Ah, so that's the story. Too much overhead and not enough savings/planning. What's the monthly cost of expenses and in what state?
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That's definitely part of it. My cousin made the mistake of signing up for benefits through his work and is now stuck with the benefits under contract. The state is Missouri and he pays about $350 on rent, plus an extra hundred or so on utilities. That's split between him and his sister. Then him and his sister pay $160 (together) for their phone bill. Plus he pays $200 to his uncle for his car (he bought the car from his uncle). Together that should be a little over $500. He also pays for car insurance and his credit card (which he only uses for gas and emergencies).
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'Cut back' is the last thing people want to hear, but it's what they need. That's a high phone bill plan. They should cut their plan down to a total of $80 at most. Also, he should be asking for an extention/reduction of payments plan from his uncle on the car. "Hard times". In total that alone would save him $180 or more a month, maybe more if he says "wait till after college" or by taking a loan from mom and then doing the deal with her if the uncle is stricter on it. You haven't even touched on groceries. They probably eat as expensively as their phone plan. They can apply for EBT and/or scout some food lines to cut that down too. Cut out the sodas, focus on staples.
For the electric, if you're low income you can contact them for a special discount. Altogether that could save approximately $250 a month or so depending on what hasn't been mentioned. Usually when looking to support someone with other people's money you need to make sure that they've actually done everything in their ability to cut back appropriately instead of above their means and trying to get help to cover that. There's more to it than just "they need more money" and those donation dollars don't need to go to a $180 phone bill (the the likely $500+ phones that all kids have these days).
Feel free to mention anything else and update us on the progress of their cuts, as well as the difference that they need to make up for to make ends meet. I'm sure enough changes and a little working the system will enable them to be able to hustle it on their own.
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I absolutely agree with you, he has been cutting back on a lot of non-essentials, like dining out and buying video games. He plans on dropping the phone bill when the contract expires in a few months. I think he should cut cable altogether, since he never uses it (or make his sister pay for it), but it's his life, he can keep it if he wants.
Those are really good suggestions, thanks MaximumBunny. I'll be sure to show him this thread.
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"but it's his life, he can keep it if he wants."
Yeah, sure...its just random strangers that pay his bills.
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It's not a referral link, that's just the pages URL. Many people promote various causes with giveaways.
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without sounding harsh, its just life and we all go through it, i lost my house a few yeaars ago to financial hardship but i didnt come crying on here or anywhere else, i just dealt with it the best i could.
Cut the phone off
Sell the car and im sure there will be a reduction for public transport for students
get another room mate
There are alot more people in far worse positions than this
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We all face financial hardship in one way or another. But we don't come here and ask for money in the guise of a free game.
There are people out there in WORST situations. Not having funds for school is not as bad as not having a home, food, warm clothes.
While I think it's necessary for your cousin to finish school, you shouldn't come here and ask for money. If everyone here faces financial hardship or other calamities in life and comes here to ask for help, Steamgifts should have it's name changed to www.askformoneyorhelphere.com.
He isn't dying of some terminal illness with no money to pay for medical aid or living on the streets. Not having the funds to go to school is not a good enough reason to ask for money here. He could always continue his education after getting the money.
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Wow, no chance. Cant be that bad for him, with that big phone bill and the OP that is giving away money (Steam game) to beg for more, instead of helping him.
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Here is the giveaway: http://www.steamgifts.com/giveaway/c7NXR/arma-x-anniversary-edition
I recently started a crowd funding campaign to help pay for my cousin's college next semester. His tuition and classes are being paid for through his Financial Aid, but he recently fell onto some hard times and needs a little extra money to pay for gas to and from college. If anyone wants to help out, I would greatly appreciate it.
Here's the story on FundMe: http://www.gofundme.com/6094po
"My cousin Matthew's roommate just left abruptly and so all of his money is going straight to bills. While his Financial Aid pays for his tuition and classes, he is worried that he won't be able to pay for gas to and from school during the semester. It's about a 30 minute commute one way, adding up to about 3 hours of driving a week.
This will be Matt's second semester at the local community college and I think that it is absolutely important that he continues his education. Matthew and his sister live together and both work at Walmart, which is their only source of income. Things weren't so bad when they had a third roommate, but he left a couple of weeks ago and now they're a bit tight on money.
While I am trying to help in any way I can, I also have my own bills to pay and am not getting as many hours as I'd like at either of my two jobs. His father passed away a couple of years ago and his mother has abandoned them and has been unemployed since their father died, so he won't be getting any help from her.
I really just want to see my cousin continue his education and pursue his dream to become a police officer. I know it's asking a lot from total strangers, but if there is anything you can do to help my cousin continue his education, we would be eternally grateful. Thank you very much for reading this page and anything you have done."
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