"The effects are devastating for households and businesses" - Debt Rescue CEO
Due to the national lockdown, South Africans are left to make do with the little they have.
Neil Roets joined Breakfast with Martin Bester telephonically to discuss the effects of the national lockdown due to the coronavirus.
Roets is the founder and CEO of Debt Rescue, one of the biggest debt counselling companies in South Africa.
According to Debt Rescue, chances are that 46% of all the people you know are financially distressed and it might be more during the national lockdown.
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"There are no statistics to describe the severity of the national lockdown on the economy," says Roets.
"What we do know is that the effects are devastating. It is going to take years for the economy to recover from this."
SMALL BUSINESS:
Neil Roets says many businesses cannot afford to pay rent and salaries. Try not to overspend during this month (April) and do not panic buy in order to make your money stretch further.
A lot of people panic bought on credit and that will start another problem because of the uncertainty of when life will return to normal.
READ: "Prepare for the worst but hope for the best" – Analyst on Breakfast with Martin Bester
HOUSEHOLDS:
Roets emphasises: "No one prepared for this and definitely not South Africa. It would have been ideal for an emergency fund to be available but most people don’t."
DRAW UP A CORONA BUDGET:
Spend within your means.
If you lose your income in any form and you cannot pay your bills – debt counselling is available.
We are available for people. We’ve streamlined this process over the last few years and we will see what the best remedy is.