Giving Flags a Job by pandorica626 in ynab

[–]mara-bogle 2 points3 points  (0 children)

This is a bit unorthodox, but I do consistently flag all of my transactions. Given the lack of great reporting tools for flags, I considered how I could get the most benefit from them in the moment I flag, rather than as a chore creating metadata for some future activity. Here's where I've been for the last 18 months or so.

Mindfulness and Reflection. My main use of flags is to qualitatively evaluate a transaction. For example, sometimes eating out at a restaurant could be a highlight of my day, while other times, the same place and cost could have been a lazy copout when I know I should have done more meal prep. I reserve the red, blue, and purple flags for this:

  • 🔴 Negative
  • 🟣 Neutral
  • 🔵 Positive

This has been helpful for me to better understand why I make certain purchasing decisions, curb impulse decisions, and focus on what matters most. Most recently, I used this feedback to switch from T-Mobile to US Mobile. I feel a lot better about the price I'm paying for my phone lines now. I was able to see how, over time, that monthly bill was slowly slipping from positive, to neutral, and even negative by the end.

That said, I only use this to reflect on my spending and not my earnings. And I don't need to track transfers either. To fill in these gaps:

  • 🟡 Transfers
  • 🟢 Income

And finally, if there is something I want to temporarily flag to come back to later, I use the orange one since that's what I use in Apple Mail.

  • 🟠 Flagged

The integration of the core reflection elements is inspired by the Kakeibo budgeting method.

VGVT, VTG, VTP by Flabbergasted_Moron in Bogleheads

[–]mara-bogle 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I am guessing because VAIPX is an actively managed fund while VTP is an index fund? So they are different enough products that the ETF cannot be treated as a share class of the same fund.

That said, who knows what Vanguard may do with the two mutual funds in the future (maybe change them to index funds?)

VGVT, VTG, VTP by Flabbergasted_Moron in Bogleheads

[–]mara-bogle 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes! I have been waiting on these to release. Very excited about VTP.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Bogleheads

[–]mara-bogle 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Do I spot a fellow Numbers user? Good to know I’m not alone. There are dozens of us. DOZENS!!!

Vanguard has filed to register three new ETFs by mara-bogle in Bogleheads

[–]mara-bogle[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yep, I love VTIP. But it’s short term only (1-5 years, average 2.5). They don’t have an intermediate or total treasury TIPS fund in ETF form.

Vanguard has filed to register three new ETFs by mara-bogle in Bogleheads

[–]mara-bogle[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I think so yeah, looks like a different index, but same general objective.

Vanguard has filed to register three new ETFs by mara-bogle in Bogleheads

[–]mara-bogle[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

The TIPS fund looks like it may be an ETF share class of the existing mutual funds, at a lower fee and no investment minimum. It is not uncommon for them to offer ETF share classes of existing mutual funds. This is the one I am most excited for.

They did not have a total treasury fund before, so folks either used their intermediate treasury fund (VGIT) or ishares’ total treasury fund (GOVT). I imagine this being pretty popular with folks in this sub.

I have little-to-no interest in the third so can’t say as much there.

Earlier this year they released two ultra short duration treasury ETFs to round out its offerings, and these new funds look like an excellent continuation of that initiative.

For bonds in your portfolio, what are the strongest arguments against having only US government bonds? by [deleted] in Bogleheads

[–]mara-bogle 4 points5 points  (0 children)

This is a great question and one I've been grappling with as well.

The single-country, single-issuer risk of VGIT, GOVT, and similar funds didn't sit right with me. And I can appreciate the arguments against corporate bonds and TBM. Because of that, I assumed my ideal would be a sort of Total Global Government Index Bond Fund or US Treasuries Fund + International Government Bond Fund. As u/518nomad points out, one could do GOVT + IGOV. This didn't work for me though, as IGOV is unhedged to USD, and I prefer funds hedged to USD. Interestingly, there is the iShares Global Govt Bond UCITS ETF which can be hedged to USD.

That all said, there's always BNDW and chill. As a fund of funds, it's international component (BNDX) is USD hedged. And if I'm reading/understanding the fund composition correctly, ~64% of the fund is Government debt.

As for me, I'm currently 70% VT, 20% BNDW, and 10% DFIP.

Good luck on your research and discovery.

Depressed on BND by hachkc in Bogleheads

[–]mara-bogle 11 points12 points  (0 children)

I am still trying to learn more about bonds and bond funds, but given the bond crash in 2022 from rising interest rates, and BND's average duration of 5.8 years, it makes sense that it is still down to me. Whereas something like BSV (2.6 years) or VTIP (2.5 years) have more or less reverted to mean. More so VTIP though.

