Trying to Cope When Jobless Benefits Run Out

MONET MERCER: Dilemma over the car.

Age: 30
Location: Dallas, Texas
Previous Job: Property manager for a commercial real estate company
Unemployed Since: November 2008
Jobless Benefits: Has one check left

When Mercer was laid off, she assumed unemployment benefits would keep her afloat until she found her next job. But then the Texas Workforce Commission informed her that she wouldn’t qualify for the maximum term of unemployment because she had moved to Texas (from Washington, D.C.) only 14 months prior. In total, she qualified for 27 weeks of benefits, with the last check coming at the beginning of June, she says. Mercer's parents have been paying her rent; she’s depleted her retirement account; and she’s been using the majority of her unemployment to pay for her car insurance and her bills. Mercer says that she needs to hold onto her car because of the long driving distances in Dallas and in order to do that she will step up her job search to include part-time work. Mercer has just one credit card -- but the issuer is sending her to collections for not paying the bill. “There isn’t anything left over to put into savings because there are times like now when I have $30 left until next week,” she says.