For many people, the biggest challenge to living within their means is keeping track of their envelope balances and staying within them.  It can be difficult to stay within your envelope balances, especially if you don’t always know that the balance is. I often get asked for tips or advice on how to stay within the envelope balances as you progress through the month.  When I am asked that question, I typically reply by asking how often they are logging in to Mvelopes.  Generally the people who are having the most trouble staying within their envelope balances are also not logging in very often to the application. Therefore, my first tip is to log in more often. The more often you log in to Mvelopes, the more in touch with your spending you are.  I typically log in to the application 3-4 times a week.  I generally only have a couple transactions each time I log in, so it only takes me a matter of seconds to assign them to their appropriate envelope spending accounts.  I then review my discretionary envelope balances (Such as groceries, fuel, dining out, entertainment, etc.) and log out.  It’s quick and easy, yet I always know what my envelope balances are so that I can focus on spending within the balances. The next tip would be to manually assign your transactions for your discretionary envelopes.  The automatic transaction assignment feature is great, but if used too much, you can get out of touch with your spending habits.  When you manually assign your transactions to your grocery envelope, for example, you see the balance in the envelope change each time you assign a transaction.  This visual reminder can help you to remember what your balance is and help you focus on staying within the balance. Mobile access is another way to stay in close contact with your spending and your envelope balances.  If I am in doubt about one of my envelope balances, I simply log in on my mobile phone and double check.  If you do not have Internet access on your mobile phone, it may be helpful to print out the Current Envelope Balance Report and slip it into your purse, planner, wallet, etc. The other challenge of course can be staying committed to not overspending, even when the envelope balance gets low.  If you spend more than what is in your envelope, you are spending money that you thought you had set aside for other purposes… that could mean you won’t have the money to pay the mortgage, the insurance payment, go on vacation, or even buy holiday gifts. It’s not always easy to skip a lunch or dinner out, or not run to the grocery store when you want to pick something up, but the only way an envelope system will help you improve your financial position is if you spend within your means, and that means sticking to the envelope balances.  So, if the grocery envelope is just about empty, try making dinner for a few days out of what is in the pantry or the freezer. -Jennifer, Money for Life...

The other day on a call with one of my Money for Life Coaching clients, she asked, “Why does everyone want me to use their online bill pay system?” Some companies, or financial institutions, charge fees to use their online bill pay services. Obviously they want you to use it so that they can make money.  Usually the fees are fairly small, and when you factor in the money you pay for stamps if you are still mailing your bill payments, it may even be saving you money. Others offer an online bill pay service as a convenience, because they are hoping to increase your loyalty to their financial institution or company.   Increased loyalty typically means that you would be less likely to switch to another service, bank, credit union, etc. Mvelopes offers an online bill pay service as part of our Mvelopes Personal service because we want you to be a loyal, long time customer. We also offer online bill pay because, and perhaps more importantly, it makes managing your spending easier and more convenient. Mvelopes Bill Pay is a fully integrated part of your Mvelopes Personal Application.  You can pay your bills and immediately see the pending transactions that have been scheduled to go out.  This information allows you to see the immediate effect on your envelope balances, each time you pay a bill.  You can also set up automatic bill payments, which means you spend less time each month paying your bills. I for one and in favor of anything that reduces the time I have to spend paying bills each months. My favorite part of Mvelopes Bill Pay, however, is that you can make payments to anyone, including individuals.  I use this feature all the time to send money to family members or friends that I owe money to for one reason or another.  It’s very convenient, especially since I don’t carry a checkbook with me, and very rarely have cash.  Just the other day, someone from the office picked up lunch for me and brought it back to the office.  I then realized that I didn’t have any cash to pay him, so I simply went into Bill Pay and sent him a check for the money that I owed him.  It was simple and easy, and he had the check within just a couple days. -Jennifer, Money for Life...

