PT Money » Organize Your Finances

How to Set Up Your Finances for College

Guest — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 15:30:45 +0000

As you go off to college, you’re probably taking care of a lot of details-where you’ll live, the things you’ll bring, the classes you’ll take. But have you thought about your financial details? As you get set up in this new stage of life, don’t forget to pay attention to your college finances.

Banking for College Students

If you don’t have one already, now is the time to get a bank account. Many banks offer free checking and even special perks for college students. Shop around to find a checking account that requires no minimum balance, has low fees, and plenty of ATMs and branches in your home area as well as the region where you’ll be going to school. You may find it helpful to sign up for your checking account at the bank where your parents have their accounts-some banks will reward your loyalty with extras like reward programs or waived requirements.

Editor’s note: I echo Jena’s comments here and would just add one thing. In addition to a checking account, find a good online savings account where you can automate and separate your short-term savings efforts. You’re never too young to start saving.

A Credit Card for College Students?

Consider whether or not you need a credit card. Some students like to sign up for cards in order to take advantage of rewards programs, or to have a reliable source of funds in case of an emergency. Credit cards are also useful if your parents are taking care of your expenses, as they can easily monitor and pay for your transactions. Of course, if you’re going to sign up for a credit card, be sure to do your research first. Don’t run to the first table in the student center that offers you a free T-shirt. Editor’s note: a wise reader pointed out that the CARD Act has actually put an end to free t-shirt offers.

Take the time to compare college student credit card offers to find the card with the best interest rate, fees, and perks like reward programs or special discounts.

Automate Your Finances

Automate as much as you can. You’re a busy college student now, and your time is better spending on getting work done and having fun than babysitting your bank account. And being so busy, it’s easy to forget to cash a check or take care of an important bill, so automation can help you stay on top of your finances. Set up direct deposit with your employer or automatic transfers from your parents. Take advantage of bill pay programs, or contact your accounts to set up automatic withdrawals for each payment so that it all happens hands free while you’re off doing other things.

College is an exciting time with lots of fun and new experiences. Get your finances set up right early on so that you can enjoy the freedom of a stress free financial life in college.

This guest post is contributed by Jena Ellis, who writes on the topics of Online Certificate Programs. She welcomes your questions and comments at her email Id: jena.ellis20@gmail.com.

Photo by db photographs

How to Set Up Your Finances for College is a post from: PT Money: Personal Finance by PT.

2c3ca6358dbd4ad8b0c3714b040d53d9

How I Use Mint.com to Know Where My Money Is

PT — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 20:54:54 +0000

I use Mint.com, the free online-based personal finance software, and their iPhone app to keep track of all of our financial accounts. This includes the checking accounts, savings accounts, credit cards and other loans, the mortgage, and all of our investment accounts.

I check the app once a week or so to see how my accounts are doing, and to make sure I don’t need to move any money around. I also get alerts when I have a low balance or when I’ve spent an unexpected amount in a category. Although Mint can do a heck of a lot more, this is mainly what I use it for: seeing the big picture of our money situation. Here’s more about Mint…

Mint Home Page

The Overview – See All Your Accounts at Once

This is where the magic happens. When you sign up with Mint, you get to add your whole financial picture to one big dashboard. No more logging into multiple accounts and creating spreadsheets. Mint brings that to you with their overview page. At the bottom of this page you are even presented with your net worth. A nice number to track over time.

Other Mint.com Features

Transactions – Of course, you can drill down into each of your transactions and see how much you were charged, the date, and the description. Mint will automatically assign an income or expense category. The program is pretty good about getting this categorization right. But there are some items you may need to manually correct.

Budgets – Mint allows you to set monthly budgets for your spending categories. In fact, even if you don’t set a budget, it will assign a default budget to each category. When you breach those budget numbers, your overview page will show alerts detailing where you are over. Again, I really don’t use the budget feature. But it’s well worth a look if you are trying to crack down on spending.

Goals – This is a brand new feature at Mint. I really like what they’ve done here. One of the first steps to any solid savings plan is having a few goals in mind. Why manage your money if you’re not going to do something with it right? What Mint does, in a fun and intuitive way, is to help you create goals for savings or debt reduction. You start by selecting your goal, follow their prompts in estimating your needs and how long it will take. If it’s a savings goal, you let them know which of your accounts you’ll be using to save for the goal. They track the account and keep up with your progress. Likewise with a debt reduction goal, they track the debt account and see how you are performing each month.

