If you have a loved one that you fear is having a hard time making ends meet, be it a young person who’s just trying to get started with their earning years or an elderly loved one who’s trying to finance their move into a senior living community, you might wonder what you can do to help. Luckily, there are plenty of ways you can offer assistance and support to someone in these kinds of situations.
To help you figure out the best way for you to do this, here are three ways to help a loved one who’s struggling financially.
Offer Them Gift Cards
For many people, handing money can be hard. It can sometimes seem that, no matter how much money someone comes into, they can never seem to use it to get ahead. And if this is the situation with your loved one, you might be hesitant to help by giving cash.
In these instances, you can still give financial assistance through things like gift cards or gift certificates. By giving financial help through a gift card, you will ensure that the money you’re giving will go to something that will benefit them. So if you’re worried that they aren’t getting enough to eat, you can give them a gift card to a grocery store. This may also help them use this money in a way that will be most beneficial to them, too.
Find Other Creative Ways To Give
Because many people have a hard time just accepting cash from someone, even when they are having a hard time financially, you may need to get a little more creative with the financial help you offer.
One thing you might try is by asking if you can handle paying a certain bill or fee for them for a period of time. This can help to alleviate a lot of financial stress until they’re able to get their feet under them and their head above water financially.
Help Them Now And Into The Future
For many people, financial problems can last more than just one month. So while it can be helpful to give something now that will help them make it to the end of the week or the month, it can also be invaluable to think of ways you can help them with their future finances as well.
An option for this could be to help them learn about the importance of contributing to a retirement fund, investing money, and planning for their estate. This way, they can have something ready for them at a later date so that they aren’t always living paycheck to paycheck and will have a plan for their financial future.
If you know of someone you care for that’s having a hard time financially, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you find useful ways to help them overcome.