Ryan and his beautiful family Ryan, from South Jordan, Utah, recently submitted the following comments about his appreciation for Mvelopes.  Ryan said: We have been using Mvelopes for nearly a year. We absolutely love it! We spent several months researching various web applications that claimed to offer the best budget application. As we reviewed various other options, we found ourselves coming back to Mvelopes. Using Mvelopes has allowed us to manage our monies more effectively. We are now saving more each month and expensing our monies based upon specific priorities. It is good to be back in control. We love the flexibility to create a number of folders that make sense to us. You have created a great product that we hope to use for some time to come. Every chance we get, we tell others about what Mvelopes has to offer. We are thinking of having Mvelopes be our new wedding gift for friends/family getting married. What a great way to start off a marriage! Thank you for your product! Last week, I had the privilege of speaking with Ryan and, during our conversation, he answered the following questions: Q:  How long have you been using Mvelopes? A:  Just short of a year. Q:  How has Mvelopes assisted you in living within your income? A:  It has been instrumental.  We have always been able to live within our means, but it has allowed us to save in ways that we haven’t been able to in the past.  We recently used Mvelopes as a budgeting tool as we worked to finish our basement.  As we worked on the project, we were able to focus specifically on line items, so that we didn’t overspend in any one area. Q:  How much consumer debt have you been able to eliminate during that time? A:  Zero.  We do not have any consumer debt.  However, I must say that using Mvelopes has kept us from taking on any debt. Q:  How much have you been able to save while using Mvelopes? A: We actually had some savings set aside prior to use Mvelopes, but we’ve gained efficiencies as we’ve managed our money more productively with the tools Mvelopes provides.  As we’ve saved, we’ve used those funds to complete the basement project, which has been great. Q:  How much has your average checking account balance increased while using Mvelopes? A: Overall, we’ve netted an increase of about $300 a month. Q:  What financial goals have you achieved while using Mvelopes? A: The biggest financial goal we’ve set (aside from finishing the basement) is to take a vacation–this time, without the kids.  We have taken our additional savings and put it in a vacation envelope.  We’re heading to Southern Utah (somewhere we’ve never been) and we’re going to spend just under a week there.  Like most people who use Mvelopes, we have had a goal to save additional money each month and be more “saving minded” and we’ve been able to do that more than we actually thought we’d be able to.  Then, of course, there’s the “finishing the basement” project that I mentioned earlier.  We had some money already earmarked and set aside, and we used those funds as a base for the project.  We then set up sub-envelopes within that project to help track the expenses (bathroom, plumbing, electrical, sheetrock, etc.) and we were able to easily identify areas where we could save, which also kept us from spending more money than we should. Q:  What are your next financial goals? A: I assume that the vacation we will soon be taking will be a success and we’d like to make that more than just an annual thing–maybe even a couple of times a year.  We’re also saving for our children’s education and other home improvement projects. Q:  How many envelopes have you created? A: When we were working on the basement construction project, we had 110 envelopes, but we’ve since scaled back and are now using 65 envelopes. Q:  How has Mvelopes helped to reduce financial stress? A: We are probably somewhat unique, I guess, because we don’t really have any debt other than our home, but we’ve been able to identify in a moment where our money is going and how much we have left.  Although we’ve used many other programs, we’ve never had one that would help us forecast where we’re going to be spending our money.  Other programs were helpful to show us where our money was going and how it was being spent, but with Mvelopes we can look ahead and proactively make decisions about our future spending. Q:  If married, how has Mvelopes helped you better collaborate with your spouse? A: My wife and I have always worked fairly well together in terms of finances, but this tool has provided an opportunity for the two of us, on a regular basis, to discuss our finances.  We have a weekly “Mvelopes meeting,” which is what we call it, and during that meeting we assign transactions and make sure that we’re still on track.  It also helps us openly communicate about our spending so that one person doesn’t make a financial decision that the other person doesn’t know about and ought to know about. Q:  What advice would you give to new Mvelopes users? A: To use the product often and encourage others to use it.  I can’t tell you the number of people that we’ve referred to Mvelopes–mostly family and friends.  You have to use it to really understand its true value.  If we don’t access it frequently, then we lose some of its value, so my advice would be to use it as often as you can for whatever financial goals, opportunities or challenges you may have. Q:  If you could create a “tag line” for Mvelopes–keeping in mind what it’s done for you–what would the tag line be? A: The first thing that comes to mind is that it is the only web-based money management application.  There aren’t any others that compare.  As I mentioned earlier, others track expenses, but Mvelopes takes it a step further and allows you to literally put money aside for future expenses. It was a privilege to speak with Ryan.  His excitement over recently finishing their basement and setting aside funds for a much-needed vacation was contagious.  It got me thinking about all the things I could do if I really set my mind to it. Ryan, thank you for taking time to speak with me, for sharing your experiences with us, and for recommending Mvelopes to your friends and family members!  We wish you and your wonderful family continued financial success and much...

