Some parents who welcomed the empty nest as a time to finally focus on their needs may be feeling the blues as the lockdown is creating a boomerang generation.
The boomerang generation is where adult children have left home only to return home after their wings were cut by the lockdown. In addition, and in many cases, parents are assisting adult children with financial assistance who need to remain in their own homes, but have been adversely affected by pay cuts, retrenchment and suffering businesses.
“It may take longer to reach your goals now that some empty nesters are experiencing a boomerang of adult children returning home, but it is important not to change the goals but to change your plans in achieving your goals,” says Karabo Ramookho, strategic retail manager at Old Mutual.
You were probably looking forward to the freedom of not having to take care of your children financially and made plans to celebrate your new independence with a holiday to your dream destination. Sadly, your intentions were derailed by the lockdown and travel restrictions.
The economic fallout of the pandemic has impacted many South Africans, and young adults were the hardest hit by retrenchments or received a reduced salary during the lockdown. They may be struggling to honour their financial commitments such as car instalments and rent and may be forced to move back to the parent’s home.
“This pandemic bought financial challenges that you may have never thought to be possible. You probably haven’t discussed this topic and the subsequent financial fallout with your financial adviser that is now affecting both your and your child’s finances. Let a financial adviser help coach you to still reach your end-goal by making necessary changes to your financial plans,” urges Ramookho.
“At Old Mutual, we have more than 175 years’ experience in helping customers reach their financial goals by uniquely tailoring their financial plan despite tough economic times.”
Three ways to remain nimble and ride out the storm:
Budget
- Draw up a new budget that takes a look at your income and expenses, using your bank statement and your salary slip.
- You can sign up for the 22seven app that automatically pulls up your actual expenses from your bank statements to help you better understand your spending habits for you to save. Click here to start.
- Use Old Mutual’s budget tool to help you keep track. Click here to start
- Be specific on how much you can spend on each expense and stick to it
- Help your children to draw up a budget once you’ve done yours
Hold an open family meeting about finances
- Family discussions about finances are often taboo or just never discussed in family circles
- The family must talk about finances and teach children to budget and save. By discussing the family expenses and income, children are better able to understand what their parents can afford
- It is essential to discuss how deferred savings will affect the parent’s retirement planning
- Invite your financial coach to help the family to live within their means while still saving for the end-goals by mapping out a financial plan
Settle debt
- Many South African are over-indebted in the current harsh economic environment or may have had to incur debt to make ends meet as a result of a reduced income during the lockdown. It is vital to develop a timeline for paying off debt and not to increase debt during the boomerang phase
- The longer you’re in debt, the longer you’re paying interest to someone else – either the bank or a short-term lender. If interest rates increase, it will mean that you will pay even more
- It’s worth sucking up the short-term pain to free yourself of short-term debt by doing without nice-to-haves for a while
- Pay off your debt with the highest interest rates first
- Consolidate your debt into one loan with a lower interest rate
Let your financial coach help you take steps to still reach your goals by mapping out a financial plan for you.
For solutions relevant to your needs,
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Relevant articles:
https://youve-earned-it.co.za/site/retire-right-with-old-mutual/
https://youve-earned-it.co.za/finance/achieve-financial-wellness-uncertain-times/