How to Cover an Emergency Even When You’re Scraping By

If a $400 bill showed up in your mailbox tomorrow, could you cover it with your savings? For 4 in 10 Americans, the answer is no. Instead, they’d have to sell something or borrow money to pay for the unexpected expense.

I can sympathize. Not so long ago, I had a low-paying 9-to-5, $60,000 of student loans to pay off and no safety net. It wasn’t until my dog got sick and required an expensive trip to the vet that I realized just how common emergencies actually are and that the best way to weather them without taking on even more debt is to be prepared.

If you’re in the same boat, take heart. Building a healthy emergency fund isn’t as hard as it sounds, even if you’re living paycheck to paycheck. Here’s how.