Organize your Bills

In this new technologically advanced world we live in it has become easier and easier to manage our finances without the use of paper. We can pay most of our bills online and there rarely is a need to run out to the mailbox for stamps and envelopes like before. But, that doesn’t mean some of us still don’t do it the old fashioned way, nor does it mean that we don’t forget to pay that phone bill etc.

Here are a few good tips on how to organize your bills:

• Mark Due Dates on Calendars you use. If you use a pocket calendar, or even the calendar from your phone make sure that you write it down to remind you. Don’t write it somewhere you do not check often or you might miss an important date. One of my favorite things to use is Microsoft Outlook. I write it in my calendar and set a reminder 4-5 days before the bill is actually due. Then when that time comes a nice little reminder pops up and tells me to pay that bill. No more late fees!
• If you still happen to use the snail mail method of payment, you should organize all the bills by date in a desk organizer with the ones due coming up in front. Write the due dates on the envelopes themselves. You can write them on one of the corners so that you can see the dates very easily. Give yourself a few days breathing room just in case you miss it.
• Use a 3 ring binder to help organize your bills. File your bills by category and type. This will help you refer back to them for easy reference in the future if there is ever an issue with any payment.
• Whether you are paying online or are paying by check via mail or even if you are taking the payment to them personally always write the date the bill was paid along with the method on the bill itself. If you use a check make sure to reference the check number. This way you can always look back and see when you paid it and how.
• If there is ever a dispute and you need to make some notes about the bill. Make sure you write the person that you spoke to along with the actual bill itself. Companies make billing errors all the time, so make sure you double check that you are actually paying for what you want and not what the company wants you to pay.
• Keep a ledger. You can use a normal lined piece of paper or actually buy a book ledger if you wish. I actually prefer to use a spreadsheet software such as Microsoft Excel to keep track of everything. Due Dates, Amount Paid, Method of Payment, When it was Paid, When it was mailed etc. This will help keep piece of mind and you will always be able to go back to it for reference
• Consolidate your bills. Most companies will allow you to pay your bills on a certain date. If you get paid on the 15th and 30th you could schedule a couple bills for the 20th and the rest on the 5th. Make sure that you will be able to cover the expenses so budget and plan accordingly.

Quick Tip: If you miss a payment but have been pretty good about keeping your payments on time, call up the company and ask if they can waive the late fee. Most of the time credit card companies will waive this fee if you are a good paying customer. This could quickly save you $25 or more with just one phone call.

Quick Tip#2: If you always pay your credit cards on time, you can call up the credit card companies approximately once every 6 months to request a lower APR. Many people don’t know about this nor do they do it. This could potentially save hundreds of dollars on interest rates alone.

Hope these tips help you out.

Keep it Clean.