Military Pay Update
It was only a couple of hours after my first post about military pay that I got the real answer. A friend texted me that her husband's LES was up and they were getting half pay. I had Kadynce in the tub so I sent a quick email by phone to my husband so he could check his LES and sure enough we are getting paid on the 15th just at half our usual pay. Again let me say I am so thankful we have been able to live off of half our income since my husband deployed!
Are you ready to live the last two weeks of April with only half of your pay? If not do not panic! Sit down right now and write out a new budget. Prioritize prioritize prioritize I can not stress that enough! The very first thing on your budget should be food for your family. You might need to take a peek in your pantry, fridge and freezer to see just what you have and if there are any items that you will have to replenish to get you through the month. Keep your menu simple and remember beans and rice goes a long way. Next on your budget should be your rent or mortgage if you have not paid it yet. Talk to your mortgage company or landlord to see if they will let you pay your bill a little late or accept a smaller amount until you get paid. After that your utilities as in water, gas, electric and basic phone service this does not include your internet or satellite bills. Again I will suggest calling to work out a smaller payment if you need to and requesting service that you do not need to be stopped and a restart fee waver if you need it. Transportation is the next thing on your budget. Do your best to keep gas in your car if you need it to drive to work and keep your insurance current.Make your car payment if it is due. Calling them to find out if there is any flexibility in that due date would not hurt either.
Food, Mortgage, Utilities and Transportation are your four walls these are the four things you need to survive everything else can wait.Medical expenses are also important, if you know that there is a medical expense not covered by military insurance coming up before the end of this month plan accordingly. Being in the military we are very fortunate that the majority of our medical bills are covered but there are exceptions to every rule.
For some of you maintaining your four walls will be very difficult. On top of that any late payments will trigger late fees causing your regular bills to be much higher then they would usually be once you do get your back pay. This means you need to think really hard about taking on an extra job or two or three. Pizza Delivery, Paper Delivery, beat the pavement offering to mow lawns, change oil, baby sit, walk dogs, clean out the basement or garage, sell some crafts or have a yard sale! Now is not the time to be proud or picky now is the time to get gazelle.
Once life gets back to normal and trust me it will consider cutting back on your living expenses keeping that extra job and getting out of debt so that you are never caught off guard by something like this again.
Are you ready to live the last two weeks of April with only half of your pay? If not do not panic! Sit down right now and write out a new budget. Prioritize prioritize prioritize I can not stress that enough! The very first thing on your budget should be food for your family. You might need to take a peek in your pantry, fridge and freezer to see just what you have and if there are any items that you will have to replenish to get you through the month. Keep your menu simple and remember beans and rice goes a long way. Next on your budget should be your rent or mortgage if you have not paid it yet. Talk to your mortgage company or landlord to see if they will let you pay your bill a little late or accept a smaller amount until you get paid. After that your utilities as in water, gas, electric and basic phone service this does not include your internet or satellite bills. Again I will suggest calling to work out a smaller payment if you need to and requesting service that you do not need to be stopped and a restart fee waver if you need it. Transportation is the next thing on your budget. Do your best to keep gas in your car if you need it to drive to work and keep your insurance current.Make your car payment if it is due. Calling them to find out if there is any flexibility in that due date would not hurt either.
Food, Mortgage, Utilities and Transportation are your four walls these are the four things you need to survive everything else can wait.Medical expenses are also important, if you know that there is a medical expense not covered by military insurance coming up before the end of this month plan accordingly. Being in the military we are very fortunate that the majority of our medical bills are covered but there are exceptions to every rule.
For some of you maintaining your four walls will be very difficult. On top of that any late payments will trigger late fees causing your regular bills to be much higher then they would usually be once you do get your back pay. This means you need to think really hard about taking on an extra job or two or three. Pizza Delivery, Paper Delivery, beat the pavement offering to mow lawns, change oil, baby sit, walk dogs, clean out the basement or garage, sell some crafts or have a yard sale! Now is not the time to be proud or picky now is the time to get gazelle.
Once life gets back to normal and trust me it will consider cutting back on your living expenses keeping that extra job and getting out of debt so that you are never caught off guard by something like this again.
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