Hi everyone,
I'm posting here with my heart in my throat, and I want to be fully honest.
My name is Simon. I'm 22 years old and the sole guardian of my 14 year old brother. Our mom passed away four years ago, and since then, I’ve been supporting the two of us through freelance SEO copywriting and editing.
For a while, it was working. I managed to pay rent, buy food, and cover my brother’s school and medical needs. But when AI disrupted the content industry, most of my regular clients disappeared, and things have been getting harder month by month.
Now I’m four months behind on rent and facing eviction. It got worse recently when I fell for a fake editing gig. I worked several days expecting payment that never came, and that money was supposed to help cover part of the rent.
I’ve done everything I can think of: sold one of my work tools, reached out to local churches for food assistance, and taken on short-term jobs wherever possible. Those steps helped us get by last week, but I still haven't manaed to pay my rent.
My landlord has been patient for months, but he’s given me a final deadline for tomorrow. I’m honestly out of options and just trying to keep a roof over my brother’s head.
I’m doing my best to handle this responsibly, but everything seems to be working against me, and I honestly feel so defeated.
If anyone knows of short term remote gigs or even has advice on how to get through my situation, I’d really appreciate it.
Thank you so much for reading.
Out of food, four months behind on rent, raising my brother alone. What can I do right now to survive?
byu/simon_writes inFrugal
Posted by simon_writes
12 Comments
i dunno man swallow your pride and just go work for walmart or something. its not a cushy desk job but it pays and its steady
Do they pay for plasma where you live?
It’s not a great plan in the long term, but it’s a substantial amount of cash right now
Can you donate blood? Not sure of your location.
If you are in the US, call 211 for resources and assistance. Also look on your local Craigslist for jobs and gigs, look in all the categories. If in the US, does your brother get social security survivor benefits?
If you have a computer check out Handshake AI training. It can be done anytime of the day in hour increments and pays out weekly. Works well around a regular job.
Get a steady paycheck is step one, apply for any benefits available to you, visit food pantries, get your brother on the free/reduced lunch program at school. Are you legally his guardian? I don’t know the particulars but my daughters boyfriend and siblings were raised by family and were somehow still wards of the state and qualified for assistance and also get free college. Maybe see if your brother has programs open to him.
I’m writing all of this assuming you are in the United States though.
Talk to your landlord TODAY. Then contact a local food pantry and/or church for additional help. You can usually scrounge a free meal, but you can never find a place to live. And get serious about finding some kind of a job.
Join the military
If you’re in the US, look into Social Security survivor benefits for your brother.
The NextDoor app is a cesspool but there are often older folks on there looking for help moving stuff around, or rides to wherever. Some also looking to rent rooms cheaply or free for assistance.
Brother, walk into a fine dining restaurant as a Server or Food runner and say you have experience in the industry, and fake it till you make it from there.
I am so sorry this is happening to you, you are really strong and resilient. I don’t have good advice but maybe set up a donation site temporarily… but yeah long term plan idk as I am not from the states. Sending love