Sinking Fund Methods That Actually Work, Plus The Hidden Cost of AI Data Centers

Summary

NerdWallet’s Smart Money Podcast — July 30, 2026

Episode: “Sinking Fund Methods That Actually Work, Plus The Hidden Cost of AI Data Centers”

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Episode Overview

In this wide-ranging episode, hosts Sean Pyles and Elizabeth Ayoola tackle two very timely financial questions. First, a “Money News Roundup” with contributing journalist Ana Hilhosky explores America’s escalating backlash against AI data centers—their true costs in electricity, water, and quality of life, and how this is rippling into local economies. In the second half, the hosts field listener questions about practical sinking fund (a.k.a. “savings buckets”) methods: how to efficiently pay expenses from multiple goals-based savings accounts, and how to juggle this if you use credit cards to maximize points or miles. Throughout, real-world examples, candid personal stories, and actionable tips abound.

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Part 1: The Hidden Cost of AI Data Centers

with guest Ana Hilhosky
Start: 01:52

Why the Backlash? (02:45-03:30)

• Americans are turning against data centers—especially “hyperscale” ones. In less than a year, opposition in polls soared from 42% to 70% (Heatmap poll).
• Ana Hilhosky: “That spike illustrates how quickly backlash is spreading... this has become an issue for people all over the political spectrum.” (03:08)

Breaking Down the Costs

Electricity Demand & Bills (03:38-05:18)

• Hyperscale data centers require enormous, constant power. Example: Meta’s new Wyoming facility is projected to consume 10 gigawatts—equal to 10 million homes’ usage.
• This strains local and regional grids; costs for infrastructure updates get passed on to all ratepayers, including those far from the facility.
• Ana: “Data centers could comprise one fifth of the entire US electricity consumption by 2035.” (04:39)
• Dominion Energy (Northern VA) is spending $8 billion on expansion; local residents will cover over half in higher rates.

Water Consumption (05:18-06:01)

• Cooling servers uses massive water: largest facilities can draw 5 million gallons daily—like a city of 50,000.
• Centers are often built in drought-prone rural areas. Expanding water infrastructure is another potential taxpayer burden.
• Long-term impacts still unclear.

Noise & Quality of Life (06:01-07:11)

• Centers produce a persistent, low-frequency hum that’s hard to measure—and often uncontrolled by standard noise ordinances.
• Anecdotal reports: sleep disruption, headaches, feeling vibrations, diesel generator emissions contributing to potential air quality issues.

Property Values & Jobs: Myth vs. Reality (07:11-08:56)

• Mixed impact on property values: Some increased sales near data centers, likely due to correlated factors (strong infrastructure, jobs), not causation.
• In rural/re-zoned areas, long-term value impact could turn negative.
• Ana: “It’s genuinely a mixed picture... homeowners may watch their property values drop in the future.” (07:54)
• Job creation has been oversold: Brookings found only a modest, mostly temporary boost (4-5% over 5-6 years), mainly during construction or in areas with multiple facilities.

The Issue of Transparency (08:56-09:17)

• Many data center deals are under NDAs; residents rarely see the full community trade-offs until it’s too late.

The Wave of Moratoriums (09:22-09:44)

• Pushback leading to moratoriums in places like New York State, halting new data center permits pending further study.
• Much opposition is hyper-local.

What Can Citizens Do? (09:44-10:04)

• Attend town meetings, ask who pays for infrastructure, insist on transparency.

Quote Highlight:
Ana Hilhosky: “Deals are going to get shaped during zoning hearings and public comment periods, and that’s when people should ask who’s going to be shouldering the price of infrastructure upgrades?” (09:50)

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Part 2: Sinking Fund Methods That Actually Work

Start: 12:39

Sinking Fund Strategy Recap (13:36-14:27)

• Definition: Separate high-yield savings accounts for each major financial goal (emergency fund, house, car, vacation, etc.), often funded by automatic transfers/direct deposits.

• Benefit: Clarity, control, and budgeting discipline; easier to visualize progress toward specific goals.

• Sean: “Whatever your goals are, whatever you value in your life, you have a different account for that, ideally in an online high-yield savings account.” (13:36)

• Key Insight: The system should be built around reliable income sources, especially for those with variable incomes—relying on predictable paychecks for bills and major sinking funds prevents overdrafts and stress.

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Listener Q1: How Do You Actually Pay from Sinking Funds?

