Author: Chillmaadi Admin

Getting a loan is, generally, far easier than paying it. But that fact would no way dismay borrowers. Still, credit opportunity tends to be availed of once presented. For some, getting a loan is really a way out of their pressing financial predicament, for some just to make their credit scores look better, and others just for the heck of it, like it’s just another habit.

People feel good when their loan is approved and released, but, would feel the other way around when paying time comes. Getting a loan may solve one’s financial problems, the way it may worsen another’s. Default in payment is no joke. Surcharges and penalties imputed can really mess someone’s financial situation. And of course, such would impact negatively on his credit standing as well.

Therefore, to avoid being swayed by your borrower-instincts once a credit opportunity comes up, consider the following factors before applying for a loan.

1. 1. THE NEED
      Define what the loan is for. Is it to settle a financial obligation, or just to buy something you want? Is it for additional working capital, to fund a new investment, or just to finance travel plans? If it is something that can wait, it is always better to save for it.
   2. BENEFITS
      How does the loan benefit you? Is it worth the interest you will incur? Will it be a quick solution yet a greater burden later? Loans, especially long-term ones, require financial planning and projections. The loan proceeds you get now may temporarily ease your tight liquidity, but you need to look forward to what situation it may put you into later.
   3. PAYING CAPACITY
      Here’s the most important factor – your capacity to pay. How will you repay the loan? Of course the creditor’s major consideration here is your source of income. Are you employed? How much is your net salary? Do you have your own business? Does your cashflow suit the loan amortization/payment schedule? After deducting all your regular expenses, will you have enough excess cash to pay for the loan?
   4. EQUITY
      This item is for those getting a loan to increase working capital or fund investments. Equity pertains to your capital share or funds you have put in your business, representing ownership interest. Most lenders want to see that you are risking your own money before asking for a loan.
   5. SECURITY
      Adequate collateral is usually required. For emergency loans like payday advances, a written check would be enough to serve as loan security. However, for long-term and big credit tickets, most lenders would ask for worthwhile assets. Collateral can consist of either personal or business assets, or both. Borrowers can assume that all assets financed with borrowed funds will collateralize the loan.
   6. CREDIT BACKGROUND
      Now, are you ready to present your credit record? Is your credit score favorable? In getting a loan, you should consider not only your current credit standing but, think out how the loan you are applying for would affect it once granted. Are you over-exposed, meaning, will this loan be an addition to the so-many-outstanding financial obligations you already have? According to FICO (the major credit scoring agency) representatives, it is best to have at least four reportable credit accounts active on your credit history (i.e. car loan, home loan, visa, & mastercard). However, having a lot of credit obligations would make it difficult for you to monitor, more so to pay. And take note, if some payments are received one day late, lenders may raise your interest rates and perhaps report you delinquent.
   7. PREVAILING CONDITIONS
      After checking your internal situation, check also the prevailing external conditions vis-à-vis your loan purpose and paying capacity (i.e. retrenchment peak, business slack season, loan rates, inflation, etc). Inadequate or ill-timed financing is a close second to an inappropriate loan when it comes to bad credit.

It is always good to know that one can apply and qualify for a loan, but it is always better to make the preliminary assessment, because if there is anyone who knows one’s self and his real situation better than any creditor, it is the borrower himself. On top of all these, any negative consequences from the credit transaction entered into, remember that the borrower is the ultimate casualty.

The wisdom you get from being financially distressed are as follows:

1. You learn to budget (and plan financial solutions)
2. You learn to switch off unnecessary lights and unplug electric equipment
3. You learn to schedule the use of your PC and AC
4. You learn self-control (no impulse-buying)
5. You learn to save on everything (no eating out, watch old movies on tv instead of renting dvds)
6. You learn the road short-cuts to save on gas (hey, you’re even improving your navigational skills!)
7. You learn to read newspapers and ads (what’s on sale, clearances, promos, roll-backs, discount coupons)
8. You learn to discover and be creative (i.e. recycling)
9. You learn to be patient (a virtue indeed!)
10. You learn to pray (hopefully)

Teens are great. They are becoming adults and exploring the world. They are going through many changes both physically and mentally. They often are driven by over-active hormones that they don’t understand. As a parent of teens I will share some experiences in this series of articles that I have found helpful to make these exciting years a positive experience and not a battle ground.

