Before you read, I'm hardly considered a hardship. More like I'm going to be in a pickle VERY soon and am interested in some savvy financial advice .
I've recently been put in a jam financially and am wondering how I'm going to pay all my bills the best way possible. I'm sure some of you could help me out please because I'm very confused and have never had to handle all this on my own ... I want to do things the right way so that I'm better prepared in the future if this were to happen again.
I'm a full-time student who does part-time work + odd jobs in order to pay my bills each month: (Used to be full-time but you'll read more about that in a bit.)
$300 rent + 50-70 utilities
$65 phone (contract for 2 yrs - why did i do this???)
$51 gym (contract til 01/12)
$72 bus pass
$50 groceries + eating out
TOTAL $538 dollars at LEAST
At the beginning of this year, I was making AT LEAST $1,100+ working full-time minimum wage to cover these bills and whatever luxuries I dreamed of. I had a small savings but went on trip for my birthday so that's pretty much gone. Upon returning from my birthday I learned that:
Because of a lot of stuff happening with my employers, my hours were drastically cut (thankfully I'm still working though ). I have only been getting $650 for part-time work plus maybe an extra $50 since my odd jobs have scaled down as well :/. So that's $700. I can still pay my bills and have a little left over...
However, I've recently had to buy a new notebook for school which was $300 as well as a few textbooks my school grant didn't cover. Sooo that's $438.00 I have on a credit card after it being $550+ and paying it off with the left over money I had from the another weeks pay check. The minimum payment from now on would be $50 or so that I don't really have...
I'm really kicking myself in the butt with these contracts. I'm one of those people who didn't expect to lose so many hours in BOTH my jobs... I was planning on starting a savings again but never got to it because of a lot of random bills popping up that I have taken care of already- thank goodness (gym screwed me with an extra $35 late fee one month that wasn't my fault, etc...).
Furthermore, with school staring I will only be making a MINIMUM $450 a month at one job and maybe a $75-$100 on the side if I hustle which I'm not so sure about because of school.
The rest of my financial aid won't be here until maybe November. So I have 3 months of being in debt by almost a $100 each month plus the $438 already in my credit card.
Side note: I WAS aware of this pay cut - it happens when I start school FT but it's never been this bad. I was in a serious relationship and we had discussed this situation months ago. My ex was going to move in with me to help offset the cost of my already incredibly cheap rent as well as take over the gym membership that was part his. Things happened and I broke it off with him, but NOW MY BILLS ARE SCARING ME because he did help me out financially with groceries or anything I needed a little help with the last couple of months. I learned a valuable lesson to not depend on ANYONE...
What would you do in my situation?
I've already borrowed money from my mother approx $300 but that's gone because of some random bills the last couple months. I'm considering riding my bike to work to save the $72 on a monthly bus pass, but I'm seeing this as not reliable as my school and work are 12 miles apart with my house in the middle. I don't have friends with cars (maybe I need more friends??? ) I can't move in with my mother because her and my sister already live in a one bedroom cottage. I've already done the sleeping on the couch thing and that's not reasonable right now - not yet at least. I don't wish to move because my rent is already dirt cheap, I got lucky plus the cost of moving out and putting my stuff in store costs money too. Rent around here for what I have is $500-$600 so I'm thinking it's smarter to stay put... I've stopped buying foods except for fruits, some pasta, and vegetables which comes out to about $15 - $20 a month because I make so much and freeze it, plus I have food in my pantry from when I had more money so that's helped. I need shoes and a haircut and things like that but I'm just putting it off.
In conclusion, my gym, phone and rent/ utilities HAVE to be paid and then my credit card is sitting there smiling at me . It's a student credit card btw...
Also, I was planning on getting a used car with some of my financial aid ($5000) after paying my credit card... Should I hold off in case I lose more hours at my jobs? If I had a car, I could get a better job in a better area for better pay. I live in an area where you have to be bilingual or they are just not interested in hiring you so I've been having an extremely tough time finding a better job where I didn't have to work a million hours for little pay AND I do have lots of experience... That's why I work the odd jobs assisting in a daycare, yard work for an elderly lady, etc... I have also begun selling some of my things on Craigslist :/.
I know my situation is very tame considering I don't have any kids to feed or massive debt, but I'm just making sure I take the right steps to best maintain my good credit for at least a few months :/. I've always been very good with money but now I'm kicking myself for getting myself into this mess.
MY MAIN QUESTIONS:
Should I suck it up and ride my bike 12 miles back and forth for the next few months until I can afford my $72 bus pass? I'm in okay shape but I'm more worried about my safety. I'd be at school at night.
Do I remain calm and put whatever I can't pay for on credit while paying the minimum on the card for the next three months?
Do I STOP paying my gym membership in order to have the extra $50 and just pay off the late gym fees later with my financial aid?
Do I start borrowing from friends and pay them back in three months when my financial aid goes through so that I can still pay all my bills on time? (This bothers me - They've offered though because they can see I'm worried).
Would you move out of your $300/50 a month place to live while you catch up on all your bills so you can move out again a couple months later and then most definitely PAY MORE for rent somewhere else + deposit?
Should I risk getting the car and consider it an investment towards my future (better job - I get asked if I have a car in interviews a lot) or just save the money for a rain day like the days that are coming?
IF YOU WERE IN YOUR EARLY-20S IN COLLEGE with only yourself to worry about, WHAT WOULD YOU DO??? I'm looking for food for thought.
PLEASE AND THANK YOU FOR READING MY RANT .
