Thursday, July 17, 2008

5 Strategies for Surviving Tough Times

1. Don't Buy What You Can't Afford

We all want that designer sweater, leather handbag, or cute sports car, but most of us just can't afford to make the purchases. There's a simple solution to this dilemma. If you can't afford it, don't buy it. This is often the easiest point to understand, but it is one of the hardest to implement when all those goodies are staring you in the face and all your credit companies are telling you it's OK.

Kite semua nak baju panas tempah khas, beg tangan kulit, atau keta sport comel, tapi kebanyakan dari kite sbenanye tak mampu nak beli semua tu. Ade penyelesaian untuk dilemma ni, kalo tak bleh beli, tak yah beli. Selalunye ni la yang paling senang nak paham, tp yg paling susah orang nak ikut, bile semua menda2 tu dah macam usha kite semacam je, company kredit kad pon kate ok..

2. If You Can't Pay Cash, You Probably Can't Afford It

In our credit crazy world, amassing debt no longer carries a social stigma. Everybody has a car payment, a house payment and credit card payments. Well, remember what your mother said about everybody jumping off of a bridge? Just because "everybody" is doing it, doesn't make it a good idea. Buying something you can't afford now, especially when the economy is unsettled, can double the pain of paying later. For example, if you purchase a $450,000 home today and the market goes into a slump and devalues your home by $200,000, you will be paying the bank twice what the home has come to be worth. Just because it was easy to get the credit to buy that home, doesn't mean it was the right time for you to buy in.

dalam dunie kredit kad yg gile ni, org dah tak heran dgn hutang yg byk. Semua orang kena baya keta, baya umah, dan kredit kad. Tp igt tak apa mak ckp pasal semua org terjun jambatan? Hanya kerana semua orang buat menda yg same, tak bermakne idea tu bagus. Beli menda yg kite tak mampu, nak2 plak time ekonomi teruk, boleh menggadakan sakit time nk bayar hutang nnt. Contohnye, beli umah 450k, tetibe market kacau, harge jatuh jd 200k, kite akan bayar double dari harge sebenar umah tu. Hanye kerana senang nk dpt loan beli umah, tak bermakne itu adalah mase yg seswai nk beli..

3. Paying Interest on Anything Makes Somebody Else Rich

When you pay interest on a purchase, you are overpaying for that item for the luxury of getting to use it now. The simple act of paying interest means that the price you are paying to make the purchase is greater than the sale price of the item. You are giving away even more of your hard-earned money in order to own that item than the manufacturer thought the item was worth. For example, if you buy a car for $25,000 with a loan at 7% interest for five years, in the end, you will pay almost $30,000 for the car. Once you factor in depreciation, you're left with a very cheap car that cost you thousands more than it should have.

Bile bayar bunge, kite sebenanye terlebih bayar untuk menda yg kite beli tu hanya utk kesenangan sekarang. Baya bunge tu maknenye kite baya untuk buatkan harge belian lagi tinggi dari harga jualan. Kite senang2 je bagi duit yg kite carik susah2 lebih2 supaya dapat beli menda yg pembuatnye kate berharge lagi murah. Contoh lagi, kalo beli keta 25k (boleh dapat mazda6 kot kat US)dgn interest 7% untuk 5 tahun, last2 nnt, kite sebenanye baya lebih kurang 30k untuk keta tu. Dah kire skali dgn value die yg turun tu, ape yg kite dapat hanyelah sebuah keta yang berharge lg mahal dr sepatutnye.

4. If You Are in Debt, stop Spending Money

Sometimes, such as when purchasing a home, the cost of the item is so great that you simply cannot afford to pay cash. This should be the exception rather than the rule. When it cannot be avoided, you need to close your purse and stop spending. Getting yourself further it debt doesn't help your financial situation. Making a realistic budget in this case is the key to success. Once you know how much you're actually spending on those daily trips to the grocery store and coffee shop, you'll be able to find room to cut costs realistically.

Kadang2, contoh mase beli umah, kos barang sangat tinggi sampai kite takbleh bayar cash (selalunye laa). Ni patut nye jd pengecualian, bkn syarat. Maknenye, bile tak bleh elak, kite patut tutup beg duit, dan berenti berbelanje. Menyebabkan diri kite berhutang takkan tolong keadaan kewangan kite. Buat belanjawan yg realistic dalam kes ini adalah kunci kejayaan gilang gemilang. Bile kite da tau berape byk kite belanje utk barang runcit dan kedai kopi, pasti kite akan dapat cari jalan utk kurangkan kos secara realistiknye.

5. Don't Count on Somebody Else to Save You

In times of economic uncertainty, people often think the government will be able to help them, but unfortunately this is often the time when the government has the least amount of money and freedom to help its own citizens. In most cases, the government won't save you, so you'll have to save yourself. When the economy is in a downturn, you can't just look at what you are spending, you also need to look at where the money is coming from. Your employer is facing the same difficulties you are: trying to make bill payments, balancing the flow of capital, all while sales are slowing. Just like you, your employer will be looking to reduce its costs, which could be in the form of layoffs. You could be in big trouble if you haven't planned for this possibility. The plan here is to start saving now for that eventual rainy day, and prepare an emergency fund for yourself. If it is too late to start saving and you already need the money, many financial institutions will let you defer a payment or two if you prove you have a smart financial plan to eventually pull through.

Dalam keadaan ekonomi yg tak tentu, orang slalu igt kerajaan boleh tolong rakyat, malangnye mase ni lah biasenye kerajaan tade duit dan kemudahan nak tolong rakyat. Dalam byk kes, kerajaan takkan tolong kite, jadi kite kena tolong diri sendiri. Bile ekonomi merudum, kite takbleh tgk hanye kat mane kite blanje, kena tgk gak dari mane duit tu datang. Majikan kite pon ade masalah yg same, baya bil, nak imbangkan aliran modal, mase jualan tgh slow. Macam kite gak, majikan akan cari jalan nak potong kos, yg kadang2 melibatkan layoff (macam VSS ape semua tu). Mmg susah aa kalo kite takde plan utk kemungkinan2 camni. Plan skarang adalah utk mule simpan duit untuk mase akan datang, dan siapkan dana kecemasan kite sendiri. Kalo dah terlewat nak simpan duit dan kite tgh memerlukan, banyak bank akan bagi kite tangguh 1-2 bayaran kalo terbukti kite ada plan kewangan yg baik untuk bertahan.

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