
Many of the families we serve at Kids BRAIN are feeling the pinch from being out of work due to social distancing, shelter in place, and/or quarantine orders associated with COVID-19. Although many have been able to transition to home-based or virtual execution of their professional roles, some jobs don’t allow for this to happen. For the family where one or more parents is self-employed, especially in the service industries (hairdressers, cosmetologists, food service, non-essential retail, and others), the newly drafted stimulus package can’t come quickly enough. It will take more time for the bill to be fully approved and implemented, with inevitable governmental backlogs as the surge of incoming requests is processed and relief monies distributed. If you need support NOW to pay bills and to generate income outside of your current industry, see the below ideas and links shared from a financial adviser. Hope this helps those of you really hurting right now. Stay healthy out there!
Assistance for Paying Rent and Utilities
Paying rent and utilities may be some of the biggest challenges during these times. Alicia Butera, CFP at Intuit provides the following advice: “First ask your landlord if it is possible to get an extension on the full or partial payment if it cannot be made. See if they are willing to let you go on a payment plan. It never hurts to ask and they will likely be happy to get whatever money they can. Then go to your main bank and see if they can pause a debt payment, hopefully with no interest, so you can use that money to make rent instead. Lastly, it could be a good time to pick up a side gig in an industry that is flourishing right now like food delivery, Grubhub etc., to earn a little extra cash.” Kristen Berman of Irrational Labs explains that behavioral science doesn’t have a solution for paying rent, but recommends leveraging the following resources for assistance.
- Rental assistance programs
- Unemployment programs
- Paid family leave programs
- Food stamps programs
- Assistance from electric and gas companies
- Assistance from phone and cable companies
Earn extra cash with a remote job
- Teach English online through VIP Kid (Estimated: $18-$22/hr.)
- Get paid to test products through usertesting.com (Up to $60 per test)
- Share your skills online through Outschool, a new company geared towards the homeschooling community. No teaching experience required. (Up to $40/hr.)
- Do a freelance project offered through Upwork (Pay varies on projects and jobs)