Real talk? This shit is out of reach for most Americans. The best you can do is make sure you maintain a low amount of debt. It's better to live paycheck to paycheck if it means reducing any outstanding liabilities. If you've got a decent enough credit score, banks'll have no problem bailing you out of trouble with a quick loan or a credit card or a payment plan. The problem really comes if you're already heavily making use of debt, and then something goes wrong.