Good morning! 🌞 Have you had your daily dose of crazy financial headlines yet? They go down really smooth with a homemade breakfast and a side of existential dread. ☕🫠
It really is a jungle out there. In this economy, it’s more important than ever to make sure you have enough socked away for an emergency. Ya know, in case dinosaurs finally attack. 🦕
Here’s Five Fast Facts on how to boost your emergency fund:
- 🛑 Make It Rain Delay - Planning on pulling the trigger on that big purchase? You might wanna wait a while…especially if your emergency fund is light. Things like moving and buying a new car can really drain your savings. Plus, they often come with other costs you didn’t plan for. Consider delaying big money moves for at least a year so you can focus on stockpiling that crisis cash.
- 🕺 The Extra Mile - Can you go a little longer between haircuts? How about wearing last year’s fire fits to this year’s parties? Seriously, no one remembers anyway. Stretch your finances and skip out on buying things before you truly need them. Getting more mileage out of those regular expenses means more money for your piggy bank.
- 🧋 Cravings Police - OK, we know the whole “make coffee at home” is overplayed, but there’s a reason why it keeps coming up. Cutting out those little treats really does add up over time. Another pro tip: look for discounts on things like utilities and insurance premiums and shave a little more off the top.
- 💵 First Thing’s First - Saving for retirement? Good. Focusing on retirement savings when your emergency fund is dryer than the Sahara? Not so much. If you don’t have enough money to survive a layoff, prioritize that first. If you want to keep the retirement savings juices flowing, consider a temporary contribution pause or reduce how much you save each month.
- 💳 Don’t Fret the Debt - Credit card debt is insane in the membrane. Paying down high interest debt is a good thing, but make sure your emergency fund is in a good place before you lay the smackdown. Another tidbit: paying off certain loans early could result in a prepayment penalty and a reduction to your credit score.
🔥Bottom line: If we won the lottery, we wouldn’t tell anyone, but there would be signs. Like a fat emergency fund. Just kidding, you know we’d spend it all on designer bags and a trip to the Hamptons. Wondering where your paycheck dollars stretch the farthest? Head on over to this article and find out!
Got any more emergency fund tips?
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