Being a breadwinner means doing the lion’s share of financially supporting your family. We often talk about this in the context of a small, nuclear family where one of the partners is the main source of income. But for South African families, this dynamic frequently includes parents, grandparents and siblings.
Nasiphi Beja understands the challenges that come with being the sole provider for your loved ones. She’s worked at DirectAxis for years, so when the time came to seek financial assistance, she knew where to turn. Nasiphi secured a loan to bridge the costs of moving from an informal settlement into her first home – improving not only her living standard but that of her mother and younger siblings.
Here Nasiphi shares how she securely manages her finances as a breadwinner, and how you can too:
Prioritise your Goals
For any breadwinner, it’s important to balance the short-term necessities of food, housing and security with long-term needs like education and investing for retirement or future goals. Nasiphi saw immediate security as an esseantial investment to ease her mind and keep her family safe.
“My first goal was to get my family secured, settled and by my side in Cape Town,” says Nasiphi. “But while my family was able to be together, safety became an issue. Informal houses often don’t have bathrooms, and we had to walk quite a distance to use public facilities. So I applied for a loan to help cover some of the expenses of buying a house.”
Consolidate Your Debt
Most people see loans as a way to afford big purchases, but the truth is they can also be used as a means to help you pay off multiple, high-interest debts. The benefit of consolidating your debt is that it makes things simpler: you make one easy monthly installment instead of multiple payments, and it becomes more affordable because you don’t have to pay interest on multiple accounts.
“When I needed money for the house, a loan allowed me to pay off my other, high-interest debt, and pour my focus and finances into my home loan,” says Nasiphi.
Understand How Your Credit Rating Impacts Your Future Plans
Your credit status reflects important financial information about you – which banks, finance companies, retailers and some landlords use to determine your dependability. It’s calculated according to the information in your credit report: your payment history, how much you owe, judgements against your name, activity on an account, defaults, how long you’ve held your accounts and enquiries about your creditworthiness.
“A poor credit rating could mean the difference between getting a loan, paying higher interest rates or not being considered for the property you want,” says Nasiphi. “And it becomes even more important when it affects those you’re responsible for. That’s why it’s essential you know your credit rating and keep improving it.”
Budget, Save and be Accountable as a Family
When you factor monthly savings into your budget, it’s much easier to make adjustments for it. Budgeting as a family allows you to remove financial surprises by planning for that birthday, Matric dance or doctor’s visit.
It also moves some of the responsibility onto the rest of the family. By understanding your financial situation, they can set their expectations and know what’s within budget. It then also falls to everyone to look for smart ways to save money or spend it wisely.
Whether you need a personal loan to help you give your family a better life, a free financial tool to improve your credit status, or helpful advice on how to tackle this money headache, DirectAxis can help.
Get in touch with us today to find out how we can help you build your better tomorrow, together.