YNAB You Need A Budget

[amycue]

Ok I have been setting this all up knowing that I do not have a buffer but then I realized I have some of a buffer in the way I have been budgeting. Each paycheck I take 1/2 the mortgage money and put it aside for the mortgage payment. So 1/2 comes from August's last paycheck for September's payment and 1/2 comes from the 1st September check. So I am thinking that 1/2 my mortgage payment is my starting buffer. Right? So my question then is when I get the 2nd check in August so I input it as partially income available for this month and the mortgage part as income available for next month or should I just keep it all in this month's income and then roll it over as my buffer.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

Amy

[malisab]

Either way works just fine. Use whichever makes the most sense to you.

Since it feels so good to put money in as Income available next month, and you have a very delineated amount that you do that with, that would be good.

Since the goal, moving forward, will at some point to be putting more into it, it might be easier using the buffer on screen. Alternatively, you could just try, one by one, to move your bills to next month and then the rest of your monthly expenses. And/or try to spend less in your 'everyday expense' categories so that you get a month ahead.

If it were me, even if I wasn't putting it in as income available next month, I would probably empty it from the buffer by budgeting it towards the mortgage in the following month right away so as not to see it sitting there at the bottom of the current month. (I still have to 'hide things' from myself.)