How to Prepare for Big, Infrequent Expenses Without Stress
YNAB’s second question builds financial stability by planning for the non-monthly expenses that trip most people up.
Why Most Budgets Break Down
If you’ve ever felt like your budget works great—until it suddenly doesn’t—you’re not alone. It’s a common pattern.
Maybe you’re tracking spending, paying off debt, and even saving a little. Then out of nowhere:
- Your car registration is due.
- Your child’s soccer season starts.
- Your annual insurance premium hits.
Suddenly, you’re pulling from savings, relying on credit, or just feeling like you failed again.
But here’s the truth: these expenses aren’t surprises—they’re just irregular. They happen every year, every few months, or every few weeks. But because they don’t show up monthly, traditional budgets ignore them.
At Master Budget Coaching, we show clients how to prepare for these financial “gotchas” by embracing one of YNAB’s most transformational ideas: True Expenses.
YNAB’s Second Question:
“What larger, less frequent spending do I need to prepare for?”
This question pulls you out of paycheck-to-paycheck thinking and into a proactive mindset.
Instead of asking, “Can I afford this now?” you begin asking:
“What do I need to set aside now so this doesn’t wreck my plan later?”
That’s the core of financial stability—not how much money you make, but how well you handle the stuff that everyone forgets to plan for.
What Are True Expenses?
True Expenses are the big, occasional, or non-monthly bills and purchases that—if left unplanned—can derail your entire financial life.
Examples include:
- Insurance premiums (annual or semi-annual)
- Back-to-school supplies
- Holiday gifts and travel
- Car repairs or maintenance
- Medical co-pays or prescriptions
- Professional memberships
- Home upkeep or appliances
- Emergency vet visits
- Birthdays, weddings, and family events
These are not “emergencies.” They’re just… real life. But because they don’t happen monthly, we forget to treat them like real obligations.
Why It’s Not Enough to “Remember” They’re Coming
Let’s say you know your $600 car insurance premium is due in six months. It’s tempting to just think, “I’ll figure it out when I get there.” But that’s what leads to:
- Overdrafts
- Credit card balances
- Budget guilt
- Feeling like you’re “bad with money”
Planning for True Expenses changes that story. You turn a mountain into a molehill by funding it slowly.
Six months to go? That’s just $100/month.
The Monthly Mindset Shift
When you incorporate True Expenses into your spending plan, you convert occasional expenses into manageable monthly habits.
| Expense Category | Total Cost | Months Until Due | Monthly Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Car Insurance | $600 | 6 months | $100 |
| Holiday Gifts | $1,200 | 12 months | $100 |
| Vet Visit Reserve | $300 | Ongoing buffer | $25 |
| Family Birthdays | $500 | 12 months | $42 |
| Annual Subscriptions | $240 | 12 months | $20 |
Total monthly allocation: $287
That’s less than $10/day to avoid hundreds—or thousands—of dollars in panic spending later.
How to Set Up True Expenses in YNAB
YNAB makes this process intuitive by allowing you to set targets in each category based on either:
- A due date and amount
- A recurring monthly contribution
Here’s how to implement it:
- Create separate categories for each True Expense (e.g., “Car Insurance,” “Holidays,” “Birthdays”)
- Add targets in each category. Set the total and the due date or monthly goal.
- Fund them gradually as money becomes available.
- Watch the progress bar fill over time—no spreadsheet formulas required.
More detail from YNAB’s official guide:
YNAB Features – True Expenses
A Real Client Story: Caleb & Jessica’s Holiday Turnaround
Before using YNAB, Caleb and Jessica dreaded December. Every year, holiday spending threw them into a hole that took months to recover from.
After learning about True Expenses, they created a category for “Holiday Spending” and started putting away $100/month starting in January.
That December, they had $1,200 cash-ready. No credit cards. No guilt. No surprises.
“This was the first time we’ve ever felt peaceful going into the New Year. Worth every bit of planning.”
Internal Link: Back to Week 1 Foundations
None of this works if you’re still planning based on what you hope to earn.
To make True Expenses a success, you must first learn to budget only with dollars you already have.
If you missed our foundational post on that shift, check it out here:
Stop Budgeting—Start Building a Purposeful Spending Plan with YNAB
Pro Tips for Mastering True Expenses
- Use emojis or prefixes to make these categories easy to find. Example: “ Holiday Gifts” or “ Car Maintenance”
- Don’t wait for perfect timing. Even setting aside $5–$10/month now is better than nothing. It builds the habit.
- Review your calendar for predictable expenses. Look at past emails, bank statements, and calendar reminders. You’ll be surprised at how predictable your “surprises” really are.
- Expect overlap. You might be funding 10+ categories at once. That’s normal. Start small and build your list over time.
- Name and claim expenses others overlook. Do you always host Thanksgiving? Attend a big annual conference? Send kids to summer camp? These deserve a category.
Avoiding the Biggest Mistake: Treating Irregular as Optional
One of the most common traps is pretending that non-monthly expenses are “extras.”
They’re not.
They’re essential to your lifestyle. The only difference is timing. Once you accept that, you stop feeling ambushed every few weeks and start gaining real traction.
Final Thoughts: Stability Comes from Preparation, Not Perfection
There’s no such thing as a perfect month. But you can build a system that cushions you from the bumps.
YNAB’s second question—“What larger, less frequent spending do I need to prepare for?”—isn’t just tactical. It’s transformational.
When you answer it consistently:
- Emergencies shrink
- Holidays feel joyful (not chaotic)
- You become the person who’s “good with money”
Not because you cut more. But because you planned better.
About the Author
Trent Ladle is the founder of Master Budget Coaching and a YNAB Certified Coach with degrees in Business Management and an MBA. With nearly 40 years of budgeting experience, he helps clients build values-based spending plans—guided by the belief that when you master your spending, you master your life.
Ready to Stop Stressing About “Unexpected” Expenses?
If this article resonates, let’s put it into action. Master Budget Coaching offers one-on-one support to help you set up a YNAB spending plan that’s flexible, realistic, and completely personalized.
No more surprises. Just progress.
