How to Save Money at the Grocery Store

by Molly Grace, January 4, 2019 in Saving Money

We’ve all experienced this moment: You’re checking out at the grocery store, the cashier tells you your total and you think to yourself, “How the heck did I spend so much money?”

It’s easy for grocery store spending to get away from us. Stores are now jam-packed with irresistible foods in creatively-designed packaging and brightly-colored signs advertising impossible-to-pass-up deals. The average grocery shopper is up against a ton of pressure to get them to buy, buy, buy, when many Americans’ budgets are begging them to save, save, save.

Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to cut down on grocery spending. You just have to know what you’re doing. Here are our tips.

Go in With a Plan

A well-thought-out grocery list is your first line of defense against overspending. You don’t want to walk through those automatic doors without one.

Without a grocery list, you don’t know exactly what you need (and what you don’t). This can easily lead to impulse buys or throwing things in your cart on the off chance you’re running low on a particular item.

To be sure you’re only spending what is necessary on groceries, take some time before your trip to the store to figure out what you need. Ever gone to the store and stocked up on pasta, only to come home and find out you already have a small stockpile of it in the back of your pantry? Check your pantry and refrigerator beforehand so you know what you’ve already got.

Equally as important as having a plan is sticking to it. Retailers have come up with all sorts of psychological tricks to get you to spend more than you intended. Don’t fall for it and commit to only buying the items on your list. And remember: Never go grocery shopping when you’re hungry.

Plan Your Menu

Take some time before you go shopping to detail each and every meal you plan on eating for that week. Write down what ingredients you’ll need and add them to your grocery list.

While at first this may seem like a daunting task, the money you save will make it worth your while. Plus, it doesn’t have to be super complicated. Just because you’re planning your meals doesn’t mean you have to suddenly become a fabulously creative chef. It’s OK if most of your planned lunches are a simple ham and cheese sandwich and dinner is a bowl of cereal. The important thing is that you aren’t buying more food than you’ll eat. (Although health-wise, it may be wise to diversify your diet a bit, but hey, one area of self-improvement at a time.)

Cut Food Waste

Saving money is also about making the most of the money you spend. If you aren’t using the stuff you buy, you’re wasting money, regardless of whether you got a good deal on it or not.

If you find yourself unable to go through the full package of any perishables you buy before hitting the product’s expiration date, make a note to start buying smaller package sizes or freeze what you know you won’t get through. If you’re pouring a lot of partially-full gallons of milk down the drain, start buying half-gallons. If you can never get through a whole loaf of bread before it starts growing green spots, buy a half-loaf or keep a week’s supply in the pantry and stick the rest in the freezer.

Buy in Bulk (Sometimes!)

A common piece of advice you’ll hear is to buy certain items in bulk to save money. But does it really save you all that much money? Which items should you buy in bulk?

When you see a bulk item at a low per-unit price, you might think that you can’t pass up on such a deal. But if you end up unable to use the whole thing before it expires, tossing it because it takes up too much space or just getting sick of it, you’re erasing any potential savings.

If you’re really committed to buying in bulk, you’ll also need to consider the cost of a warehouse store membership, such as Sam’s Club or Costco, to have access to a wide variety of bulk products. Figure out if the money you save would be enough to justify the cost of membership.

So, when does it make sense to buy in bulk? If you have a large household, buying most of your regularly-used items in bulk probably makes more sense, both in terms of how much money you spend and how often you need to restock these items.

If you have a smaller household, there are still times when it can make sense to buy a few things in bulk, but you probably shouldn’t be stuffing your kitchen full of jumbo jars of condiments and 10-pound bags of rice.

If you want to buy in bulk, non-food household staples are usually a safe bet: things like laundry detergent, dish soap, trash bags or toilet paper. Just be sure to keep an eye on the price and compare costs of different sizes to make sure you’re actually getting a good deal. And don’t buy anything in bulk that you aren’t absolutely going to use every last bit of. If you like switching shampoo brands every month or so, don’t buy a giant bottle of it, no matter how well-priced it is.