Mint Savings Goals Feature

Trends – This is where your graphs and charts are. The categories you assign to your spending drives this cool feature. Fun to look at and really will give you and idea of your habits and areas for improvements.

Investments – This is basically a drill down into your investment accounts. With online access to your accounts, Mint is able to determine which funds you are invested in. They display all sorts of information including your performance, value, allocation, and comparisons to the market (very cool).

Ways to Save – One of the unique features of Mint is their suggestion tool under the Ways to Save tab. This is essentially how Mint makes a bit of their money. The refer you to products that will give you a better savings rate, lower fees, or lower interest rates on debt.

The Mint iPhone App

Like I mentioned above I also have the Mint iPhone app which basically just taps into the online tool. You can’t add accounts from here, but you can see an overview of your accounts and drill down into details. I use this app 99% of the time vs. going to the .com site.

Security Concerns

Mint does gain access to your login credentials. So there is the potential for exposure of this information. However, Mint contends they have bank-level security. So if you trust the Bank of Americas and the INGs of the world, you probably can trust Mint. Here’s more about their security.

Mint Security Video

Note: An alternative to Mint would be to create this with a manual spreadsheet and update it yourself by logging into your accounts periodically. Lucky for you I’ve created such a spreadsheet.

Time to get started tracking your accounts with Mint. Sign up for free and add your accounts to see your net worth.

How I Use Mint.com to Know Where My Money Is is a post from: PT Money: Personal Finance by PT.

2c3ca6358dbd4ad8b0c3714b040d53d9

How to Get from College to the Real World Financially

PT — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 18:52:34 +0000

Making the transition from college to career is tough enough without having to deal with finances. It can be overwhelming, but by doing just a few things now, it won’t be long before you’ll be miles ahead of most of your peers and even most people in their 30s.

Live Like You’re Still in College

Post college, we get a strong desire to step up to better accommodations, a new ride, nicer clothes, etc. The feeling that you should reward yourself isn’t a bad one. Just don’t let it get out of hand and start living at or above your new means. If you can maintain that frugal college mindset and keep your spending under control for just a few more months or even an extra year, you’ll be so much farther ahead. The point is to not run out and drastically upgrade your lifestyle before your savings and debt repayment get going. I know this is hard. But if you do it, you’ll be rewarded. There are free services available on the Web, like Mint.com, that will help you track your spending.

Make a Plan to Pay Off Debt

You may have accumulated credit card debt over your college years. Or your student loan payments are set to begin. Now is as good a time as any to get aggressive with paying down those debts as quick as possible. The quicker you do, the more money you’ll be able to put towards savings and fun. Not to mention all the interest charges you can usually avoid by paying them off early. Focus on eliminating that credit card debt first. Added bonus: If you increase the gap between your credit balances and limits, you’ll also boost your credit score.

Start a Savings Plan

Now that you have a plan to take care of your debts, spend some time developing a plan to save up some money. Think about your short and mid-range savings goals. This could be things like a newer car, a suit, a down payment for a house, a vacation, or even a wedding. Or simply saving up a nice emergency fund so that you don’t have to go into debt when the unexpected strikes.

Once you have your goals and how much it will take to fund them, set up a monthly savings plan coinciding with your paycheck. I prefer to have make my savings plan as automatic as possible. Your Human Resource department can set this up for you. All you need is your savings account and routing numbers.

Speaking of savings accounts, don’t just put your short-term savings in any old bank. Find an online high-yield savings account to stash your cash in. They are easy to setup and use, and they pay great interest compared with regular savings accounts.

The 401K: Free Money Towards Retirement

Lastly, let’s talk about the greatest tool you have for preparing for a prosperous retirement: the 401K. Hopefully your first employer will auto-enroll you in your company’s 401K. And if you work for one of the companies that pay a 401K match, you’ll start receiving free money towards you’re retirement. The 401K match is an excellent benefit. If you’re company doesn’t auto-enroll you in the 401K plan, make sure you sign up as soon as possible and at least begin contributing enough each paycheck to get the full company match. This account will also help you reduce your current tax liability. Who doesn’t want to pay less in taxes?