Listener “Tim” (15:57)

“When it’s time to pay, how do you manage that if everything is going on the same credit card? Do you then have to be mindful to transfer funds to the account that pays the credit card? ...There is some management required unless you have a credit card or debit card issued with each account…”

The Three Main Methods (16:42–21:21)

1. Single Account Method (16:42)

   • Pay off all card balances from one account (e.g. “fun money”).
   • Transfer amounts from other sinking funds as needed to ‘reimburse’ the main account.
   • Best for simple budgets or fewer sinking funds.
   • Elizabeth: “I think the single account method may be best for someone who doesn’t have too many different sinking funds.” (17:25)

2. Multi-Account Method (17:41)

   • Connect every savings/checking account directly to credit card/debit accounts.
   • Each expense’s corresponding fund pays it directly—much less manual shifting.
   • More setup hassle but cleaner for people with multiple goals or who value organizational tidiness.
   • Sean: “You do have to go into your credit card accounts and just put all that information in, which really is a one-time kind of headache compared to the ongoing administrative process of moving money around.” (18:41)

3. Hybrid Approach (19:04)

   • A handful of primary accounts are linked to cards; others require occasional manual transfers.
   • Example: Sean links checking, fun money, and emergency fund to 3 main cards. For rare expenses (like car repairs), he pays from emergency, then “reimburses” that account from the specific fund.
   • Habitual review (weekly preferred) is key.
   • Sean: “If you are having good financial hygiene and managing your expenses and reviewing what’s on your credit card statement... it just becomes kind of habitual.” (20:47)

Tracking, Adjusting, and Mental Benefits (21:21)

• Regular review of transactions (weekly for hosts) is crucial for all methods.
• If you’re constantly draining one fund to cover another, you likely need to increase the underfunded bucket.
• Elizabeth: “It can help you see when you’re overspending if you’re having to pull from one account to another.” (22:32)
• Adjust without judgment; let spending patterns guide your allocations.

Takeaways: Top 3 Listener Steps (23:24)

1. Know your style—how much manual shifting is overwhelming for you?
2. Pick setup simplicity (hybrid is usually easiest for most).
3. Watch for repetitive “borrowing” as a sign your allocations need tweaking.

• Elizabeth: “Whether you go for the single account method, the multi account method, or the hybrid method, you’re going to have to track your expenses.” (21:21)

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Listener Q2: What If I Use Credit Cards for Points or Miles?

Listener Q/A at 24:21

“Any suggestions for those of us that put all expenses on, for example, an Amex SkyMiles credit card to get points/miles? This gets paid off in full every month, of course.”

Card-Forward Versus Savings-Forward (24:54-28:11)

Elizabeth’s System:

• Assigns cards to different spending buckets according to rewards optimization (not just matching accounts).
• Example:
  • Chase Sapphire Reserve for bills, travel, and restaurants (max points on those categories).
  • Amex Everyday Cash for groceries/gas.
  • Two main linked accounts for bill and needs expenses.
  • Fun money kept in a checking account, not a card, to prevent over-spending.
• Elizabeth: “My Amex Everyday Cash Preferred is good for groceries and gas, so I solely use that card for groceries and gas.” (25:30)

Sean’s Approach:

• Savings-forward: matches expenses to savings accounts, then connects them to cards as needed.

Manual vs. Automated Matching

• Both methods still require periodic reviews (weekly is best), but the card-forward method can reduce fund shuffling, especially with limited cards.
• If a category (e.g., fun money) is prone to overspending, using a debit/checking account with a visible balance can add “friction” and curb impulse buying.
• Elizabeth: “I see that number going down and down instead of up... and I’m like, well, fun’s over now once it gets really low.” (29:24)
• Both highlight the ultra-personal nature of the system—what matters is reducing your own friction/stress.

Simplifying Down Further (30:35–31:12)

• Listeners and hosts both endorse starting with just three buckets: emergency, fun, and vacation.
• Only expand as your comfort with the system grows.

Notable Quotes

• Sean: “This is a really evolving process... You want this to be as predictable as possible... so you don’t want to overdraw an account because you’re expecting money to come in and it’s not actually coming in. That can create a bit of a messy situation and stress.” (15:10)
• Elizabeth: “Just look for the most simple way to do it. If you test one of the methods... and it’s not working for you, switch to a different one. Because at the end of the day, this is not meant to stress you out.” (30:12)
• Sean: “The core of the savings bucket strategy is you have your different financial goals broken out based on your values... you’re also not overspending in one area or another because you have everything so organized.” (29:32)

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Key Takeaways & Actionable Tips

• More data centers mean higher electric and water bills, noise, and possible negative effects for nearby residents—even those far away as demands hit the shared grid.
• Sinking fund (bucket) systems excel at organizing your money around your values and goals—but the transfer/payment method must fit your personal style and appetite for complexity.
• Hybrid spending methods—linking only 2-3 main accounts to cards, with large or irregular expenses handled by manual ‘reimbursement’—work for most people.
• Credit card point/miles hackers: Assign cards to match category rewards, then link to corresponding savings, or use visible-balances debit/checking accounts for ‘fun’ money where overspending is a risk.

