Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Think ahead, plan ahead

I got a list of "funny sayings" in my e-mail inbox the other day, and one of them read like this:

WHATEVER HITS THE FAN WILL NOT BE DISTRIBUTED EVENLY.

It's funny in a way, but really, it makes more sense than it promotes humor. For example, (and I heard about an example like this the other day, so the idea is not original to me) if in the future, the rich are taxed more heavily, it might seem to make sense that the mess is landing mostly on them--hey, they are the ones pulling more out of their pockets, right? However, if one of the "rich" is your landlord/landlady, do you really think that he/she will pull that money out of his/her own pocket? He/she will make up for it by raising your rent. It will be a lot easier for him or her to get money by raising your rent than it will be for you to ask for the same amount monthly from your employer. Your employer, who may also be considered one of "the rich", may have to cut your hours so that the money taken from higher taxes, that is supposedly coming out of your employer's pocket, is actually coming out of yours. So you may have a higher rent and shorter hours, and then if you can't make the rent you may have to move somewhere else, with all the costs that moving incurs--- new deposit, first and last month, etc. Thus, the saying above rings true, but at whose expense? Things may not always be like they originally appear.

No, I am not trying to be political, I am just pointing out another way that being prepared with food storage may prove vital in the future. As my dad reminded me, there's that old saying, something like, nothing's sure but death and taxes. If you can make do on what you store today (and I know that it may be harder to store food if you are renting due to space, or other reasons) and use what would have been grocery money to pay the rent, you may be able to ride out a situation like the one above without having to move. If you own your home and your hours or position get cut due to the same kind of scenario, food storage may also help you get by until you find more employment. Life is not always fair, but if you prepare, it may be easier.

Think ahead, plan ahead. Whatever your situation is, there is still time to prepare. Every little bit counts...

4 comments:

It's me said...

Just posting a tiny bright note... some landlords are like me: we don't make as much with the rent as our mortgage, but we have good, steady, reliable renters and we're not going to raise their rent simply because taxes go up. You need to remember that SOME landlords simply have a second house because of some life change, and they're not trying to get rich.

After all, if a renter LEAVES, often the homeowner will be in a world of hurt. And with more and more homes sitting empty, there are more people who would be willing to take ANY rent rather than none.

Of course, this might just be in our massively over-built and over-priced area. ;)

Marie said...

You make an excellent point--I was thinking of a scenario where the landlord had to raise the rent or the employer had to cut hours/positions out of necessity, so I probably should have qualified it. I was just thinking it would be better to raise the rent or cut hours than to foreclose because of the expense of maintaining multiple mortgages or shutting down a business. Thanks for another perspective--you're right that it would be better to get something than nothing in terms of rent, as a landlord. I hope that none of this happens to anyone, but I like to prepare for the worst while hoping for the best.... :) I appreciate your comment!

The Scavenger said...

Marie, that is pretty funny and so true. I am stocke up and ready for hard times. Good post.

Chris

Marie said...

Chris--Your family is one of the most prepared I've read about--and you have the ability to renew your storage. I've learned a lot about storage from your site. I just hope more and more people are getting more and more prepared--it can't hurt, and it will definitely help if/when hard times come. Thanks--your comments are always appreciated!