• Home
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • Policy
  • Guest Post
  • Archive

One Cent At A Time

A Personal finance blog to get rich

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • Beautiful Life
  • Becoming Rich
  • Beginners Guide
  • Extra Income
  • Productivity
  • Saving Money

Essential for saving : Pay Your Bills On Time

May 25, 2011 3 Comments

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Email

I feel, and so do a number of experts, that one of the most significant aspect of accumulating wealth is paying your monthly bills on time every month. You not only look towards minimizing number of bills you have to pay, you should also make sure that the bills are paid off on time.

So far in my life I never missed on any bill payment untill lately, because my checking account was frozen, I took the corrective step and mentioned this in my earlier blog post

On average about 80% of Americans at some point of time have had an overdue bill. If you have to ask your self, even if you are financially secured, you must have missed a payment or two at some point of time, and, probably paid penalty for it too. An extra caution doesn’t hurt. I sincerely hope that these 10 tips will make you think and might help you to not miss on payment in future.

If you are financially not so fortunate, you might have to think towards reducing your bills, or, if possible, even eliminating that expense itself. There are various blogs available on blogosphere, which tells about personal experiences and techniques to cut bills.

Any tips is incomplete if the reasons behind it is not explained. Let me first try to explain

why you need to pay your bills on time.

  • Build up a good credit record. Also it negatively impacts your FICO if you have a due on any account. Remember a mistake of one month will stay on your record for 7 years.
  • Avoid paying fees and penalties, late payments cost you money. Some times the penalties for not paying on time run in to $50s and $100s!
  • Peace of mind, I feel very satisfied when I see all my monthly bills are paid. Imagine what will happen if your power company cutoff the line or the telephone company.
  • Your bank offers a cool ‘pay bill’ section, you should use that service. On a serious note, these days, it only takes a couple of mouse clicks to pay, there is no hassles.

Here are the ten tips to make you pay your bills on time.

1. Know the due date. You can not pay your bills on time if you’re not sure when they are due. Note when you receive your bills and how much time you have before they are due. When possible do not rely on paper statement. Do not wait for it to come in your mail box, go to creditor’s website and figure it out.

2. Adjust bill payment date. Most credit card companies do offer the flexibility of adjusting payment due date. You may find it easier to pay your bills if they are all due at the same time of the month. You can adjust due date to match your paycheck schedule as well. Do not clutter entire month with due dates, try to squeeze the dates in to a 5-6 days window in a particular week of month. If you do not get this option online, call help desk.I developed a few help desk application of credit card companies, these applications offer far more features than are exposed on their websites.

3. Pay your bills online. If you can read this blog online, I assume you can login to your bank account as well. Search for ‘Bill Pay’ or similar tab once you login to your bank account. First time users will need to set up the payee accounts. My BofA and Capital One , both offer bill pay option. You can select your credit card or your phone company from the huge available payee list, give your account number etc. and you can pay your due from that point of time onwards. Many other banks offer online bill pay and most of them let you set up automatic payments.

4. Set up automatic payments for your bills. All my bills, except rent, are enrolled in to auto pay. The most amazing benefit is, you do not have to remember those dates. Money will automatically debited from your checking account and credited to your creditors. There is a very important caution to exercise here, that is to monitor your bills for any exceptional item. Do scrutinize your bills thoroughly every month.

5. Create a bill-paying spot at home. Separate your bills from other mail and keep them all in one place. Store stamps, checks, and envelopes in the same place so that you have everything you need when you sit down to pay your bills.

6. Create a monthly budget. You can use a website or, like I, you can use a spread sheet to create monthly budget. Allocate money for each of the bills. At least twice a week review this, it will remind you if any bill is due at that time.

7. Write down reminders on calendar. Mark clearly on the dates the bills are due. My fellow blogger has written a good article on using Google calendar for this purpose. Using Google Calendar To Pay Bills On Time

8. Set email reminders. If you tend to forget about bills, a monthly reminder in your e-mail program may help you stay on track.

9. Have discussion at home. If more than one person in your family pays the bills, set a date when you will hold a joint bill pay meeting. Ask every one about their payment.

10. Remember there is incentive in paying bills on time. read the last line of this blog about my personal experience.

How can you save money by paying your bills on time?

  • Better credit score results in lower mortgage rate or any loan rate for that matter.
  • Average Americans pay around $500 penalty every year on late payment, that’s a clear saving.
  • You can keep your credit card interest rate lower, that saves a lot of money.

I did not pay even a cent on late payment penalty for last 5 years. My credit card rates are as low as the issuing companies go. Now you decide!

Write your comments on how you feel about reading this. Your comments go a long way in boosting my confidence and enthusiasm towards writing more of such articles.

LIKE THIS POST?
Thank you for subscribing.
Something went wrong.
I agree to have my personal information transfered to MailChimp ( more information )
Join our community of 8000+ subscribers to increase your net worth and build wealth
We hate spam. Your email address will not be sold or shared with anyone else.