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Memorable Moments

• Sean, on the hassle of European car maintenance: “Each year when I get my oil changed, it’s like $1,000 because I have a stupid European car that’s expensive to maintain.” (20:03)
• Elizabeth, on financial discipline: “My fun money sinking fund is not connected to a credit card... I see that number going down and down instead of up... and I’m like, well, fun’s over now once it gets really low.” (29:24)
• Hosts end by jokingly blaming budget woes on “Mercury in retrograde” (31:27), underlining that everyone’s finances (and systems!) always require some flexibility.

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Most Useful Timestamps

• Start of Data Centers Discussion: 01:52
• Electricity and Water Costs: 03:38–06:01
• Noise/Quality of Life Issues: 06:01–07:11
• Property Values & Jobs: 07:11–08:56
• Moratoriums and Citizen Action: 09:22–10:04
• Sinking Funds Recap: 13:36
• Listener Q1 (sinking fund payouts): 15:57–23:24
• Listener Q2 (credit card points/miles): 24:21–31:12

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Tone & Style

Friendly, candid, solutions-focused, and genuinely nerdy—hosts illustrate lessons with real examples and a conversational, humorous tone. They emphasize flexibility and self-awareness in personal finance, encouraging listeners to try, tweak, and personalize every money system.

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For more, send your own questions or check out future episodes covering topics like divorce and financial reorganization.

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Transcript

[A]

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[A]

You know them, you love them. And after we did a whole segment on them, you wanted more. So let's talk again about your questions about sinking funds. Welcome to NerdWallet's Smart Money podcast where you send us your money questions and we answer them with the help of our genius nerds. I'm Sean Pyles. Later this episode, some follow up questions to the episode we did on how to utilize savings buckets. But first, our weekly Money News roundup where we break down the latest in the world of finance to help you be smarter with your money. Today, our news colleague Ana Hilhosky joins us to talk about data centers. They were once the kind of project every town was vying for. With the promise of tax revenue, jobs and a foothold in the AI economic Boom. But lately, towns are pulling back the welcome mats as local opposition to new facilities and their potential costs spreads. Ana is going to unpack why towns are pushing back against data centers. Ana, welcome back.

[C]

Thanks, Sean. It appears that people are not so excited about becoming neighbors with data centers, especially the very biggest data centers, known as hyperscale facilities. In June, Heatmap released a poll that found 70% of Americans oppose a data center being built near their homes. Now, heatmap did the same poll in October of last year, and that number was 42%.

[A]

Wow. Okay, so that's a very big change in a pretty short amount of time.

[C]

Yeah, it is. And I gotta say, after all the research I've done on data centers, I can't really blame them. That spike illustrates how quickly backlash is spreading. I'd like to add that the swing is nonpartisan, so this has become an issue for people all over the political spectrum.

[A]

So it's nice to find something that we can all agree on in this country. Let's start with the big picture. Why are so many Americans suddenly turning against data centers?

[C]

People are starting to get the sense that they'll be footing a bill that they never agreed to. And those costs are not only financial, but quality of life related as well.

[A]

So, speaking of bills, electricity is often the first cost that people bring up. Why are data centers pushing utility rates higher?

[C]

Because these facilities require an enormous constant supply of power. There's a meta facility under construction in Wyoming that's expected to eventually consume 10 gigawatts. And there's another one in Ohio funded by the Department of Energy that would consume the same. Now, for context, 1 gigawatt is enough to power roughly 1 million homes. So. So 10 gigawatts is the equivalent of 10 million homes. When that kind of demand gets added to an aging electrical grid, utilities have to upkeep and even expand infrastructure. And a lot of that cost is going to get passed to ratepayers. I'd like to add that when I say ratepayers, that may include people who live nowhere near the facility itself. One of my sources for a recent story I wrote on this topic lives in Baltimore, and he said that he's seen his electricity bill rise because of data centers 60 miles away in Northern Virginia, where. Which is known as Data Center Alley. And that's simply because they're on the same regional grid.

[A]

So this is not just a local Virginia issue anymore.

[C]

No. Nationally, data centers accounted for under 6% of U.S. electricity use today. But last week, Bloomberg NEF published a projection that shows data centers could comprise one fifth of the entire US electricity consumption by 2035. So this cost pressure is going to spread well beyond the current hotspots.

[A]

Geez. So who would actually end up paying for grid upgrades these facilities require?

[C]

In most cases, it's a shared cost, and that's exactly why it's so controversial. And Dominion Energy, the major utility that serves Northern Virginia, has announced plans to spend $8 billion expanding its infrastructure. And Virginia ratepayers are expected to cover more than half of that.

