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Reply With QuoteI agree that prayer is the best thing to do. I am depending on the Lord to pull my family through. It has been very hard.
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Okay don't mean to me all doom and gloom but I know all you ladies and gents are thinking the same thing. If It all really goes down hill how can we be prepared. I'm not talking cazy stuff (although I think like that sometimes) but good sound preparation to prepare our families.
I know that I've read that the fall of Indy Mack will take 10% of the funds set aside for FDIC insurance and the two large banks that I work with have drastically fallen too. I don't have a lot of cash too lose so I guess that's a plus. :shrug7:
Here's a few I'm thinking of.
1. Pray!
2. Start using up my freezer food first save as much non perishables as possible.
3. Learn to cook (and eat) some of the lower cost choices. I think we've gotten spoiled with all the good deals on food. What if we had to rely on good old beans and etc.
4. Get important documents etc. in order. Our house is far from being paid off so in a financial crisis we could loose our home.
5. Make sure you keep some extra meds on hand including BC and vitamins
6. Keep your tank(s) at least 1/2 full of gas.
7. Have a decent amount of cash on hand. Worst case senario it won't be worth anything, but it won't in the bank either. I know some people that are withdrawing their 401K's etc. A bit drastic I think, unless it will pay off your house or something major like that.
8. Continue to give when you can.
Re: Preparing for the comming Recession/Depression I agree that prayer is the best thing to do. I am depending on the Lord to pull my family through. It has been very hard.
Re: Preparing for the comming Recession/Depression So what’s your opinion on how far this doom and gloom will get? I’m trying to stock up on food and personal care items now due to the increase in prices. Buy now on sale will save the inflation later. But… using up food in the freezer? (I’m stocking mine) Do you think we will have our electric turned off? If I can’t afford the electric bill as it is, I’ll turn everything off except the fridge/freezer, and well pump.
I sure hope we don’t loose our house, I know it could happen but I would do everything I could to keep the roof over our heads. I’d pay it off if I could, but can’t as of now, and don’t see me being in a position to in the near future. We’re plugging along with our payments.
I’ve been making much more from scratch, and I think my kids would hate me to go back to pre-packaged foods as home made is so good.
We’re growing a garden this year, kids love it too.
I don’t think we have our head in the sand, my husbands work is very sporadic (he’s in construction) and I’m a SAHM but we’re still optimistic that if we put away as much money/food/supplies as we can we’ll weather this storm. Maybe we’ll have some tough times, but I believe we will come out at the other end.
Re: Preparing for the comming Recession/Depression Learn to live without so much 'stuff'.
Americans are the most self-indulgent bunch of people in the world. Even the poorest are richer than half the world's population.
Re: Preparing for the comming Recession/Depression There are things everyone should do right now due to the inflation:
1) Stockpile excessively. As prices inflate, it is more difficult to find free items after coupon. If your family loses it's main source of income, food, baby, pet food, gifts, HBA, etc is not an extra worry.
2) If one hasn't, start an emergency savings immediately. This is especially true for those who are most vulnerable to lay off now.
3) Cut out the extras. Cut the cable package down, no more stops at Starbucks (unless you traded for a g.c.), etc.
4) Maximize reward sources. Make sure to use the 5% credit card for gas, enter your Coke codes, Pepsi codes, use Pamper points, MIR for items you need, complete surveys.
5) Consider making your own gifts. I made a towel cake; the only cost was the towels and the plastic shrink wrap. I decorated the cake with items from around our house. I also went to a rummage sale, found a beautiful gift basket, and haggled the price down for a dollar. I have filled it with all free HBA products. I am actually on my second basket (a $1 from the Dollar store).
6) Look (and possibly move) to closer sources of transportation. For example, we live off two bus lines (one right in front of our home). It is an electric bus so it does not emit CO2. I am not dependent on a car.
7) Barter. As prices rise, people are more open to the idea of barter. One member bartered free HBA items for gas, another barters her HBA for food.
8) Try to help those who are not as well off as you. As bad as you may think your situation is, there are people who have greater problems. This year, many people in my area will have to choose between oil to heat their homes or food. I hope to put some food in the local pantry before years end.
9) Gardens. Anyone who can should. It helps defeat the inflation of produce and you have food on hand should the economy collapse. Vegetarians like myself eat beans
10) Make extra payments to your mortgage (if possible). The more you pay now, the quicker you own your property. Also, refinance for a lower rate.
Re: Preparing for the comming Recession/Depression We are working hard on paying off our credit card debts, using Dave Ramsey's plan for the most part.
Pre Step 1: Stop buying stuff you don't need, especially on credit (wide screen HDTV anyone?) and get current on all your bills. Add up your consumer debt and look it in the eye, admit you made some stupid choices and get really mad about it, so mad that you want that debt gone, and will work really hard to make it happen. MAKE A BUDGET! So you know where your money really goes.
Step 1: Save up an emergency fund, at least $1000 in the bank, for real emergencies only. Ours is $1500 and I'm considering raising that to $2500.
Step 2: Pay off your credit cards and consumer debt (like car loans), get crazy, sell everything you don't need and pay down that balance. If you have a big car payment and a fancy car, consider selling the car and paying off the loan, even getting a personal loan to cover the difference if you are upside down on the car loan, as a $4000 personal loan is way better than a $25000 car loan. Buy a cheapo car and drive it till it dies. When the smallest balance card is paid off, add the payment to the card with the next smallest balance. We've paid off $8000 in 9 months, and still 18,000 to go.
Step 3: Save up a big emergency fund of 6 months expenses. Definitely a must have in this economy with job cut backs happening everywhere.
Re: Preparing for the comming Recession/Depression I don't really know what to think right now. I've just come to the realization that I have a very full freezer with fruit, veggies, meat, cheese etc., but not so much when it comes to non perishables. The deals were so good and frozen is better than canned so I haven't gotten much canned. I just realize that it would only take a few days without electric to loose it all. Even a bad storm with power outages for days could do it. We had one last year and borrowed a generator to get us through. I hate to buy one with the gas prices I don't know how long we could run one in an emergency.Originally Posted by 1daygourmet
Re: Preparing for the comming Recession/Depression Yep, it's going to get worse before it gets better. The new pres is going to have his hands full and if one in particular wins taxes are going to increase a lot.
Everyone's suggestions have been great.
I did a small test container garden this year and it didn't go so well, but I'm hoping that dh will help me do it again next summer on a larger scale (w/ a fence this time. Yesterday some critter pilfered my one and only green pepper!) - I'm a Vegetarian so that would help us out tremendously. We have other things in place and are pretty secure, but are helping my recently divorced daughter heal her finances and get back on her feet.
As my grandmother used to say, this too shall pass, but it will be very difficult before it's over. Hang in there everyone!
Re: Preparing for the comming Recession/Depression I had read (was it Jane of the 800./year fame?) that someone traded toothpaste (I think it was) for produce at an individual's produce stand. :)
I would love to get into more bartering. Our $ value is really going to go down if the feds keeping printing more and more $ and it would be fab to barter more - everyone might even get to know their neighbors and stuff again. :)
