By Kaylynne Bantom
With the cost of living increasing rapidly, gone are the days of excessive spending during Black Friday sales. Instead, Annaline van der Poel, Chief Business Development Officer at Debt Rescue, advises people not to spend money on items they cannot afford. “Only spend when there is a sale on an item that you honestly need.”
“People are taking pay-day loans a few days after pay-day to put food on the table.” So says Annaline van der Poel, Chief Business Development Officer at Debt Rescue.
She cautions consumers to be debt-wise when heading to the shops this Black Friday (24 November).
With the cost of living increasing rapidly, gone are the days of excessive spending during Black Friday sales. Instead, Van der Poel advises people not to spend money on items they cannot afford. “Only spend when there is a sale on an item that you honestly need. Historically, people would buy luxury items. In the last couple of years, we’ve seen the trend change towards people buying groceries and household goods.
“Know your prices and make sure that you have budgeted for it. Don’t incur debt.”
She said planning and setting up a budget are crucial.
“You cannot make any plans and know what you can afford if you haven’t budgeted. Be honest and realistic with yourself. Sit down, take a couple of months’ bank statements and look at what you are truly spending on items.
Van der Poel said it was important for consumers to realise that what they spent on food and transport at the beginning of the year was not the same.
“You might be living from pay cheque to pay cheque or even in overdraft and don’t realise how bad things are and how much more expensive life is now in comparison to the beginning of the year.”
She said the sad reality is that consumers are facing difficulty.
“Inflation is the one factor that affected us most in the last 18 months and we know the remedy for inflation is that the Reserve Bank has increased interest rates.
“What that means for us as consumers is that it affects two parts of our budget – our living expenses and our debt repayments.”
Van der Poel added that globally consumers are facing a cost-of-living crisis.
“The relief we see now and then when things go on special is not of such a nature that it’s making our lives more comfortable,” she said.
Van der Poel encouraged consumers to seek financial debt relief if they cannot cope.
“Once they have set up that budget and see they have made all the changes they possibly can and still cannot cope, then they must seek assistance immediately.
“If they have to incur debt to put food on the table, they must seek help immediately so they can get relief through debt counselling.
“Make sure you are not getting yourself in a debt spiral that you are not sure how you will get out of it,” she concluded.
For more information on debt counselling if things have reached a pretty pass, visit www.debtrescue.co.za
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