If you don’t have a budget, now is a good time to put one together. If you’re facing a significant reduction in income due to the COVID-19 pandemic, then track your expenses carefully and build an emergency budget. If you already have a budget, consider reviewing it to see if you can pare it down and reduce your expenses further. Take advantage of staying home for all this time and implement a no-spend challenge to help yourself save on discretionary expenses.
Your crisis budget, which will detail your spending during a financial crisis or economic downturn, will guide you on how to rein in the expenses. It’s wise to develop this bare-bones budget before an emergency occurs so you’re making decisions with a clear head instead of in panic mode and scrapping everything.
Here’s an emergency budget template to help you get started!
