Sound financial advice for single parents, especially single mothers, can make a significant impact on their overall financial situation.
Apart from the fact that single motherhood is emotionally challenging, it can also be difficult to stay afloat financially.
If you’re a single mother, you’ll be faced with providing for your children in every way, making sure you stretch your income as far as it can possibly go.
However, have you considered how you will continue providing for your children in the unfortunate event of your death, disability or severe illness?
A statistical survey was conducted by the South African government in 2017, highlighting certain socio-economic issues faced by households in the country.
One of these issues was how many children are raised with absent fathers and the results were alarming.
Up to 64.1% of South African children are raised without their fathers, not counting children who have fathers living elsewhere or men who are not biological fathers but fulfil a fatherly role.
Furthermore, 46% of mothers in metropolitan South Africa describe themselves as single mothers.
Therefore, if you’re a single mom struggling financially, we have put together a few useful tips to help you provide for your family.
Nobody likes to think about the possibility of sudden death, disability or serious illness. However, this is a reality faced by every person on the planet.
There are smart investments that you can make that will ensure you and your family are provided for in the event of one of the tragedies.
Life insurance will make sure that your children are financially supported until they are able to become financially independent.
Income protection and disability insurance are there to provide for you and your children should you suddenly become unable to work and earn and income.
Disability insurances often pay out a portion in lump sums which can help you settle debts such as vehicle or home loans while the remaining amount can be paid to you in the form of a monthly income.
Some of the best financial advice for single parents is to invest in income protection.
We cannot stress enough the importance of having an up-to-date will in place. Without one, your children may be left with little or no financial support after your death.
Your will serves to designate a trusted guardian for your children while also indicating how you want your assets distributed among your nominated beneficiaries.
You also have the option of placing your money into a trust that can be used to look after your children until they are able to manage the money independently and responsibly.
Not only is a medical aid important when you have children, but gap cover is also crucial. We know that medical aids can be really costly, but we can help you find one that fits within your budget.
There are many affordable options which allow unlimited visits to the GP and substantial hospital cover.
However, for a small amount each month, gap cover can save you from having to pay exorbitant medical fees that are not covered by your medical aid. This means that you won’t have to worry about paying for these out of your own pocket.
Unexpected emergencies can happen to anyone; your car breaks down, your handbag is stolen or your geyser bursts and these can end up costing a small fortune.
However, if you have an emergency savings fund that is easily accessible, you won’t need to worry about where you’ll get the money to cover the costs.
You don’t need to save half your salary, but the important thing is to make sure you save at least something each and every month.
As much as you need to look after your children and provide for them, you need to do the same for yourself.
Unfortunately, there is no guarantee that your children will be willing or able to support you financially after your retirement.
Furthermore, by expecting your children to be responsible for you when they are financially independent will take away from their ability to look after their own children.
It’s for this reason that we will always advise single mothers to invest in a retirement plan that will be able to support them after they retire.
We acknowledge that a large percentage of the population are under extreme financial pressure, especially single mothers.
Therefore, we offer sound financial advice for single parents so that you can have peace of mind, knowing your children are taken care of.
For more information about our services, please feel free to contact us at any time.
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