War's heavy financial toll on families only going to get worse - Paamonim aid org

Financial aid and education organization Paamonim has seen a big increase in the number of families coming to them for help, Director of Communications and Public Affairs Sharon Levin said.

“Since the holidays we have seen a significant increase of over 250 families a week” turning to the organization for help, she said.

These families have been coming to them each week for their mentorship programs, which is a “significant jump,” from the around 5,000 the organization normally mentors in these programs annually – only one of the programs it offers, Levin explained.

The average debt of the families coming to the organization has also been increasing in past years, reaching an average of around NIS 100,000 ($27,400) per family the organization helps, Levin said.

This debt is much higher for some families, she said, mentioning a family who came to the organization for help with NIS 350,000 ($96,000) in debt and a NIS 700,000 mortgage.

Middle-class families, reservists among growing number seeking financial help

Some families come to Paamonim on the verge of bankruptcy or with debt collection processes against them.

The organization is also seeing more middle-class families come to them for financial help, families who in the past have managed to get by, Levin said.

“The cost of living and the war have a serious impact,” she explained.

The Israel-Hamas war began when interest rates were already high, impacting families’ financial situation even before the impacts of the war, she said.

“Just the interest rate increase impacted families’ [costs for a] minus in the bank, loans they took, mortgages. Even before the war, mortgages went up around NIS 1,000 or 1,200 per month on average for a family.”

The war also came with its own set of economic impacts, including a large impact on family income through effects on employment, small business and more.

“So families were having a hard time up till the war, and now the difficulty is multiplied,” she explained.

“We also saw more single mothers turn to us than in previous years,” she said, adding that young people and young couples are also coming to the organization for help more often.

THINGS ARE only going to get worse next year, Levin anticipated.

“It’s going to be much harder,” she said, explaining that Israel’s cost of living is only going up.

“Prices are constantly increasing, especially the average price of food, which has increased significantly since last year and two years ago.”

There are also economic plans set in place to handle the costs of the war, which will have significant ramifications for Israeli families, such as planned increase in value added tax.

“VAT [increases] will impact everything – its food, its clothing,” Levin explained.

One of two things will happen to families struggling financially – they will need to “drastically cut expenses,” or to find a way to increase income, she said.

A recent Paamonim poll found that around one in five Israeli families is forgoing buying basic food and medicine because they can’t afford it, the communications and public affairs director said.

The organization’s 2023 poll found more Israelis foregoing paying for additional necessities, with 47% not getting dental treatment (compared to 31% in 2022), 35% not going to the doctor (compared to 25%) and 31% not purchasing medicine (compared to 24%).

“We can see that families are giving up on extracurriculars for their kid because they are not able to pay for it,” Levin added.

Paamonim is working to help Israelis struggling financially through their mentorship programs and also by providing information and help dealing with authorities.

The organization works with families to map their expenses, debt and income, and build a plan to help them achieve independent financial health.

“In nearly 100% of cases, the families are not aware of how many expenses they have and the amount of debt, and they are wrong by around 30%,” said Levin, explaining how this mapping impacts families.

This means that if a family thinks it is coming to the organization with around NIS 100,000 in debt, they generally have around NIS 130,000 worth, she explained.

THE ORGANIZATION has also provided help to reservists and evacuees – tailoring their aid to the needs of these populations.

These processes often take longer, Levin said. “Emotionally they are in a different place. Many times we start with their rights and employment, which are the two urgent things for those hurt by the war.”

Paamonim has three WhatsApp groups for reservists, where they mainly provide information about rights, government aid, and employment.

The organization described the help it was able to provide to the family of a reservist who did three months of reserve duty during the Israel-Hamas war.

A reservist who is the father of three small children lost his job as a truck driver during the war, but was able to find alternative employment. His wife has not been employed since the birth of their second child, who suffers from a disability, and spends most of her time caring for him.

The family came to Paamonim while the wife was in the process of declaring bankruptcy due to debts, and the family had additional debt.

“I quickly understood that on the one hand this is a couple with a ton of motivation and desire to improve their economic situation and go back to living in a balanced and responsible way; and on the other hand, the debts and mess in their daily function aren’t letting them see the light at the end of the tunnel,” said the Paamonim mentor who worked with the family.

So far, after a number of meetings with the family, the program has helped them to create a budget that is not yet balanced, but is improved; create a plan to tackle the family’s debt; increase their income; make sure they are receiving any benefits they are entitled to; and more.

“The couple shared that they feel more confident now that the small successes are motivating them to try and get farther ahead,” their mentor said.

“The mentorship will continue until the steps of the [financial] wellness plan have been completed and until the family feels confident, I believe.”

You can reach Paamonim for help or more information at https://www.paamonim.org/en/.