[A]

So electricity isn't the only utility that folks are concerned about. Water is another big one too, right?

[C]

Yeah. Cooling all those servers takes a lot of water. A mid sized data center can use as much water as a small. And the largest facilities can consume around 5 million gallons a day, comparable to a city of 50,000 people. That water often gets pulled from the same aquifers and rivers that supply drinking water and are used for agriculture. Most new data centers are also being built in rural, sometimes drought prone areas that already have water restrictions. Any pipeline expansion or water infrastructure that's needed to support the demand for data centers can also fall on taxpayers. I do want to stress, however, that the fall full impact of data centers on water supplies still isn't evident.

[A]

Data centers are now sucking up all our electricity. They're sucking up our water. I've heard they also make a horrible noise. What do they actually sound like in

[C]

lieu of me actually trying to make the noise? Basically, it's a low frequency constant hum and it vibrates. And because it's spanning multiple frequency ranges, it's pretty difficult to measure with a standard decibel meter. And that's also why existing local noise ordinances might not be able to regulate the sound level that these data centers emit.

[A]

And are these resulting in any health effects? Has anything been reported there? Cause it sounds like it can't be good for you.

[C]

Anecdotally there have been some reports, but long term health research specific to hyperscale data centers doesn't exist yet because these facilities are a very new phenomenon. People have reported sleep disruptions, headaches, and feeling that vibration from cooling fans, H Vac systems and electrical equipment. These facilities also have backup diesel generators that cycle through regular testing. And those are going to make noise too. But more importantly, they emit diesel fumes into the air. So we know that there are health effects tied to air pollution, like respiratory issues and cardiovascular strain. And those carry their own long term healthcare costs for residents too.

[A]

Okay, and this is a show about money, so let's talk about a bit of that. What are these data centers doing to people's property values?

[C]

It's genuinely a mixed picture. Now There is a 2025 George Mason University study that found homes closer to existing data centers in Northern Virginia actually sold for more than those further away from the data centers. That also could be more coincidence than causation because those areas already had strong infrastructure and job access. The open question is what happens in rural communities or in other areas that get rezoned for a data center? This is my own opinion, so take it with a grain of salt. Sean. When you consider all of the financial costs and quality of life issues that we've talked about, it's certainly possible that homeowners may watch their property values drop in the future.

[A]

Based on everything you just laid out, that seems very possible. I mean, the noise alone would make me not want to live near a data center. One of the industry's counterarguments has always been that they'll bring in new jobs. Has that panned out at all?

[C]

That's another mixed picture. But the bottom line is that there are jobs just less than advertised. Recently the Brookings Institution looked at over 700 data centers and they found local employment does rise. It's about 4% to 5% over a five or six year period. That works out to about a few thousand jobs for your average county. Now there are also construction jobs and those are going to spike, as you might expect. But that's just going to be temporary, which while they're actually being built, strong and durable employment gains show up only in counties that have multiple hyperscale campuses that are clustered together. And most places aren't going to have that kind of concentration.

[A]

Just to lay it out, for a lot of these towns, the promise economic upside is smaller than their pitch suggested. While the cost exposure to things like the noise and electricity costs and water usage is ongoing and maybe greater than they anticipated.

[C]

Exactly. And there's one other kind of tricky element here. The companies and municipalities that negotiate deals to build data centers often operate under non disclosure agreements. So residents may not even get the full visibility into the trade offs that their towns are taking on. And that lack of transparency is just one of the reasons why the backlash has escalated so much in the last year.

[A]

Okay, and we've been talking about this big public outcry against data centers. What's the response to that?

[C]

Been like we're seeing moratoriums pop up all over the place. Most recently in New York state where I live, they put a one year moratorium on permitting or building data centers until the state has had time to examine potential effects and hopefully even create some regulations. But even within the state and in the rest of the country, most of the pushback is happening really at the local, individual, town and county level.

[A]

What should someone do if a dentist center is proposed near where they live? And maybe they're not a big fan of these things?

[C]

Get information and ask questions. Deals are going to get shaped during zoning hearings and public comment periods, and that's when people should ask who's going to be actually shouldering the price of infrastructure upgrades? And what else do residents need to know that they may be covering down the road?

[A]

All right, well, Ana, thank you so much for sharing all of this.

[C]

Of course.

[A]

Up next, some of your follow up questions about sinking funds. But before we get into that, a reminder folks, to send us your money questions. You can leave us a voicemail or text us on the nerd hotline at 9017-3063-7390-1730. Nerd. You can also email us at podcasterdwallet.com or drop us a comment on Spotify or YouTube or more in a moment. Stay with us. The following is a paid sponsorship, not an endorsement by NerdWallet's editorial team. Today's episode is sponsored by Bilt.

