For the most part, I don’t usually mind when my spending habits vary from those of my friends and family members. My experience has been that everyone has different priorities when it comes to money. One person may live very frugally but be inclined to splurge on family vacations. A person who really enjoys cars might be okay with spending a disproportionately large amount of his monthly budget on car payments. I always say, “to each his own.”
I draw the line, though, when it comes to late fees. Because I hate the idea of throwing money away, late fees are particularly abhorrent to me. Think about it; late fees are one of the few things that people pay without having anything to show for their purchase. Ugh!
Before you pay one more late fee, please check out these tips to exorcise late fees from your budget. Believe me; you can find something better to spend your money on.
Bank online. You can cut the processing time of most payments down to a day or two by paying your bills online. Those extra days can make a huge difference when you’re on a tight budget. Some online bill paying programs also allow you to set up reminders to tell you when a particular bill is due.
Set up payment reminders. Even if bank online, I would still suggest setting up some payment reminders that exist outside of your bank’s website. If you use Microsoft’s Outlook for your email program, you can set up reminders for each due date in the calendar function. If you’re more old-school, you can write notes on a traditional calendar. Just do something that will tickle your memory when a payment is due.
Grovel a little. Okay, I don’t really mean that you have to grovel. I do think, though, that you shouldn’t feel ashamed about asking your creditors to remove a late fee from your account. If you typically pay your bill on time and an accident causes your payment to process late, don’t be bashful about calling your creditor’s customer service folks and asking for a little forgiveness. Many times, if you ask nicely, they can remove those fees as a courtesy.
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{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Nothing worse than wasting money on crap you shouldn’t like late fes. Make sure you don’t have to.
This is what I call trying to control your financial bladder. I know the analogy is alittle off-color, but to me, this is simply peeing money away.
I don’t care if the late fee is one dollar, paying it drives me nuts.
It all goes back to how you “treat” your money.
You work hard to make it, if you’re not working “smart” to keep it, then you’re crazy