3 Financial tips to get you through coronavirus pandemic

Source: CrizzyStudio, Shutterstock

Summary

• The first step to strengthen your finances is to understand what you spend your money on.
• Take advantage of these special programs such as subsidies, unemployment benefits etc.
• During these challenging times, one of the best things you can do is to save money for the future.

The start of the year hasn’t been as great as the world had thought. We are more than 1 year though the COVID-19 pandemic and still the number of cases across the globe isn’t suppressing.

Image Source: ID 7977144 © Icefields | Megapixl.com

The surge in the number of cases affected with the new strains of coronavirus has been rapid enough to force nations to go back to square one and impose lockdowns and stringent restrictions. This has dealt a huge blow on economies, businesses, and people’s income.  

Therefore, it is right time to have an honest look at your financial health. Many people either panic or ignore their money problems because it’s either stressful, depressing, or too complex to deal with.

To help you start your financial wellness journey in the midst of these challenging times, we have complied a list of tips to help you sail through this pandemic.

Read More: Personal Finance: 10 Golden Rules

1. Workout a Budget

The first step to strengthen your finances is to understand what you spend your money on. The key is to figure out a way to track your finances that works for you. Check the amount of money you have with you, list all your regular monthly expenses that are necessary such as groceries. Then listing down “not-so-important” spending such as going for a movie, etc. could help you cut down on your expenses, leading to higher savings.

Image Source: ID 112078325 © Eamesbot | Megapixl.com

It’s also helpful to carefully analyse your bank statements to keep track of all your money transactions, which could come in handy to further optimise your budget.

2. Take advantage of special programs

During this Pandemic, many governments across the world are offering special programs, subsidies, unemployment, benefits, etc., to help you manage your finances and survive a financial crisis. Take advantage of these special programs as well as super low-rate loans.

If this pandemic is not as hard on you as it is on others, this could be a great time to take advantage of the low-interest rate environment.

3. Save

During these challenging times, one of the best things you can do is to save money for the future. If you don’t need the money to pay bills or for any immediate expenditure, then it is recommended to open a special savings or money market account to hold onto any government-issued stimulus funds.

This would also be a great time to change your spending habits in order to build your savings fast. Eating out less, skipping a movie night, or shopping at discount grocery stores, are easy ways to lower your monthly spending.