Bethany and her beautiful family Yesterday, I had the privilege of conducting a telephone interview with Bethany from Florence, Arizona.  Bethany and her husband are the proud parents of a three-year-old boy and they will soon (next week) be leaving for Ethiopia where they’ll be adopting a baby girl.  During our interview, Bethany shared how helpful using Mvelopes has been in not only helping them save the money they need for this adoption, but in managing their day-to-day living expenses.  She discusses how Mvelopes is unlike any other budgeting program she has ever used before. Bethany sent us the following information in an e-mail message (which prompted my call):  Prior to using Mvelopes, we had tried many other budgeting software programs, but always found ourselves perplexed in regards to how much money we actually had in each budgeted area. It seemed it was never cut and dry, or up to date with what was occurring in real-time. Mvelopes has been a life-saver for us in allowing us to find out how much money we have remaining in a particular area, right when we need to know. We love that we can be out running errands and use our cell phones to find out if we have money left in our “eating out” envelope, to decide whether or not we will stop for lunch. It always used to just be a guessing game. Next week we are leaving to travel to Ethiopia to bring home our adopted daughter. Thanks to Mvelopes, we were able to succesfully budget for all of our adoption expenses and come away from the process debt-free. We were also able to track our expenses throughout the lengthy adoption process, in a way that will allow us to easily file for the federal adoption tax credit. So thank you Mvelopes, for helping us bring our daughter home and helping us to run our finances, instead of allowing our finances to run us! Please continue reading to learn more about Bethany’s Mvelopes experience (she answered the following questions during our telephone conversation). Q:  How long have you been using Mvelopes? A:  I think it’s been two years–possibly a little less. Q:  How has Mvelopes assisted you in living within your income? A:  I think the main way it has assisted us is just being able to see exactly how much money we have in each area of our budget at the exact time we need to know (it’s always up to date and current).  We have always budgeted, but this program has really helped us.  It’s just different from other programs we have used.  The unique feature of Mvelopes is that the money has to come in before there’s money to fund the envelopes.  If we’re making a decision to spend money and Mvelopes tells us the money is there, then we have confidence knowing that it’s really there to spend. Q:  How much consumer debt have you been able to eliminate during that time? A: We haven’t really ever carried debt.  We do have a couple of school loans and we’re working to pay those off, but we never carry credit card debt.  We also have a mortgage and an auto loan, and Mvelopes really helps us budget for those payments. Q:  How much have you been able to save while using Mvelopes? A: We have a goal to save at least 10 percent of our gross income and, when we first set up our envelopes, we designated an envelope for that 10 percent savings.  We’ve always been able to save at least that much.  We have a new motivation to save even now, too.  When our son was two-and-a-half years old, we started thinking about having more kids.  Ultimately, we want more kids to love.  Through a set of circumstances, we really felt called to adopt.  My husband is a pastor and we both have a strong Christian faith.  It felt like what we were supposed to do.  We did a lot of research on various ways to adopt and we decided to adopt from Ethiopia and officially applied to our agency one year ago.  We worked on the paperwork for about six months, then received a referral, and were sent photos of our little girl.  After reviewing her file, we knew that this was what we were supposed to do.  When we first decided we were going to adopt a baby, we looked at our entire budget again and knew that we’d probably need to dip into that 10 percent savings envelope, but we also created an “adoption savings” envelope and have been able to save even more.  We have been able to save close to $15,000 in just the last year.  We’ve had fundraisers, garage sales, etc., to help us to get into a better financial situation so that we could manage this adoption without going into debt. Q:  How much has your average checking account balance increased while using Mvelopes? A: Maybe by about $1,000 a month. Q:  What financial goals have you achieved while using Mvelopes? A: Well, our biggest goal has been saving for the adoption.  