Emergency fund. The recession has underscored the importance of an emergency fund. Be sure to have at least six months’ worth of living expenses in your emergency fund. That means it’s money that can easily be accessed in case crap happens. The job situation today hints that a years’ worth of living expenses as emergency fund isn’t that bad. Replenish it before spending your money on other things.

Insurance. Aside from your emergency fund, you can also protect yourself and your stuff through insurance. While many might claim that these can be an unnecessary expense, my own experience has taught me to value insurance. Prioritize getting health, life, home, and car insurance policies. Just shop around to get the best deals.

Let us expound on the topic. Given the recession, you should have at least six months to a year’s worth of living expenses as emergency fund.

First of all, let’s be clear on what things do you actually need an emergency fund for.

What are emergencies anyway? Your mother-in-law’s birthday is not an emergency. Your anniversary isn’t an emergency. These are events that happen yearly so there’s no reason to consider them emergencies.

A blown water pump in your car is an emergency. Hospital bills from your kid’s broken foot from a skateboarding accident is an emergency. Getting laid off is an emergency.

So in such unfortunate instances, you’d only be thankful that you have your emergency stash to tap into. But what do you do after? Once your affairs are in order again, well, you should replenish the fund, of course.

It might take a few sacrifices again such as deferring buying that new widescreen TV but it’s always important to keep your emergency fund topped up.

Rainy days come fast and plenty these days so why leave a nasty gash on your umbrella?

Republic Federal Bank in Florida, SolutionsBank in Kansas, and Valley Capital Bank in Arizona were closed by the Office of the Comptroller of Currency and by state regulators.

Customers of these failed banks are all protected and other banks were able to buy the banks. Branches are expected to reopen as branches of controlling banks. The FDIC covers deposits of up to $250,000 per depositor.

2009 saw an average of 11 banks a month and it’s the first time the FDIC has gotten in the red since 1992. The FDIC expects to be in the black again by 2012.

It basically boils down to two popular choices – term life insurance and whole life insurance.

You may initially purchase a term life insurance which costs the least but it is only valid for a specified amount of years. Once this period is over, you would need to renew your insurance for higher rates.

A whole life insurance may cost higher but they are kept at a set rate until everything is paid off. The only time the premiums change is when the one covered by the insurance decides to discontinue the coverage but later on comes back.

Another consideration for death insurance is if it accrues money or not. This is the reason that term life insurance costs less. You are paying for the term, in most cases about $100,000, and though you may be paying for fifty years, that amount will never increase.

The deciding factor would actually be your financial situation. If you have more money, go for a whole life insurance. Although it’s more expensive, it will be much better for your family in the end. However, if you’re tight on the budget, a term life insurance is a good-enough alternative until you save more to upgrade your policy.

Hospitalization Coverage. Hospital stays can be quite expensive depending on the type of medical service that you acquire. A good health insurance covers hospitalizations which include room and board, and the medical procedures that they perform on the patient.

Co-pays. These payments are the individual expenses that are paid independently such as doctor visits, prescriptions, emergency room visits, and shots. A good health insurance pays for some of these up to a certain amount. Although you can also consider less coverage on co-pays if it allows you to up on other areas.

Durable Medical. This refers to the equipment and devices you need for health management. Examples of this are nebulizers, compressors for administering medication.

Whatever coverage you purchase, just make sure that you read everything on the policies and procedures, including the fine print. Be diligent in keeping and filing paperwork as most health insurance providers would need documentation. Don’t hesitate to ask questions if you have to.