How to Prepare for a Recession: 10 More Things You Can Do
I want to talk about how to prepare for a recession. I think there is a cost of living crisis coming, I think there is an inflation crisis coming, and I think there is a recession crisis coming. I think a lot of people will find it very hard to manage and navigate their way through the coming months.
I've put together ten ways to try and help you survive the cost of living crisis, prepare for a recession and survive and come out the other end.
1. Look at subscriptions
The first thing I have done since I was given this tip is to look at subscriptions. You can go on, for example, Amazon or pet websites or different websites, and you can subscribe to the products you always use monthly.
When you sign up for your subscription service of those products, you will get a lower price level to pay for the product. You will save on what you would buy anyway monthly because the cost of a unit you're purchasing is lesser whenever you sign up for a subscription.
2. Worthwhile memberships
I have signed up for a membership program with my dentist. If I pay a certain amount each month, it's not tremendous, but it will cover my checkup every six months. It will cover my hygiene visit every six months and also give me a discount on any work I need.
We also have an Amazon Prime account. It is worthwhile just for the postage savings. I also get Amazon Prime TV, and Amazon Prime Music also comes with that.
Another one we now have is a membership for each of our pets, which is with the local vet. As well as signing up for the subscription with the pet shop for their food, we have also put them on the pet club plan that the vets have. That means they will get their flea treatments, worming treatments, and all their checkups at a reduced price.
3. Regifting
When it comes to birthday presents for your children, they get lots and lots of presents; presents they don't need, and duplicates. A way to make ends meet and get through this recession is to put away some of the birthday presents that your children get and save them for Christmas.
You can also do the same with Christmas presents. Put some of them away and keep them for later events, so nobody is ever missing out.
4. Food banks and meal vouchers
Food banks are there to help you make ends meet. There is no shame about it at all. It shows that you're brave enough and that you're worried about your family—nothing at all to be embarrassed about in my view. You can also sign up for school meal vouchers.
5. Uniform swaps
My son's school set up a uniform swap online, and they set up a uniform swap at the front of the school where you can donate new uniforms or old uniforms, or you could go and take whatever you need.
Parent groups on Facebook do pretty much the same thing, where you can do swaps, and you can swap things that you have that someone else might need and vice versa. That's helping people make it through and not having to spend money on uniforms.
6. Bulk buy your toiletries whenever they're on offer
Wait for toiletries to go on offer, and you'll never have to pay full price. Buy what you need whenever they go on offer in bulk.
7. Book swaps
There are local community groups, and they're doing book swaps. A friend told me their community group is doing this to ensure people don't have to put their TV on to save electricity. They have book nights and book swaps and read whenever they're at home. So it's a TV not on, which is saving them electricity.
8. Home treatments
Many people are going back to dyeing their hair; they're going back to doing their nails and waxing. I think for me that this has a dual benefit.
Not only does this save you the money of going to the salon or the hairdresser or spending that money, but you still get the benefit of a treat and treatment for yourself. You still get the benefit of feeling good.
9. Cut out unnecessary products
People are leaving out all things that are not necessary like fabric softener, which is not suitable for your skin anyway—fabric softener, fizzy drinks, and cutting down on additional food items.
A tip to help with this is before you go shopping, take a list. Take a list whenever you're going with you, and only have one of the things you need and the essentials. Don't get distracted by the things you don't need.
10. Switching out your insurance
Whether it is your car insurance or your home, check prices when they come up for renewal. I found that when I spoke to our provider, and I spoke to the insurance broker, I looked around to get a better deal.
How to prepare for a recession
I hope that some of these tips for how to prepare for a recession have been helpful to you. I hope they give you some food for thought on things you can try and put into place to survive what's coming. If you have any tips you'd like to add, comment below.
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All excellent suggestions if they pertain to ones lifestyle. #10 isn't always an option. I was cancelled by my homeowners insurance because of high fire risk. They reassessed the area for flood and fire, lots of us in the area were left high and dry. I was left in a pickle and none of the top tier carriers would provide the coverage I required and ended up going with far less coverage than really needed because I couldn't afford the premiums. Some of the quotes were more than my mortgage payment. It's a sticky situation and I also bundled with my vehicle insurance to bring down the premium a little bit more. By all means, do an annual review and see if one can save a few dollars.
Interesting article. I will try of these.