Personal Finance and COVID-19
LOUISIANA REALTORS • April 3, 2020
How to Navigate the Financial Impact of COVID-19
Personal Finance and COVID-19
Coping With Financial Stress
The first thing you should do during this pandemic is calm your panic. Everyone is (understandably) a little on edge about money, but stress weakens the immune system. To maintain your physical, mental and emotional health, use the following tips to cope with financial stress.
Communicate
Social distancing, self-isolation, and quarantining can make you stir-crazy and lonely. Keep in touch with friends and family over the phone or through video calls. Being social even as you’re social distancing will ease your mind.
Talk about money
Find a trusted mental health professional to share the fears and worries you are experiencing. Though most offices aren’t taking in-person appointments during this pandemic, many offer virtual appointments.
Exercise
Research reported by the American Psychological Association found that regular exercise releases chemicals that help the brain cope better with stress, reduce anxiety, and lift depression. You may not be able to go to your usual gym, but going for a walk or run outside can lift your spirits.
Change what you can
If there are changes you can make to better your situation, implement them now. Lynne Hornyak, PhD, PCC, is a coaching consultant on the mental side of money. She recommends you look at things that are causing you financial stress in two ways: their level of importance, and whether they can be changed.
Items will fall into one of four categories:
1. Important, Changeable: Your budget is extremely important to your financial wellbeing, but it should also be flexible. Because of closures, you can reduce categories like restaurants and entertainment and increase your grocery and cleaning supply funds.
2. Important, Not Changeable: You can't control stock market volatility right now, so you may have to change your attitude, your expectations, or both. Don't panic about your investments. Leave them alone and focus on your current cash flow.
3. Not Important, Changeable: The fact that your spouse insists on paying the bills by hand when you’d rather do it online may drive you nuts, but it may not be important as long as they are being paid. If it’s not important, change your attitude. The real issue during a pandemic is how you will pay the bills, not the method you use to do it.
4. Not Important, Not Changeable: Maybe your parents always squabbled about money and that bothered you. But that is in the past and how they talked to you then is not really important, nor can you change it. Let it go and focus on supporting your friends and family through this health crisis. Be thankful When you’re in financial difficulty, you may feel the weight of the world is on your shoulders. But for most people, even when things aren’t going well, there is still a lot they can be thankful for. Oprah Winfrey says that keeping a “gratitude journal” has been helpful for her and many who have followed her advice feel the same. Take the time each day to write down three or four things you are thankful for, and really take a few moments to appreciate them. Get help If you’re in dire straits, talking to a certified credit counselor can help you budget and deal with your debt. There’s no shame in seeking help, especially during a worldwide pandemic.
Be thankful
When you’re in financial difficulty, you may feel the weight of the world is on your shoulders. But for most people, even when things aren’t going well, there is still a lot they can be thankful for. Oprah Winfrey says that keeping a “gratitude journal” has been helpful for her and many who have followed her advice feel the same. Take the time each day to write down three or four things you are thankful for, and really take a few moments to appreciate them.
Get help
If you’re in dire straits, talking to a certified credit counselor can help you budget and deal with your debt. There’s no shame in seeking help, especially during a worldwide pandemic.
Avoid costly fair housing violations with expert tips on compliant real estate advertising, from listing language to social media targeting strategies.
