By Ted James
Perhaps you’ve seen lots of headlines about a looming recession, and you can’t help but stress over your financial future. You want to do everything you can to keep your household on stable footing if economic conditions turn sour. By working with the professionals at REAP, you can ensure that you’re still saving for retirement and properly allocating your portfolio. Plus, these tips will show you how to earn extra money through a side hustle, choose a home warranty policy, and continue saving even when your budget is tight.
Launch a Side Hustle
If you’re worried that you might lose your job, you can take steps to shore up your family’s financial security before you get wind of layoffs on the horizon. You may want to start a side business in a recession-proof niche. Businesses that provide essential services like childcare or home repairs are typically not hit as hard during recessions. You could also provide freelance services online, like writing or graphic design.
Take Out a Home Warranty
Investing in a home warranty policy can help you manage your finances if you need to cover expensive repairs during a recession. A home warranty policy is an annual, renewable contract that you can use to pay for maintenance costs should your appliances or certain home systems break down. For example, if you have a problem with your heating, cooling, plumbing, or electrical system, your home warranty policy can help you with the costs.
To find the right coverage, read reviews from the best home warranty companies in Florida. Take note of their scope of coverage, prices, and customer service ratings.
Refine Your Budget
Naturally, if you suspect that you’re about to face a recession, you’ll want to cut back on your spending. But how can you make changes to your budget without sacrificing your quality of life? Truist recommends creating a “values-based” budget: decide what matters most to you and what’s worth spending on for the sake of your happiness. Then, make spending cuts in other categories so that you don’t have to give up the hobbies and activities you love most.
Enhance Your Skill Set
It’s never a bad idea to work on developing more marketable skills, especially if you’re nervous about impending layoffs at your workplace. If you’re irreplaceable to your team, you lessen your own chances of losing your job. Furthermore, you might be able to position yourself so that you’re first in line for a promotion should the opportunity arise.
How can you make yourself a more valuable team member at the office? Mobile Jazz recommends completing online trainings, seeking out more leadership roles on different projects, and cultivating strong relationships with your coworkers.
Keep Saving
During a recession, you might be tempted to stop contributing to your retirement savings. It’s easy to assume that you should keep as much cash on hand as possible just in case you need it. But if you completely pause your retirement contributions during a recession, you can miss out on the opportunity to build your savings while stocks are cheap. While you may need to cut back on your contributions for a period of time in order to keep more of your portfolio in liquid cash, keep making deposits in your retirement accounts – in the future, you’ll be grateful that you did!
Coping with the thought of a potential recession is challenging. After all, you want to take action to protect your household’s finances. With these tips, you can tackle everything from finding the best home warranty policy to getting a side hustle off the ground.
Do you want to stay on track with your retirement planning despite a possible recession? REAP can help! Call us today at 855-904-REAP to learn more about our services.
REAP welcomes guest contributions. The views presented here do not necessarily represent those of REAP.
Photo credit: Pexels
Retirement & Estate Advisors & Professionals (REAP) is a professional firm designed to assist families in protecting their assets and maintaining their standard of living. Contact us to find out more! (855) 904-REAP
