CORONAVIRUS *Cardi B Voice*
Currently listening to Get Up 10 by Cardi B trying not to let the current state of our economy bring me down. It’s hard not to right? With thousands of deaths and the constant uncertainty, it’s left me and thousands of others afraid and paranoid. What brings me comfort is thinking about what I can control. Whether it be how many times I wash my hands a day to thinking about how I can make this pandemic work in my favor. Below you’ll find what I’ve been thinking about and I hope you find solace in my tips/advice:
Student Loans - My eyes lit up after hearing about possible student loan relief. Yes, we have some options here. I logged into my account yesterday morning to confirm whether or not the hype was real, and it twas lol. My account has a payment due of $0. This went into effect as of March 13, 2020. According to The New York Times, until September 30, 2020- there will be automatic payment suspensions for any federally held student loan. What this means to me is a few things:
Extra Money to invest in the Market - Have you ever had the thought of “ I wish I had known this when I was younger?” I say this to myself ALL the time! Right now, we are living in one of those moments. I compare the Coronavirus Crisis to The Great Recession in 2007. If I had half the knowledge then, I would’ve invested as much as I could in the market. Events like these are often referred to as Black Swans. Black Swans are unpredictable, unexpected severe events… Sounds like COVID-19 to me. Use money that you’d normally pay down your student loan debt with to invest in the market… why not?
Pay down 100% of your principal - Federal student loan interest has dropped to 0%. What does this mean? This means, every penny that you put towards your student loan payments will go towards the principal balance. If you have the money, take advantage! It’s almost as if you’ve borrowed money for free!
Retirement Accounts - Personally, my Roth 401K has taken a hit from this pandemic. I’ve been thinking whether I should pull my funds from my 401K to save myself from a further loss or hang in there. I’ve decided to hang in there since I’m a long-term investor. If I were short-term, different story. I’m very confident that the market will recover, it’s just a matter of when. If you’re still putting money into your 401(k), events like this can help your retirement planning. You’re getting more stocks for your money every month, because they’re a lot cheaper. So don’t panic and withdraw all your funds, my advice to you would be to hang in there. It’s painful, but I’m doing it.
Your Credit Score - I was concerned that taking advantage of different relief programs would affect my credit score. Doing so should not affect your credit score according to the Stimulus Package, but please be sure that you are reading the fine print! Each lender has different rules!
Travel Plans - If you follow me on IG, you already know that I LOVE TO TRAVEL. My best friend has blessed me with flight benefits and I’ve taken FULL ADVANTAGE. Since individuals aren’t traveling, flights have been very inexpensive. I’m talking flights to Iceland, Peru, etc for a few hundred bucks. I’ve been looking for flights to Africa for the low, but I haven’t had any luck (I’m still looking lol). If you do find your dream destination, be sure to read their cancelation policy. Have a deeper look at their insurance as well! Some airlines don’t cover pandemics! As long as you have cancelation coverage, I’d book! Also, don’t use your debit card for flight purchases. Always, use a credit card- you have more protection! Right now, my go to credit card for travel is The Chase Sapphire. You’ll earn 2X the points on travel and dining. You won’t be upset.
Tax Extension - If you’re a procrastinator like myslef, you probably haven’t filled your returns for 2019 yet. Good news for us! The deadline has been extended to July 15th! Try not too wait until July though, I’d recommend getting them submitted by the end of May.
The Market is on Sale! - Sounds crazy, but it’s true. Right now stocks are trading for 20-40% less than what they normally trade for. Personally, right now my eyes are on Disney. Disney used to trade for upwards fo $150. Now they’re at $96 share. For someone who likes to shop, that looks like a sale to me! So if you’ve ever wanted to get into investing, now is the time! Read up a little and get started now! I don’t know much about investing at all, but I’m learning and as I learn, I promise to share.
Take What You Need! - Going into grocery stores has been a pain. Everyone is out of Paper Towels, Toilet Paper, Lysol Wipes, you name it. Remember - dont buy up everything that you can. This is a virus that requires us all to do our part. We all can’t do our part if we don’t have the supplies to do so. So please take what you NEED, not what you WANT. There are elderly and sick people that need supplies more than we do and we aren’t helping by buying everything in site. If you think about it, we’re only hurting ourselves. With that being said, be considerate of others. That also brings me to a movie my niece told me about over the weekend that’s on Netflix called “The Platform”. I haven’t finished the film yet but, it immediately reminded me of the times we are living in now. When you have time, please watch.
I hope this information was helpful to you. If there are any questions or concerns, feel free to shoot me a DM or email me at melaniemechele@gmail.com. I have nothing but time to do some research and help :). Curious about how COVID-19 came about? Check out this article from The New Yorker that I found very interesting.
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