P.S. I cannot sell my plasma - people keep telling me this but no lol.
I've recently been put in a jam financially and am wondering how I'm going to pay all my bills the best way possible. I'm sure some of you could help me out please because I'm very confused and have never had to handle all this on my own ... I want to do things the right way so that I'm better prepared in the future if this were to happen again.
I'm a full-time student who does part-time work + odd jobs in order to pay my bills each month: (Used to be full-time but you'll read more about that in a bit.)
$300 rent + 50-70 utilities
$65 phone (contract for 2 yrs - why did i do this???)
$51 gym (contract til 01/12)
$72 bus pass
$50 groceries + eating out
TOTAL $538 dollars at LEAST
At the beginning of this year, I was making AT LEAST $1,100+ working full-time minimum wage to cover these bills and whatever luxuries I dreamed of. I had a small savings but went on trip for my birthday so that's pretty much gone. Upon returning from my birthday I learned that:
Because of a lot of stuff happening with my employers, my hours were drastically cut (thankfully I'm still working though ). I have only been getting $650 for part-time work plus maybe an extra $50 since my odd jobs have scaled down as well :/. So that's $700. I can still pay my bills and have a little left over...
However, I've recently had to buy a new notebook for school which was $300 as well as a few textbooks my school grant didn't cover. Sooo that's $438.00 I have on a credit card after it being $550+ and paying it off with the left over money I had from the another weeks pay check. The minimum payment from now on would be $50 or so that I don't really have...
I'm really kicking myself in the butt with these contracts. I'm one of those people who didn't expect to lose so many hours in BOTH my jobs... I was planning on starting a savings again but never got to it because of a lot of random bills popping up that I have taken care of already- thank goodness (gym screwed me with an extra $35 late fee one month that wasn't my fault, etc...).
Furthermore, with school staring I will only be making a MINIMUM $450 a month at one job and maybe a $75-$100 on the side if I hustle which I'm not so sure about because of school.
The rest of my financial aid won't be here until maybe November. So I have 3 months of being in debt by almost a $100 each month plus the $438 already in my credit card.
Side note: I WAS aware of this pay cut - it happens when I start school FT but it's never been this bad. I was in a serious relationship and we had discussed this situation months ago. My ex was going to move in with me to help offset the cost of my already incredibly cheap rent as well as take over the gym membership that was part his. Things happened and I broke it off with him, but NOW MY BILLS ARE SCARING ME because he did help me out financially with groceries or anything I needed a little help with the last couple of months. I learned a valuable lesson to not depend on ANYONE...
What would you do in my situation?
I've already borrowed money from my mother approx $300 but that's gone because of some random bills the last couple months. I'm considering riding my bike to work to save the $72 on a monthly bus pass, but I'm seeing this as not reliable as my school and work are 12 miles apart with my house in the middle. I don't have friends with cars (maybe I need more friends??? ) I can't move in with my mother because her and my sister already live in a one bedroom cottage. I've already done the sleeping on the couch thing and that's not reasonable right now - not yet at least. I don't wish to move because my rent is already dirt cheap, I got lucky plus the cost of moving out and putting my stuff in store costs money too. Rent around here for what I have is $500-$600 so I'm thinking it's smarter to stay put... I've stopped buying foods except for fruits, some pasta, and vegetables which comes out to about $15 - $20 a month because I make so much and freeze it, plus I have food in my pantry from when I had more money so that's helped. I need shoes and a haircut and things like that but I'm just putting it off.
In conclusion, my gym, phone and rent/ utilities HAVE to be paid and then my credit card is sitting there smiling at me . It's a student credit card btw...
Also, I was planning on getting a used car with some of my financial aid ($5000) after paying my credit card... Should I hold off in case I lose more hours at my jobs? If I had a car, I could get a better job in a better area for better pay. I live in an area where you have to be bilingual or they are just not interested in hiring you so I've been having an extremely tough time finding a better job where I didn't have to work a million hours for little pay AND I do have lots of experience... That's why I work the odd jobs assisting in a daycare, yard work for an elderly lady, etc... I have also begun selling some of my things on Craigslist :/.
I know my situation is very tame considering I don't have any kids to feed or massive debt, but I'm just making sure I take the right steps to best maintain my good credit for at least a few months :/. I've always been very good with money but now I'm kicking myself for getting myself into this mess.
MY MAIN QUESTIONS:
Should I suck it up and ride my bike 12 miles back and forth for the next few months until I can afford my $72 bus pass? I'm in okay shape but I'm more worried about my safety. I'd be at school at night.
Do I remain calm and put whatever I can't pay for on credit while paying the minimum on the card for the next three months?
Do I STOP paying my gym membership in order to have the extra $50 and just pay off the late gym fees later with my financial aid?
Do I start borrowing from friends and pay them back in three months when my financial aid goes through so that I can still pay all my bills on time? (This bothers me - They've offered though because they can see I'm worried).
Would you move out of your $300/50 a month place to live while you catch up on all your bills so you can move out again a couple months later and then most definitely PAY MORE for rent somewhere else + deposit?
Should I risk getting the car and consider it an investment towards my future (better job - I get asked if I have a car in interviews a lot) or just save the money for a rain day like the days that are coming?
IF YOU WERE IN YOUR EARLY-20S IN COLLEGE with only yourself to worry about, WHAT WOULD YOU DO??? I'm looking for food for thought.
PLEASE AND THANK YOU FOR READING MY RANT .
P.S. I cannot sell my plasma - people keep telling me this but no lol.