Start being stingy with your mates | Savings with Sarah #15
Always tread carefully when lending friends money.
Mixing business with pleasure can always be a risky game, and now Finder research has confirmed that 1 in 4 people never see the funds again.
It's one thing to shout a round at after-work drinks that don't get repaid. But it's quite another to lend someone cash on the understanding that you'll get the money back, and it never materialises.
As Charlotte famously told Carrie (when she was in a money pickle after breaking up with Aidan): "It's not my responsibility to fix your finances. You're a 35-year-old woman. You need to learn to stand on your own."
Whatever your age and lifestage, it can be hard to find yourself in a situation where you want to help your friends out, but you also don't want to risk being out of pocket.
If your friends or loved ones need a hand financially and you don't want to dip into your savings, but you want to be helpful and supportive, there's a few things you can suggest they do:
💰 Apply for a 0% interest loan – if they're eligible, they can get up to $3,000 from Good Shepherd to use towards rent or other expenses
💰 Contact their bank - and ask to access their hardship program. Every bank has one.
💰 Get in touch with the National Debt Helpline - they can help you restructure debts and even negotiate some of your debts down
💰Roll all of your debts into one new personal loan - so you only have to pay one minimum payment each month, rather than multiple debts.
💰Consider getting a 0% balance interest credit card - to transfer your existing credit card debt to, so you can pay it off off time and save a small fortune on interest.
Bottom line: there are lots of potential solutions to their money problems that don't involve you swooping in to save the day.
