FINANCIAL SUPPORT

BUDGET

• If you haven’t looked at a budget in a while, now’s the time to do so. 

• Get clarity from your income sources as to what the reality will look like over the coming weeks.

• Cut spending to bare necessities. If you can’t pay all of your bills, Financial expert Dave Ramsey recommends you spend your money on these items first and in this order:

  • Food 

  • Utilities 

  • Shelter 

• A great place to start in rethinking your budget is Get Started page on the Dave Ramsey website. 

• Here are some budget and spending tracking resources

  • Creating Your Budget

  • Tracking By Catagory

  • Yearly Budget Tool

  • Debt Pay-off Tool

  • YouTube Channel with videos explaining how to use each of these tools

  • Think Before you Buy

• Cedarbrook has trained individuals to help with budgeting and financial management.  If you would like them to contact and help you click the link below.

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DEFER PAYMENTS

• If you’re still not able to cover all of your expenses, identify payments that can be deferred:

  • Call creditors to explain your situation. You can ask for temporary relief on your monthly payments. If you offer to still send some money, even if it’s a smaller amount than your typical payment, they might be more willing to work with you.

  • If you have federal student loans, you can forbear (interest accrues) or defer (interest doesn’t accrue on subsidized federal loans) your loan payments.

• If you’re paying extra on debt(s) right now, it might not be a bad idea to temporarily stop extra payments and then restart them once your budget returns to a more stable place.

• Use this week to get a game plan together and gather information, as there may be more changes coming.

• Contact our team of volunteers trained in financial coaching.