COVID-19 has shown all of us the importance of an emergency fund. Most people operate on the “it probably won’t happen to me” philosophy; until it happens to them. The fact is, a major life-changing (or threatening) event can happen to anyone at any time, and pretending like it can’t is a good way to set yourself up for maximum damage when it does occur.
Many Americans have less than $1,000 in their savings account—hardly enough to subsist on should they be out of work for several months. An emergency fund should consist of about 3-6 months’ worth of expenses, or so the experts say.