[B]

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[A]

that's shopify.com smartmoney so you've got your savings bucket set up. You have your emergency fund, your vacation fund, and even one for that sauna you want to build in your backyard. Although that might just be me. But what happens when you have to actually pay your bills? How do you pay anything from your sinking funds Today? We'll get into that this episodewait.

[B]

Before I say that, Sean, I didn't know that you wanted a sauna in your backyard. I need more context on that later. What?

[A]

Yeah, it's for all of my running. My body needs a sauna in my backyard immediately, but it turns out they are very expensive if you want a good one.

[B]

Well, I would think so. Anyways, this episode we are following up on a recent conversation we had about savings buckets. Y' all really seem to like that conversation because we got several more follow up questions about it. For those who didn't hear that episode, Sean laid out his savings bucket strategy and yeah, it really resonated with you guys. So we're going to answer those questions today.

[A]

We're going to talk a bit about how to make the system work when it comes to taking money out of the accounts. But here's a quick recap of the savings bucket episode for those who may have missed it. Basically, the savings bucket or sinking fund strategy is super simple. You essentially have a different set of savings account for each goal. So that is going to be your emergency fund. If you want to buy a house, it could be a down payment fund. If you're going to buy a car, maybe that's your car fund. Whatever your goals are, whatever you value in your life, you have a different account for that, ideally in an online High yield savings account. So you're earning some money on what you have in there. And the system typically works best when you have direct deposit set up, so your money is automatically going into these accounts. And this is a great exercise in figuring out your budget as well, because there is a bit of trial and error when it comes to figuring out how much money to put into into each account. And Elizabeth, you experienced that when you were setting up your accounts, right?

[B]

I have. And you would not be shocked to know I have fiddled with it again. So it definitely is an iterative process to try to figure out the exact sweet spot for you.

[A]

But you went super deep into your budget and figured out where all of your money was going, almost like zero based budgeting when you were setting up your savings bucket. So how have you changed it since then?

[B]

Well, I've had a change in my finances. You know that I have a side business and, and I've had one client in particular for almost five years now, and they haven't paid me in three months. So completely.

[A]

Yeah, that throws off your budget.

[B]

Exactly. And it's a big chunk of my budget. So I had to restructure my whole budget and also readjust my sinking funds just so that it could focus on my nerd wallet income as my primary income.

[A]

I'm sorry to hear about that. That's super frustrating and it is. Yeah. But it shows that this is a really evolving process. And I like what you mentioned about how you're just using your sinking fund strategy from your nerd wallet income, which is your most stable, reliable source of income. For those who might have different sources of income coming in, that might not be a bad idea because, you know, we all have different ways of making money. But you want this to be as predictable as possible. And especially if you are doing direct deposit, you don't want to overdraw an account because you're expecting money to come in and it's not actually coming in. That can create a bit of a messy situation and stress.

[B]

I've been there and it's extremely stressful, especially if your big bills are coming out of that inconsistent income. So keep your fixed variable expenses that are most important to your livelihood connected to your primary source of income is my tip there.

[A]

I get that. Okay, well, let's get to the first question we got from a listener about how to actually pay from your sinking funds. Here it is. Thanks for covering sinking funds. But when it's time to pay, how do you manage that if everything is going on the same credit card do you then have to be mindful to transfer funds to the account that pays the credit card? Let's say you go out and get that sandwich or that concert ticket. That money might live in your fun money account. So there is some management required unless you have a credit card or debit card issued with each account. I hope you can explore this further. Love the podcast. Thank you so much Tim.

[B]

Tim, if you are listening, when I first sat down and went down that rabbit hole of trying to arrange my sinking funds, it literally was mental gymnastics for me. So it does take some front loading and some organization to figure out a strategy first and foremost.

[A]

And I really appreciate this question and your experience with this too, Elizabeth, because I've been so deep in the sinking event strategy now for many, many years that I kind of take for to how I manage my spending for it. And that's why honestly, it was a bit of an oversight that we didn't even talk about it in that last episode. So there are a few ways to make these payments and we'll go through them right now. So the first one is what I'm calling the single account method. You pay off your credit card balances with one account and then transfer between your various savings accounts. Let's say you have your fun money account connected to your credit card. You'd pay off your entire balance from that account, for example. And then if you had an expense from your needs category, you would transfer the amount of the expense from that into your fun money account. So it all kind of balances out. Are you following that, Elizabeth?

[B]

Yes, I am following and initially I thought that's what, you know what? No, actually I think the single account method may be best for someone who doesn't have too many different sinking funds. So for people who have a very simple budget, I think the single account method may work best.

