Age of Money 2019
Starting up the AoM challenge for the new year!
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1_4gVfeRXso4wIgASo7dPOGz5qY0H9tLOvSXQARPclHg/edit?usp=sharing
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Moved up to 9 Days. So an improvement.
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Here's an interesting display of the difference between AoM and DoB. I received a $10K inheritance in December. This immediately impacted my DoB number since it calculates my spend-rate on the total funds in my budget. But because I'm still spending money earned more than 8 months ago, the new funds have no impact on my AoM because AoM tells me how long ago I received the dollar I'm spending today.
I finally pulled the trigger on a replacement TV with budgeted funds resulting in bigger than usual January spend for me. Usually January is a really low-spend month. My AoM dropped by 4. My DoB jumped up 100.
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HappyDance Yeah, one-time income spikes will have a rather delayed impact while unusually large expenses could make a rather immediate reaction. So, in about 243 days your AoM could spike upwards. Mark your calendar. 🙂
Mom inherited about 4 times her annual income and spent it all within a few months. Had she used YNAB then she could have seen the numbers and graphs move about, but alas.
Funnily enough, if you were to win big time in the lottery and actually spent a large portion of the winnings immediately, a common outcome, AoM would initially plummet instead of rising as you first spend money earned in the past. DoB would likewise skyrocket until your new spending habits also lower DoB. But why play the lottery if you wouldn't use the winnings for anything? AoM be damned!
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Moohouse
Yeah. If my income, spending, and investing match last year, I expect to see my AoM climb exponentially beginning September. We'll see. 🙂
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HappyDance What are you using for your settings Days of Buffering? I am trying to figure out what I should use for that. I know everyone is different but just wondering what people are using.
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VoltaicShock
I chose to go with the entire history because the super big infrequent stuff is always going to be a reality.
Like bevocat I found there were some historic numbers that make the number skew in weird ways, and I guess that it's big one-off spending that has a really long period before recurring, like buying a car for example. This year I upgraded all my electronics ($2,700-ish) for the first time in 10 years, and I've got an appointment in April with a dental surgeon to look into doing an implant for a missing tooth (possibly $3,500 out of pocket).
I thought about selecting the 1-year, which would eliminate a lot of one-off purchases like car purchase, debt smackdown, retirement investing, car maintenance, big health related expenses, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that although the recurring frequency between these specific expenses is longer than a year, there is always something big I'm spending on every year.
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VoltaicShock
Correction. When I said:
I chose to go with the entire history because the super big infrequent stuff is always going to be a reality.
I completely forgot that I changed my mind and went back to a 1-year view. The reason I decided to not go with the entire history (now that I am remembering the decision process clearly) is because in the first couple of years of my YNAB data I was in total scorched-earth mode, not spending on anything, and I'm not in that mode anymore, so I figured I wanted to see how long I could last on my current horde of gold at my current spending levels rather than have it skewed by my days of extreme piety and martyrdom. Sorry about the confusion. lol Some days I just feel like my noggin isn't properly attached.
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January check-in! Just started YNAB, but I was able to get my Age of Money up to 3. I had a fairly awful month, in all honesty. For some strange reason, my university decided to stop offering payment plans for student bills. I couldn't afford mine in one lump sum, so this month has been day after day of desperately applying for emergency loans, getting denied, speaking with charities, and generally scrambling. My uncle randomly called me on one of my darker days, as I hadn't checked in in awhile and he was worried about me. I am not very close to my family, other than him. He could tell I was upset and asked what was going on... next thing I knew, he had completely covered my student bill. I feel guilty for having taken his money, and am trying to get him to let me pay him back... I just honestly didn't have an option once he offered. Well, I did, but the other option was eviction.
So, I'm trying to get back on my feet and get things going. I'm budgeting very very carefully and I feel good now when I check my accounts. I wasn't expecting to get any AoM momentum this month but, thanks to the generosity of my uncle, I have. I'm determined to prove he didn't make a mistake - so I'm working hard to make sure that money keeps growing and I can repay his generosity one day.
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Goal: 45
December 31st: 24
January 31st: 11
Yep, AOM took a huge hit this month because of the sheer amount we decided to send to debt. I realize that our debt goals may keep our AOM from growing the way I'd like to see it grow, but I'm going to continue to dream big, because we WILL be working on our buffer at the same time. There is a large bonus coming up in my husband's future, a possibility of a future promotion, and it looks like I'll have some extra income from side gigs too, so... we will see how this experiment goes! As I said in my original post, if we get to 30, I'll consider that a HUGE success. -
Progress! Went from 21 to 27 days on AoM. I just downloaded the Tool Kit mentioned above so I could see this mysterious DoB, too. The disparity is definitely due to me hanging onto my annual bonus to help me budget ahead, instead of frittering it away like I usually do. Hope everyone is happy with their January results!
