Save Money Avoid Late Fees

While this may seem like a no brainer to some, others simply do not realize how much money they are throwing away every month by not paying on time. I learned the hard way. I was very bad about not paying my bills on time back when I was younger. Mostly because I couldn't remember to buy a stamp so the envelope would lay on my desk for two weeks until I remembered, but there were times when money was tight and I choose to put off a payment for a week. I had since forgot how much money I used to throw away unil I opened my electric bill today. I am not used to the new format so when I first looked at the bill, I thought it was $335 but after sitting down at the computer to schedule my online payment I noticed that it is only $319.
That's right, if I don't pay by the due date, I am charged a late fee of $16. While $16 isn't a lot it does add up.

Let's take a look at my bills for example:
Truck Payment - $35 late fee
Tahoe Payment - $35 late fee
Electric Bill - $16 late fee
Water Bill - $7 late fee
Phone Bill - $8 late fee
Rent - $5 a day late fee
So, if I were to pay my bills late this month it would cost me an additional $106, I'm not sure about you, but I could do a lot with $106.

Back when I was regularly paying my bills late we also had several credit cards that were $29 a pop if they were late. I know some people look at it in a way that as long as they pay before day 30 then it doesn't effect their credit, I no longer see it that way. You have just added $29 to your statement, if you couldn't afford the regular payment, can you afford to send in an additional $29, probably not. So now you are paying interest on the $29, so you loss again.

The moral of this post is that it can be very costly to pay your bills late.