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Family Finance Management
3. Decision Point - Trouble-shooting Your Financial PictureBy now you know where you are and you've set some goals. What if your efforts tell you that your goals are unrealistic? |
| Your Situation | Possibilities |
|---|---|
| Your expenses exceed your income every month | Face your creditors: Don't wait for creditors to contact you. Explain your current situation. Frankly discuss your future income prospects so you can jointly devise solutions to the problem. |
| Cut back on spending: Talk to your spouse or partner about your spending habits.
Perhaps you spend out of habit and could easily defer some hobby or activity costs.
Consider trading your new car for a used car or car pooling to work. Review additional "Strategies for Spending Less" from OSU publication EC 1392. |
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| Increase income: Consider a part-time job or moonlighting project. | |
| Your expense load includes a large amount of credit card or home mortgage debt | Consider refinancing your home or moving to a smaller home. |
| Consider renting a room or a portion of your garage. | |
| Re-prioritize your spending to pay off high-interest credit cards first, or consider consulting with a consumer credit counseling service to formulate a debt repayment plan. | |
| You have a high fixed asset to debt ratio | Consider a home equity line of credit for special purposes, but avoid resorting to these measures for meeting short-term debt.
OSU Publication 1397 "Making the Most of What You Have" (PDF) addresses many other ideas. |
| You're beginning to think you'll never be able to take that special vacation | Consider painless ways to save: Eliminate your daily trip to the Latte' Shop (up to $500/yr); take your lunch to work (up to $1000/yr) |
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