A personal finance blogger left his day job just months before the coronavirus pandemic hit - here are 3 ways his family is setting up its finances and lifestyle to get through the crisis

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A personal finance blogger left his day job just months before the coronavirus pandemic hit - here are 3 ways his family is setting up its finances and lifestyle to get through the crisis
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  • Andy Hill, an entrepreneur and personal finance guru from Michigan, is preparing his family's finances for a possible recession.
  • He told Business Insider that he's bulking up the family emergency fund, investing in the stock market, and following a daily work-from-home routine, among other things.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Andy Hill just left his job in corporate event marketing to focus full-time on his own business in January, and now he and his wife Nicole are hunkered down in their home in Michigan, with their two kids.

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He said their annual earnings took a hit from around $200,000 last year to around $100,000 for this year from the job change, the onset of the pandemic and the sudden collapse in economic activity brought on by social distancing.

Despite all this, he says his family is still taking steps to keep its finances in the best shape possible during these uncertain times.

Andy runs his own personal-finance blog and podcast called "Marriage, Kids and Money," and Nicole is an administrative assistant, and he said they've always been smart about spending and saving. One of their biggest financial successes was paying off their $195,000 mortgage in just under four years.

This is obviously an extremely stressful time, but Andy said his family is prepared for whatever may happen, and shared his advice with Business Insider.

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1. They are bulking up their emergency fund.

At the start of the pandemic, Andy told Business Insider that they had around $60,000 to $70,000 in their emergency fund.

He and Nicole have been working on ways to decrease their spending in the past month or so in order to bulk it up. By default, the family is already saving money on things like gas, car maintenance, and eating out.

"With the extra money we have, we're going to reinforce our emergency fund to make sure we get through this near-recession season if we lose our income," he wrote in a blog post.

Andy told Business Insider that it's tempting to use some of the fund to "grab stocks on the cheap," but given the uncertainty of the pandemic and their decreased income, it was more important to keep the money as a cash cushion.

2. They are continuing to invest in the stock market.

Andy and Nicole are long-term investors in the stock market. Despite this time of uncertainty, he said they don't plan on selling.

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Andy explained to Business Insider that even though the stock market has been up and down and it looks like a recession is coming, they are going to keep investing in the market like they would in any other time.

He explained in a blog post that he considers the value of shares dipping to be different from his family losing money.

"We will only lose money when we sell. And we're not selling. We're going to continue to buy and hopefully get some deals along the way," Andy wrote. "We haven't lost any money really … just the value of our shares is lower."

3. They follow a daily routine.

Andy and Nicole are fortunate enough to be able to work from home during the outbreak.

In order to make sure they get at least four to six hours of work done a day, Andy told Business Insider that they stick to a family schedule that helps them stay on top of their work while keeping their kids in a steady routine.

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In the morning, Andy and Nicole meet to go over the important things they need to get done for that day for work. By talking out their days together beforehand, they are able to find ways to support each other.

"Some of those important things can be like, 'Hey Andy, I need to go for a run,' and that's cool. I'll watch the kids and make sure they're doing their assigned work," he explained.

Do you have a personal experience with the coronavirus you'd like to share? Or a tip on how your town or community is handling the pandemic? Please email covidtips@businessinsider.com and tell us your story.

And get the latest coronavirus analysis and research from Business Insider Intelligence on how COVID-19 is impacting businesses.

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