Regan uses PocketSmith to save for his first house

We asked staff members how they use PocketSmith to manage their different budgeting needs. They’re short reads, and we hope they give you ideas about how you could use PocketSmith too. Feel free to ask any questions, and we’ll be sure to answer.

Meet Regan! He’s one of our software engineers. He works on new features for PocketSmith, fixes up those pesky bugs, and makes sure the system runs like a well-oiled machine.

How do you primarily use PocketSmith?

I use PocketSmith as a unified place for my finances. I’ve got accounts and investments split across half a dozen financial institutions, each with a separate application and interface. With PocketSmith I can bring everything together in one place. With that, I’m able to get an accurate net worth report including my retirement investment nest egg, bank accounts, credit card and assets. I’m a bit of a data geek, so PocketSmith’s API is a real killer feature for me. With the API, developers (people who write software) can access their own data stored in PocketSmith, such as account balances and transactions, and make their own add-ons for PocketSmith. I have a custom dashboard that I wrote using the PocketSmith API that shows just my recent transactions and my net worth, broken down by assets and liabilities. Furthermore, this is something I could release for other PocketSmith customers to use. That’s super cool.

How has PocketSmith changed the way you do money?

I’m saving for a house, so I really need to be able to maximise my deposit, particularly in the current housing market. PocketSmith lets me accurately track my savings for the deposit, and helps me hunt down where I’m spending too much and what I could cut back on — I’m looking at you, craft beer budget!

What pages/ features in PocketSmith do you use most?

Transactions, hands down. I love going through adding notes, labels and photo attachments to my transactions. After I got back from my holiday in Melbourne, Australia late last year, I cosied up with a nice stout and annotated my transactions with notes of where I went, and the photos to match. I labeled them all “Melbourne 2016” so I’d be able to quickly find all transactions from the trip and reflect on them. I’m all about clean data, so I create heaps of filters which tidy up merchant names and add categories. Try doing that with your bank’s online banking.

How often do you log in?

A few times a week.

Any tips?

Set up two-factor authentication on your PocketSmith account! When you log in, you’ll be provided with a one-time code generated by your phone. This means your account is protected by something you know (your password) and something you have (your phone). That means if someone finds out your password, they still won’t be able to access your PocketSmith account without access to your phone’s authenticator app. Here’s an article that explains how to set it up.