The linked post is from Bankrate.com, one of my favorite sites for financial advice. Some good points about paying bills include paying as many bills online automaticly as you can. That way you don’t forget. Late fees not only cost you unnecessarily, but being late on bills really dings your credit rating (FICO Score).
Recent changes in the way FICO calculates your score means that you can help your score by paying your rent on time. They didn’t count that before, so be sure to get your payment made in plenty of time. Bankrate recommends if you are mailing in payment to any bill to mail it at least 7-10 days before the due date to be sure you get credited with an on-time payment. Sometimes if you payment gets there the day it’s due they don’t count it as being on time. Unfair, I know. Again, use automatic payments as much as possible to avoid this.
You should pay all of your bills for necessities first. So pay the rent, mortgage, and utility bills before you pay your credit card bill. You don’t want to have your heat turned off just because you really wanted to stop the credit card company from bothering you.
Click title for link at Bankrate. Click on labels below this post for more ideas.
Update: Click here for Prairie Eco-Thrifter’s take on which bills to pay first when you’re broke.
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