Buy Generic

We all have our various brand loyalties, and sometimes the off-brand swaps just aren’t as good as their more well-known contemporaries. However, if you want to save some money, be open to trying the generic versions of some of your most-purchased items and see if you notice a difference.

If you decide you can’t bear to part with your favorite brand name cereal, that’s OK. But running this experiment for the grocery items you spend the most money on can end up saving you some cash if you find a few things you can easily swap out. Often, you may find that the generic versions are just as good as the brand name, or are even exactly the same. For example, if you’re buying an over-the-counter medication, compare the generic to the brand name. As long as both packages list the same active ingredient, they’ll both be equally as effective at curing your headache. Buy the generic and save yourself a few bucks.

Go Online

You won’t always save money by grocery shopping online, especially when you factor in any convenience fees and shipping costs. However, online shopping can make it easy to find the best deals on certain items while avoiding impulse buys.

The internet makes comparison shopping ridiculously convenient. Whereas at a brick and mortar store, you’re less likely to abandon your cart to see if you can find a better deal on brussels sprouts elsewhere. Online, you can check out competing prices with just a few clicks, making it more likely that you’re able to get the best deals on most of the items in your cart.

Take a look at the various services and memberships available and compare the benefits and costs. Even if you don’t switch to grocery shopping online exclusively, those who get free shipping with online retailers such as Amazon might be able to find good deals on bulk items like paper towels and garbage bags that make the occasional online order well worth it.

How to Survive Hosting Your First Holiday Dinner

by Ashley Chorpenning, December 4, 2018 in Holidays

Have you offered to host your first holiday meal? If you’re beginning to feel anxious and stressed, take a deep breath. The holidays are meant to be joyful and bright, not stressful and overwhelming. Cooking your first holiday meal can be a great triumph and it doesn’t have to be high pressure and unenjoyable.

If you’re ready to rock your holiday dinner, here are the top 11 ways you can execute your gathering flawlessly.

Make a Timeline and List for Executing the Meal

Preparing in advance for any aspect of the holidays is key. Preparation will help you avoid mishaps and create a plan for alternative solutions if something does go awry.

Make a timeline and list of everything you need in order to host the ultimate holiday meal. Ask yourself the following questions:

• What am I going to make?
• What ingredients do I need?
• Do I need to purchase any additional serving pieces or cooking utensils?
• Do I need extra seating arrangements for my guests?

These questions will help you begin to put together a grocery list as well as a timeline of when you need to complete each task. Your list will help you stay focused and organized.

Accept Help

You can do it all, but why should you? If someone asks if they can help, let them. The more hands you have helping, the more efficiently your preparations will be. Delegating the responsibility amongst your guests is important to assure you are able to accomplish everything you want to.

Prep in Advance

Are there any recipes you can cook in advance and then heat up the next day? There are several items you can prepare in advance – with chopping and washing your various ingredients included. This will help you stay on schedule and reduce the amount of work you have to do on the day of the meal.

Stick to Recipes You Know

Try not to get too creative with the recipes you select. Pick items that you’re comfortable making. No one has expectations that you will become a culinary genius overnight. Keep it simple. Guests will appreciate a few simple dishes made well over complicated dishes that are mediocre.

Start Early on Non-Food Items

Do an inventory of your serving dishes and utensils, cutlery, glasses and tablecloths a few days prior to your meal. This is a task that can even be accomplished several weeks in advance. Completing an inventory will help you determine if you need to purchase any additional items or borrow them from your friends and family.

If some of your serving pieces or glassware have been collecting dust in your china cabinet, a pre-event inventory is a great opportunity to identify this and wash everything. Spreading out your work makes the holiday dinner less overwhelming.