As for what to invest in, you’ll want to have a well-diversified portfolio that meets your risk tolerance. Most entry-level employees (with at least 30 yrs until retirement) can benefit from a target-date retirement fund. These funds automatically adjust to a more conservative set of investments as you age. They are more expensive, but they take the hassle out of manually re-adjusting your accounts every year. This would make a great fund to start with until you learn more about your investment style and risk tolerance and can move into less managed funds.

Once you get comfortable with the 401K and the match, check out the Roth IRA.

To all the recent college graduates, I offer my congratulations. And I wish you the best with your careers, and with managing your finances.

How to Get from College to the Real World Financially is a post from: PT Money: Personal Finance by PT.

2c3ca6358dbd4ad8b0c3714b040d53d9

How to Make a Deposit at an Online Checking Account

PT — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 18:31:31 +0000

The Big Negative with Online Checking

One of the biggest barriers to entry for people considering an online checking account for exclusive use is the inability to drive up to the bank and make a quick deposit. Online only checking accounts are becoming more and more popular though, and they’re also expanding the way they will take deposits. I thought it would be helpful to provide a list of the online banks and their methods for accepting deposits. I think you’ll be surprised.

How I Do Online Checking Deposits

Personally, I still make all my check and cash deposits at Bank of America. I then transfer my funds to my online checking account. My paychecks I just have sent to the online bank via direct deposit. These two methods, transfer and direct deposit, are available at all the banks listed below. As well as traditional wire transfers.

Deposit Options at Online Checking Accounts

I’ve tried to list them in order of having more convenient ways to make deposits.

ING DIRECT Electric Orange Account – With ING DIRECT you can make deposits by mail, but they don’t provide the prepaid envelope. Their deposit address is ING DIRECT, P.O. Box 60, St. Cloud, MN 56302-0060.

FNBO Direct Online BillPay Account – With FNBO Direct, you can make deposits by mail, but they don’t provide the prepaid envelope. Their deposit address is FNBO Direct, PO Box 3707, Omaha, NE 68103-0707.

Ally Interest Checking – Ally Bank provides postage paid envelopes so you can mail in your checks for deposit. I assume this is after you request the envelopes.

PerkStreet Financial – PerkStreet provides postage paid envelopes when you open your account. You can also order more free envelopes at any time. PerkStreet also allows you to mail your check deposits for free at UPS and Mailboxes Etc locations. This is a next day delivery.

EverBank FreeNet Checking – EverBank has several ways to make deposits. They have the postage paid envelope option. In addition, you can make deposits by ATM. I did a quick search on the ATM locator and it looks like they are tied in with local credit unions to make this possible. I wasn’t impressed with the number of locations in my area. But it’s great that they even have this. Lastly, and most impressively, with EverBank you can make electronic deposits using your home or office scanner. All you need to do is enroll in their online check deposit system and you’ll be able to sign in and upload your check scans. Pretty cool.

How to Get Fewer Checks to Deposit

This may seem obvious, but you can minimize the amount of physical checks you receive by signing up for direct deposit with each of your income sources. Don’t want to bother with direct deposit? Consider signing up with PayPal and receiving payments that way.

How to Make a Deposit at an Online Checking Account is a post from: PT Money: Personal Finance by PT.

2c3ca6358dbd4ad8b0c3714b040d53d9

PerkStreet Account Opening Process – Part 2

PT — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 02:38:16 +0000

I’m currently carrying a PerkStreet debit card around in my wallet and using it to earn cash back on my spending. I thought it would be a good time to check back in with the second part of my account opening process review for PerkStreet Financial’s online checking account. See part one of this review to catch up on what you missed, and see my full review of this account’s features, including the 2% cash back promotion.

PerkStreet recently updated their offering and now they offer 5% cash back in some spending categories. Read more about the 5% cash back offer from PerkStreet Financial.

In part one we covered the online application portion. Now we’ll review the rest: receipt of the debit card and PIN, funds transfer, and online account functionality.

