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Right now, we are experiencing the longest bull market in history. Great news, right? Not if you're the type of person who plans for the future.
Historically, long bull markets have always been followed by major recessions. Oftentimes, the longer the bull market, the more painful the correction. For example, the bull market from 1991 to 2001 ended with the dot-com bubble burst and recession. The bull market from 1961 to 1969 ended with the recessions and stagflation of the 1970s. And of course, the bull market from 2001 to 2007 ended with the Great Recession.
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Because of this pattern, many experts fear that the current bull market will end with a second Great Depression. And considering that the average person never fully recovered from the Great Recession, it is likely to be a very painful depression.
If you want to get prepared before this happens, here's what you should do.
1. Put Together an Emergency Fund
If the economy ever collapses you may not be able to rely on any source of income. Businesses who are hit hard by the collapse will lay off employees as their first way to stop the bleeding, so you will want to have an emergency fund you can rely on in case all other sources of income dry up.
2. Stock Up on Food
If you find yourself without any money, obtaining even the basic necessities for survival such as food may become a challenge. Stock up on food now while times are good so that you will have it available should these times come to an end.
Related: The Beginner's Guide to Emergency Food Storage
3. Stock Up on Medicine
Like food, the medication you and your family need to survive may be hard to acquire when your money runs out. Of course, prescription drugs are sometimes impossible to stock up on, so try your best to find over-the-counter alternatives that you can build up a supply of.
Related: 33 Over-the-Counter Meds You Need to Stockpile
4. Withdraw Money from the Bank
Money sitting in your bank account may seem pretty secure, and in most cases, it is. However, the reality is that banks almost never have the cash on hand to close out every account that they manage. In the event that everyone is suddenly trying to withdraw their money from the bank, these banks are likely to shut down and refuse to give money to anyone.
To avoid having funds that you are unable to access, it’s a good idea to store the majority of your emergency funds in cash that you hide away in a secure location.
5. Put Home Security Measures in Place
Desperate times cause people to do desperate things, and even ordinary, moral people can resort to thievery when their lives are on the line. To help protect the supplies that you acquire, you may want to outfit your home with security measures such as cameras and security lighting.
Related: 11 Home Security Tips for Life After The SHTF
6. Get Out of Debt
Creditors may be patient in most scenarios, but in the event of a major economic collapse, that patience will quickly run out. Even if creditors are not able to demand that you immediately pay off your debt, your own lack of funds may cause you to be unable to make your regular payments, causing creditors to repossess your property and leaving you in a very precarious situation.
To avoid this situation, do your best to become debt free before any major market downturns.
7. Lower Your Expenses
The moment after an economic disaster strikes is not the time to figure out how to lower your expenses. If at all possible, you should try to figure out how you can lower your expenses now so that the adjustment will be less drastic when/if the economy ever collapses.
Related: 21 Ways to Save Money for Survival Supplies
8. Buy a Water Filter
Even relying on basic services such as fresh water may not be a possibility in the event of a major economic disaster. When cities have their budgets cut due to less tax revenue, sometimes they do shoddy work. For example, they might not thoroughly clean the tap water. To ensure that you still have access to quality drinking water, invest in a good water filter.
Related: 8 Fastest Ways To Purify Water
9. Stock up on Precious Metals
For many investors, precious metals serve as an insurance policy against economic collapse. When the value of the dollar goes down, the value of these precious metals goes up. Thus, if you put at least a portion of your money into metals such as gold and silver, you’ll have a lot more value to your name when an economic disaster strikes.
10. Learn a Few Skills that Will be in Demand
In the event of a major economic collapse, many jobs and skills will no longer be in demand. However, there are skills that people will still be willing to pay for, and if you learn a few of these skills, you will have an easier time securing a source of income.
Skills and jobs that will still be in demand after an economic disaster include working as a carpenter, working as an electrician, and other such hands-on jobs.
Related: 17 Best Jobs To Have When The Economy Collapses
11. Be Prepared to Grow a Garden
In addition to stocking up on food, it’s a good idea to prepare to grow your own food as well. Buy seeds and any other supplies that you will need, secure a spot for your garden, and learn the skills necessary to grow a garden now so that you will be ready to go should you ever need to grow a garden to keep food on the table.
Related: Urban Survival Gardening – A Guide For Beginners
12. Cultivate Relationships that You can Rely on
There’s a good chance you may not be able to make it through a severe economic collapse on your own. With that being the case, it’s a good idea to have other people you can rely on for help, while at the same time offering value to those people yourself.
For example, if you are a great carpenter and you are friends with a great mechanic, you can offer to build them a storage building in exchange for them fixing your generator. Should an economic disaster strike, these kinds of barters will become commonplace.
Related: 20 Skills You Can Trade After The End Of The World
13. Buy a Generator and Stock Up on Fuel
Keeping your utilities paid after an economic disaster may be a challenge. Unfortunately, there’s no simple way to stock up on electricity ahead of time. What you can do, though, is buy a quality generator and set aside enough fuel to get you by. The power to run some fans or a small fridge will be priceless.
Related: 8 Features To Look For in a Portable Generator
14. Invest in Other Currencies
A national economic collapse is much more likely than a worldwide economic collapse, and if it’s the US economy that collapses, then the value of other currencies will go up in comparison. Like gold and silver, consider investing in euros or some other currency as in insurance policy against economic collapse.
15. Buy Some Land in a Rural Area
Having land in a rural area – even it’s a small plot – could be incredibly valuable in the event of a major economic collapse. You could use the land to grow food escape some of the chaos that might ensue in urban areas.
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