Do as Much as You Can the Day Before

You want your house to look amazing the day of your dinner. Setting the table and decorating your home the day before will give you more time to focus on cooking.

You may even want to enlist some of your family members to come over and help you make some decorations for the table. This is a great way to save money on expensive décor. Part of the holiday fun is the experience of spending time together to create a beautiful event.

Feel Free to Purchase Meal Items

You may assume you need to make everything by hand but it’s okay to purchase meal items. It may be too challenging to make three different pies, a turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans and gravy all at once. Head to the store and select a few items that will be just as good pre-made and a simple appetizer or two to leave out for the family to nibble on.

Your local grocery store may have some decadent desserts or delicious sides your entire family will love.

Skip the Gourmet Appetizers

You’re already making a multi-dish meal, there’s no need to have heavy appetizers. Most likely, you will end up wasting food and time on things your guests won’t eat. If you want to make appetizers, stick with one dish or do a pre-made veggie tray.

Make it as simple as possible.

Ask Your Guests to Bring Their Favorite Dish

When delegating tasks, it’s okay to ask your guests to bring a dish or two. They will probably be eager to do so. After all, you’ve already offered to host and cook the entire meal. Ask each of your guests to bring their favorite dish or tell them what dishes you’d prefer others to make.

Not only will this save you time, but it will save you money.

Try Paper Plates

You may think it’s informal to use paper plates and napkins, but it will save you a lot of time on dish duty later in the evening. It will make your job ten times easier if you are able to throw away half of your dishes before the end of the night.

Surprisingly, paper plates come in an assortment of sizes and shapes. You don’t have to stick to plain white. Get creative and select paper plates that will compliment your holiday décor.

Relax and Enjoy the Fruits of Your Labor

The holidays are about spending time with your loved ones. Make sure to enjoy the dinner you worked so hard to host. It’s important to not just open your home and cook but actually spend quality time with your friends and family.

Even if everything goes wrong and you end up ordering carryout, let it go. It will be a great story for the next holiday you host. After all, what’s the point of hosting a holiday meal if you can’t truly reap the fruit of your labor?

The Bottom Line

Hosting your first holiday dinner doesn’t have to be overwhelming. By involving your family and friends and planning ahead, your dinner will be a breeze. Remember, the holidays should be about creating memories. Focus on spending quality time with your loved ones and don’t stress about creating the perfect holiday meal.

With these simple tips, you will be able to enjoy hosting your first holiday dinner.

Things Your Parents Didn’t Tell You About Living on Your Own

• by Molly Grace, November 6, 2018 in Homeowners Tips                                                                        

“Why did no one ever teach us this?” is a common question among young people experiencing the grown-up world for the first time.

Being out on your own for the first time can be tough. It comes with a whole suite of new responsibilities, and they all fall on you.

Once you move out of your childhood home and into your own place, there’s no one to pick up your slack. Even if you live with a roommate, you’re still responsible for keeping your space, your finances and yourself healthy and in order. Taking this all on at once can feel overwhelming, especially if you’re not quite sure how to handle a lot of this stuff.

If you’re living alone for the first time and aren’t sure how to cut a potato properly let alone create a budget that allows you to save for your 401(k), fear not. Everyone figures it out eventually, and we’ve got some tips that will help ease the transition.

What to Stock

First things first: there are some items you’ll need to keep on hand if you want to have a successfully-run home or apartment. You know the basics – chairs, tables, a place to sleep – but there are some odds and ends you might not realize are essential.

Because most people who are just starting out on their own usually don’t have a ton of money to furnish a perfectly-stocked apartment, we’ve broken down what you’ll need, organized by the room. Supplement this list with any items you know you can’t live without.