In part one of this series I considered music and the way this can unite us with the teenagers in our family or it can divide us from them. In the second article I looked at alcohol. The third article looked at motivating kids for success at school or college. This fourth article looks at how we taught our youngsters about money and financial responsibility.

Money

Kids are expensive. Period. From before they are born until long after they have left home they will cost you more money than you can ever imagine. Good parents want to give the best to their children and one of the most valuable and useful gifts we can bestow is an appreciation of the value of money and a mature attitude on to how to use it.

Now before I start I must explain I have a job and we are not broke as a family. What I write here comes from this background – if you are not working and money is very tight your approach will probably be different but some of the principles that I outline should work for every one.

Pocket money

When kids first start wanting money to spend most parents give them an allowance or pocket money. This may be a basic weekly sum which they know can be augmented by extra payments that are linked to doing certain extra chores. It is some peoples practice to make the whole allowance dependent on chores. That can encourage a healthy attitude linking work and money but it can also have a downside. My youngsters have to do a considerable amount of school work in the evenings and at weekends. If all of their allowance was dependent on chores they would not earn very much. I want to encourage them to study. So we came to a compromise. We agreed a basic allowance with extra to be paid for chores and we agreed a scale for the various jobs that needed doing. That worked for many years.

Spending patterns

At an early age they want money for sweets, chocolate, candy, games, toys, books and magazines. The allowance is usually too small to buy everything they want so they learn to save up for what they want. They put some money away each week until they have enough for the new play station game or Harry Potter book that they want.

Work

For many kids getting a part time job is a great way of getting extra money and learning that it has to be earned. We live out in a rural area and it would be difficult for my teens to get into town to get a part time evening or Saturday job. It has only been possible for them to find work in the school vacations – and often that has involved my wife and myself ferrying them back and forward. If we took account of the time and expense of doing this it was really not worth all the effort.

Buying clothes

As my daughter became older she wanted to have a much greater say in the choice of her clothes. In fact like all teenagers she became very conscious of her appearance and what she was wearing. Fortunately her high school has a strict uniform policy so the majority of each week-day she has to wear the uniform. This is great from a parents point of view. There are never any disagreements about what she will wear for class. However for leisure time all teens are very self conscious and want to be fashionable and appropriately dressed for the various social activities they enjoy.

Designer labels

You probably know that for many teens “labels” are the most important thing. They must have the “right” designer labels. This is the same for clothes, sports shoes, bags, and all the little accessories that teenage girls seem to say they need. Having the right shoes is also very important for boys too. There have been cases I know of where boys have been bullied because they wear cheap supermarket track shoes rather that the latest designer ones. Or some children have been attacked or mugged for wearing very expensive designer shoes and had them stolen on the first day they have worn them on the street.

Shopping for sports shoes was a pain. The ones my son liked were based not on the price or the fit but whether the label was cool. And invariably the ones that were most cool were the ones that were most expensive. And likewise my daughter looked at clothes not for fit and price but for label and would ask us to pay for things we considered highly overpriced.

Responsibility

Then we had a brainwave. At the age of 15 we passed the responsibility for buying their clothes to the teenagers themselves. My wife and I worked out what we considered a sensible monthly budget. We gave them a list of what we expected it to cover and what we would continue to pay for. We agreed to pay for school uniform clothes. But all their casual clothes and shoes would have to come out of their much larger allowance. They would also have to pay for the social outings and trips and buy birthday and Christmas presents for their friends.

We sat back and watched what would happen as they discovered that they had more money to spend than they had ever had before. We were anxious and we wondered if they would blow the whole months allowance on some expensive designer gear and then come groveling to us for an advance on next months allowance. We had decided that there would be no money that could be brought forward – they would have to live off the months allowance and we would stick strictly to these limits for three months.

The outcome

We were surprised by the result. They competed with each other in looking for bargains. They went to discount stores and thrift shops and saved enough money to have a full social life. They worked out for themselves that the very cheapest shoes and clothes were not going to last for more than a couple of months but the designer labels were vastly overpriced. They began to look for quality and link this to value for money. They even both managed to have a little money left at the end of the month. They were happy to justify what they spent to their friends who seemed to envy the freedom of choice that they had. And most of all, as well as becoming financially responsible, they actually both enjoyed the experience. And so this has now become our way of handling their allowances, and we are delighted to see them becoming financially mature and responsible.