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Email
The tool that changed the way I manage my personal finance - Personal Capital, The Best Free Personal Finance Tool

Want to start a WordPress blog now? The onecentatatime.com blog is hosted by Siteground Web Hosting. For only $3.95 a month, Siteground can help you set up and host your website/blog quickly and easily.

About the Blogger Hi I am SB, a personal finance enthusiast with a career in software development. I am an immigrant to the USA since 2005, after being born and brought up in India. This 40 something technocrat lives and breathes personal finance whenever he gets time from the day job, job as a husband and a dad

Some links on this page may be affiliate links, if you make a purchase following the links, I may earn a commission. Read affiliate disclosure here
« Conserve Water, Save Money, Save planet
Every Day Saving:10 Tips To Save On Gas »

Comments

  1. et says

    July 29, 2011 at 2:27 PM

    I’m nearing the end of paying off a couple of CCs, and have recently begun making multiple payments each cycle on them. When I receive the notice that the latest statement is ready, I immediately go online & pay the minimum due. That reduces the amount being carried, which helps a little on the next month’s interest calculation. And it eases the stress of keeping the due date in mind – if I forget, am out of town, or something happens, I know my account is up to date. Then I either go ahead & pre-schedule an additional payment, or when my paycheck comes in I make an additional payment that’s as large as possible that month, which includes any money ‘left over’ from the prior pay period that I know I don’t need otherwise.

    Reply
    • SB says

      July 31, 2011 at 5:58 PM

      Dear et,
      even if you pay your due immediately after you receive your bill, you are not saving anything more than the person who pays on the last day of payment due date. So actually it doesn’ t save any additional money for you, but definitively it eases the stress. I am curious to know if your monthly pay off is more than your credit card purchase or not. If your monthly purchase is more than the amount you pay off, then you are doing yourself a dis service. My advise would be to stop using your credit card till you pay off the entire debt. Mail me if you need any further help.

      Reply
  2. Anne Schroeder says

    October 2, 2011 at 2:33 PM

    Thanks for this article. I’m including a link in my own blog. I this your comment about saving stress is so important. I pay and get on with the better parts of my life. I think it’s one of the main reasons that marriages survive.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.



Create your own blog in 20 minutes and $20

Personal Capital, a free tool to change your financial health today

I use and suggest Upstart, for your personal loan need

CreditKarma, a free tool to check your credit scorey

I use Coinbase, for my crypto investments

101 Cents at a Time

101 Ways to Earn Extra Money on the Side
201 Frugal and Perfect Birthday Gifts
101 Ways to Save Money Everyday
101 Ways to be Better and Successful at Work
101 Ways to Save Environment and Energy
101 Frugal and Romantic Anniversary Ideas
101 Low-Cost Men's Fashion Ideas
101 Personal Finance Tips
101 Ways to Reuse Household Stuff
101 Things to Do, When Nothing to Do
101 College Graduation Gift Ideas
100 Tips for Ecommerce Startup
101 Ways to Enjoy Indoor During Winter
101 Ways to Beat Procrastination

Popular Posts

Quick Cash - How to make $100 legally, in a day
Living well on less than $15,000 a Year
Top survey sites for side income
What to do when auto repair goes wrong
Where should I invest my money now?
20 Ways to be productive and happy at work
51 Ways to get out of debt
Be a better person in 15 days, 15 ways
Income ideas for retirees and senior citizens
51 side jobs for college students
Urgently need a large amount of money?
Should I buy or should I rent?
Best Personal loan providers
25 Ways to save environment
25 DIY car repairs to save money
How to decorate office cubicle
How to show your wife you care
50 Financial Rules for Success
51 Frugal weekend family activity ideas
Become Rich By Saving 1 Hour Of Daily Wage
How much do I need to save for retirement?
How to negotiate your salary

Follow us on FaceBook

About Author

SB

Blogger by choice and IT manager by profession. Finance is my passion and gardening is my greatest satisfaction. Born in India, settled in US, Husband and a father. I created this blog in 2011 with a vision to help others. Thanks for your patronage. More info on my "about" page.

View all posts


Subscribe

Join our community of 5000+ subscribers to increase net worth and build wealth

Advertisements

Personal Stories

How I got a new HP computer replaced
Was COVID circulating in USA in fall of 2019?
How my credit score went up 800+
Why I didn’t invest in Bitcoins
How I controlled impulses to buy things
Why this blog is named One Cent at a Time

Subscribe via Email

Site Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in this web site are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Read full Affiliate disclosure


One Cent at a Time is published by SB. The opinions expressed herein by him are his own and not those of his employer or anyone else. All content on One Cent at a Time is for entertainment purposes only. By reading this blog, you agree that SB and/or One Cent at a Time is not responsible for any actions taken after reading this blog. For the full disclaimer, click here .

Major Media Mention

One Cent at a Time Media Appearances

Copyright © 2023 One Cent At A Time · Designed by Nuts and Bolts Media