Kitchen

• Pots and pans: Get at least two of each, one large and one small
• Cooking tools: Some basics to get you started include a chef’s knife, a paring knife, spatulas (both a metal and rubber one), measuring utensils, a mixing bowl, a colander and a can opener.
• Spices: Start with salt and pepper. Add others to your collection as recipes call for them.
• Tableware and eating utensils: No paper plates and plastic cutlery! Get a dinnerware set that includes plates, bowls and cups. Or you can save money mixing and matching individual pieces from the thrift store. Just make sure they’re in good condition. You don’t need a huge set unless you plan on hosting large dinner parties. But get a few of each so you have some wiggle room when it comes to doing the dishes. Make sure you have a set of forks, knives and spoons as well.

Cookware can be expensive, and if you’re having trouble pulling together the cash for these items, let the people in your life know you’re moving into a new place and see if they’d be willing to donate any stuff they don’t use anymore.

Bedroom

• Two sets of sheets: One to go on your bed, one clean and ready to go for when the other set needs to be laundered.
• A bed: Not just a mattress on the floor. Not only can placing a mattress directly on the floor be bad for the mattress, it can expose you to dust and other allergens.

Bathroom

• Toilet paper: Buy it in bulk. It doesn’t expire and there’s no chance you’re not going to use all of it. In fact, pack it with your belongings and bring it with you on move-in day. You’ll probably need it before you get a chance to run to the store.
• Non-slip bath rug: Not only is a colorful bath rug a cheap and easy way to brighten up your bathroom, but if you get one with non-skid treads on the bottom you’ll give yourself a safe place to dry off your feet after a shower. You’ll prevent a slippery and potentially dangerous floor.

Miscellaneous

• Multipurpose cleaner: A spray bottle of cleaning product that works on almost any surface is a must-have for lazy and budget-conscious cleaners alike. Just don’t use it on any surfaces that need special treatment, like wood floors.
• Cleaning cloths: You can also use paper towels, but for an eco-friendlier route, buy a pack of reusable microfiber cloths to do your cleaning with.
• Basic tools: Having a few commonly-used tools on hand will be helpful for hanging pictures, fixing leaky faucets and the like. For basic projects, get yourself a few different sizes of both slotted and Phillips-head screwdrivers, a hammer, a tape measure, pliers, a utility knife and an adjustable wrench.
• Scissors: Easy to forget, but you’ll really feel it when you need a pair and don’t own one.
• A step ladder: Don’t climb on kitchen chairs (or worse, rolling desk chairs) and risk hurting yourself when you need to reach something that’s high up.

How to Budget

When you move out on your own for the first time, you’ll likely have to take on a lot of new costs that you aren’t used to having. Between rent, bills, groceries and all the annoying unexpected costs that inevitably come up, you’re going to need to have a plan for how you spend your money.

Thanks to the plethora of budgeting apps available, managing your money is easier than ever. However, you can download as many apps as you want or spend hours painstakingly crafting a personalized budget that accounts for all your expenses, but it won’t help if you don’t actually stick to the plan. That’s why it’s so important to find a budgeting method that works for you.

One popular method is the 50/20/30 rule, where you allocate 50% of your income to living expenses, 20% to savings and debt and 30% for the things you want but don’t necessarily need. You could also craft a budget that prioritizes paying off debt, or one that puts all your extra money toward investing.

If you’re new to budgeting and doubt your organization abilities, start small. Start tracking your spending and evaluate what types of things your income goes to. Learn about what it means to live within your means. Utilize money-saving tricks, like setting up a direct deposit into your savings account or cutting back on your electricity use. Avoid racking up credit card debt.

The most important thing is that you find a budget that fits your specific needs and goals and is realistic. Budgets are like diets: the best one is the one you can stick to.

Whatever your budget, the two most vital things you should prioritize (if you’re not deeply in high interest debt) are building an emergency savings fund and saving for retirement. For your emergency fund, the goal is to have three to six months of living expenses saved up, so if you run into a big life change such as losing your job, you have time to get yourself back on track without being in immediate financial danger. Retirement, though it may seem far off, is equally important. The earlier you start saving, the longer your money has to grow.