How to save money? Where can I cut more on expenses? What can I do to save some money? Questions after questions hit your head every day and every night if you live on a shoe string. It is a constant worry for everybody in these days and age. For a single mother, it is even worst when you face the challenge of raising children on your own. I have to find ways to make ends meet. I have to be creative in what I do. So through trials and errors, I found 5 areas in my daily life where I can save some money.

1. Groceries expenses

   Every week, flyers arrive in your mailbox whether you want it or not. Why not scan over the store advertising that you shop at, and make out a list of what is on sale? It will save you time remembering, keeping you on track, and be aware of what you buy. If you have coupons, use them, and these will add up to your savings. If you have internet, look for coupons online, print them out and take them to your market. Go to: Print Coupons. Shop for mark down meat, bread, dairy products, fruits, and vegetables. They are generally not bad; they are just really close to expiration dates. Just make sure that your family can use these items before they are expired. You are not saving any money if you ended up throwing them out.

2. Gasoline expenses

   Organize your trip well. Mentally recall the route that you will be traveled on. What stores are you going to pass? Do you need to do some shopping in those stores? Instead of jumping in your car and take off every time you need something, have it map out before you get on the road can save you a bit of money spending on gasoline. I am very frugal in this aspect since gasoline is now cost an arm and a leg. I only stop at stores that were conveniently on my way there, and go to stores that were conveniently on my way back. I do not turn around or go in circles.

3. Shopping expenses

   Paying for high prices in clothing and shoes are not an option in my house. I only shop in stores that have clearance sale. Yes, my kids are embarrassed when I told them to “hit the clearance rack and start digging”. However, it has quickly become a game for us to see who’ll find the best bargain. I put a limit amount of money on every item that we buy. I usually shop at TJ Maxx, Marshall Mall, and Burlington Coat Factory for clothes. For shoes, I shop at Famous Footwear store with my free reward program card, they send me a $10.00 coupon every few month. These stores offer brand name designers at a low price that fits my pocket. Wal-Mart is my store for household supplies. They are a bit cheaper than Target, or K-Mart.

4. Utilities Expenses

   Electric, water, heat, and phone bills eat a chunk out of your income every month. For electricity, we only use one high efficiency light bulb at a time. We turn off lights in other rooms, unless someone is using it. My children learn at a very early age to turn off the light, the radio or the game when they leave the room. In the winter, we keep the heat at a comfortable degree, and wear an extra sweater if we get cold. We don’t turn the heat up without putting on socks and an extra layer first. As we have all learned about how to conserve water, we apply that rule at home too. We don’t run water while brushing our teeth or washing our hands. You have heard that having a bath takes less water than a shower, right? Well, do it. It will save gallons of water, which in turn, save on the energy, and resulting in saving you money. For my home phone bill, I cut it down to the core. I have no call waiting, no long distance, and no caller ID. I keep my phone on the lowest price possible since I had a year contract with DSL.

5. Entertainment expenses

   I allow my children one fast food meal, and go to one second-run theatre a week. These alone cut down on my entertainment bill to more than half. At second-run theatre, I pay only $2.00 per ticket compares to $8.00 at other theatres. Once a month, we go to a good restaurant with the money I put away for this purpose. I sign up with Block Buster online program at $10.00 a month. I get one movie mailed to me; I then take this mailer back to the store and pick out another one to watch, while waiting for the next mailer to come in the mail. This is unlimited. This too, has saved us lot of money. Instead of spending $6.00 on two new movies once a week. Well, as I wrote this article, Block Buster has just changed this rate, it’s now limited to two in store movies per month. I guess they just want to hook you in, and then change their program to make more money somehow.

Look around to see where you can cut. Work it out on a piece of paper to see how much you can save a year. Sometimes, the small numbers of saving will not impress you, but if you take that numbers and multiply by 12, you will have a significant different feeling about it.

It is only numbers, but it can actually keep you on track with your budget. Living frugal is not hard if you look for ways to save or cut down. I am a single mother of three, and I am a living proof that it is possible to live on a shoe string in these days without missing much.

A few years ago, I moved to Seattle, WA and put myself through film school.  I lived in Seattle for two years, working as a barista.  In my first year I made just below $14,000.  The next year, I made just over $15,000.  During that time, I didn’t feel any economic pressure and I was still able to dine out, go out for drinks, and frequent movie theaters.  Below is a list of ways I cut my expenses without cutting out all the luxuries.

