With so many of our friends and neighbors stuck without a job, we often forget that those people have financial obligations. Paying bills when you don’t have enough to cover the essentials involves making tough choices. No one wants to leave bills unpaid but sometimes you have to. A comprehensive list and order of items are listed below.
- Pay your mortgage and utility bills first. There is no shortage of foreclosure stories that involve not paying the mortgage voluntarily. Some people voluntarily don’t pay the mortgage and focus elsewhere.
- Pay your health insurance if you have children. This sounds odd but being unable to take your child or self to the doctor in a life-threatening situation is inexcusable. Prompt medical treatment can save your life or your child’s life. You don’t need to think about whether you can afford it; you need to think about how to get there.
- Pay your car payment. You need it to search for a job. No car usually means no job.
- Pay your taxes. Even making a payment toward your taxes is enough, but never forget to pay your taxes. The government will take everything you own to pay your tax bill, so don’t play with this one.
- Reserve cash for food, clothing and necessities like toiletries, cleaners, etc. Without food, shelter and a clean house you are living in squalor.
- Pay for all other forms of insurance. Insurance safeguards your home from a financial disaster like being sued because you had an accident.
- Pay your credit cards and entertainment. Entertainment includes cable, internet, and cellular phones. Cellular phones are not a necessity. You can get a basic line for $15 per month. Please note that credit cards come before entertainment.
As your savings dwindle, you might have to make tough choices. Protecting your home, and health come before anything else. If you have to lose your car, then that day might come. But you can never stop looking for other economic sources of survival. You also can’t stop being economically fruitful. Some of the unemployed go back to school and find work on campus. Remember there are large classifications of student-only jobs at colleges and universities. In some climates, being creative may be required to find work. Also don’t forget that military enlistment is a valid option if you are below the age of 42. Enlistments have a bonus for those with college degrees. You can quality for warrant officer or officer candidate school immediately after finishing your military occupational training. So there are job options that you may not have explored.
This list is a list of last resort. Your highest priority should be to find a job as quickly as possible and never have to explore not paying bills. As person who has been reduced in force, I know these are tough choices, but make them with care.
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