How to Keep Clean

When you live alone, there’s no one else to blame when things get messy. There’s also no one else to blame you, which is why so many people who are out on their own for the first time fall into the habit of letting their place get a little – or a lot – messy.

You shouldn’t let stuff build up just because you or your roommates don’t mind living in a messy space. It’s not super difficult to keep your place tidy if you stay on top of it. Plus, some of the things that come along with a poorly-cleaned house like mold and pests are health hazards that can be a serious pain to get rid of.

The best and easiest way to keep your space neat is to clean as you go. Don’t let stuff pile up for “later” (which we all know really means until I have guests coming over and it’s embarrassing). Wipe down the counter as soon as you’re done cooking. Break down pizza boxes for the recycling as soon as you’ve put away your leftovers. Do your dishes as soon as you finish dinner. Re-hang clothes you try on right away. When you let piles of mess build up, cleaning becomes an even more daunting task, making you want to do it even less.

You don’t have to be perfect. People have busy lives. Sometimes, your place will be messy. If you have trouble keeping tidy, here are our basic cleaning tips for the days (or weeks) where you can only do the bare minimum:

• Regularly wipe down the items and surfaces you use every day, disinfecting where necessary (this is where a good multipurpose cleaning spray will come in handy).
• Food products need to be stored properly or thrown out. Cooked food shouldn’t be left sitting out for more than two hours, as room temperature is the ideal temperature for bacterial growth (the USDA refers to a temperature range between 40 – 140 degrees as the danger zone for food). Leaving food out can also attract pests. Clean up spills and crumbs right away.
• Don’t allow dust to collect for too long, especially if you have a respiratory condition.
• At least once a week, set aside some time to put things away. Tackle the pile of outfit rejects in your room, sort the mail and return your shoes to their rack. Get rid of any clutter.
• If you don’t have time to do the dishes right away, rinse them off as soon as you go to put them in the sink. If you made something that has a tendency to crust, pour some dish soap on the dish and submerge it in water to soak. This will make doing the dishes a million times easier when you get to them.
• While you don’t have to do all the dishes right away, any utensils that were used to prep raw food such as meat should be cleaned as soon as you’re done with them.

How to Stay Safe

If you’re out on your own the first time, you’re likely renting your place, meaning that a lot of your security is left up to the rental community you live in. When you’re first searching for places to live, make sure to inquire about a place’s security features before you sign a lease. Are the areas surrounding the building well-lit? Can anyone enter buildings, or do doors require a key? Do they change the locks when a new renter moves in?

While it’s good to live in a place that provides security for its residents, there are ways you can secure your individual unit against intruders.

If your door has a peephole, use it. If it doesn’t, see about getting one installed. If your lease allows for it, install a deadbolt and chain lock if you don’t already have one. Make sure the locks on the windows are in good condition. Consider investing in renter’s insurance, and get to know your neighbors.

One great way to ensure your safety when you’re living on your own is to cultivate a local support system, especially if you don’t have a roommate and are living away from your family and friends. Making friends with a trustworthy neighbor can be invaluable. They can keep an extra set of your keys in case of an emergency and keep an eye out for any suspicious activity while you’re out of town.

When you live alone, it’s important that you keep the people in your life updated on what you’re up to so they know to check in when they haven’t heard from you. If you don’t have anyone in your life you care to share those details with, make friends with a local and make a deal to check in on each other regularly or to let each other know when you’re going somewhere outside of your usual routine.

Be sure you’re staying safe inside your home as well and watch out for common household hazards. Check regularly that your fire and carbon monoxide alarms are working, keep a first aid kit on hand and avoid creating tripping hazards.

Make sure you’re observing basic kitchen safety rules when cooking. Never leave cooking food unattended and know how to use a fire extinguisher. Also, use oven mitts and wash your hands frequently, especially after handling raw meat. Finally, double check that you turned off the burners or stove after you’ve finished cooking.