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So my check hit today, I went from 9 days to 3 for AOM, now my Days of buffering went from 4 to 12.
Unless I win the lottery, hit the slot machines or knock over an armored car. I am wondering if I will ever get my AOM to stay in the double digits little lone past 30. -
AoM up from 350 in December to 373 for January, so +27. That's almost adding a whole month in one go. Probably due to the year-end bonus from 2017. 😀 It was smaller for 2018. 😢
Dob at 528 now, don't recall what it was in December. This would imply that AoM at some point would start catching up to DoB? Or not? I can't really tell anymore.
Net worth is up 2261.5% since starting YNAB, according to the graph. It's all about starting near or below zero. Net worth is still smaller than debt, but it's moving steadily upwards.
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Moohouse How long have you been using YNAB? A 2200% net worth increase is very impressive. I don’t understand how your debt is higher than your net worth and yet you have a year of income in your budget. Couldn’t you use some of that to pay down your debt? Or is the debt all very low interest like a mortgage?
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Superbone I have used YNAB since 2013. I could probably pay down 1/3 of my debt (mainly mortgage) right now, as the rest of my equity is bound up in the apartment and other non-liquid assets. If I sold the apartment and investments, the I would free up the current equity, and I could pay down the entire loan.
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How does it work?
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Scaramouche Hi Scaramouche, I like your name! How does what work? The challenge?
Click the link, add your info to an empty line in the spreadsheet, set a goal for your age of money, then record your progress on the same day of every month. That's basically it.
Were you hoping for valuable cash prizes? Sorry, none of that here. 😄
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bevocat Got it. I'm in. Thanks!
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From the 2017 challenge on the old forum:
----RULES----
1. Choose a day every month that you will post your AOM to the google spreadsheet (link below).
Be consistent on the day that you have chosen to post your AOM. (Your metrics will not help you or provide you with useful data if you are not consistent.)
2. Post your AOM.
3. Comment below that you have updated the spreadsheet.
If you want, you may post a screenshot of your AOM. This will be fun and will help keep the thread alive. It's not required however.
4. Try to keep the thread on topic.
Changes to the Spreadsheet.
If you see any minor changes that ought to be made, go ahead and change it.
Cheating
Cheating is posting a number that is not your actual AOM, or changing your number because your AOM increased the following day.
We are following the the honor/honour system.
You do not need to cheat, but if you do, everyone will ask how you've become so awesome with money and then you'll have to live with yourself. It only hurts you.
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And never be coaxed into giving anyone else your login information to prove you're not cheating, or for any other reason. 👮♂️
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This has been a hard month for me so far, AOM actually hit zero for several days and I think if the system would of allowed it it would of gone into the negative numbers. I have climbed to a 2 and am happy with that.
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I have entered my entry; I am all over this! Want to get to 50 by the end of the year!! Only starting it in Feb but better late than never!
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I did a fresh start Jan 2019 so I'm using that as my beginning date. Didn't really use YNAB last year so I have no starting point anyway. I would like to get to over 30 days, although I suspect it will be higher due to my true expense sinking funds. I'll log my challenge result on the last day of the month to be consistent. Thank you for this challenge!
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There's that new bucket!
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Official check in. My AOM is at 18 days. I'm a full month ahead, so I suspect this will naturally increase over time. On a side note, I downloaded the toolkit but I don't see Days of Buffering when I log into YNAB. I do see Toolkit reports though. Is there some setting I need to change to see the buffering?
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Whiskey Mama Toolkit options -> Budget Screen -> Days of Buffering Metric
And further down on the same page, you may choose another starting point for DoB with the setting Days of Buffering History Lookup.
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Moohouse I don't have anything that says toolkit options, only toolkit reports
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Whiskey Mama Not within the YNAB browser window. It's usually up in the right hand corner of the browser window. The icon looks like a green box with a white plus sign.
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bevocat ahhhhh, got it thanks!
Now what exactly does it mean, lol
My AOM is 18 and DOB is 36
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Whiskey Mama Well, that's the $64,000 question, isn't it? For all my intents and purposes, the answer is "not a whole heck of a lot, actually."
The official line is explained in https://www.youneedabudget.com/guides/age-your-money/, and you can find all kinds of discussions on why it doesn't mean what you think it means here, but for now, keep staying a month ahead and as you incur more cash purchases, you'll start to see it go up.DOB is more in line with what people expected AOM to tell them. How long will your money last you if you keep spending at the same rate if you never receive any more inflows. I believe the toolkit folks are retooling that calculation right now too.
The bottom line is, these numbers are flashy and fun but need to be taken with a grain of salt.