Access Granted on Day 2 – Two days after applying for the account, if you are accepted, you will receive a second email from PerkStreet Financial detailing how to access your online account. When you log in to your account you will be able to change the ID and password. You’ll also be able to see several features available to you: billpay, financial dashboard, user options, and even a tab to click through to TurboTax to file your taxes.

Registering an External Bank Account – I decided that my first step would be to register an external bank account in order to move money into my PerkStreet checking account. When you first log in to your online account you’ll see a tab up top called “e-money mover”. Visit this page to register an external banking account.

If you’re like me, you’ll have money stashed elsewhere that you want to get into this account to start spending. The registration process is very similar to other online institutions. You will need to look for two small deposits that PerkStreet will make into the account. Once you see those, come back to your PerkStreet account and verify the transactions. Once you do that, your external account will be registered and you’ll be able to move funds between the two accounts.

Getting Your Debit Card and PIN – Once your application is accepted, you will be sent a debit card and PIN. Look for an email from PerkStreet letting you know about the card. Once you receive your card, you’ll be asked to call in and activate your card. It’s at this time that you can change your PIN. Once you do this, you’re ready to start using your card to earn perks.

Review Your Perks – I almost forgot to mention this, but there is a green “my perks” tab accessible from your online account where you can go to review and redeem your perks. FYI – It takes a few weeks for this information to transfer over from your checking account to the perks balance. This explains why I didn’t have many perks at this point. I was, however, happy to see a detailed information section which will allow you to reconcile your spending to the amount of perks earned.

Next Steps with my PerkStreet Financial Checking Account – Sometime over the next month or so I’ll begin checking out the BillPay feature on the account. You actually have to manually activate BillPay, which seemed odd to me. I’m hoping to actually try it out soon. Also, there is a tab called “services” which contains a link to a “financial dashboard”. Looks to be an online financial aggregator of sorts.

So there you have it..the start to finish process of getting started with your own PerkStreet Financial checking account. As I’ve said all along, if you’re in the anti-credit crowd and want a way to earn some extra rewards for your budgeted spending, this is the account for you. I’ve moved my personal spending (gas, groceries, and dining) to this account and look forward to enjoying my perks very soon. If you have any questions about the account, let me know in the comments or shoot me an email.

PerkStreet Account Opening Process – Part 2 is a post from: PT Money: Personal Finance by PT.

2c3ca6358dbd4ad8b0c3714b040d53d9

Get Started Organizing Your Finances: Get to Know Your Money

PT — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 13:20:05 +0000

Today I’m going to share my tips for getting started with understanding your money. In my experience, knowing where you currently are is critical for determining how to get to where you want to be. Don’t worry, I’m not going to make you do a budget. But there are two main things you need to do: list your known monthly expenses and view all of your accounts in one place. Let’s get started…

List Your Known Monthly Expenses

As a base line for your understanding, write down your monthly fixed expenses. Don’t worry about variable spending (i.e. dining out, shopping, travel, etc.). We’ll tackle those expenses in the next post. Just write down the bills you pay each month. For example: rent, utilities, TV and internet service, insurance payments, loan payments, tithe (if that’s an every
month deal for you), etc.

To help you with this process of listing your expenses, I created a spreadsheet that you can use as a template. Read more about and download the spreadsheet.

If you prefer working with a much cooler, online calendar-based expense tracker, I encourage you to check out the online software, PocketSmith, and their free membership. Click to read my review of PocketSmith.

PocketSmith Calendar

So what’s the point? Why do this? Doing this will help you:

Understand your minimum monthly expense needs and how they compares to your income.
Project your future spending needs.
Avoid late payments.
Determine which expenses you could reduce or eliminate.

Alright, now that you understand your monthly spending needs, you should review the balances in your banking, investing, and credit accounts…

View All of Your Accounts at the Same Time

In this new era of online financial account management, it’s easy to lose track of all the various banking, investing, and credit accounts in your name. In order for you to understand your financial situation, you need to be able to see all of those account balances at once, and check them periodically.

Just like the monthly tracker above, there is a manual and an online tool available to help you set this up. See this article where I discuss the free tool I built, the all-in-one financial dashboard. You can also download it there.

Not only will that dashboard help you determine your personal net worth, it also has a place to store your online account IDs and passwords.

