Food and Financial Relief
Resources and strategies to help those experiencing hardship
SUMMARY
Financial hardship is something no one should have to experience alone – we want to help.
We’ve created a list of resources and links to help if you’re experiencing financial hardship.
If you would like to speak with a staff member about your financial situation, please contact the MoneyWise staff.
STEPS TO TAKE IF YOU’RE CONCERNED ABOUT PAYING BILLS
Budget
- If you haven’t looked at a budget in a while, now’s the time to do so. Every Dollar is a great free app to use to get a budget together.
- Get clarity from your income sources as to what the reality will look like over the coming weeks.
- Cut spending to bare necessities. If you can’t pay all of your bills, Dave Ramsey recommends you spend your money on these four items first and in this order:
- Food
- Utilities
- Shelter
- Transportation
Defer Payments
- If you’re still not able to cover all of your expenses, identify payments that can be deferred:
- Call creditors to explain your situation. You can ask for temporary relief on your monthly payments. If you offer to still send some money, even if it’s a smaller amount than your typical payment, they might be more willing to work with you.
- If you have federal student loans, you can forbear (interest accrues) or defer (interest doesn’t accrue on subsidized federal loans) your loan payments.
- For student loans, use this questionnaire to understand what options are available to you.
- If you’re paying extra on debt(s) right now and have less than one to two months’ worth of expenses in an emergency fund, it might not be a bad idea to temporarily stop extra payments and then restart them once things settle down.
- Enroll for health insurance, if you can.
- Use this week to get a game plan together and gather information, as there may be more changes coming.
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Reach out to the MoneyWise team if you want to talk.
Unemployment Insurance
- Go to: How to file an unemployment claim with the Georgia Department of Labor.
- For people that don’t qualify for traditional unemployment, like freelancers, here’s another option.
Small Businesses
- Contact the Georgia Small Business Development Center for free guidance.
- Small Business Administration
FINANCIAL AND FOOD ASSISTANCE RESOURCES
All of Metro Atlanta
- Buckhead Christian Ministry – Food, Clothing, Rent, and Utility Assistance Request help. Explore resources.
- One Need – Financial Assistance
- Good Samaritan Health Center – Sliding-Fee Medical Care
- Student Meals (by School District), Atlanta Public Schools, Fulton County Schools, Additional City of Atlanta Locations – Student Meals
- Benefits.gov – Coronavirus Resources
- unitedwayatlanta.org or Dial 211 from Any Phone – Financial Assistance Resources
- auntbertha.com – Financial Assistance Resources
Alpharetta/Roswell/Dunwoody
- North Fulton Community Charities – Food, Rent, and Utility Assistance
- Community Assistance Center – Food, Clothing, Rent, and Utility Assistance
Decatur
- Decatur Cooperative Ministries – Rent and Utility Assistance
- Partnership for Community Action – Emergency and Utility Assistance, Career Services
- Decatur-Area Emergency Assistance Ministry– Food, Clothing, Rent, and Utility Assistance
Forsyth County
- The Place of Forsyth– Food, Clothing, Rent, and Utility Assistance
- Georgia Highlands Medical Services– Sliding-Fee Medical Care
- Forsyth County Schools – Student Meals
Gwinnett County
- Gwinnett Helpline – Information and Referral Services
- Good Samaritan Health Center of Gwinnett – Sliding-Fee Medical Care
- Gwinnett County Schools – Student Meals
- North Gwinnett Co-Op – Food and Medication Assistance
Marietta/Smyrna/Cherokee
- MUST Ministries – Food, Clothing, Rent, and Utility Assistance; Career Services
- Georgia Highlands Medical Services – Sliding-Fee Medical Care
- Good Samaritan Health Center of Cobb – Sliding-Fee Medical Care
- Cobb County Schools – Student Meals