Cheap Rent

This one is crucial.  In two years time I lived in three locations.  I shared a big house with a bunch of friends, split a basement apartment with one friend, and then got a proper apartment my last 6 months in town.  At no time did I pay over $500 a month for rent, which was still a full pay check.  I never rented any place unless the majority of the utilities were included.

Learn to Love Roommates

You can’t make it off of no money and live alone, at least not in most places.  Try to find someone that has a similar lifestyle but also has their own friends and social life.  That way, you’re not constantly stepping on each other’s toes.

Good Location

All three places I lived had a few things in common.  1. It had to be cheap but in a safe neighborhood.  2. There had to be public transportation very close by.  3. It had to be close to shopping, restaurants, grocery stores and convenience stores.  This was vital.  Being in easy walking distance and/or close to public transport helps a great deal with the next point.

No Car

This sounds crazy in modern-day America, but, trust me, if you can get away without your own set of wheels then you’ll be far better off.  First off, no car payment.  Secondly, no gas costs.  Third, no car insurance.  Fourth, no friends trying to borrow your car and then wrecking it or leaving it on empty.  This saves you tons of money and if you’re close to everything and public transport, it’s really not much of a hassle.

Watch Out For Coupons

A lot of times, coupons are for brand-name products and even with the discounts, they aren’t as cheap as store brand.  The entire time I lived in Seattle, I did not buy one brand-name product if there was a cheaper option.  This will save you some serious cash every month.  Also, I never used a coupon.

Go Easy On The Groceries

Remember, there aren’t that many necessities.  Cereal is cheap.  Sandwich stuff is cheap. Pasta, beans, and soups are cheap.  Round this out with salads and apples as snacks and you’ve pretty much got a week’s worth of groceries for less than $75.   Awesome.  Also, skip sodas, sports drinks, and any unnecessary liquids.  Instead, buy some tea bags and make your own iced and hot teas.

Go To The Movies, Just Bring Your Own Snacks

I was in film school, so skipping the movies was not an option.  I tried to see matinees but didn’t mind springing for evening prices occasionally.  I would buy a small popcorn but sneak in a can of soda.  I know movie theaters make their money on concessions and I love Landmark Theaters, a popular chain in Seattle and throughout the country.  I made sure to buy at least a little something so they made their money and stayed open.  By bringing my own drink, I made sure I didn’t get abused on soda prices.  I could afford to do this a few times a month.

Eat Out, But Eat Cheap

I tried not to eat out often, but when I did, I either made it a lunch out or a cheap dinner.  Typically, lunches are cheaper and quicker.  I don’t skip the tip ever.  I used to wait tables so I refuse to go out if I can’t afford to leave at least a 15% tip, at least.  Also, skip desert, order water, and no appetizers or salads.  You can still get a filling meal, and if you scout it out right, the whole thing may cost less than $15.

Learn To Love Pre-Partying and Happy Hour

A six pack of good beer costs $8; six good beers at a bar could be more towards $30.  Have a few at home before heading to happy hour where the beers are cheaper anyway.  Also, learn to love cheap beers.  I learned to love PBR.  If I can do it, so can you!  Helpful Tip: If you’re in a location convenient to many things, chances are you have a bar or two in walking distance as well.  This will really cut down on cab rides and save you more cash!

Define Necessities

Buying books is somewhat of an addiction for me, but I gave it up while I was a student.  During my school days, I learned to love the library and friends’ collections.  In other words, the free stuff.  My money was for food, film, rent, and little niceties.  I didn’t go clothes shopping unless it was at the thrift store or on super sale at a department store.  I didn’t buy dvds, jewelry, or any “luxury” items and I didn’t miss them.  They weren’t necessary.

Find A Job With Perks

I worked as a barista for a national chain while I went to school.  Not a lot of money but it came with flexible hours, cheap but good health insurance, free coffee/coffee beans and heavily discounted food and snacks.  For part-time work, not a bad gig.  I also got paid vacation time so visiting my family in Virginia was at least partially paid for.

Cheap Outings

There’s plenty of ways to blow money going out with friends, but there’s also plenty of cheap alternatives.  Seattle offered a ton of free parks, free museum days, a large downtown to hang out in, and discounted tickets to students and people under 25 at certain theaters.  I’ve lived in a few different states and have found that many of them have at least parks and a few free events.  Be a bargain shopper when going out.  Chances are, whatever you find to do, you can find a discount for it or a free alternative to it.  This is how I lived for two years.  It was really quite easy and only required a little bit of sacrifice.  It won’t work for everyone, but hopefully one or two tips will be useful to most people.  Oh yeah, and so you don’t think I did  this in the seventies or something, those two years were 2013 and 2014.