There are many good online tools (called “financial aggregators”) that will also help you organize your accounts into one location. I prefer to use Mint.com for this purpose, but most budgeting tools will help you do this.

Mint.com Home Page

Does personal net worth matter? One of the benefits of seeing all your accounts at once is you get to determine your personal net worth (banking and investing balances minus your credit account balances). What makes this number important is not the number itself. You need to compare it over time.

What you want is a personal net worth that is trending in a positive direction. Calculate your current net worth, then revisit this exercise in a month and see how you’ve improved.

Final Thoughts

Alright, that should just about do it for today. You’ve listed your known expenses and have seen all your account balances in one place. You should have a good understanding of your current financial situation. To ensure you maintain a good level of understanding, be sure to schedule some time each month to re-perform these exercises. Set yourself a reminder. Check back tomorrow for the second key takeaway of personal finance.

Get Started Organizing Your Finances: Get to Know Your Money is a post from: PT Money: Personal Finance by PT.

2c3ca6358dbd4ad8b0c3714b040d53d9

PerkStreet Account Opening Process – Part 1

PT — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 02:57:41 +0000

I recently decided to try out a reward checking account. I opened an online checking account with PerkStreet Financial. If you saw my introductory review of PerkStreet, you know they have a pretty unique offering. I know a lot of my readers are in the anti-credit camp, so I see some benefit to providing you more details.

I’ve personally been impressed with their approach to online banking and wanted to see a bit more. Partly because I’m entertaining the idea of using them as a checking account to get the 2% cash back reward they are offering. And also because I want to be able to tell you more about the service.

PerkStreet recently updated their offering and now they offer 5% cash back in some spending categories. Read more about the 5% cash back offer from PerkStreet Financial.

I was told they have a really quick account opening process. Takes like 5 minutes. All you need is your SSN, driver’s license, and a debit or credit card to make the initial $25 deposit. Here’s a screen capture of the initial sign up page.

As you can see, there are 4 sections to work through:

Selection: You select the type of checking account you want, the type of reward you want to earn (coffee, music, or cash back) and whether you need a joint account or not. The Checking Plus option will give you overdraft protection, which if needed to cover your overdraft, will incur a $30 fee. This is a result of the new opt out rules. See New Ways to Avoid Bank Overdraft Fees.

Identification: This is where you provide your personal details. There is apparently no hard credit pull with the regular account, but the Plus account with overdraft protection may have a hard credit inquiry (via Stop Buying Crap). Nothing has hit my credit report yet, so there may not be anything at all hitting my credit report.

Review: This is where you review those details.

Funding: Finally, you will need to provide a debit or credit card to fund the account with at least $25. FYI – In subsequent funding transactions, if you use a credit or debit card you will get charged a 2.5% fee.

Once I submitted my application, I received this email:

We are currently processing your application and will contact you within 2 business days to notify you of the status. Once your account is open, we will begin processing your deposit and send you an email with the subject “Welcome to PerkStreet Financial – Important Login Information”. The email contains log in instructions so you can access your account. Additional information about your account will be sent to you in a Welcome Kit through the mail.

We are here to help, 24/7. If you have questions about your application, give us a call anytime at 866.792.2834.

Have a great day.

Dan O’Malley
CEO,PerkStreet Financial

When my account is opened and I have time to play around with the features inside, I’ll share part 2 of this review of the PerkStreet Financial account opening process. Update! Part 2 of the review is up.

If you can’t wait, PerkStreet has a demo account you can use to check out the account. Just visit PerkStreet Financial, click the sign up button, then click the “banking” tab, and look for the small demo link on the right.

PerkStreet Account Opening Process – Part 1 is a post from: PT Money: Personal Finance by PT.

2c3ca6358dbd4ad8b0c3714b040d53d9

Mvelopes: Automated, Online, Envelope Budgeting System (Plus Bill Pay)

PT — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 22:29:58 +0000

This week (or two) of budgeting reviews continues as I take a look at Mvelopes. Mvelopes is an automated, access-from-anywhere, budgeting tool based on the envelope system of budgeting. It also comes with bill pay.