We set up ahead of time just how much each stage of the adoption process was going to cost.  We have a tax credit that we’ll be able to apply for this coming spring and our initial goal was to save above and beyond what the tax credit would be.  When all is said and done, we will be debt free for this adoption. Q:  What are your next financial goals? A: We are looking at possibly going to one income (we both work right now and we’re hoping to make it so that I can stay home with the kids in a year or so).  As we review our finances and look at our options, that’s something we’re considering.  We hope to be able to have more kids in the future, too.  We also enjoy being able to give to people or things when opportunities come up and we want to continue to be able to give!  We never want to feel that our finances are so restricted that we can’t give to worthy causes. Q:  How many envelopes have you created? A: The total number of envelopes we currently have is 52. Q:  How has Mvelopes helped to reduce financial stress? A: I think, in marriage, finances can be one of the biggest triggers of fights or arguments.  Part of the stress often comes as a result of simply not knowing where you’re at financially.  When there are questions about whether we have enough to spend on something, we now have a neutral place where we can get that information.  Taking away the unknowns and eliminating the “guessing game” has been very helpful. Q:  If married, how has Mvelopes helped you better collaborate with your spouse? A: We are a team.  We came up with the budget together.  We decide how much we’ll put in each envelope.  If I stop working, we’ll know just where we’re at and what that will look like.  We are able to look at things objectively without anyone having to be the bad guy. Q:  What advice would you give to new Mvelopes users? A: Be committed to the goals that you set.  Decide what your goals are and create the appropriate envelopes.  When you spend, make sure that you have the funds to do what you want to do, without affecting your goals.  Don’t overspend.  In the end, you’ll really see the benefits pay off. It was a privilege to speak with Bethany and to learn a little bit about what is going on in her life.  It is definitely an exciting time for her and her family as they prepare to bring their baby daughter (and sister) home from Ethiopia.  Bethany, thank you so much for taking time to share with us the many successes you are enjoying.  And thank you, too, for sharing with us the powerful message that when you have dreams that you want to accomplish, you don’t need to go into debt to make them happen.  We wish you and your family continued success and much...

Who says your envelopes have to be named only things like “Auto Registration,” “Gifts”?  Why not use the envelope name to help you remember when the registration is actually due each year?  Or to remind yourself how much you are planning to set aside for gifts over the course of the year? My Auto Registration envelope is actually named “Auto Registration (November).”  This way I know when the bill is due and can keep a close eye on how I am doing with my savings goal.  You, of course, could also add in the amount of the bill to the envelope name if you like.  An envelope name like “Auto Reg. (Aug $150)” provides a great deal of detail that can be helpful when reviewing your envelope spending account balances. The same type of naming can be useful for your monthly bills, such as utilities bills.  You could include, for example, the date the bill is due to help you remember when to pay it (in the event that you do not have it set up with an automatic payment.)   Including the amount of the bill may also be helpful for the bills that do not tend to fluctuate (i.e. cable/satellite, phone, etc.) from month to month. One of my coaching clients today asked if there was a way to include notes in the envelopes about what you are setting aside money for.  There really isn’t a way to create a note, but she found the idea of adding information to the envelope names very helpful.  She was having trouble remembering when her property tax bills are due, so she added the months to the envelope name and problem fixed. Please share any tips that you may have for customizing your envelopes, naming them in a more effective way, etc.   It’s always great to hear what methods others use. -Jennifer, Money for Life...