1. Always pay your necessities first, including bills, child’s needs, food etc. Once your necessities are out of the way, keep some personal money and put the rest into a savings account, be sure to make a habit of putting this little bit aside and it will grow very quickly.
2. With the price of fuel these days, try not to drive your car as often, this could include doing a car pool or even walking or riding a bike. Another good tip I personally recommend is to fill your car up on the cheapest day of the week, the prices work in a cycle. Even if your fuel lasts 2 weeks you will save money in the long run by routinely filling up on the weekly cycles cheapest day.
3. Food is about the same as fuel these days, if you eat out constantly or live on take away food, you’ll soon notice your funds dwindling once again. Prepare a home cooked meal or bring a packed lunch, believe me you’ll notice the difference.
4. When it comes to clothing, shop around for the best deal, I can tell you now I’ve saved hundreds of dollars on expensive jeans, jackets and so on by not taking the first offer and having a better look around.
5. If you smoke you may want to consider quitting, not just to save money but for your health. I quit smoking a few years back and feel great now, and the money I’ve saved is unbelievable. How many packets do you buy a week? Add them together, do the math.
6. It may take a little money to buy some decent gym equipment, and require a little more motivation to do at home than going to a gym, but once you are motivated you can certainly save some money on monthly gym fee’s and not have to worry about binding contracts and crowded locker rooms.
7. If you find yourself continually buying the same products on a weekly basis and using the same things routinely, consider looking for bulk suppliers and buying things in bulk, you may pay a bit more up front to buy a larger quantity, but you’ll be saving money in the long run.
8. If you’ve got a mobile phone plan like myself, you may be one of them people that always finds yourself with large bills as you slowly lose track of how many calls you make, not to mention how quickly SMS messages add up. Try using a landline more often, or taking a walk to your friends house instead.
9. Don’t be wasteful, I know how convenient it can be just to throw something out and not think twice about it. I’m not telling you to be a hoarder and stack your cupboards to the roof, but think sensibly before you start throwing away things that could be potentially useful.
10. Last but not least, if you find you’ve got some spare money, whether you’ve got some left over, or you won it gambling(you shouldn’t be gambling if you’re trying to save money anyway), you should always hang on to it, never lay your money back down or decide because its spare you need to spend it. Go back to step 1 and put it in that account and watch it grow.

In order to remember well this article, I have here an acoustic of the Word “CASH”.

C-hange Your Lifestyle

In order to increase your cash flow, there might be some changes in your lifestyle. The way you manage your Money and the things you buy.Or your eating habit might need some adjustments in order to save some.

A-lways Be Open-Minded

Opportunities come and go in our lives. Take some thought and grab some opportunities that will lead us to honestly earn some.

S-ave and Invest

Saving is a habit that needs to be practiced in our lives so that it will soon become a part of our system.You might be surprised on the amount you might have gathered after a long time of saving. You might even become a Millionaire just by compounded savings. There are some companies or Institutions that teach about Compounded Savings.You just have to be resourceful.You may use the Internet on that matter.Then you can now Invest what you have saved.

This simple Formula might be of help:

INCOME-SAVINGS= EXPENSE

H-ave a Financial Plan or a Budget System

Be a Financial Executive in your own right. Have a Financial Plan in your Daily,Weekly and Monthly Expenses. Start it by having a 60-day records on all your expenses. This may help you check on how much really is your monthly Expenses. Then put into two Columns the- NEEDS VS. WANTS. You may cut the Expenses on your wants then set aside that amount it may help you in your DEBT REDUCTION. That means you may use the saved amount to pay your Debts.Remember: ” Decreasing Debts is Increasing Cash!”

These are just simple Steps in order to Increase Cash Flow if you follow them, you might be surprised on the results. “Be diligent there is no shortcut to the road of Riches.” Hard earned Money deserved to be Increased little by little it will grow.

There is a lot of talk about cash, jobs and the economy right now, all over the world. People are worried that they could have to take a pay cut, or worse, could lose their jobs. People are also worried that they may not be earning enough money to maintain their current lifestyle. With that in mind, I chose to write this article on how to save money, the right attitude to have towards money, and how to make the most of the money you have available to you.

