Smart Ways to Stretch Your Stimulus Check and Make It Last

If you’ve been severely affected by the COVID-10 crisis, the stimulus check is a financial lifeline. Depending on your particular case, you and your family can receive from about $1,200 to as much as $3,400. Realistically, however, that may not be enough to cover rent, household bills, food, and medicines.

If you’re lucky, you still have some other source of income, but if you’re in a tight spot, you’ll have to find a way to stretch your stimulus check to cover as many living expenses for the longest amount of time. Here are some smart budgeting tips to help you put the money where it matters most. We’ll also cover how title loans in Idaho can help you in your time of need.

Revise Your Monthly Budget

Write down all your monthly expenses. Define if these are needs or wants. Needs are essentials like electricity, medicines, food, rent, utilities. Compute how many months you can survive on your stimulus check and existing income.

Wants are comforts that you can either cut back on or remove completely. This includes premium memberships or subscriptions, entertainment. Find areas where you can save money just by making a few changes. You’d be surprised by how much you can save just by cooking your own meals or bringing your own lunch.

Look For Cheap Alternatives

Will you save more money by buying groceries from a warehouse store or the corner supermarket? What recipes can you make from cheaper cuts of meat? You’re not being stingy or desperate—just smart about how to use your money. Experts call this “mindful spending”. You look for more value from every dollar and focus on what really matters.

Manage Your Debt

If you are paying off a mortgage or credit card, call your lenders and ask for debt restructuring or refinancing. See if you can lower your monthly payments, which is better than skipping payments and incurring late charges.

Build Your Emergency Fund

If you still have enough to get by, then add your stimulus check to augment your emergency fund or start one. Put it in a bank account where it can accrue interest but can still be withdrawn if you need the money right away. Think of your stimulus check as a financial parachute: don’t pull the string unless you really, really need to.

Invest in a Business

If you catch a fish, you have food for one day; if you learn to catch fish, you have food for many days. You can take that philosophy for using your stimulus check. Use part of it to fund a simple home business that can give you a steady source of income. If you know how to bake or cook, then try selling cookies or food online. If you have to work from home, then get a strong internet connection so you can find online jobs.

Invest In Your Skills

If you’re worried about your job security, invest in skills or certificate courses than can help you boost your chances of finding new employment. This is also a good way of making use of your time if you had to receive a pay cut or have to work from home because of the COVID-19 crisis.

Where to Get Emergency Money at the End of Your Stimulus

Sometimes, despite strict budgeting and all efforts to earn extra money, you’re just caught in a financial bind. Maybe your company is on hold for the next few months and you need to just stay afloat for a few months until they reopen again. Maybe you’ve got a good project, but it will take a while until your check is available. You need a way to survive until you receive money—and the stimulus check just isn’t going to stretch that far.

A title loan can help you get emergency money, fast. This is a type of short-term loan where you leverage the value of a vehicle in your name to secure up to $15,000 depending on the condition of your vehicle. Here’s how they work.

Raise Money in Just a Few Days

One of the most frustrating things about bank loans is the processing time. It takes so long to gather documents, then you have to wait for them to review and approve the documents. Weeks can pass… and sometimes, you just can’t afford to wait.

On the other hand, title loans take just a few days to process, especially if you go to an efficient lender. They’ll respond to your query the same day and act quickly to give you a quote and work out your contract.

Fewer Documents, Less Hassle

A title loan only requires a government-issued ID, your current vehicle registration, a blank check to your bank account for the deposit, and your car for inspection. That’s all it takes to use your title for cash.

No Credit History Checks

You don’t need to have a very high credit score to be eligible for a title loan. All credit is welcome here for your online title loan.

Continued Use of Your Car

You can still use your car even if you took out a title loan! It won’t limit your mobility, which can be crucial if you need it for work or your business.

How to Get a Title Loans in Idaho

Thanks to our innovative online process, applying for one of our title loans is easy and you can be approved in as little as 30 minutes. Here’s how it works:

• Fill out a quick online form on our homepage and submit it.
• Receive a call from a representative who will schedule a face-to-face meeting at the time, day, and location of your choice. We come to you!
• Arrive at your meeting. The representative will conduct a quick inspection of your car and review the loan process with you. Once you feel comfortable, you’ll fill out the paperwork.
• Receive your loan! Funds will be directly deposited into your bank account for you to use as you see fit.

Remember, if all goes well, you can receive your emergency money in as little as 30 minutes! It’s that painless and straightforward. The stimulus check can be a godsend but when that money runs out, online title loans in Idaho have your back.

 

Note: The content provided in this article is only for informational purposes, and you should contact your financial advisor about your specific financial situation.