Approaching The Biggest Life Events On A Budget

Approaching life events is always going to be hard. There’s a lot you have to cope with, and there’s usually something that can go wrong during them. However, coping with these events is made a lot easier by having financial security on your side! But what if you don’t? What if you can barely afford to make ends meet each week? It’s something we don’t like to think about, and we definitely don’t want to be in such a situation, but quite a lot of us out there are.

When you’re living life as a millennial, possibly struggling through a lot of those milestones that the generation before you didn’t have any trouble with, you need as many money saving resources on your side as possible. With that in mind, let’s take a look about how we can approach some of the biggest life events almost everyone goes through when you’re on a strict budget with little to no disposable income.

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Trying to Get Through College

College is always going to be expensive, and you need a loan to get there in the first place. That pays for all of the expenses you’re met with up front: accommodation, paying for your books and school supplies, buying food every week, and everything else you can think of that you’re going to need to prepare for a life of academia whilst still being a fully functional human being.

So you need a very strict budget, and you need to be able to stick to it. And one great way to do that is to involve other people in the process as well; try your family first, as they care about you and want to see you succeed, and thus they’ll keep a strict eye on you. There’s a good chance someone in your family is helping you pave your way towards the degree you’ve always wanted, so make sure you know where the money comes from, how often, and how much they are meant to pay. When you’ve got this budget structure set out from the get go, it’s going to be a lot easier to factor everything else in on top.

Then use common budgeting methods to keep on track. The 50-20-30 rule is always popular, but when you’re in uni there’s not going to be much chance to stock up on savings. However, the principle is the same. Make sure you have a rainy day fund in case you need to dash out to grab food at the end of the week.

Cut Costs on the Wedding

If you’re engaged and in the process of planning a wedding, congratulations are in order first of all! It’s meant to be a happy time, and marks an improvement in your current life situation, and that’s something a lot of people look forward to. However, this is once again a very expensive life event, and not a lot of people can manage it without a bit of advice at the very least.

Cutting costs on the wedding can mean you decide not to go all out with your plans, and instead get married in the registry office or simply elope. However, if you have a friend with a good back garden space or even a field to their name, see if you can use it. You don’t even need to have the cake professionally done if you have a budding baker in the family! It’s more personal to involve your friends and family in all steps of the preparation, and you’re going to save a lot of money.

Know Where and When to Use a Lawyer

If you don’t know the events in life in which you’ll need a lawyer on your side to make the process smoother, it’s time to look into the cases and see which ones you think would most apply to you. A personal injury attorney, for example, is someone a lot of people are going to have to cross paths with at some point, considering how easy it is to get hurt in our world: if you can’t work because of an injury, or can’t take care of your family, you’re going to need reparations to make ends meet. At the same time, make sure you’re taking all walks of life into account, such as financial reasons, personal reasons such as marriage, and things to do with your twilight years.

When you can approach these situations with a level head, because you’ve already done all your research and you’ve budgeted for them, you’re going to be a lot more secure with the prospect. If you know you’re the kind of person who doesn’t tend to get your emotions under control when an emergency occurs, making sure you have the means to hire someone who does know what to do will be a godsend.

Taking a Vacation When You Really Need One

Vacations are something everyone loves to dream about, but rarely anyone gets to do. When you’re on vacation, you’re feeling a lot more free and the stress can wash right over you because you’re not sitting at a desk or standing behind a counter for hours on end. But on the other hand, they’re incredibly expensive to factor in, and getting the time off to have one won’t work on short notice. However you can find great hotels for those on a budget.

So it’s then you need to turn to budget travelling. Look for packages that’ll keep the hefty costs out of your pocket, and try to book something months in advance. You’re more likely to get a discount that way, and try to travel outside of holiday times. Prices rack up around the spring and summer, so head away for the autumn or winter.

Approaching these kind of events when you’re on a budget is an incredibly daunting thing to do, so well done for being so brave already. Hopefully some of these tips can help you out in your efforts to get through them, and remember, we all need some help from time to time.