Lives are on hold all over the world as we distance ourselves socially to contain the coronavirus, but bills still pile up.

Some countries, such as Italy and France, have already enacted mortgage and rent relief, but measures in the United States are still being worked out for the most part, aside from a waiver for student-loan interest.

Now is not the time for lectures on the value of having an emergency fund.

"You can't just go pick up a side hustle right now," said Ms Erin Lowry, 30, author of Broke Millennial, a financial advice book that attempts to prepare her cohort for a rainy day such as now.

Many people, regardless of whether they can telecommute, have had their hours cut, have lost their jobs or are facing some kind of financial crisis. We are at the point of making the best worst choices.

Here are some ways to prioritise.

1. Assess the damage.

First thing, Ms Lowry said: "You have to face your numbers." Do not think of this as budgeting, because the situation is changing so fast you cannot really think long term. Take a breath and just deal with this month.

What bills are due? How much cash do you have on hand?

2. Stall fixed debt.

Your lenders and banks have probably already sent you a very sympathetic e-mail about how they are there for help.

"We want to share some ways we are here to help you in this current environment," Citibank says on its coronavirus webpage currently.

Take the bank up on it.

"Consumers who are the most proactive and say 'here's where I stand' will get a lot better response than those who do nothing," said Ms Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, chief executive of AskTheMoneyCoach.com and author of Zero Debt. This goes for home loans, auto loans, student loans and utility payments.

3. Prioritise your needs.

If it comes down to it, prioritise housing, because you need to keep a roof over your head, Ms Khalfani-Cox advised.

Owners will get more leeway than renters, because it takes a long time to get through a foreclosure process.

Renters, especially those dealing with a small landlord they may know personally, may feel more pressure to pay. Ms Lowry said that the key is to know the rights in your state, so you are not bullied by misinformation, like a landlord saying he can change the locks or throw out all of your stuff if you cannot pay.

"Landlords do not want property sitting empty right now, so see if you can work out a deal, like maybe you can pay 25 per cent," she said.

During the 2008-2009 recession, she encountered a woman who prioritised her car payment over rent, because she needed transportation to get to work. Her fallback was that she could sleep in her car.

"That's something that a lot of people are going to face now," she said.

4. Ride your credit cards.

No travel, no restaurants, no shopping sprees at the mall, no online shopping impulse buys. Check. We are all on spending austerity plans because of social distancing.

But there are some essentials you might have to front if you have job loss or reduced income.

If you do not already have an adequate credit card, there could be a delay in approval and delivery of a card.

But there are some credit cards you can get right away, depending on your financial fitness, like Amazon's and Apple's cards, said Mr Matt Schulz, chief industry analyst at CompareCards.com. You can use those on your phone for mobile quick-pay or for online purchases.

Mr Schulz said: "With credit card debt, the advice is always to pay more than the minimum, but when it gets down to it and all you can do is pay the minimum, that's not the end of the world."

The key is not to miss a payment completely. You will face fees and go into a penalty interest rate, above the already sky-high average of about 16 per cent even after the Federal Reserve's latest rate cut.

In a recent survey, CreditSesame.com found that one out of five Americans missed a payment of some sort in the past 12 months.

The average missed payment was just US$38 (S$55), but that still dipped a person's credit score by 45 points.

"When there is financial crisis and uncertainty, managing cash and credit is going to be critical," said Mr Adrian Nazari, chief executive of Credit Sesame.

"You need to sort out the least bad option," he said.

REUTERS