How to Stay Healthy

This may be one of the more difficult aspects of living alone for the first time, because the only person you’re accountable to on this is yourself. But just because you can get away with neglecting your health doesn’t mean you should.

Visit your doctor at least once a year for a physical. Visit the dentist twice a year. See the eye doctor every one or two years. If you’re at risk for any specific conditions, make sure you’re getting screened as often as is recommended.

At the very least, don’t put off calling and making an appointment when something is wrong. Waiting for an ailment to get better on its own can end badly. By being proactive, you could be saving yourself lengthy and costly treatment, or you could very well be saving your own life.

Educate yourself on how to eat a balanced diet – cooking healthy and affordable meals for one isn’t easy. While conventional wisdom states that it’s generally cheaper to cook your meals than get them at a restaurant, that truth is a little more complicated for single diners who face challenges shopping and cooking for one person when very little food is sold in single-servings. Making unique and healthy meals each day can actually become quite expensive.

To work around these challenges and save money, try cooking one big meal once a week and portioning it out into individual containers for a daily meal. If you need more variety, plan out your weekly meals using recipes with similar requirements. For example, one week you could plan to make mostly chicken-based dishes, using different spices, sauces and sides to have a different dish each night.

Another way to keep your food costs down while eating healthy is to stock your freezer with some basic meal components, like chicken and bagged vegetables, and thaw individual servings as needed. Always keep staples like pasta, beans and rice on hand.

Who to Call

Being the boss of your own household can be a great feeling, but it also means you’re the one who has to step up when everything hits the fan.

From pest infestations to burst pipes and life-threatening emergencies, adult life offers all kinds of unexpected and stressful situations that will pop up when you’re least expecting it. The key is to be prepared and know how to deal with it ahead of time. This is often a matter of having the right phone number.

If you live in an apartment, you already have a great resource when it comes to many of these situations: your landlord or management office. If you’re ever dealing with a non-emergency apartment issue, give them a call and they’ll likely send out their handyman to fix it. If it requires a service not provided for in your lease, they can still let you know who can help you with your issue, and might even be able to provide recommendations.

If you own your home or have a less-than-helpful landlord, you may be stuck dealing with problems on your own. If it’s a simple repair or issue, try using the internet to educate yourself on how to fix it. Or, get some recommendations for a repair professional who can help you (yet another reason to build a local support system – they can give you the lowdown on the best repairmen and mechanics in your area).

Keep any phone numbers you need close by. This includes any numbers you received upon move-in, which will likely tell you who to call if you have repair issues. Get a number for someone you can call for after-hour issues. You probably know to call 911 in an emergency, but find out your locality’s number for reporting non-emergencies, such as a burglary that has already happened, as well.

What to Do When You’re Scared/Lonely/Overwhelmed

When you move out on your own, you become responsible not just for your logistics of living, but for making yourself feel better when you’re not doing well emotionally.

Living on your own, especially if you don’t have a roommate, can feel really great and freeing, but it can also be overwhelming and lonely, particularly when you first move in.

Know that it’s OK to feel overwhelmed or even scared. You will adjust, even if it takes a little while. Eventually, you’ll get into a routine that works for you. You’ll get used to the strange noises your home occasionally makes. You’ll feel confident in caring for yourself.

Don’t be afraid to reach out and ask for help. Don’t let geographical distance get to you. Your friends and family, even those who live far away, are really never more than a phone call or video chat away.

Consider talking to a therapist. Moving out on your own is a big transition, and dealing with the emotions that come with that – both positive and negative – can be overwhelming. A mental health professional can help you sort out your feelings of fear, anxiety or loneliness.

Make sure you’re getting out of the house regularly. Even the most introverted homebodies can start to feel isolated if they only ever leave to go to work or the grocery store. Make sure you’re inviting others over every so often as well. It will feel good to host friends in your space, whether it’s for an elaborate dinner party or a chill movie night.