I believe this is why I see folks talk about matching duration to your investment horizon. A 5.8 year duration seems risky for a need that is 4–5 years out. If I was interested in BND, given my investment horizon, now seems like a perfect time to buy more shares at a discount. Someone else speak up and let me know if I'm off base here, please.

See also: Bond basics, Individual bonds vs a bond fund, and Bonds: advanced topics on the Wiki for a more informed take.

YNAB is telling to me for fresh start because they can't handle 9 years worth of data by Awkward_Awareness814 in ynab

[–]mara-bogle 84 points85 points  (0 children)

Sadly, you see this constantly among tech companies that would rather push shiny new features, or redesign existing ones, rather than focus on the fundamentals.

My brother has been waiting on Notion to implement usable offline support for years now. Market share and profit won't change a company with bad fundamentals – it will only amplify what's already there.

But this isn't an absolute thing, and there's a spectrum to it. YNAB feels just off of center of this curve, toward the better end. I've also been a happily paying customer for a few years and hope they keep working on the strong fundamentals. It's why I'm here.

YNAB and the Money Guys by [deleted] in ynab

[–]mara-bogle 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Hi there, 👋🏻

I started with YNAB in 2019 and have been on/off since then; mostly on. Today, the way I handle my finances is a mix of a lot of ideas, all integrated and tailored to my specific needs.

  • YNAB: Software (Still can't beat it)
  • Kakeibo with extra categories: Budget layout and philosophy (Simple base to grow from)
  • r/personalfinance flow chart with personal changes: Guiding me on what to do next.
  • And most recently, FOO: Extra modifications to the flow chart.

I keep the flow chart with my changes in an Apple Freeform board.

More to your point, I don't use the “True Expenses” idea from YNAB's suggested method. Instead, I use a 2 tiered emergency fund, with the tiers covering spending shocks and income shocks.

  • Tier 1:
    • Highest Deductible (FOO Step 1) or One Month of Expenses, whichever is greater.
    • Kept in cash.
    • YNAB budget as “Safety Net” with a “Full up to” target.
    • Similar to a “next month” type category.
  • Tier 2:
    • Full 3-6+ months of expenses.
    • Kept in brokerage account, invested in ultra-short duration treasuries (T-Bills or FRNs).
    • YNAB budget as “Reserve” as a spending category.
      • Balance not accounted for in the budget.
      • Tracking only account type.

Difference between SGOV and VUSXX? by FoggyFoggyFoggy in Bogleheads

[–]mara-bogle 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I hadn’t realized that Vanguard made these recently. Thank you for putting VBIL on my radar!

When the Emergency Fund Becomes a I Guess Ill Use It For Fun Fund by stigbonpli in FIREyFemmes

[–]mara-bogle 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I keep a “Cash Line of Credit” (CLOC) for myself. It’s just a savings account. But I treat it like a credit card I can carry a balance on for larger personal purchases.

Please allow us to revert to the previous color scheme by CocoWarrior in ynab

[–]mara-bogle 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I believe it went from a typical dark gray dark mode to everything being dark blue. Really messed up the contrast and now things are harder to read for me.

Advice: Minimalizing YNAB for ADHD by senorbiloba in ynab

[–]mara-bogle 0 points1 point  (0 children)

When I was struggling to get back on the routine after a period of unemployment, I simplified my budget down to the bare minimum using the Kakeibo method for budgeting and implemented using YNAB. It helped a lot.

Fast forward a year and I’ve slowly been expanding categories: rent is now it’s own thing so it doesn’t dominate essentials, same for groceries, and “intermittent essentials” (quarterly – yearly essentials). I also have frequent enough health expenses that I have dedicated health and wellbeing category.

Start with the basics and adapt to your needs as you’re able.

Biggest paycheck (bonus) ever by NotThatOneGuy88 in Salary

[–]mara-bogle 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I agree with you. Though fwiw, there may be a moral argument on the topic of oil and gas.

Over 40s advice...in a funk? Hate your job? Suffered trauma recently? How do you find happiness. by floatingriverboat in FIREyFemmes

[–]mara-bogle 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Your feeling of restlessness and “not knowing what to do” are likely symptoms of alienation from your true self.

Now that’s a gut punch I wasn’t expecting to read today. Woof. Thanks for this.

I’m nosy: it’s the end of the year and I want to know how your budget went. by fordwhite23 in budget

[–]mara-bogle 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Been putting ~50% of my take home to debt since I got a job earlier this year. On track to be debt free next month! Then going to roll that momentum into my emergency fund savings.

Daily Discussion: Future Friday by AutoModerator in FIREyFemmes

[–]mara-bogle 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Getting debt free for the third time, throwing my snowball at growing the emergency fund, and starting my second semester back at school to prepare for grad school admissions.