Paychecks are vanishing, bank accounts are running dry–money is tight for a lot of PNW families right now.  A lot of financial experts are offering tips on how to save money, earn a bit extra, and stretch your budget even further.  This week I have ‘Five Budgeting Tips to Help During the Quarantine!’

Monday’s Tip:  See what kind of help you qualify for.  File for unemployment if you lost your job, and check with credit card companies to see if they’ll freeze your payments for a month or two.  The government also offered an extension on student loans through September.

Tuesday’s Tip:  Re-vamp your budget.  Look through your last bank statement for anything on auto-pay that you don’t really need right now.  The stimulus checks people get should go to things like food and rent first.  Not magazine subscriptions.

Wednesday’s Tip: Look for free and cheap ways to pass time.  Your Netflix subscription is probably worth the money right now.  But there are also free ways to kill time.  For example, a lot of libraries will let you sign up online and access their digital books and movies for free. Click HERE for more ideas from People magazine!

Thursday’s Tip: Don’t borrow from your 401k unless there’s no other choice.  You’ll lose out when the market rebounds.  Plus, the mistake a lot of people make is borrowing from it to pay off credit cards, but then they go bankrupt anyway.  Retirement plans are usually protected from bankruptcy.  So don’t tap into that money unless it’s really necessary. 

Friday’s Tip: Look for a side-hustle.  Whether it’s something you’ve always wanted to do, or you’re just trying to make money, now’s a good time to get serious about it.  Time is the one thing most of us do have more of right now.  

Mandy’s Fabulously Frugal Fact is made thrifty by:

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