I recently went to hop in my car and drive to class.
And it was going to cost me $175 to retrieve.
That fund had grown over the past few months.
I felt so guilty that I didnt use my emergency fund.
I borrowed money from a friend instead.
No Interest Til Almost 2027?
I know, I know.
Youre probably groaning and thinking, I have to save even more money?!
But I barely get by as it is!
The idea with savings is eventually you will deplete them on the goal you were saving for.
Did you know?
I had been putting a little bit away each week and feeling good about it.
Im a financially responsible adult!
But the problem was, all that money was sitting in one account.
I would have rather spent it on that trip to Greece Ive been saving for.
Something comes up where you needed to use your emergency savings?
If you keep them together, its harder to know exactly where you stand, Moriarty said.
So What Exactly Counts as an Emergency?
But you know when that thing called life happens?
I just love it too… except when it throws everything into utter chaos and disarray.
But what about those gray area moments, like when my car got towed?
When is it time to pull money from your emergency account to cover the costs?
Well, many financial experts agree that you should ask yourself three questions about your situation:
1.
If you answer yes to one but no to the others, then you might want to reconsider.
So, lets go back to my personal example.
Was my car being towed unexpected?
However, it was something I could have prevented.
Did that I mean I was supposed to bite the bullet and pull that money from mymonthly budget?
A gray area like this is where the other questions can be great tie-breakers.
So, it was urgent.
Most importantly, itwasnecessary.
With those three points in mind, I shouldve used my emergency fund money to recover my car.
You havent even started shopping and are already low on cash.
I mean, unless you want to never be invited to another family Christmas ever again, yes.
Christmas is in five days.
You had over 300 days to save and plan for your Christmas gift giving.
Sorry, dont even think about touching that emergency fund.
That being said, if you have an emergency account, use it.
And dont feel bad about it!
Kelly Smith is a junior writer and engagement specialist at The Penny Hoarder.
Catch her on Twitter at @keywordkelly.
Probably not as good as youd like.
It always seems like an uphill battle to build (and keep) a decent amount in savings.
But what if your car breaks down, or you have a sudden medical bill?
Ask one of these companies to help…
