In the U.S., more than 189 million Americans have at least one credit card, and on average, most consumers have four with an average balance of about $8,400. In our experience, most credit card debt stems from two issues: either someone doesn’t have a budget and has overspent, or they do not have an emergency savings for when a major expense comes up. Let’s talk about that second reason today.
In life, we have to plan for unpredictability. An emergency savings account is a critical component to any financial plan. We define ‘emergency savings’ as an account with minimal to no risk, containing three to six months of your fixed expenses, meaning rent or mortgage, groceries, and utilities, among others.
Let’s be intentional about setting money to the side for potential emergencies to avoid accumulating unnecessary debt.