[A]

Yeah, I agree with that. I have a lot of sinking funds, a lot of financial goals you do. So this doesn't work for me and it ends up leading to a lot of shifting around of money from different accounts, which there's going to be a certain amount of that depending on which method you choose for payment. But I try to keep it as simple as I can and not do too much. So that brings me to the multi account method, which is where you actually connect all of your savings and checking accounts to your various credit cards and that can help if you really want to have everything super connected and organized and tidy. I am actually a little lazy when it comes to setting up my various accounts in this way. So I don't actually do this, but it would prevent you from having to do that math of thinking, okay, I had a needs expense here and a want expense there, but I actually paid it from just my wants expense. So how do I move that money around? This would make that not an issue at all. But you do have to go into your credit card accounts and just put all that information in, which really is a one time kind of headache compared to the ongoing administrative process of moving money around. So as I'm saying this, I'm almost convincing myself that maybe I should start the multi account method just so I don't have to move money around.

[B]

Are we pivoting? Yes.

[A]

And this is.

[B]

Finances are so fluid, right?

[A]

Sometimes it's an evolving process.

[B]

Well, tell us the last one then, Sean.

[A]

The last one's the hybrid approach. And this is what I do. You have your primary checking or savings accounts connected to your credit card accounts, but not all of them. And you might occasionally transfer money between different savings accounts to cover expenses. So let me lay out how this really works for me. I have three accounts connected to my credit cards, and I have three credit cards that I use on an ongoing basis. So it's not super complicated for me there. My checking account, my fund money account, and my emergency fund account are all connected to my various credit cards. My checking account covers my needs. So that's going to be things like groceries, medical bills, utility bills, et cetera. Fun money covers the wants of your 50, 30, 20 wants category. And then, as you might imagine, the emergency fund covers emergencies, but it also works as sort of a buffer account for other expenses from less commonly used savings buckets like my house fund or my car fund. Each year when I get my oil changed, it's like $1,000 because I have a stupid European car that's expensive to maintain.

[B]

Oil change.

[A]

Yep, I know.

[B]

I did not know. Mine is $120 or something. Geez.

[A]

That's why you don't buy a European car unless you really want to throw a bunch of money into it, which is, I guess, the life choice that I have made for myself.

[B]

Nothing wrong with that though.

[A]

It's fine. I love my car. It's okay. I'm used to it. But my point being, I don't have my car fund connected to my credit card that I charge my oil change onto. So I have money going into my car on an ongoing basis. So when it comes time to pay my credit card bill, I'll see. Okay, I have $1,000 from this oil change, I'm going to pay that from my emergency fund and then transfer the money from my car fund back into my emergency fund just to get things square and steady.

[B]

A lot of steps and a lot of transferring a little bit.

[A]

But it's not as complicated as it might sound because if you are having good financial hygiene and managing your expenses and reviewing what's on your credit card statement on an ongoing basis, I like to do this weekly. Then it just becomes kind of habitual. I'm sure some people might think about this and just say that's way too complicated. And they might want to go for the complete multi account method that I mentioned before. But this works for me and it helps me actually stay super connected to all of my accounts and my finances. And that's part of why I like it too is because in the past I've had a habit of overspending in certain categories and this helps me tamp that down.

[B]

What you just said is key. Whether you go for the single account method, the multi account method, or the hybrid method, you're going to have to track your expenses. I have found that when I am, like you said, checking what I'm spending and maybe at the end of each week, some people, it may be day. If you're a type a type of person, what did I spend today? What bucket did it come out of and let me pay it off. I think that's the best way to one, keep yourself out of debt and two, make sure that you're taking the right allocations from each sinking fund.

[A]

And I want to throw out a note here because there can be a pitfall to this moving money around method. If you find that you're regularly pulling from one account to fund another, that might be an indication that you're actually underfunding a certain, certain account. Like if your car fund also covers the gas that you're putting into your car and you find that you keep pulling from your emergency fund or your vacation fund to put money back into that car fund because gas is so expensive, then you might just need to allocate more to that car fund on an ongoing basis.

[B]

That's exactly what was happening to me within my first, I think, one or two months of setting up my sinking funds, my fun money budget was way too small. Like, girl, come on, you know you like to spend more money having fun.

[A]

Like why you like to have a lot of fun.

[B]

Yeah, why do you have $250 in there? Just stop. But what was beautiful was seeing the different accounts allocated for the different funds, I was able to say, hey, you overspent here and we're not going to take money from our travel fund. We're going to reel back our spending because we need to keep all of the funds separate and not commingle them. So it also can help you see when you're overspending if you're having to pull from one account to another.

[A]

And this can be a good exercise to just examine your spending without judgment because you really do see where all of your money is going and what's coming in and out. I hope and assume that that's how you approached it. Elizabeth.

