Financial resources for furloughed feds

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All of us who have been through previous shutdowns know that this one feels different. Previous ones were an annoyance, but I did not have the complete sense of panic I have with this one -- I trusted that someone was willing to be a grown up and act in the interest of the country. I don't have that faith here. I really think this has the potential to go sideways.

Panic? Why? Do you think the govt never reopens?

Ish is going to hit the fan if Feds miss a second check. There are too many Feds who can't afford the loss of income, regardless of ideology. This was the worst possible time of year for people to take a financial hit.

[Anonymous]

I understand that ppl are panicking. But this will end this week. Little doubt in my mind.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agreed that it doesn’t have to be this difficult. Give the President his money Madame Speaker, and we can all move on with life!

LOL! Yes give the crybaby what he wants!

[Anonymous]

I doubt this will end next week, actually doubt it will end in January. Am very worried; this feels much different to me than previous shutdowns, scared feds won't be repaid, will be pawns.

It's an awful time of year for this to happen, especially if people had already bought and given lots of gifts. We started conserving before Christmas, pulled a lot of gifts out and did not give, and I am now in the process of taking them back.

Am so worried we won't be paid that I am doing a "no buy" January. We have emergency funds, so are in a better position than lower paid feds, but I may turn 2019 into a "low buy year" to save even more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agreed that it doesn’t have to be this difficult. Give the President his money Madame Speaker, and we can all move on with life!

LOL! Yes give the crybaby what he wants!

I thought he was getting it from Mexico!

[Anonymous]

Since this is the Money and Finances forum, thought I would share these figures from the latest issue of Kiplinger's re Gen X (who likely comprise most of us feds on here worried about the shutdown):
70% have less than 6 months' emergency savings
26% have more than $10,000 in credit card debt
26% have 401k loans averaging $11,000

I have to imagine that Millennial feds have even less in savings and more in debt.

So for those on here screaming at feds for being worried about missing a paycheck, realize that you are a minority. Don't confuse being fortunate with being normal.

[Anonymous]

78% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. DC is such a bubble. And no the Oresident cannot relate to what he is putting people through. Looking forward to food stamps and tax refunds being cut off. Making America Great Again!!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Since this is the Money and Finances forum, thought I would share these figures from the latest issue of Kiplinger's re Gen X (who likely comprise most of us feds on here worried about the shutdown):
70% have less than 6 months' emergency savings
26% have more than $10,000 in credit card debt
26% have 401k loans averaging $11,000

I have to imagine that Millennial feds have even less in savings and more in debt.

So for those on here screaming at feds for being worried about missing a paycheck, realize that you are a minority. Don't confuse being fortunate with being normal.

Not having credit card debt is not "lucky", it's called "responsible". I think Millennials are doing better financially than Gen X honestly.

One thing that always puzzled me is that many of the lower-paid people I see at work almost never pack their lunches, they eat out almost daily, and on FB you can see they go out at night too, and then they complain about having no emergency fund?!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:After this is over, I am switching all of our banking to Navy Federal, plus curtailing spending until we have a robust emergency fund. I am never going to feel this kind of panic again. NEVER.

In the past week I have:
- Sold my grandmother's silver on eBay
- Considered selling my engagement and wedding rings
- Collected scrap metal and plan to take it to the scrap yard
- Strongly considered whether I would be worth more dead to my family, and Googled whether FEGLI covers suicide and operates down a shutdown (yes after two years, and yes). I would never do it because I have no relatives to take care of my kids, but the thought was alarming.

Politicians have NO IDEA the kind of stress this put on working families. NONE. I wish they would stop with the brinksmanship and alarmist rhetoric.

This is very odd, because you haven't even missed a paycheck yet. So you're anxious about the future, which is understandable. But your'e not in dire straights yet - you can't be, unless you were failing economically before the shutdown. In any event, you need to get some professional help for your anxiety.

[Anonymous]

Ummm.....have some compassion folks....I am a high GS-13 with 3 kids and I certainly eat the food out of my fridge every day. Eating out is a luxury.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agreed that it doesn’t have to be this difficult. Give the President his money Madame Speaker, and we can all move on with life!

LOL! Yes give the crybaby what he wants!

And get ready for another shutdown the next time they want something, and another, and another...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm split on this. I'm glad that there are resources available for people who need them.

On the other hand, I've been reading a lot of articles lately about how so many feds are out of money and need the government to reopen so they can get another paycheck to eat and pay rent. If you are living paycheck to paycheck as a Fed you are doing something very wrong.

-Fed who saved for (lots of) rainy days and doesn't need assistance

Not helpful at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you are a fed lawyer or someone making 6 figures, there is no excuse you don't have at least $20-40K put away, especially if you are a two fed family. I have empathy for low level feds and contractors and support workers who will actually go without pay but for some living a grand lifestyle and overspending because they think the fed salary is stable is no excuse.

Who are you to judge? They were paying bills just fine until this stupid shutdown. Don’t blame the victims.