Upfront, it’s important to tell you that Mvelopes is a subscription based system. So, along with all the nice features, you have to pay a monthly fee. Albeit a very low fee. But Mvelopes is a solid budgeting tool and has been recognized as such: PC World gave them a World Class Award – one of The 100 Best Products of the Year. Here’s how Mvelopes describes themselves:

“Mvelopes is the most effective online personal finance and spending management system ever. Mvelopes Personal is an online budgeting system that makes it easy to create an effective personal budget and track every aspect of your spending as it happens. It will help you always know exactly how much you have left to spend, instantly know the impact of every spending decision, effectively manage credit card spending, and quickly create an easy to use household budgeting plan.”

What You’ll Get with Mvelopes

Financial Account Aggregation – See all your accounts in one place and visualize your financial situation at a glance. This helps you track your net worth effectively.

Traditional Envelope System – Mvelopes, as the name suggests, is built on the idea that at the beginning of the month you put your income into different spending folders (or envelopes). Then you spend the rest of the month using the money from the envelopes. This helps you to spend every dollar before you earn it. That way you can make sure you spend it on things like savings, debt reduction, and giving. Mvelopes sets this up automatically for you each month once you’ve done the initial setup. You can quickly transfer money between envelope (drag and drop), and you can even take into account credit card usage.

Online Based – No download needed. It’s online-based software. You log in to your account from any PC or Mac or mobile device. This is the big advantage Mvelopes has compared with You Need a Budget 3.

Bill Pay – Another big selling point for Mvelopes is the bill pay feature. I’m not aware of any other budgeting software that lets you do this. Pretty handy.

Community – Mvelopes has a very robust community of users who all interact via the community groups and forums. You can also get training, live support, articles, and even premium life coaching services. You can also make some referral money through Mvelopes. They have a refer a friend program where you can earn $15, and your friend saves 20%.

Free E-Book Download

The folks at Mvelopes created a free E-Book to get you motivated and help you start using the Mvelope system. It’s called Money 4 Life. That link is a direct download. Right click and “save as” to put it on your computer and read it at your convenience.

First Steps with Mvelopes

I tested out Mvelopes using their free trial and I walked through the first steps. Be aware that you will need to sign up with a credit card for the free trial. You just need to set yourself a reminder to cancel in the event you’re not happy.

When you first sign up and get into the system, you’ll need to add accounts your financial accounts (link bank and credit accounts using online credentials), automate your bill payments, set a spending plan, fund your various envelopes, and finally, set up mobile phone access.

So there you have it. Mvelopes looks like it has some great benefits to offer for those people who want an online system to help them manage their spending and create a better financial future. If you’ve used Mvelopes extensively I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

Mvelopes: Automated, Online, Envelope Budgeting System (Plus Bill Pay) is a post from: PT Money: Personal Finance by PT.

2c3ca6358dbd4ad8b0c3714b040d53d9

Unautomate Your Finances: A Simple Passionate Approach to Money

PT — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:30:56 +0000

A new financial guidebook just became available that I really like. It’s called Unautomate Your Finances: A Simple, Passionate Approach to Money. It was created by Baker from Man vs Debt. I was able to get an advanced copy of the guide and thought I’d share a bit of my thoughts on the book. First, here’s what you’ll get with the complete package:

Unautomate Your Finances: What’s Inside?

A comprehensive 83-page eBook, featuring “The Unautomation Theory”, “The Science of Unautomation”, and “Applying Unautomation”. Over 25,000 words dedicated to providing everything you need to adopt a simple, passionate approach to money.

A 27-minute video interview with Leo Babauta of ZenHabits.net. Baker interviews Leo on how he applied the principles of simplicity and minimalism to dramatically turn around his financial life. Powerful insights from a leader in simplicity, blogging, and productivity.

A 29-minute audio interview with J.D. Roth of GetRichSlowly.org, one of the top personal finance blogs on the web. J.D. joins Baker on a call to discuss his own financial recovery story and what it’s like now that he’s in the “third phase of personal finance”.

A 2-page, custom-designed PDF version (printable) of the minimalist budgeting system discussed in main guide.

A bare bones Excel template for those who want to take the minimalist budgeting system digital.

Free Extended Updates! Over the next 6 months, Baker will be releasing sample case studies, FAQ’s, and exclusive interviews… for free!