Most importantly, remember to relish in the freedom of living on your own. If you want to eat dessert for dinner occasionally, no one is there to judge you. If you want to throw a one-person dance party, dance away. Celebrate your independence.

Financial Crisis? Here’s How to Get Through It

by Dan Rafter, October 31, 2018 in Money Matters

Maybe you’ve lost your job. Maybe your partner is suffering through a costly illness. Maybe you’ve run up so much credit card debt that you can barely keep up with your minimum monthly payment.

You’re in the middle of a financial crisis. But what can you do to work your way out of it? And how can you do this without destroying your credit?

Here are some tips for how to survive a financial crisis and what to do to prevent one in the future.

Prioritize Your Payments 

Ideally, you’ll pay all your bills on time each month. This might not be possible in a financial crisis, meaning that you might have to prioritize. Certain bills are more important than others.

You need a place to live, so do whatever you can to stay current on your mortgage or rent payments. You don’t want to risk losing your home. Mortgage payments are especially important as paying this bill more than 30 days late will cause your three-digit credit score to fall by 100 points or more.

You also need to spend money on the essentials, such as your home’s power and groceries.

You should pay your credit cards on time, too. Your credit card payments are also reported to the three national credit bureaus of Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. If you pay these more than 30 days late, your credit score will again fall. The same holds true for your auto loan and student loan payments. However, if you can’t pay all of your bills, remember that it’s possible to rebuild a credit score, so prioritize paying for the essentials.

Owe Money? Don’t Hide

If you owe money that you can’t pay, your first inclination might be to hide. You’ll avoid opening mail from your creditors. You won’t pick up the phone when these creditors call.

But Karen Ford, a financial coach, public speaker and author based in Fairmont, West Virginia, said that you should take the opposite approach: Instead of hiding from those you owe money to, you should reach out to explain your financial emergency. Your creditors might be willing to renegotiate your repayment schedule to leave you with monthly payments you can afford.

For instance, your mortgage lender might agree to lower your interest rate, lowering your monthly payment at the same time. Some lenders might even rework the terms of your loan, perhaps turning your 15-year loan into a longer-term 30-year one, again lowering your monthly payments.

“Contact your debtors and explain the situation,” Ford said. “Whether you’ve had an illness, hospitalization or job loss, be honest with them. Then explain to them that you will pay them what you owe, but it may be smaller payments than they would normally receive.”

Slow Your Spending

The next step is to curb any spending you can, Ford said. This could include such simple steps as decreasing the heat in your home by two degrees before you leave for work. As Ford says, this can save you about $20 a month.

That doesn’t seem like much, especially when you’re struggling to pay the bills, but by taking a series of these smaller steps, you can reduce your monthly costs significantly.

Some more obvious areas to cut spending include gym memberships, cable subscriptions, eating out and entertainment. If you’re in a financial crisis, focus, again, on spending only on the essentials.

Try to Negotiate Your Credit Card Debt

If it’s your credit card debt that is causing your financial crisis, don’t be shy about calling the issuers of your cards. Carla Dearing, chief executive officer of online financial wellness site Sum180, suggests asking if they’ll lower the interest rate they’re charging you. If this rate falls, your credit card debt won’t grow as quickly and your minimum required monthly payment will drop.

You might think credit card companies would be unwilling to do this, but you’ll never know if you don’t call.

“Many credit card issuers would rather lower your rate than have you transfer to another company,” Dearing said. “It’s worth asking.”

Dearing also recommends that you use as much as 50% of your monthly savings to pay down your credit card debt. Reducing this debt as quickly as possible will help ease your financial pain. The high interest rates that come with cards means that your credit card debt can grow quickly each month if you don’t pay it off in full.

Tap Your Home’s Equity 

If you own a home, you might also consider applying for a home equity loan or home equity line of credit to pay off your credit card debt. There is one catch here: You can only take out one of these loans if you’ve built up equity in your home. Equity is the difference between what your home is worth and what you owe on your mortgage. If your home is worth $200,000 and you owe $150,000 on your mortgage, you have $50,000 in equity.

