LWM

Emergencies

Last week we were slammed with an emergency. Just when you think things are going well is about the time something happens that you had not planned for and for us that was my daughter’s car breaking down. The mechanic told me it would be $1,200 to fix all the issues (motor, brakes, exhaust, tires, door handle) and my daughter has no money as she is a 21 year old living at home, working full time and going to college.

I pondered the value of the car and fixing it compared to selling as-is and having her look for a new car but she has no money in savings (this is why EVERYONE needs a small emergency fund) and cannot afford a car payment so I guess dad gets to come to the rescue again and help her out.

So now my emergency fund is almost down to zero and I have to start putting money aside every month to get it back up to $1,000 before the next emergency catches us unprepared. Unfortunately that is just the facts of life, things happen and we have to learn to adjust and make the best of the situation.

The goal to be debt free (except house, car & student loans) will still happen but instead of snowballing the extra cash into the car loan I will put it in the emergency fund for a couple of months and then pick up where I left off.

So why am I telling you all of this? Because I want you to know that things are going to happen to your plans but YOU are in control of how those things are handled. I could have charged the auto repair and had another debt to pay or helped finance a used car but both of those options are NOT part of the getting out of debt plan.

Your emergency fund is for situations just like this so relax and find peace in knowing the emergency fund is there so that you can continue to work your plan and get out from under the pressures of debt.

Feel free to send me a PM if you have questions or you can add them to the comments section if you feel others can benefit from the discussion.