Are you always late paying your bills?
By sharone74
@sharone74 (4837)
United States
November 3, 2008 2:03pm CST
I used to be really good about paying my bills. I used to pay them all previous to the due date and normally in full. The last couple of years though I have begun to slack off from that. Money has been a lot tighter than in years past also but I find myself waiting beyond the due dates on most of my bills and letting things slide when I need to devote my money to other things like food, cigarrettes, etc. The cost of living has gone up so much lately that a lot of people who were juggling their expenses before have now found themselves deeply in debt and loosing their homes or are having to struggle just to keep their utilities on and current.
How about you, are you paying your bills when they are due as always or are you struggling to pay even part of them when they start threatening to discontinue your services? In the last year I have actually had my intenet connection shut off and had to rush down to the office to pay it because internet service is one of those non essential kind of expenses to me that I just let slide when I don't have the money to cover everything.
3 people like this
22 responses
@postergal (212)
• Egypt
4 Nov 08
Well for some unknown reason I am the deadline kind of person. Lol I would pay everything on time, never before never after, always the last moment. Apparently that causes no problems, but in fact sometimes when you leave things to the last minute some emergency might happen and you won't have time to make it up. That happened to me few times before.
@lilcee (2703)
• United States
4 Nov 08
Hi sharone. We always pay our bills a few weeks before they are due so we make sure they get it in time. We don't have many bills anymore - just elec, phone, mortgage etc. We paid off our credit cards awhile back and that was really nice. We use a program called Quicken and keeps tract of all our spending and payments and when they are due. We have it set up to remind us when a bill is due. It helps alot.
@jackiew (915)
• Canada
4 Nov 08
I believe alot of people like myself are struggling right now.I hate when the end of the month comes and i have to rob peter to pay paul.I try to pay everything but it becomes so hard.Alot of times lately i try to pay something on everything,if i can't then they will get more the next month.Now with the winter and having to get oil,it becomes harder,Hopefully it will all come together some day.
@nikkinikki23 (32)
• United States
4 Nov 08
I always try to pay the bills/rent on time. but i think sometimes EVERYONE has messed up. Money is tight here aswell. But my husband and I make due because of our 2 year old daughter. We use to get behind on bills,but recently,we made a Budget every week/month for our bills... Its really helped us to pay everything on time. Not paying the bills on time, will effect your credit score. So, making a budget, going without some "fun" stuff, and staying on top of what you owe is the best way.
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
4 Nov 08
I used to always be late in paying my bills, either late or not at all. I used to live by the rule of "why should I give all my money to someone else" obviously living like this landed me in a lot of hot water. I then grew up and realised that things would work out much better if the bills were paid up on time, and OK it meant that not a lot of money was left over at the end of a month but at least they were paid. Once the debts were repaid I started to see a bit more left each month, so I then made cuts in other areas to make that bit even more. We are still not rich but comparing life now to what it was a few years ago then we are a lot better off.
@gracie04 (4549)
• Philippines
4 Nov 08
hubby and i used to pay bills on time but since we've got lots of bills to pay for every month, we have no choice but to delay the payments.. cost of living has gone up so much lately and that made things harder in terms of financial aspect.. yay!
@Crocket (315)
• Canada
4 Nov 08
I try not to do credit anymore.
I had gone bankrupt seven years ago and started learning how to spend my money more wisely.
I have purchased a pay as you go mastercard and find it really helpful.
If I don't have the money on the card I can't purchase anything with it so I never get myself in debt.
I live month to month although I have everything worked out prior to the pay day so that I get what I need and just that.
Then I have to wait for the next month for other things.
Crocket.
@pinkfloyd007 (375)
• India
4 Nov 08
Not really.I try to pay my bills within due dates.But sometime,very rarely i do pay late.I pay everything so that i dont have to worry about it later when money is tight.I even try to reduce my bill amount so that i can save some money to spend on myself.
@zhaychel (610)
• United Arab Emirates
4 Nov 08
As much as I could, I pay all my bills before due date because in the future it would be used in identifying your financial capacity and capability. There are companies like credit card institutions that are really familiar with that. Its better if you allocation a portion of your succeeding bills in your budget.
@cutepenguin (6431)
• Canada
4 Nov 08
we went through a period of time where we were paying bills a little bit late every month because money was tight and we just felt like we couldn't get ahead.
@cupid74 (11388)
• Pakistan
4 Nov 08
Hi dear
i do agree that cost of living, cost of utilities, intrest rate are going up and money is devaluing so end up in leesss buying power
but still i try to pay mu bill on due date, rather before it and pay in full as i know that if i pay in parts, the next bill will be adding in it and making big pile, which will be more stress, i am just cutting extra cost and NOT at all using credit card, only use cash so dont have loans to pay
Take care
@mimico (3617)
• Philippines
4 Nov 08
I never pay my bills late. I only forget to pay my tuition fee once in a while but I pay the very next day after the due date. I'm not a truant at all. I've never submitted projects late nor have I been considered one of the often tardy girls in school. I like following rules. I believe that upholding rules suchy as being on time helps me and the institution I am with.
@metschica25 (5399)
• United States
3 Nov 08
Hello,
This post is like reading me and my fiances life . Things were way under control and we would pay everything , pay ahead , or have extra money . Now its like what needs paid and can this wait , can we pay this late , oh lets let this months credit card payment slide . Sucks really ! What to do is the thing , and cuting back a little helps some.
@nikkilee6583 (70)
• United States
4 Nov 08
With the way the economy is right now I'm guessing everyone is struggling with bills. It's much easier to pay on time, but if the money is not there, then what can you do? I have been struggling big time since my first born came along, but I wouldnt change a thing right now. I am pretty content with my life right now, wow I actually am :-) Didnt realize it, until I just heard myself say it.
@intelglobe (78)
• India
4 Nov 08
Delaying the bill payment means 2 things, either you are procastinating things or you are going over your budget. Both the conditions are dangerous. If you are spending more than your budget, control your unwanted expenses and if you are just ignoring payment on time, then make it a habit, as it save unnecessary extra interests and penalties, which pinches a lot.
