With savings and budgeting, it's best to start somewhere no matter your earning

While savings is necessary, sometimes, due to circumstances and low wages, some people are not able to budget, much less set side money for emergencies. — Photos: 123rf.com

HOUSEWIFE Norfiza Nor Ariffin, 53, gets by with RM2,500 for her household. She stays with her husband, a 61-year-old pensioner, in Ipoh and their adult daughter, who is 24 and already working. She sells nasi lemak in the morning to add to her household income, but she says even without her small business, they could financially survive.

Making a monthly budget is an alien concept to her. “We spend what we get until the end of the month and the cycle continues for the next month, and so on,” she says.