The first tip is very simple. If you’re unsure of how much you’re spending, always over estimate. That way, you will generally find out that you aren’t spending as much as you though, and you’ll suddenly have some spare cash that you didn’t know that you had. If you under estimate your expenses, you may find that you run into debt when you spend the extra cash you thought you had on luxury items.

Secondly, make sure you always have a limit on the amount of cash that you are willing to spend on hobbies. This can be very tough. Be it gaming, scuba diving, model airplane building or anything else, hobbies generally are very expensive. As hard as it is to accept, food, shelter and security all come before your hobbies. If you have to choose between food and hobbies, you’ve already gone wrong. It should never be a choice you have to make; you should know to put the essentials before the items you want.

If you’re the type of person that likes to go window shopping, make sure you bring very little cash when you do. You can easily be tempted by items in the window if you’re carrying enough cash, particularly if they are on sale or reduced. If you don’t have enough cash, but you feel you want it, you’ll either realise on the way home that it would purely have been an impulse buy, or you’ll feel you need it because it is genuinely necessary.

Always make sure that you save money from your paycheck before you go spending it. If you receive paychecks of $500, and you’ve decided you want to save $50 per paycheck, save that once you get your paycheck. Don’t try to only spend $450 of the paycheck and then have the rest left over. That won’t work, as you’ll be too tempted to spend the extra $50 on something you really do not require.

This is a great way to make some extra cash, without having to further dent your paycheck. Instead of lodging your savings into a normal checking account, open a proper account for savings. You’ll see very shortly that you’re getting a lot more money in interest in your savings account than you would in a checking account. This spare cash could really come in handy in the future.

That’s all for now, but look out for a Part 2 in the future. Remember, a penny saved is a penny earned.

A few weeks ago, a stockbroker came to our school to encourage us kids to save our money and invest so that we too could have an ensured future. I want to share the 5 ways that I learned with you.

Start Now

As they say, it’s never too early to save. Time is an investment too and it’s running!

Invest your Money

Make your money grow. Go to Stock Exchange websites and observe the nature of stocks. Once you’re sure in the company you want to invest your money in, seek the help of a stockbroker.

Try to set aside a meager percentage of your earnings

This is where small things turn big in due time! This is the actual basic saving. Don’t spend everything you earn.

Set a goal

Identify your reasons for saving (Ex. You want to buy a car, open up a business, etc.)And make them motivate you.

Remember, it’s not how much you earn; it’s how you much you spend!

Sometimes, people go over their budget so they use their credit cards to purchase instead. But here’s the thing, once your money is not enough to buy you the things you want YOU CAN’T AFFORD IT.

Many western cultures do not expect children to spend their early married life putting aside enough money so that they can financially support their parents, as the parents would rather they spent the money on establishing their new family unit and supporting themselves with their own day to day expenses.

But in many Asian cultures and further afield, children willingly see that it is their duty to financially support their parents who are of modest means, rather than view their parents as a financial burden. Even if the children move to a more affluent country, such as the United States, their culture does not leave them. Many adult children continue to do what they can to support their parents by sending money home each month.

Own Family Concerns

However, not all newlywed adult children are in a position to offer financial support to their parents for a number of reasons. Some couples decide to start a family right away, which means they will need to save as much of their income as possible once they have their own children to support.

A newlywed couple who hail from the same country and cultural background will understand the unspoken responsibility that they will continue to assume. But a couple who do not share the same background may find that they cannot offer financial assistance to their parents because their spouse does not wish to support their in-laws. Instead, they may prefer to use the money to pay off any outstanding wedding debt or to save up to buy a house. This difference of opinion can cause friction in a marriage whether financial support continues or if it ceases. A couple will need to discuss how they feel about the issue of offering financial assistance and decide whether they will stop the support, send occasional gifts of money or if more regular support will be required until the parents are in a position to support themselves.

Division of Responsibilities

While an only child may at times secretly feel financially burdened with supporting his or her parents, multiple children can help to ease the stress by dividing their responsibilities amongst themselves so that they all have a share in caring for their parents.

Offering financial support to your parents when you are a newlywed can help to keep parents afloat as they struggle to make ends meet, or it can cause tension in your own marriage. There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to offering financial support. Many factors come into play when deciding whether to continue to offer support or not. But the most important point to keep in mind is to discuss the matter with your new spouse and come to an arrangement that will benefit all concerned without draining your own resources.