[B]

Ye, of course, maybe that's not enough for you for fun money. So in order to avoid, like you said, having to rob Peter to pay Paul, let's just bump it up a little bit. As long as there's room in the budget to do that. In conclusion, what would you say are the top three things that this listener slash viewer should do?

[A]

The first one would be to know themselves and how they like to pay from various accounts. If they are fine with moving money between their different savings accounts, then they might be okay with the single account method. But again, that's going to require the most amount transferring between accounts. And then the multi account method. If they just really want to get things super clear cut and have everything synced up, I think that's kind of a nice clean way to do it. But again, I personally am a little too lazy to set that up on the front end, which is honestly kind of silly, but that's where I am. We're all imperfect people here and I think for most people the hybrid approach is going to be kind of the easiest and most sensible way to do it. Because like I laid out with the car payment example, you're not always going to be moving money from one account to the other. It might just be an occasional type of thing. But just be wary if you are doing it every single month. That again might be an indication that you need to rework what you have going into each account.

[B]

And just for the record, I like the hybrid account that is currently what I do.

[A]

Well, let's get to the second question. Elizabeth, do you want to read that for us?

[B]

Here goes the question. Really appreciate the episode about separate accounts for spending buckets like emergency car, house, fun, etc. Any suggestions for those of us that put all expenses on, for example, an Amex SkyMiles credit card to get points Miles? This gets paid off in full every month, of course. Okay, this is a good question. Because this is the story of my life. And I literally had a headache after trying to figure this out. But I figured it out.

[A]

Okay, tell us what you did, Elizabeth.

[B]

Essentially, I said the easiest way to do this would be to allocate one credit card to each of my primary spending buckets. And when I did this, I had four or five, and I do not have four or five credit cards. So I said, what are the main spending buckets? And then which credit cards do I have Now? I also said, well, which rewards does each credit card give me and how can I maximize those rewards? And that helped me determine which credit card to allocate to which spending bucket.

[A]

So give us a concrete example. Do you have like a card that gives you cash back on groceries connected to like your needs account? That kind of thing?

[B]

Exactly. You get it. So my main buckets are my bill account and then I have my fun money and then I have my travel account. Okay. So now my main credit card, the Chase Sapphire reserve card, goes towards bills, travel and restaurants. For those who have the Chase card, you know that you get maximum points when you go to restaurants and also when you spend on travel. So I make sure I use my card for that and then I put my bills on there too, just so that I'm, you know, piling up those points. Okay. Now my Amex Everyday Cash Preferred is good for groceries and gas, so I solely use that card for groceries and gas. And then I've connected my bill account to that and that's where I pay those bills off. So it has made it a lot easier for me to see one, how much I'm spending on groceries and gas because I only use that credit card for that. And two, I just pay that off straight from my bill account when I'm done. And as for the Chase, I have a different account linked to that and then I pay that off when I'm done. It does sometimes still require what we mentioned earlier, which is going back every week and seeing what I spent and making sure that I'm paying from the right account.

[A]

And what I like about your approach is that it's almost the inverse of what I was describing before. Where my approach is savings account forward, where I'm thinking about which savings accounts are connected to my credit cards because my credit cards are not as well organized around my expenses. Like, yes, I'm going to be using my cash back card that gives me more on groceries at the grocery store, but I don't have it connected to my needs account or my checking account in that Same way that you do. So you're basically having a credit card forward approach to your savings buckets and then you're doing a hybrid approach when you're paying them. But it's almost like that single payment method that we described before where you have, okay, here's my credit card that's almost exclusively for needs and it's connected to my needs account. And that can be a really streamlined way of making payments and having your savings all connected and organized without too much fussing about, okay, I have to move some money from this account to that account. I think a lot of folks might lean this way. And in fact, I was just talking with my husband about his saving strategy and how he's going to be optimizing it. And he actually had the same idea as you, Elizabeth, because I think he also has about three credit cards. So one is going to be his needs and one's going to be his wants. And the other one I think is just sort of like a long term travel credit card he's holding on to. But he's really trying to break it out around these two main credit cards and not have to fuss too much with moving savings between accounts because that can get a little overly complicated. And I guess I kind of like to overly complicate my finances is what I'm learning about myself in this conversation. But that does also speak to how individual this experience is. And you just need to know what

[B]

might be best for you and shout out to Garrett. I love that we have things in common because I also do have one more card. I have my amex Platinum and that didn't have a home. But I said, hey, maybe it doesn't need a home and it kind of pays for itself because I enjoy the benefits and the points, or rather reward system is not as generous as the Chase one. I love, love, love that strategy. Oh, and there's one more bucket I forgot to mention. My fun money sinking fund is not connected to a credit card. Can you guess why?

[A]

Because you tend to overspend with your fun category. That's right.

[B]

That's right. Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding.