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I wasn't going to do this challenge because I was embarrassed to have such a low AOM but I realized that joining would motivate me and make me determined to increase my AOM. So, I'm starting out today at 20 days. Tomorrow is payday so I know it will change but I'm going to work toward 30 days. It's going to take a long time to get there but I will work on it. I REALLY need to work on Days of Buffering. Being -166.5 days negative with DoB is NOT GOOD, but, I'm moving in the right direction overall so I know that will come too. I have to start somewhere.
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internettie We all start our own journey at different stages in our lives. Nothing to be ashamed of, it's all about personal growth. BTW, your AOM is bigger than mine, lol!
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Whiskey Mama Thanks! I know it's not a competition and I don't need to think about where I am compared to others. Going forward I'll just continue to do my best and use all of these things as a gauge of where I was, where I am, and where I'm headed!
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It's only been 2 days but it's nice to see it going up. I know it will go down again but it makes me hopeful.
2/28/2019 and 3/2/2019
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I just started with YNAB to help pay down CC debt, so my money is 4 days old LOL. Hoping to get to around 30 days while paying down my debts.
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Mine's at 27. I think I mentioned last month (before the number even showed up) that my goal was 30. Looks like I'm almost there. I'm betting it will get higher, as savings goals are added to. anyway, my monthly update...
I'll have to update the spreadsheet later when I get home. i don't have access to it at work.
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February was a big spending month for me, unusual for a February, which has traditionally been my lowest cost month each year. I had some large chartible giving, made a political contribution to a local candidate's campaign, helped out my sister with a small loan, and I finally pulled the trigger on a new laptop ($1,082.75), using funds I had saved up for that purpose. That's two big electronics purchases in a row, for anyone keeping track. The TV in January and the laptop in February. These two items plus all my other unusual spending dropped my AoM by 4 and 10 respectively.
I'm rather surprised it didn't drop by more, and I think it may be hanging on a remnant of income, like a bit of interest or a rewards redemption from 7-8 months ago. I won't be surprised if my AoM suddenly plummets another 28 to 30 points this Saturday when I enter my usual weekend shopping expenses, but by then it will officially be March.
My DoB also dropped, as one might expect, with these big irregular expenses. The DoB will bob back up when I get my tax return.
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Yup. After my grocery shopping yesterday, my AoM dropped to 219, which is the number of days since my July salary deposit. Am I good or what? I'm getting a pretty good instinct for the ups and downs.
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My AoM is up to 24 days, 17 DoB. In January, I was very very lucky to receive a small loan to help me stay in school from my uncle, which is likely responsible for my AoM being so high so quickly (it was 0 six weeks ago). But I'm bracing myself for a drop over the coming months as I return to my regular income and try to pay down some debt. I have some bigger expenses coming up, too - time to buy my first new pair of shoes since 2017, to get my first haircut in a year, to save for a moving fund to move about a thousand miles... I am feeling comfortable financially compared to the near-crisis status I've been riding for a few years, but I still can't afford the most basic things, like shoes and a third pair of pants, without going into panic mode. YNAB has certainly helped me, but I know that with a surge of income in January with that loan, I have started to feel like I have this false sense of security, and I'm very nervous again...
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AOM down since the Jan 31 update.... 😕 Went on vacation though, but so spent much more than normal. Of course it was all budgeted so I’m still happy, just hoping to see that number to go back up in March!
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Goal: 45
December 31st: 24
January 31st: 11
February 28th: 18
It looks like our AOM grew a lot this month, but it's a little deceiving. My husband received a bonus, and we still have a chunk of money that is essentially doing nothing. We just aren't sure how we want to prioritize it, and we also have a three or four fairly big financial decisions that have to be made within the next 3-6 weeks, so for now, we have categorized it (so the money isn't sitting in TBB), but other than that, it's not doing much. I suspect that by the end of March, our AOM will be back around 13-15 days. -
- Goal - 60
- January 31 - 27
- February 28 - 46
I had a big jump up this month, from 27 days at the end of January to 46 days at end of February. Again, probably due to not spending the annual bonus immediately. It feels really good to budget out the whole month on the first and then be able to put some aside for next month already (helps that it was payday 🙂).
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Just bought a new (awfully expensive) computer along with some vacation expenses, which is paid for this month. Some home maintenance projects and other major things still upcoming - but for now, the plumber is done! Haven't been billed yet, and he won't affect that much anyway. More home renovation, dentist, driver's education and motorcycle still upcoming. Will be both very happy and quite a bit poorer when they're all done and paid for! 🙂
I see now that if my next paycheck is delayed by even one day, then I would have to pay some CC interest for a day or two. This has so far never happened for me, but just in case, I did a transfer from savings.
AoM +15, DoB -25
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Ended February with an AOM of 5 Days, seems to be normal for me. Wonder if short of robbing a bank or winning the lottery if I will ever get it above 15 days. It always dips at the end of the month.
