on a long, detailed post about it, but the general concept is fairly simple.

1. Give every dollar a job (even if that job is savings!)
2. Save for a rainy day (emergency fund, sinking funds for car repairs, etc)
3. Roll with the punches - sometimes things come up and you have to adjust accordingly
4. Live on last month's income.

I would also add that they have a $1000 emergency fund before doing anything else. I also follow Dave Ramsey in that sense. I think it is important to have a baby E-Fund so that they don't find themselves "in the weeds" so to say. Once that happens, advise her to write out monthly bills that are fixed, and item lines for eating out and groceries, etc. Then once they are able to start saving for sinking funds and rolling that amount over month-to-month, they will be in a more comfortable spot. If you want more detailed information PLEASE feel free to private message me or reply to my post.

 

[Jen and Ashwin]

I think that YNAB is worth it. DH and I got married the end of 2015. Since then, we have eliminated our credit card debt, paid off our student loans, paid off my car, saved $10k in an emergency fund, paid for IVF treatments and paid for all of the expenses for a baby. We even took a few vacations too.

We would probably have achieved little of this without the help of YNAB. It keeps us organized, helps us prioritize our spending and savings and has totally changed our relationship with money. It has actually totally changed our relationship to each other as well. I managed the finances and DH used to whine that we never had money for fun things. Shortly after getting married, I started using YNAB because I wanted DH to get more involved and understand where the money was actually going. Instead of me doing all the managing, we started working together and setting goals. We gave ourselves an allowance that we could spend on whatever we wanted, no questions asked. It really reduced our stress levels and made us feel like a team in achieving our goals.

Now is YNAB necessary? No. Your daughter could find something else that works for her. I think YNAB is worth every penny that we have spent on it though, since we have found it to be so useful for us. I used to use Mint, which is free, but I feel like YNAB was a huge upgrade in functionality. Whatever she decides to use, having an understanding of your expenses is essential to make changes and reach goals.

 

[barkley]

Well I can tell you that my 16 year old daughter sells her clothes at a local consignment store, google is your friend, Plato's closet in our area. She makes about $90 - $150 every 3 months. How about selling books on half.com, book scouter? You can sell CD's, DVD's there too or on decluttr (app). She can take up some dog walking in her spare time, check out what is in your area. If she's looking to make some extra cash Pinterest has countless ideas on creating a "side hustle" for extra cash.


There's always a good old fashioned garage sale.

amazon has a function wherein you can enter items and see if they want to buy them. it's amazing how much they will pay for old movies, books and esp. video games. it's given in the form of a gift card credit so a person can turn around and use it for necessities (and it's easy-they pay for shipping you just print up the label they provide). I've taken to holding on to dd's old college textbooks and rechecking periodically b/c we've seen it where no textbook place wants them and then suddenly there's a demand.

Give every dollar a job (even if that job is savings

give it a job and also give it a name. I've taken to logging EVERY PENNY of our 'household' budget since January 1st so I am now intimately aware of how much is going to what (we've always had a flat amount budgeted for groceries/gas/cleaning supplies/entertainment...so long as we didn't go over it we hit our goal) so if something comes up I know exactly where I can eliminate an expense.

 

[MickeyMouseCD524]

Having just done a financial overhaul. I highly suggest 3 people for them to look into and that's Dave Ramsey, The Financial Diet, and Broke Millennial. They helped me significantly. IT's a couple months of trial and error but once they get the swing of it they're going to be a lot more stable.