That’s a lot of information/inspiration for the small fee that Baker is charging. Read more about Unautomate Your Finances: A Simple, Passionate Approach to Money.

My Thoughts on Unautomate Your Finances

First, don’t be thrown off by the title. I’m a huge fan of saving more money using automated techniques, so I didn’t know if I would like the message in the book. But Baker isn’t against using automated tools like direct deposit and bill pay. What he does stress is keeping things simple and doing it consciously.

But he doesn’t stop there with his message. His guide goes into great detail, giving you specific steps for simplifying your finances by spending consciously, simplifying your budget, and he shares his own debt reduction techniques which he’s used to pay off thousands of dollars in debt. This guide will no doubt challenge what you’re currently doing with your money and your life.

I know Baker and I know he’s put a lot of hard work into this guide. Give a listen to his video and see if you connect with his message. If so, I encourage you to pick up his guide. Unautomate Your Finances: A Simple, Passionate Approach to Money.

Unautomate Your Finances: A Simple Passionate Approach to Money is a post from: PT Money: Personal Finance by PT.

2c3ca6358dbd4ad8b0c3714b040d53d9

You Need a Budget 3: A Principles-Based, Powerful Budgeting Tool

PT — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 05:47:29 +0000

Several readers have expressed their love for the download-able budget software, You Need a Budget (YNAB). I had to include it in this week of budgeting reviews. YNAB 3 was recently released in beta. I downloaded the free trial version to my computer last night and gave it spin.

You Need a Budget is what I would call a zero-based budgeting tool. The software allows you to “give every dollar a job” and get beyond living paycheck to paycheck. I would describe it as a principle-based, straight-forward budgeting tool with an easy-to-use (and enjoyable to look at) interface. Here’s a look at the budget function:

YNAB is Not a Complete Money Management Tool

Something I quickly discovered about YNAB 3 is that it isn’t a well-rounded money management tool, like Quicken or Mint. But it’s not really trying to be that. YNAB is a budgeting tool. The creators really understand the psychology behind budgeting and “getting ahead”, and they incorporate that into the software.

For this reason, YNAB isn’t for the person who has a lot of stocks or real estate to track. Nor is it really for someone with a small business to keep track of. It’s not personal accounting software, plus budgeting. It’s simply budgeting software.

YNAB’s 4 Rules of a Money Management Methodology

You Need a Budget is built on four principles, or rules as they call them. They are:

Stop Living Paycheck to Paycheck
Give Every Dollar a Job
Save for a Rainy Day
Roll with the Punches

It’s these four rules that set YNAB a part from the competition, I believe. If you are a Dave Ramsey fan and believe in the power of the zero-based budget, then this software is right up your alley.

Read more about YNAB’s four rules to budget by.

What’s New in YNAB 3

YNAB 3 just rolled out replacing YNAB Pro. Here’s what’s new…

Available Funds Roll Forward – Any available funds that you have not budgeted roll forward to become a part of next month’s starting buffer.
Drag and Drop to Order Categories – I noticed this right away on the budget screen. You can arrange the categories to prioritize your view based on you most important categories.
Other new features include: transaction search/filtering, improved reporting, and overspending flexibility

YNAB has a Passionate Following

Check out this recent comment from a reader,

“I have YNAB 3 (beta), and I cannot say enough about this budgeting software. IMO it is the BEST user-friendly budget software I’ve ever bought. It’s worth every penny. I think the four rules are the foundation from which to go by when starting a budget.” – Jo

YNAB Community and Personality

There’s much more to the YNAB website than a download button. The creator of the software, Jesse Mecham (@jessemecham), has developed a large set of online resources to help you. There’s a blog, which he personally contributes to. A series of Whiteboard Wednesday posts where he shares specific budgeting methods and tips. Very real stuff. Also there are support forums, live online classes, an online university, and several videos to view which will show you how the software works.

This software looks like the real deal. To try the YNAB 3 software on your computer, risk free for 30 days, just click the You Need a Budget banner below. You can also download the 7 day free trial version.

You Need a Budget 3: A Principles-Based, Powerful Budgeting Tool is a post from: PT Money: Personal Finance by PT.

2c3ca6358dbd4ad8b0c3714b040d53d9