7 Best Ways to Prevent Major Budgetary Catastrophes

Setting a well-planned budget is a great way to keep track of your money. However, sometimes disaster strikes, and you simply have to go outside of your budget to deal with it. Luckily, there are a number of ways you can help prevent many of these disasters.

1. Get Routine Car Maintenance

One of the most frustrating things many people deal with regularly is car trouble. When your car breaks down, it becomes more difficult to do daily tasks, such as go to work or get groceries. However, you can stave off problems with your car by simply taking care of routine maintenance. Make sure to add this into your budget regularly, so that it doesn’t hurt your finances.

Some of the routine things you should take care of include oil changes, tune ups, and tire rotation. These will help keep the vehicle going longer and stronger. When you ignore these, the likelihood that the car will encounter bigger problems increases.

2. Take Care of Small Problems Around the House

As houses and appliances within the home age, they’re going to have small problems. If you put off fixing these issues, they’re just going to grow. Instead, make sure to take care of the problems you find as quickly as possible. Everything from a leaky faucet to a bad pilot light in the water heater can get expensive if you let it sit without repair. Having a monthly or quarterly home repair section in your budget can help offset these extra costs.

3. Bi-Annual Pest Control

Getting a pest inspection may seem like a frivolous thing when you first consider it. However, insects, spiders, and other bugs (particularly bed bugs!) can wreak havoc on your home. Instead of waiting until you have a full infestation, get inspections done bi-annually. This allows you to keep a hold on the problem. In addition, it ensures that you don’t have to deal with the small annoyances of pests in the home regularly. Getting an inspection done twice a year is generally enough to keep infestations at bay, saving you money in the long run.

4. Get Yearly Checkups

Too many people today don’t have health insurance. Because of this, they simply don’t go to the doctor. While most see this as a way to save money, it can actually end up costing hundreds or thousands of dollars in the long-term. At your yearly checkup, your doctor is able to see if there are any problems coming, and take care of them. In addition to this, you can get boosters like the tetanus shot, allowing you to keep yourself healthy longer.

However, if you decide not to visit the doctor for your checkup, problems can arise without your knowledge. Heart conditions, cancer, and more all need to be found before they can be treated. If you wait too long, some conditions can get worse, causing you to need even more medical treatment.

5. Take Care of the Yard

Do you let weeds overtake your yard? Is the tree in the back branching out over the house? While you may feel that you simply don’t have the time for yard maintenance, this can cause significant damage in the future. A strong wind can tear down branches from the tree.

This could easily end up damaging your property or someone else’s. Weeds and other plants too close to the home can spread fire from one property to another. Make sure that you’re keeping an eye on the foliage outside, or it could end in disaster, bot to property and finances.

6. Keep An Eye on Your Credit Report

One way that your budget can be destroyed is with a bad credit score. If you don’t have any idea how your credit sits, you can’t plan for future loans or credit lines. Keeping an eye on your credit score helps you understand where interest rates and payments lie.

7. Plan Ahead

The best way to ensure that you don’t fall into financial ruin is to plan ahead. Make sure that you have money in savings. The traditional suggestion is that you have three months of expenses in savings at all times. This will help in the case of problems with your job as well as help you have a way to take care of extra expenses.

Keeping a budget is hard work. However, if you make sure that you’re keeping up on regular maintenance and problems, you can ensure that you stay away from financial disaster. With proper planning, even big problems don’t seem as bad.

Author Bio:

SB has had a passion for writing for as long as he can remember. From poetry to informational articles and more, SB has written on a large variety of topics. Some of his favorite topics are politics, marketing, gaming, and writing tips.

Visit him at natashamier.blogspot.com