You can then borrow against that equity. The benefit of home equity loans or lines of credit is that the interest rates that come with them are so much lower than those attached to credit cards. If you can borrow money at a lower rate, you can then use it to pay off the credit card debt that is causing your financial emergency. (Note: Quicken Loans does not offer home equity lines of credit.)

“By paying off the credit card and moving that balance to a home equity line of credit, you’ve reduced the amount of interest that will stack up, and you will be able to pay off the debt more quickly,” Dearing said.

An alternative to a home equity line of credit could be a cash-out refinance. Much like a home equity loan, a cash-out refinance uses the equity you’ve built up in your home, but instead of taking out another loan, this refinances your primary mortgage.

Refinance Your Student Loans

Student loan payments are another burden that often leads people into financial crisis. This is especially true for those paying off private, versus federal, student loans.

One way to reduce the financial burden of these loans is to refinance them, Dearing said. When you refinance a student loan, you’re left with one consolidated loan with a single monthly payment and a lower interest rate, Dearing said.

That lower interest rate is important, Dearing says, because it means that more of each payment goes toward paying down the balance of your loans.

You must do your research before refinancing, though, Dearing said. Search for a reputable bank and compare interest rates. There are plenty of companies operating in this space that will overcharge for refinancing student loans.

“Steer clear of companies charging high upfront fees to help you consolidate your student loans or that claim to be ‘approved’ or ‘exclusive’ servicers to ‘special programs,'” Dearing said.

The Ultimate Step: Declaring Bankruptcy

If your debts are too much to handle, it might be time to declare bankruptcy. This, though, should only be considered as a last resort.

There are two types of bankruptcy you can declare: Chapter 7, in which most of your debts are forgiven but you’ll lose your most valuable assets, and Chapter 13, in which a bankruptcy judge works out a plan allowing you to repay all or some of the debt on a monthly schedule you can afford.

Bankruptcy will give you a chance to start over financially, but it comes with a cost. Declaring bankruptcy will devastate your credit score. Chapter 7 will remain on your credit reports for 10 years, while Chapter 13 will stick on them for seven.

If your financial crisis is so severe that you can’t work through it on your own, bankruptcy might be a choice. But only use this tool as a last resort.

Preventing Another Financial Crisis

Once you work your way out of your current financial crisis, it’s important to develop the financial habits that will help you avoid another one.

You can’t prevent every financial crisis, but you can lower the odds that you’ll fall into money problems again. Olga Kirshenbaum, financial coach and owner of New York City–based Rags to Riches Consulting, said that the key lies in not spending more than you earn each month.

To live this way, you’ll have to create a household budget. This budget should list the money that comes into your home each month and the money you spend. Expenses include fixed costs such as your mortgage, rent or car payment and those that fluctuate each month, including your utility bills and transportation costs. You should also provide a monthly estimate for how much you spend on groceries, eating out and entertainment.

Once you’ve created this budget, you can determine how much you can spend each month, Kirshenbaum said.

“Many people don’t have a working budget and can’t tell you if they are living within their means,” Kirshenbaum said. “Once they see that they are spending more than they are making, mindful spending begins to kick in.”

Once your budget is set, it’s time to build an emergency fund. This fund contains dollars that you can tap should an unexpected financial emergency pop up, anything from a furnace that conks out during the winter to a car with a blown transmission. With an emergency fund, you can pay for these emergencies with cash instead of using your credit card and building up more debt.

How big should this emergency fund be? Financial advisors say it should have from three months to a year of daily living expenses.

“This number depends on each person and their situation,” Kirshenbaum said. “How significant are your monthly costs, and how likely are you to find a job right away to get back on your feet? Whatever it is you decide to put away each month, that number needs to go into your budget.”