Even if you don’t think Greek mythology applies to your life, it likely crops up more often than you realize. For instance, even the month of June comes about from the Greek goddess Juno. And, those Nike shoes you slip on when you leave the house each day can thank the Greek spite, Nike for their brand name. And, of course, there’s the all too common idea of the phoenix rising from the ashes. This mythological creature dies in a burst of flame, then regenerates from the ashes of its past self. And, we use this phrase in common culture ALL the time.

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But, we know what you’re thinking. What does this have to do with my finances? Ahh, be patient, reader. Admittedly, June has little to do with finances. And, other than the fact that they cost a bomb to buy in the first place, your Nike trainers don’t hold many financial teachings. But, the Phoenix may be a different matter, especially if you’re struggling to cover the costs of a fire in your home.

When you went to the trouble of buying your own home, it’s unlikely you considered that a faulty switch could burn it to the ground. It’s a nightmare no one likes to think about, and for obvious reasons. But, if your house had been damaged by fire, it’s crucial you don’t lay down and admit defeat when it comes to affording repairs. Instead, make like the Phoenix, and ensure your finances rise from that fire stronger than before. And, we’re going to look at a few of the ways you can make that happen.

Make sure compensation does more than cover costs

If you’re lucky enough to have home insurance, an issue like this is much easier to overcome. Of course, compensation doesn’t help with the disruption this fire will bring to your life. But, it can at least go some way towards lessening the burden and getting your life back on track. That said, most insurance companies will pay out as little as they can get away with. And, that could still leave you struggling to cope here. Even if your compensation covers repairs, you could still find yourself out of pocket when it comes to time taken off work for stress and so forth.So, if you aren’t happy with what your insurer’s offering, find a public adjuster who can help you fight your corner. With a trained professional onside, you stand to earn much more than your repair costs. And, that’s sure to go a long way towards getting your life back up to standard in the shortest time. Who knows; you could even end up with money left spare to put in the bank. We wouldn’t say this will make your struggles worthwhile. But, it will make your endpoint sweeter.

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Take this chance to add value

If you do get a weighty sum from your insurance, you could focus on using that money to increase your home’s value. You are going to need to refit the kitchen anyway after all that smoke damage. So, why not take the chance for a little refurbishment work? After all, upgrades here are proven to increase house value drastically. So, your finances would again stand to see a healthy boost, albeit down the line. Understandably, you’re going to want to get back to normal as fast as possible. As such, there’s a real temptation to revert straight back to the decor style you had in the past. But, keep strong here, and focus on the light at the end of the tunnel. If it helps, consider the fact that a decent renovation can add up to $16,700 to your resale value. Plus, you’ll get a nice new room which won’t contain any reminders of the awful experience you’ve been through. Again, a shiny new renovation isn’t going to undo the emotional trauma you’ve experienced. But, you can be sure this is a move a phoenix would make. Remember; you’re trying to come out of this stronger, and it’s hard to see a better way of doing that.

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A lesson learned could be a cost halved

It’s not all about moving forward. That phoenix likely pays some heed to the ashes of its past self before moving on. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be able to move forward stronger and better than it was before. And, the same applies to your home fire. Naturally, you’ll want to put the event as far behind you as possible. But, it’s worth taking some time to consider what the event can teach you. Of course, how relevant this is depends on the cause of the fire. Irrelevant of what started it, you can bet a proper security system would’ve saved you a lot in damages. If you had a decent fire alarm in place, it would have triggered straight away and allowed you to take action. As it is, things went too far, and you might have lost money because of it. But, by learning from that mistake, you stand to save yourself a lot of cash in the future. You might have to fork out on a decent fire alarm system, but you can bet it’ll more than pay for itself if the same happens in the future. Equally, this may be the push it takes to deck your whole home with security efforts. Your fear could push you to get a security alarm and CCTV system as well. And, those could also save you a lot of money and worry in the future. And, there’s every chance you would have carried on cutting corners if it weren’t for this terrible lesson.

Conclusion

Nothing can take away the pain of what’s happened, and it might be awhile before you feel at home in this space again. But, taking these steps can at least ensure your finances rise from those ashes. And, once your money worries are out the way, you’ll be in a much better position to move forward again.


Greg Kononenko
Greg Kononenko

My name is Greg Kononenko and I am a full-time online blogger and owner of Dad's Hustle. I'm a dad, and my passion is to help other mums and dads to start their own "hustle" and improve the financial future of their families.

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