Do you procrastinate paying your bills often? Does that result in you stressing on the bill due date? Don’t worry you are not the only one who does this. People often procrastinate doing tasks that they know will give them anxiety and make them uncomfortable. But paying your bills and loans EMIs on time is crucial in order to be financially stable. Paying your bills and personal loan apps may sometimes seem like a huge task to accomplish, but if you follow these simple and easy steps, you can practice paying your bills on time and enjoy the benefits that come with it.
Categorize Your Expenses
Categorizing your bills will make the task a lot easier, and it is a crucial step to follow. When you study your old bills, you will notice a pattern, there are some things that you regularly spend money on. Categorizing your bills shows you which bills are variable and fixed. Fixed bills are those that you have to pay every month while variable bills are costs that vary or are unexpected. For example, your electricity bill is a fixed expense, while the things you buy when shopping online are variable expenses. This practice will also help you identify areas where you can cut on expenses and save money. If you want to make this practice more efficient, you can make a note of all your expenses on a spreadsheet.
Automatic Bill Payment
Scheduling recurring money transfers from your bank account can make it very easy for you to pay your bills. By scheduling these bills, you don’t need to worry about them, the bill will be paid on its own. To do this, you need to once again study your past month’s bills. You need to know the due date of each bill. Once that is done, you can download a bill payment app and set it to pay the bill automatically.
One tip is to schedule your automatic bill payment around the time you receive your salary. Divide your bills into two categories: bills you need to pay in the first half of the month and bills you need to pay in the second half. Based on when you receive your salary, set your bill payment dates for both these bill categories. For example, most people receive their salary on the 1st of every month, so they can set the date for those bills that you need to pay in the first half on the 1st itself. Once these first-half bills are paid, save money for the bills you pay for in the second half. Be mindful of your expenditures until these bills are paid too. If you don’t want to download a separate app to pay your bills, you can now also use your UPI app. UPI apps also have a section that will automatically pay your bills. Note: This tip only works for recurring bills.
Set Aside Time to Pay Your Bills
If you feel that the last tip doesn’t work for you and you want to play a more active role in paying your bills, you can practice this tip. Just the way you set aside time for various things during the day, like going to the gym, set aside a fixed date in a month when you will hop on your e-payments website and pay all the bills. If you can’t set aside a couple of hours in a month, set aside half an hour per week, or just a few minutes each day when you only focus on paying your bills. Finish paying as many bills as possible in that allotted time.
Consider Paying Before the Due Date
Yes, it is possible to pay your bills before the due date. If you find it difficult to pay on time, consider prepaying your bills. Many creditors will allow you to pay your bills and emi in advance, effectively creating a credit. There are a few bill payment apps that will reward you with an instant cash if you use their app to pay your bills.
Following these simple steps will help you pay your bills on time. Now that we have reviewed different tips for committing to your financial obligations let’s look at the rewards you will receive for paying your bills on time.
- Avoid Late Fees
Arguably, avoiding late fees is a good reason to pay your bills on time. This is especially true if you are functioning on a budget since extra charges can make it difficult to manage a tight budget. Moreover, there are a few companies that charge you the extra fees just minutes after the payment deadline. Fortunately, because of technological advancements, you can send money online to your creditors a few minutes before the deadline and avoid late fees.
- A Better Credit Score
Paying your bills late can significantly damage your credit score. The later you pay your bills, the more damage they do. Your credit score improves by consistently making your payments, credit cards, and other bills for a long period. This will help you get loan instantly and easily in the future. A better credit score also opens up doors to better products and services.
- Lower Interest Rates and More Access
As we have already established, paying your bills on time boosts your credit score. This means lower interest rates on loans, which is especially beneficial if you are looking to take out home or personal loans.
Let’s say you are looking to take out business loans. A high credit score helps you obtain money at a lower interest rate, which could be helpful for your business growth.
- Less Stress
Paying your bills on time, especially paying your secure loan app on time, can improve your quality of life. Reduced interest rates make monthly payments more affordable, ease your budget, and reduce financial stress. Now, you don’t have to worry about missed bills or having enough money to cover payments or late fees. It also simplifies balancing your checking account, giving you peace of mind about your financial stability.
Staying on top of bills can be quite challenging due to the sheer number of payments, from utilities and car loans to mortgages and insurance. Fortunately, you can make online payments and pay your bills on time. Following these simple tips can help you pay your bills on time.