That’s why it’s so crucial for parents in particular to have an emergency fund. It’s an actual and literal safety net when you’ve got kids to feed. And depending on your family plans, as well as your current financial stability, this emergency fund might be the one thing keeping you sane throughout.
And when you start a family, you might just find that your emergency fund is being spent on things you either didn’t expect to begin with, or didn’t expect to happen so often. But that’s why it’s there; just in case!
So let’s dig into the reasons you’re going to need an emergency fund for the future. Being a parent is neither easy nor affordable, and there could be quite a few different ‘emergencies’ to cope with along the way.
On Hospital Bills
Kids are clumsy. There’s no way around that! Every toddler is going to run into a wall at some point, bump their head, and need a quick check over at the hospital.
The same goes for kids aged 5 and over when they crash their bike for the first time, or accidentally get bounced off the trampoline when their sibling jumps onto it. These things happen!
And depending on where you live, they can also be pretty expensive to deal with. Your emergency fund is going to be invaluable when it comes to the medical expense of raising a family.
Whether your child gets sick or injured, having a spare few thousand in the bank to get them seen by a doctor (and to at least get treatment started), will make you much more financially stable. It’ll also help with the mental health battles that come with caring for kids and trying to stay afloat throughout.
Towards Legal Fees
When you’ve got a family to care for, you sometimes have to stump up the cash when things go wrong. And it’s better to have the cash there in advance – even when you never meant for your emergency fund to be used for this purpose – than to have no fund at all.
Say you and your partner decide to separate. Say you need to arrange child custody, and decide to file for divorce. It’s not enjoyable to think about, of course!
But it’s certainly something to keep in mind. When you have kids, life gets a bit harder. You have more worries. And as your kids grow up, the two of you may grow apart as people too.
And maybe your kids, when they’re a bit older, get into trouble. Your teenager who’s just passed their driving test gets into a collision on the road. Or maybe they get into a fight, and the other person is trying to press a grievous bodily harm charge against them.
As their parent, you might just be the one person in the world able to help them front a defence.
On a Surprise Addition to the Family
Even when you’re not planning to have any more children, and you’re being more than careful about it, there’s a chance you could still experience a pregnancy. Deciding what to do next can be very scary if you’ve not got any savings to make use of.
Emergency funds can breach the gap between this sudden panic and a more relaxing, stress-free pregnancy ahead.
After all, you know you’ve got money to attend your checkups, buy all the baby items you’re going to need (or have to replace, if your hand-me-downs aren’t in good condition), and you’re going to feel more flexible in taking maternity and/or paternity leave.
An emergency fund means you get to spend time at home with your newborn, as well as take some time to focus on your own health after the birth and during the newborn phase.
How to Keep Your Emergency Fund Going
But of course, emergency funds don’t last forever. If you have one, that’s great. But if you run into any of the emergencies above and have to use it all, what then? You’re going to need to build your emergency fund back up again.
And that’s not the easiest thing to manage when you’re not a parent. So when you are, it can feel next to impossible.
So what are you supposed to do about an emergency fund? Slow and steady wins the race here.
If you want to keep your emergency fund going for longer, make sure you routinely add the pennies to it. Week by week, or every 2 weeks, these small amounts of money are better than nothing.
And if the most you can manage at any one time is $10, that’s more than fine. Because the small amounts add up. $10 per week is $40 per month. And $40 per month is $480 at the end of the year.
Any time you have the chance to pad out your emergency fund with a bit more money, seize the opportunity. If a one-off $20 gets thrown into the fund every other week, you’ll have an extra $520 to add to that $480 above.
Start Your Emergency Fund Today
Every single person could do with one, but every family needs one. Make sure you’ve building yours over time, adding to it on a regular basis, and then not being afraid to use it when you’ve got an emergency on your hands.
Whether you need to take your child to the hospital, put money towards getting some legal advice, or suddenly need to plan your lives around another family member that’s on the way, your emergency fund is there to help you.
And remember, if insurance can take care of something, great! But it’s always best to know you’ve got the option to pay towards something critical if it ever occurred.
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