How To Deal With Unexpected Expenses Without Ruining Your Budget
Unexpected bills can really cause problems where your budget is concerned. Even if you have a very careful plan for your money each month, that plan can be completely ruined if your car breaks down or you need to replace your boiler. If you are not prepared for these big expenses, it can land you in financial trouble for a long while to come. You need to find some way to come up with that money quickly, and if you don’t, you may find yourself in a difficult position. These are the best ways to deal with unexpected bills.
Your Emergency Fund
The first place you should look is your emergency fund if you have one. A lot of people don’t keep an emergency fund but if you want to secure your financial position, it’s important that you do. If you have money set aside for situations like this, you can pay the bill right away and you don’t have to worry about it. Unless you get really unlucky and you are hit with a lot of unexpected expenses at once, you will have time to build that money up again before the next crisis. Having that money to pay the bill without eating into your normal budget or your savings makes life so much easier. If you don’t have an emergency fund already, you need to start one. When you put money into savings each month, split it and put some of it into a separate fund for emergencies.
Loans
If you don’t have an emergency fund but you still need the money quickly, you will have to consider getting a loan. You could go down to the bank and see if you can get a loan from them, but the application process can be quite lengthy and it will take time to get approved. That’s no good if your car is broken down and you need it to get to work. It’s often better to look for emergency loans that can pay out within a few hours. The interest rate is likely to be higher, but you can get the money that you need right away. If you have a poor credit rating, this is also a better option.
Alternatively, you could borrow the money on a credit card, but there is a big risk there. The interest rates are going to be high and if you can’t afford to pay the money back, you may end up in a cycle of high interest debt which is hard to get out of. If you can find a zero interest card and you’re sure that you can pay it off before interest payments kick in, that’s fine.
Friends And Family
In some cases, borrowing may not be an option and you don’t have the money in the bank, so what are you supposed to do? As a last resort, you could borrow some money from friends and family, but you should be careful. The average Brit owes £2813 to friends and family and it can cause some serious tensions, so only borrow the money if you have no other option.
The best way to handle these situations is to prepare beforehand by building an emergency fund. Otherwise, you will have to resort to borrowing and there are always risks involved there.