let's say a I have yearly budget for YT expenses. If I purchase meat for YT, that goes out of that bucket. But what happens if I purchase meat in bulk? Maybe all the meat will be used for YT? Maybe I'll decide to have a BBQ one day?

If you buy a lot of meat for YT expenses, it should be used for YT. But if you have extra, you can use it for other things like a BBQ. Just make sure you keep track of what you use for YT and what you use for other things.

this didn't help...sent me to an article which gives tips on how to save by preparing you own food instead of ordering chinese...but we do this anyway

WHAT?!?!?!? no Chinese???

1. I’m having trouble deciphering the question here… If I budget 500$ for yom tov meat, and then i spend $600, then I had to transfer 100$ from one budget category into another. 2. On the bulk ordering, nothing should change bc you order meat by bulk or not. In the month where there is a yom tov, I am moving that extra money I have stored up over the last year in this category into my separate grocery budgets that went over budget that month to cover the spending 3. I wouldn’t actually recommend budgeting the way you are and as recommended in the previous point. Rather, your meat category should include that fact that some months you will have higher spending bc of yom tov. I would only have budgets for yom tov specifically for things that are in unique yom tov related categories, like lulav and esrog. This budgeting methodology fixes your issue regarding using yom tov meat on chol.

I would only have budgets for yom tov specifically for things that are in unique yom tov related categories, like lulav and esrog. This budgeting methodology fixes your issue regarding using yom tov meat on chol.

interesting.

Hey Yaakov, budgeting for food can be tricky, especially when costs go up during special times like Yom Tov (YT). Here are some simple steps to help you manage this better without starting from scratch every month: 1. Understand Variable Expenses: Food costs can change each month. During YT, you might spend more on food, including meat. This is normal and expected. 2. Set Monthly Budgets: Create a set amount for food each month. This helps you know how much you can spend regularly. 3. Plan for Higher Costs: For months with YT, plan ahead. You can save a little extra each month to cover these higher costs. For example, if you know you spend more on food during YT, save a bit more in the months leading up to it. 4. Adjust as Needed: If you spend more one month, adjust your budget for the next month. Move money from other categories if needed. 5. Use Tools: Budgeting tools like YNAB can help you plan for these expenses by setting targets and adjusting as you go. By planning ahead and adjusting your budget, you can manage higher food costs during YT without starting from scratch each month. I hope this helps!

@mysterious-tomato-10057 i think the question is actually the other way aound. budget and buy $600 and only use $500. correct @rapid-account-67960?

are you suggesting that every month, theoretically, would need a new cheshbon from scratch?

‘food’ (includes meat) is much higher during YT then the rest of the year. I thought more practical to have a set amount per food per month, and assign the differences (2 months?) to the cause of the change.

No. Take the total years spending and divide by 12. So during most months you are saving up for the yom tov bc you are staying under the limit. No new chasbon. One Cheshbon for the year.

so basically the food budget should not be what I basically spend every month, and the extra stuff I spend before YT is not some extra annual YT budget but it's all one food budget which averages out to something a bit more than I'd spend the whole year this makes sense

Yes! I think that is far easier in my opinion. Otherwise you would need to have two fridges to keep tracking them separately haha

So does that mean you're putting in x dollars every month into "food" no matter how much or little was spent the month before, as opposed to refilling up to x every month and putting in less if you ended up spending less the month before? I'm not sure how clear that question is, I'll give an example: let's say I have a monthly budget of $500 for groceries. In January, however, I spent only $400. Now it's February 1st. You're saying I should be putting in another $500, meaning I'll have $600 available in February, as opposed to refilling back up to $500(i.e. only putting in $400) and treating that extra $100 as "found money"?

Yes. Don’t use refill categories for things that are normalized expenses. The goal is to create a steady budget. So I “budget” the same amount for fish every single month even though we only buy fish 4 times a year.

sounds really clear and logically, and was explained beautifully.

Its hard, and most likely you will readjust as you learn more and do more budgeting and will miss the mark for the first year, but we do our best. YNAB tracks averages for you and will give you good first stabs at it

purchase a safer impulsively last night

had to read this a few times before i got it... a safer impulse is a good thing 🙃

haha sefer* lol

Well, you know why the torah has a gartle? So it can be a safer Torah!

#dad_jokes

I've been using YNAB since the beginning of the year and have it organized similar to @rapid-account-67960. All expenses related to YT (food shopping, arba minim, chol hamoed trips, etc) are categorized as Succos. In this example I'd use a split transaction estimating how much is YT and how much is regular Groceries. It's not perfect, especially as it's impossible to know exactly how much food we normally would have bought for shabbos and the week vs how much we're spending for YT, but I like to have that YT category as a Report and Target for next year. I could see how @mysterious-tomato-10057's setup is simpler though.

I love it! This is why personal finance is personal! As long as it works!

So can you tell me how you put fish into your budget each month and buy it only in a quarter of the months. So how does that work? How much do you budget each month, and what happens to that money in the months when you don't buy fish, or is the total fish budget for the year, lets say $200 divided by 12 then by the third month, when you buy fish, you have three months of fish budget "saved up" and then you use that to buy your quarterly fish purchase?

YNAB basically automated this for you by creating your goals based on your spending. So let's say i buy 400 of fish each quarter. I'd just make a YNAB category goal for fish of $100 per month (400/4) and then I always have the money I need

well more like strongly encourage you...nothing can truely force you here 😁