With the tough times that we are in right now, many families are struggling financially. Prices of necessities spike up and many jobs were lost. There are even other families who fall into financial difficulties due to expensive medical bills. This can take a toll on both the mental and emotional health of your family members.
However, it is a given fact of life that people typically turn to their loved ones and family members for support during times of adversity. Sometimes there are instances that well-meaning family members who wish to provide financial help also find themselves needing help in the end.
Check out these options to help your family members in financial trouble without hurting yourself in the process.
1. Use government assistance programs
The COVID-19 pandemic pushed government assistance programs to full tilt as many people who never needed them before did so now. The available government assistance programs usually have parameters and requirements. You may extend financial help by doing the research for them in your local government unit or via the website of different departments in your country.
By doing this, you have indirectly led them to a source of financial help. You may further help them by assisting them in acquiring requirements. The only disadvantage to this is the possibility of disqualification since different programs cater to different needs and the delay to the financial help with the long queue and waiting lists.
2. Borrow from an acquaintance
Another way to extend financial help is by using your network. If you know some friends or acquaintances who can lend, then you can refer your family to them. Simply create terms with your acquaintance. Clarify the following details:
The amount of the loan: The amount of money that will be borrowed
Payment terms: Whether there will be an interest or not and how is it going to be calculated. Whether the loan will be a lump-sum payment or done on an installation basis.
Payment due dates: This should be agreed upon depending on the payment terms.
Recourse: Just in case, you fail to return the borrowed amount, the legal action or interest charges must be defined.
The downside to this is the pressure of paying off in an instant since you do not want to cause inconvenience to the lender.
3. Borrow from consumer finance
If ever that you don’t want to personally find someone to lend you money, you may also opt to borrow from consumer finance. Common consumer loans are home mortgages, auto loans, credit cards, personal loans, student loans, home equity, and HELOC loans. You may choose whatever is appropriate to your situation.
If you have assets, you also have the option to apply for a secured loan. As the loan is backed by assets, the risk you might possibly face is reduced. For example, in the event that you are unable to pay the borrowed money, the lender would be able to take possession of collateralized assets and liquidate them to repay the outstanding amount.
If you don’t have assets, there are still consumer finances that allow unsecured loans. However, there is a shorter repayment period for this type of loan which may cause stress to you and your family.
4. Crowdfunding
If you want to save yourself from the burden and hassle of repaying, you may also choose to create a project or open campaigns on crowdfunding platforms.
Airfunding is one of the crowdfunding platforms available online.No qualifications are needed and all you have to do is to create a project in just five minutes. Only set your target amount and completion date, and then set an image and project title that best describes your situation.
You won’t have to worry about platform fees because there are no fees to open a project in Airfunding. A testament to how easy it is to get financial help in Airfunding is Maricel’s project residing in Pulilan, Bulacan, Philippines. Maricel is in need of financial help for the surgery of her craniopagus twins. She was able to collect $1,456 (₱74,334.33) after creating a project in Airfunding.
If you want to create a crowdfunding project , start with Airfunding now!
Other articles:
Read also: