family income can also go down if bonuses or overtime decrease,or when people are unemployed or ill. if an adult stops work,some variable costs will decrease tax and transport for example.but most payments, like the house,the children's education,energy bills and telephone bills are fixed. in business, even if sales are down 50% there are still fixed costs like rent, administration and maintenance.when total costs are higher than revenues, both companies and families have to consider what they can cut.