Unemployed, out of money, and out of time. Need to figure out the next steps.
I was laid off from my job 6 months ago and have struggled to find employment since then. I'm a new (single) homeowner who was nearly paycheck to paycheck before losing my job. Since then, I have tightened up financially and have even taken on a roommate, but I have exhausted unemployment compensation and I'm nearly at the end of my rope financially.
I have enough money to pay my mortgage and utilities next month, but not my credit card debt. After mortgage and utilities, I am completely out of money.
**The rub:** I have over $60k in a 401k that I can draw from. I know there will be a penalty but I consider this an emergency. I also have great credit and could probably get a personal loan if that makes more sense, but I'd just be taking on more debt. I need cash to hit my bank account which means opening another credit card that has an interest free period is probably not an option (and there's also penalties for transferring balances from other credit cards from what I understand.)
I am not anticipating being unemployed too much longer, in all honesty. I am at the point where anything is better than nothing. I had wanted to stay in my field but have received hundreds of rejections and have not had luck. It's definitely a failure on my part for letting things get this bad, but I appreciate any general advice you might have for me.