Covid 19 Update : Money Management During the Corona Crisis
Smart money moves you
should make during the Covid-19 pandemic
Did you know that right now in India
itself, millions stand to have a 20% to 50% salary cut? Worse still, companies
may downsize or even shut down in this tough time. And you know what that means,
right? Yes, unemployment. The majority of us live paycheck to paycheck. Many
even have no emergency savings, bank accounts or any savings at all.
As you can see, this is one of those times when you need to look hard at your income and expenses. Are you saving enough? Why not? What can you do to do that?
mymoneykarma is going to help you in
this article.
Here are 5 things you need to do to bolster your financial situation.
Study your income and expenses
Let’s start with making a basic budget. If you don’t have one already, make one now. There are two sides of a budget: what you earn and how much you spend. However, if your income has already been affected significantly (due to job loss or whatever), then budgeting may not work.
Categorize your expenses
It is important to categorize your income and expenses, especially the latter. If you can’t find where you are losing money, you can’t control it. Find out where and how you are spending. Like millions of others, you too may be spending on utilities, housing, food, and insurance.
The second category of debt payments, something that you
need to keep paying no matter what.
The third category of expenses is discretionary spending.
These include variable expenses like entertainment, hobbies, shopping, dining
out, self-care, recreation, etc.
The fourth category can include irregular premiums.
Find out which ones you need to keep paying, and which ones you can do without.
Eliminate things you can do without
If your finances are in an emergency situation, you need to cut down all or many of your frivolous expenses. These can include travels, vacation, dining out, ordering takeout food, useless subscription, and the like.
Check your essential spending
There are always those expenses that need to have no matter what. These may include insurance premiums, mortgage, rent, etc. Here are some things you can do.
If you are worried about your outstanding mortgage, talk to
your lender. They’ll be happy to give you other payment options.
Here’s something else to consider as well: refinancing your home loan. Right now, mortgage loan rates are at an all-time low. If you do this, you may get to refinance your mortgage at a much lower rate.
Get strategic with spending
This means when you spend, use cash back apps, and perhaps even cash back credit cards. However, we do not recommend using credit cards in this tough time.
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