You need your car to get to work. Your car gets a flat. $75 for a used tire.
Without emergency fund: $75 unexpected expense goes on credit card. Since you are still drinking fancy coffee, you have no slack in your finances, and interest starts compounding on that $75 which you cannot pay off. Eventually you figure out you can pay the debt down gradually by cutting back on having someone else make you coffee. You manage to gradually pay down your debt over several months. By the time you pay it off, the tire cost you $150.
With emergency fund: you are pissed off about the flat, but shell out $75 from your emergency fund. Your fund recovers in a couple months.
Ok, got it! Sorry! Will never pay for anything I enjoy again! Will just work like a robot to survive maybe half a year longer before the economy tanks anyway.
EDIT: Let me tell you, my Grampa always saved up, and spent all his money investing into a home, for the day he could retire and have his perfect family life. He died suddenly, and the house was very near finished.
If you struggle to save $600 in 2 years, you don’t have a car already, it required $3000 worth of maintenance 3 years ago and you didn’t have it so you sold it for parts, or it still rotting behind a dumpster. If you struggle to save $600 in 2 years, your problems aren’t coffee.
You need your car to get to work. Your car gets a flat. $75 for a used tire.
Without emergency fund: $75 unexpected expense goes on credit card. Since you are still drinking fancy coffee, you have no slack in your finances, and interest starts compounding on that $75 which you cannot pay off. Eventually you figure out you can pay the debt down gradually by cutting back on having someone else make you coffee. You manage to gradually pay down your debt over several months. By the time you pay it off, the tire cost you $150.
With emergency fund: you are pissed off about the flat, but shell out $75 from your emergency fund. Your fund recovers in a couple months.
Ok, got it! Sorry! Will never pay for anything I enjoy again! Will just work like a robot to survive maybe half a year longer before the economy tanks anyway.
EDIT: Let me tell you, my Grampa always saved up, and spent all his money investing into a home, for the day he could retire and have his perfect family life. He died suddenly, and the house was very near finished.
What was the point? He deserved better.
If you struggle to save $600 in 2 years, you don’t have a car already, it required $3000 worth of maintenance 3 years ago and you didn’t have it so you sold it for parts, or it still rotting behind a dumpster. If you struggle to save $600 in 2 years, your problems aren’t coffee.