Pandemic COVID19 has shattered the economy, and there are no chances of improvement in the economic conditions. It has been a couple of months of staying home. The situation is worse for those who are self-employed and those who have lost their job. They have been relying on savings for their regular expenses.
Handling regular expenses like utility expenses, and loan repayments is quite hard when your budget is tight. You must have saved money on travel expenses, yet it will not be easy to keep up with all your costs. Here are some of the ways to save money despite a tight budget.
Whittle Down your Food Bill
Because you are saving money on traveling, you can be flexible with spending on groceries. Groceries can take a large chunk out of your savings if you do not carefully plan what you need to buy and what you do not need to buy. As you will avoid stepping out daily, you will likely stockpile things. However, you cannot get to stock up on everything. Here are the best ways to whittle down the cost of groceries.
- Make a list of things you need. First off, you should walk into the kitchen to see if there is anything spare. For instance, if you have one bottle of ketchup, you may need to buy one additional bottle. Buying as per your requirement can prevent you from blocking your money at once.
- You should figure out what things you can buy in bulk. Toilet papers and soaps can be stockpiled, but milk, bread, and yogurt are some of the items that get expired quickly. Calculate your need before buying things.
- Check out for coupons and deals. You can get cashback.
- Order food online so that you stick to what is mentioned in your list. If you go to the store, you will be tempted to buy things you do not need.
Make a Budget
As money is not flowing in, you cannot afford to overspend. You should create a crisis budget. It would be best if you sit together with your family, evaluate the needs of every member, and accordingly frame a budget. You will have to set a monthly budget based on your needs., you can do it by analyzing your previous month’s expenses. Establishing a budget will not let you overspend.
One of the significant benefits of making a budget is you can prioritize your fixed expenses. If you make a default on utility expenses, loan repayments, and credit card bills, you will invite penalties. It will put a burden on your finances. During the pandemic, it becomes essential that you be on top of your expenses.
Manage Debt Carefully
No matter what financial circumstances you have been going through, you cannot escape debts. Since you are on a tight budget, you will have to manage it carefully.
First off, you should talk to your lender if they have a scheme of offering a moratorium period. Remember that this scheme does not allow for the cancellation of your debt. It provides an additional period for debt settlement instead. If the moratorium period is for two months, it means that you do not need to pay off the debt until this period expires. However, interest will keep accruing.
If you have multiple debts, you should figure out which loan carries high-interest rates. Try to pay back the loan with a high-interest rate and then make a repayment plan for other loans. For instance, credit card debt will be more expensive than 12-month loans for bad credit. Give priority to credit card bills and then pay off other loans.
Cancel Subscriptions you do not Need
There would be several subscriptions you would be paying like magazines, Amazon Prime, Netflix, YouTube Premium, and the like. Most of them you will not be using at this time. It is a waste of money if you are paying for what you do not need. Identify subscriptions you do not need and cancel them immediately. It is an excellent way to have some money in your savings account.
You don’t need to cut streaming services forever, but it can ease up the financial burden. Find out if there are other recurring charges you have been paying. If you do not need that service, you can cancel it to have a flexible flow of cash.
There is no denying that you would be facing financial problems during the pandemic COVID19, but these ways can help you meet all your needs. Since you cannot solely rely on savings when you are out of work, you should figure out freelance work. Various companies are seeking freelancers during the lockdown to complete their projects. Try to contact such companies and put in the application. Freelancing is an excellent way to earn money during the pandemic COVID19.
