Everyday, more and more Kenyans lose their jobs as the economy continues to take a beating. One of these jobless Kenyans could very well be your spouse. In a family setting, things can get very thick very quickly if a spouse loses their source of income.
Worse, if this source of income is the family’s primary source of livelihood. But surviving on a single income does not have to be a season of gnashing teeth. There are a few steps you can take to to survive on a single salary and make things easier to bear and manage.
Reassess your financial status
You must want to know what your financial status as a couple is once one income pipe dries up. What amount of outstanding debt do you have? What bills do you pay at the end of the month? What are your monthly household expenses? There are certain expenditures that the newly jobless partner was tasked with handling. For example, they might have been servicing a loan.
Write them down and determine which expenses are no longer tenable and which ones you can be accommodated by the single income. Cut unnecessary expenditures from your budget and divert the money to more pressing expenses. In fact, the best route to take is to remain with essentials such as food, power, and water bills only.
“You don’t want to take a mobile loan to stay subscribed to a premium pay television service when there is free-to-air service that you can temporarily readjust to,” says financial and tax advisor Martha Njoka.
Benefits and savings
One of the most critical mistakes you can make would be to redirect benefits that result from a job redundancy to settling basic bills. Or raiding the retirement benefits to keep up with the lifestyle you were used to. This also includes digging out the savings that the afflicted partner may have kept to settle expenditures.
“It is recommended that you should have savings that can cater for your expenses for a period of three to six months. But digging into your savings after losing your job ought to be the very last line of defense,” says Ms. Njoka. At the same time, using your employment benefits to start a new business must be well thought out.
According to Godwin Simba, the managing director of Octagon Africa Financial Services Limited, this is because retirement benefits that are paid out in cash lump sums usually get exhausted in the first three years.
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Debts
Don’t play a game of hide and seek with your creditors. For example, if one of you had taken a major financial obligation such as a mortgage, let them sit down with their lender and enter into a renegotiated payment agreement.
“The lender can waive interest for a short period or restructure your payment plan to give you breathing space. This will mostly work well if you had been paying off your obligations faithfully,” says Ms. Njoka. “The amount of restructured loans during the 2020 pandemic showed that it is possible to renegotiate terms when need arises.” Once you renegotiate, sit down and see what budget cuts you need to make to bridge the new gap. This will require open and honest communication.
The changing dynamics
Your household dynamics will have to change. And so will your attitude and reliance on each other. According to Dr. Chris Hart, most couples argue about money than any other thing in relationships. This means that being clear on roles and expectations from the moment a job is lost will come in handy.
You might find that you have to ask for money where you were not used to. Endeavour not to turn this into a habit, especially where the need is not too essential. From the onset, state the financial boundaries and rules of spending to abate possible financial conflicts, especially where you both have conservative and liberal approaches towards money. Cut on impulse spending and go thrifty if you are a spendthrift.
Bouncing back
It is important to remind yourselves that losing a source of income should not be a leeway for the fired spouse to turn into a home couch potato. “If you’ve lost your job or source of income, demonstrate resilience and adaptability by creating new income streams for yourself and your household,” says Ms. Njoka.
For example, due to the slowed economy, some Kenyans have turned to car-boot businesses. Some station their car-shops on roadsides during weekends while others sell their wares day to day in estates. These car-boot sales sell anything from eggs to fruits, vegetables to chickens, cereals to clothes on roadsides. Be equally reactive by putting your career ego down and creating new ways to make some money.
