Make Ends Meet: How to deal with financial stress

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - How do you make ends meet if your paycheck stays the same, but your financial obligations keep rising? Many Americans are feeling the strain right now and are questioning what to do.

Cynthia Chen, founder and CEO of Kikoff, a financial technology company helping consumers build healthy credit and financial habits, works to empower everyone to achieve financial security, no matter where they’re starting from.

“Everyone is aware there has been pretty high inflation, and the prices of essential items have been rising, which puts a lot of pressure on American households,” exclaimed Chen.

She stresses the average American household has a debt load of $100,000.

“The biggest problem that consumers have right now is not having enough money to buy things and pay off their debt,” stressed Chen.

According to the Federal Reserve, total debt is at an all-time high.

“There’s no way consumers can be paying off the bills that they have to pay, like rent and utilities and cell phones and still have enough money to pay off their debt,” said Chen.

With daily bills rising due to inflation, tariffs and many catastrophic global and natural events, the average American’s debt struggles to decline. Chen says your efforts to pay down your debt must be intentional and constant

“I would set a budget and stick with the budget,” explained Chen.

Especially during the holiday season of good times and giving, when overspending is quite easy to do.

“I would strongly encourage consumers to think of ways to show your love and care for friends and family in a way that will not make you overstretch your budget,” shared Chen.

Toot your own horn during the Christmas season or any time of the year when you make your financial obligations on time.

“If you do pay those bills on time, you should think about actually using them to increase your credit score,” emphasized Chen.

Even paying your daily bills on time, like on-time payments for gas, electric, water, and your cell phone, can increase your credit score and reduce your financial stress. There are many third-party reporting services that share those on-time payments with credit bureaus that would otherwise be ignored.

“You can use tools like Kikoff rent reporting and bill reporting services to have your own time payment be reported to the credit union, which will boost your score,” shared Chen.

Things may be tough, but choose wisely as you navigate this financial journey.

According to the National Opinion Research Center of Chicago University, adults experiencing major economic stress are more likely to use buy now pay later services or credit cards to make ends meet. Delinquent payments to either of those options can and will hurt your credit.

The best thing you can do is track your income and your expenses. In other words, make a budget and stick to it as closely as you can.

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