[A]

So, Elizabeth, doesn't this still require you to move some money between accounts? Or how does this really work in practice?

[B]

It actually doesn't. My fund money is deposited straight from my paycheck into a checking account. I use a Discover account. And while I lose out on the credit card rewards and all the points because I'm not spending on a credit card, I have cash back rewards on that account. So all my fun Money spending still gives me something back. But what happens is I see that number going down and down instead of up and up like on a credit card, and I'm like, well, fund's over now once it gets really low.

[A]

So you have your money in like fun jail. And, like, once it's gone, there's no more fun to be had.

[B]

Exactly. I'm not allowed to start tapping the credit cards for fun.

[A]

We can do that. I really like that because it's an example of how inserting some friction into your finances can help you make smarter decisions that are more in line with your values. And that's really what is at the core of the savings bucket strategy is you have your different financial goals broken out based on your values into these different savings accounts. Money is going into them, you are making progress on your goals, and you're also not overspending in one area or another because you have everything so organized. You're actually not really likely to pull from maybe your car account if you go out too hard on the weekend and you have to fund your fun money account. So it's just a nice way to stay regimented and organized and prevent yourself from doing things that you don't really want to do with your money.

[B]

Yes, but we don't want to stress you guys out. So if you're listening to this and you're like, ah, then that means you need to look at the simplest option, because the last thing we want this to do is to be counterproductive and end up just making your budget a mess. So just look for the most simple way to do it. If you test one of the methods that we've mentioned and it's not working for you, switch to a different one. Because at the end of the day, this is not meant to stress you out. It's supposed to make your life somewhat easier.

[A]

And the goal is also just to keep your finances really simple when you're saving money, too. I was recently talking with a client of mine about how they can improve their saving strategy. And I just recommended three different savings buckets. The emergency fund, a vacation fund, and a fun money fund. And then if they want to go above and beyond that for a different special interest or a savings goal they have, then they can do that. But just starting as simple as possible is going to make this feasible, especially if you're new to the system.

[B]

Yes. And that's exactly where I've landed back at. I had a gift fund before and I think one more, but I just cut those two for now. So I'm focusing on those three to keep it simple.

[A]

Yeah. So you're not doing your gift fund anymore?

[B]

Not for now, but that's only because of my cash flow, right? Hopefully my clients pay me soon.

[A]

I'm hoping that, too. Otherwise, we're going to have to lawyer up. Elizabeth, you're going to have to have a lawyer fund to get your money from them.

[B]

Things are happening to me. Burns, delayed payments. I don't know. I don't know.

[A]

Mercury is in retrograde and things are just going haywire.

[B]

I say it all the time and I still have no exact clue what it means, but I'm like, it's the moon, it's Mercury. It's retrograde.

[A]

Just blame it on the stars. That's all we can do at this point. Well, listeners, we've laid out a few different ways to set up your payments, and I'm sure there are even more that we haven't talked about that you might be discovering on your own. So please let us know how you're setting up up your savings bucket system and importantly, paying your bills from these accounts, too, because this is an evolving process. It's very individual, as we've said in this conversation. And we always want to hear what our listeners are doing because y' all are so smart and creative. I just love to hear your advice, too.

[B]

So for anybody who does do sinking funds, and it's working perfectly, write us and let us know what your strategy is and why you like it.

[A]

That's all we've got for this episode. Remember that our job as nerds is to answer your finance questions, so send them our way. You can hit us up on the nerd hotline by texting or leaving a voicemail at 901-730-637-3901-7730. Nerd. You can also email us at podcastnerdwallet.com or drop us a comment on Spotify or YouTube, which you should be following us on, by the way. Both Spotify and YouTube. Or wherever you're getting this podcast, but especially YouTube because we're new there. We have all these videos and we want you to watch us.

[B]

We do. And in case you're like, well, we can't find your YouTube channel, well, the link is in the episode description. No excuses. All right, after you finish going to our channel, we want you to join us next time to hear about how to manage your finances when you're going through a divorce. Until then, follow Smart Money on your favorite podcast app. That includes Spotify, Apple Podcasts and iHeartRadio to automatically download new episodes.

[A]

And here's our brief disclaimer. We are not your financial or investment advisors. This nerdy info is provided for general educational and entertainment purposes and may not apply to your specific circumstances. Some companies mentioned in this episode may be NerdWallet partners, but that does not influence how we discuss them.

[B]

And until next time, turn to the Nerds. Class is now in session and the UPS Store is here to help you ace arriving on campus. Our certified packing experts can pack everything you need, from desktops to decor. Plus, when you pack and ship with us, you get our exclusive pack and ship guarantee. Your items arrive safe or your money back. Restrictions and limitations apply. To get a 20% off packing coupon and for full details, visit theupsstore.com packing.