# Could you get $2000 of emergency funds in 30 days? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 24, 2011, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056 "2011-05-24T20:06:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/21 "2011-05-24T21:48:21Z")
Sure. I’ve got half that amount in the bank, and I could hock my computer or camera to cover the rest. If I really, really had to, I mean. Besides, my expenses are very low; it wouldn’t be hard to save a significant chunk of that in a month. Thirty days is a long time. ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/22 "2011-05-24T21:49:21Z")
Ya, I could easily do it by barrwing or dipping into the savings for my vacation this summer or get into the advanced rent I was paid for the next year. The last one probably has some legal hurdles on it but I could be done. ---
**Author:** ![chrisk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@chrisk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chrisk)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/23 "2011-05-24T22:08:25Z")
For two grand, I probably wouldn’t even need to dip into the money from Granny’s inheritance that I’ve put into the tax-free savings account. ---
**Author:** ![MaddyStrut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dbc845/32.png) [@MaddyStrut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaddyStrut)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/24 "2011-05-24T22:19:34Z")
I could. When the economy went south back in '08 and my company started laying people off, I _finally_ got serious about this “put aside an 8 month emergency fund” in liquid assets thing. Took some serious budgeting, but I did get to the 8 month mark (only to hear some pundits say it should now be 10 months–I will never have enough as they keep raising the bar). ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/25 "2011-05-24T22:32:08Z")
I’d write a check without needing to think about it & would not notice the difference in my balance next time I happened to look. My brother, OTOH, would have a massive scramble to raise that much & would end up coming to me. ---
**Author:** ![chizzuk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@chizzuk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chizzuk)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/26 "2011-05-24T22:33:37Z")
As a broke grad student, I would hate having to suck that much down in one go, but I do have $3000 in an emergency savings account that I would use. My parents are also reasonably well-off and could give me that much without any trouble, but I’d feel bad having to ask. ---
**Author:** ![Ludy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Ludy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludy)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/27 "2011-05-24T22:37:29Z")
Between by checking and savings accounts I could probably do up to $6000. I don’t know how much is in my husbands accounts, but I know it is more than mine. ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/28 "2011-05-24T22:40:14Z")
$2K is way too low a bar for me. I wouldn’t even consider that an “emergency” situation. Let’s just say that I have been into saving money almost to the extent of being miserly (notice I said “almost”) my entire life. Let’s raise that by an order of magnitude or so. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/29 "2011-05-24T22:54:49Z")
> [@Living\_Well\_Is\_Best\_Revenge](#): > > I would take the money out of my savings account. Yep, same for me. ---
**Author:** ![pendgwen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3da27b/32.png) [@pendgwen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pendgwen)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/30 "2011-05-24T23:11:51Z")
One of the first things I did when I finally became gainfully employed after years of school was start building an emergency fund. I’m not yet up to my goal of 6 months living expenses but $2000 would not be a problem. That’s the amount that I keep in a savings account associated with a brick & mortar bank in case of an emergency that requires cash on very short notice. The rest of my savings are in an online account. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/31 "2011-05-24T23:12:09Z")
As a veterinary technician who works in an ER, I see people every week who can’t come up with $500, and can’t qualify for $500 from Care Credit - which is pretty darned lenient with their credit requirements. Why these people think they should have animals is beyond me. $2,000? Forget about it. It’s always a pleasant surprise when I give an estimate for $3,000 to $4,000 and the client doesn’t even blink. I have a joint savings account with my retired mom. It’s pretty much been funded by her, but it was set up for emergencies such as injury/death where I may need to take care of a lot of things on short notice before the rest of her accounts can be released to me. I used $4,000 of it in January to supplement paying for two new crowns for me and surgery for one of my cats, plus $2,000 I already had. It was a crappy month. ---
**Author:** ![horsetech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dec6dc/32.png) [@horsetech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/horsetech)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/32 "2011-05-24T23:14:09Z")
If it were really important, I could ask my parents and they would give it to me. In a few months, I would be able to get an advance on my fall student loans, but then I might not make it through the quarter (I’m already living on less than $1K/mo, with some loan money left at the end but not $2K in one quarter). Unfortunately, other than that, I’m screwed. My income is in the massively negative (about $50K/year student loans for tuition and living expenses) category right now, so there are no savings. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/33 "2011-05-24T23:17:57Z")
I’d write a check or withdraw money from checking or move some money over from savings. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/34 "2011-05-24T23:20:31Z")
I could get it a number of ways. In decreasing probability… 1. From my savings 2. From my credit card 3. From my parents 4. From my business 5. From my business partner 6. From my best friends (a married couple) 7. If all else fails I could put a notice up on Facebook and get that amount in PayPal donations in about 5 hours Being solvent is good, and being loved is good too. ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/35 "2011-05-24T23:38:59Z")
No problem, just pull it out of the bank. I’ve had emergencies bigger than this in the last five years and I had no problem with it. ---
**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/36 "2011-05-24T23:40:06Z")
My emergency fund would cover that easily. ---
**Author:** ![stretch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@stretch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stretch)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2011, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/37 "2011-05-24T23:56:53Z")
I would be unlikely to be able to come up with that kind of money in 30 days. I am house poor because I bought a big enough place to be a landing pad for my daughters and grandson. My oldest lives with me and is currently unemployed. My younger daughter and grandson have only recently moved out. My mom used to be able to help in a pinch but her husband just got laid off last month. My dad has zero money available to help in his own emergencies. I can’t access my main retirement funds for anything. I could access my deferred comp, but not within 30 days. I’d be fucked. I need to get back to saving some money, but when you have to take a paycut, your roommate loses her job, and shit just keeps happening, it is really hard to find the extra to put away. Must do better! ---
**Author:** ![YaraMateo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/58f4c7/32.png) [@YaraMateo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YaraMateo)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/38 "2011-05-25T00:13:00Z")
I’m not sure if this question how I come up with 2,000 or 2,000 more than I have on me? If it’s the first, savings. If it’s the later, credit card. This thread makes me want to start a seperate saving account for incidentals. ---
**Author:** ![mozchron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mozchron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mozchron)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/39 "2011-05-25T00:34:19Z")
$2K? Certainly. Wouldn’t even miss it. $10K? Yep, although it would be an annoyance. $50K? Yes, but would be painful. $100K? Yes, but would be VERY painful, and would have consequences for several years. $200K? Yes, but would be catastrophic in the consequences. $300K? …_Probably_. With the help of friends and relatives. $500K? …_Probably_, with the catastrophic help of family. It better be a life-or-death emergency, like a ransom. One million $? Dunno. Maybe. I’d probably think of something. More than a million? I’d have to break out my doomsday device and hold the world hostage. ---
**Author:** ![Implicit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Implicit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Implicit)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2011, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056/40 "2011-05-25T00:48:50Z")
> [@Al\_Bundy](#): > > I’m quite liquid right now. I could meet the $2,000 challenge almost with pocket change. Raise the standard a few hundred thousand, same answer in five minutes. Same. Even back when I was a struggling student I had an emergency fund and could have easily come up with $2k in 24 hours. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-you-get-2000-of-emergency-funds-in-30-days/583056.md?page=3)