How to Pay Your Bills While Unemployed

If you are unemployed, you know how difficult it is to pay your bills from the money you receive from your unemployment compensation check. There might not be any magic solution to your financial situation, but there are a few things you can do to economize and stretch your dollars farther until you find a new job.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Eliminate bills whenever possible. Do you absolutely need both landline and cell phones? If you can do without one for the time being, get rid of it. It will probably be easier and cheaper to get rid of your landline if you are under contract with a cell phone carrier. If you must have a cell phone and aren't locked into a contract, you may want to use a cheaper, pre-paid phone to save money.

2. Look at your bills and see if there are services you don't need. Maybe you can get rid of your telephone company's voice mail service and start using that old answering machine again. If you don't absolutely need to send text messages, get rid of that option on your cell phone plan.

3. Call your cable and telephone provider and tell them you are interested in hearing about all of their billing options. There may be cheaper plans available, but these companies have no incentive to tell you about them and you won't find out about these options unless you ask.

4. Study grocery store flyers and plan meals around the sales. Most stores have copies of their flyers on their websites, so if you don't receive the flyers, you can still view the sales. If you live in a rural area and grocery stores are many miles apart, this may not be a cost-effective strategy, but if there are a few stores within a few miles of your home, you can spend an afternoon hitting the sales and save money on your food bill.

5. Take a look at the $45 and $70 weekly menus on Hillbillyhousewife.com. These inexpensive meals will keep you full and save you money during particularly tight weeks. Also check out angelfoodministries.com. This group offers low-cost food boxes containing all of the ingredients you need to make a week's worth of meals. The items in the box change weekly. You will pick up your order at a local church, but you don't have to be a church member to order from Angel Food Ministries.

6. Make use of your talents. Are you good at sewing? Offer to do alterations for dry cleaners or put up flyers offering your services. Maybe you can hook up new television systems or computers for technology-challenged people or start a pet sitting business. Make a list of everything you can do, no matter how insignificant, and see if you can develop one of these talents into a business that will bring in some money.

7. Call your creditors and see if you can work out a payment plan for a reduced amount. You might not always be successful, but it won't hurt to try. If you are paying student loans, call the bank or loan company and ask for a deferment.

Tips & Warnings

• Do your best to pay your mortgage and rent payments each month even if it means not paying other bills. Make those payments first and then pay other bills. If you don't pay your mortgage, you will no longer have a home. If you don't pay other bills, your account will be sent to a collection agency, which is not a good thing either, but at least you will still have a home. Keep your Internet coverage as long as you can. The Internet is a great resource for finding work. If you must give up your coverage, check if your local library offers free use of Internet-connected computers.