Week seven of the 2026 Regular Session was one of the most active weeks yet for legislation affecting the real estate industry. Louisiana REALTORS® remained heavily engaged as lawmakers advanced bills dealing with property disclosures, appraiser liability, rent regulation, insurance, blight, redevelopment and other issues that directly affect real estate professionals, property owners and consumers across the state. One of the most important bills this week was HB 1166 by Rep. Kim Carver , which would require disclosures for vacant residential property. The bill was reported from House Commerce with amendments on a 14-0 vote and then amended on the House floor, ordered engrossed, and passed to third reading. Louisiana REALTORS® testified on the bill in committee and worked closely with the author to better posture the legislation. Amendments advanced by our team were accepted by the author, helping improve the bill while preserving a practical disclosure framework that increases transparency without creating unnecessary confusion in the transaction process. Another closely watched issue this week was consumer-fee disclosure legislation. HB 617 by Rep. Mandie Landry moved this week, advancing from House Commerce and then the House floor, while HB 580 , another hidden-fee disclosure bill touching real estate transactions, remains pending. Louisiana REALTORS® is opposed to these measures in their current form to the extent they apply to real estate professionals because they are not well-tailored to the realities of real estate transactions, where many costs are negotiated, variable or controlled by third parties. Louisiana REALTORS® testified in opposition to the bills we oppose and is actively working with the author to better posture the legislation and remove real estate professionals from its scope altogether. On HB 472 by Rep. Alonzo Knox , the rent stabilization bill, the author is expected to try to bring the measure back before the committee next week with amendments. Even so, Louisiana REALTORS® remain opposed to the bill on principle. Price gouging is already illegal under existing law, and government-imposed rent regulation is not the right answer to housing affordability challenges. Louisiana REALTORS® testified in opposition to the bill and continues to oppose the measure because policies like this risk discouraging investment, reducing housing supply, and creating further market distortions rather than solving the underlying problem. HB 468 by Rep. Troy Hebert , which regulates the wholesale of residential real property, remains pending in the Senate Commerce Committee and continues to be an important bill for the industry. Likewise, HB 1027 by Rep. Troy Hebert , dealing with appraiser liability, had a strong week, passing the House 90-0 and moving to the Senate. Both measures are significant because they promote greater clarity, consumer protection and confidence in the real estate marketplace. Blight and redevelopment issues also remained active. HB 284 by Rep. John Wyble , which would allow certain local governments to expropriate blighted property through a declaration-of-taking process, remains subject to call and continues to raise serious concerns about private property rights. By contrast, HB 214 and HB 217 by Rep. Chance Henry , which create tax incentives for the rehabilitation of blighted property, represent a more constructive redevelopment approach by encouraging reinvestment rather than expanding government taking authority. Insurance legislation also remained a major focus this week, with multiple bills heard that could affect homeownership costs, market stability and post-storm recovery. Measures dealing with Louisiana Citizens assessments, pre-suit insurance claim review, the Fortified Homes Program and insurance market transparency all carry real implications for affordability and transaction viability. In Louisiana, insurance remains one of the most important issues affecting the real estate market, and Louisiana REALTORS® continues to closely track that legislation. Taken together, week seven showed that Louisiana REALTORS® remains actively engaged where it matters most: supporting practical transaction standards, protecting private property rights, testifying for and against legislation when necessary, pushing back on unworkable regulation and rent-control-style policies, and advancing policies that strengthen housing opportunity and market stability across Louisiana. Please view the weekly bill tracking report provided by our lobbying team over at Harris, DeVille and Associates.
NAR is pleased to share the latest consumer guide helping buyers navigate shifting interest rates. The one-page guide covers how lenders set rates, the impact of small shifts on monthly payments and strategies to get the lowest rate possible. As a reminder, all guides in this series are available for download—in both English and Spanish—on facts.realtor . Please allow up to two weeks for the Spanish version of the latest resource to be translated and uploaded. For ease of reference, below is a list of the most recent guides: NEW: Navigating Interest Rate Shifts Financing a Renovation When You Buy Staging Your House for a Sale Spotting Deepfake Scams in Real Estate Are You Ready to Invest in Real Estate? Thank you for your continued engagement with the “Consumer Guide” series and for sharing the resources with prospective clients to ensure they have the information they need to find success in their home buying or selling journey. Remember that these guides are for informational purposes only and are not meant to enact or change any existing NAR policy. Be on the lookout for the next consumer guide, which looks at how solar installations may impact home sales transactions.
