This sounded like it was some strange pitch when I know it wasn’t. But while watching TV this program was talking about people who who were developing certain conditions and to help people they tried to give out signs that people should look out for. Kind of like how if people think they have cancer then they tell people too look for lumps. Anyhow, it was kind of interesting I thought that people actually classified the inability to pay your bills on time as “warning sign” to some health related issues.

While I’m sure certain health conditions can play a role, I would think things like paying the bill on time is a little too general huh? Dare I say in most cases things like paying the bill is just about being accountable and responsible with money? I hope information like this won’t make people more inclined to justify racking up say that credit card while blaming a condition for it.

I always pay my credit card bills in full and every December whenever I get my statement there is this offer from the credit card company. Essentially, the offer indicates that the company recognizes that this is the shopping season where people tend to spend more than usual. As a result, they offer people a lower than normal interest rate and a longer period for when they would expect to receive a payment from you.

It’s like they are encouraging you to not pay it on time too as they emphasize how this is a way to give you a peace of mind to not having to worry about your expenses for the month. Kind of reminds me of someone getting pressured to drink like a barrel of alcohol and saying not to worry as they don’t need to work next day. Guess like with that most people don’t think about the effects that will come next day or so.

The holidays are no reason to fall off the wagon when it comes to your money I’d say. It only makes sense to stay with the same principles throughout the year such as not buying what you can’t afford. I think it is more fun to have a more prosperous year overall then having a blast one week while having to spend a large part of the year making up for that period.

Today I noticed this company that had to pay for a service where the bill was overdue and as a result they were given a phone call to see what was going on. The person who answered confirmed that he was in charge of the finances and therefore the situation was addressed very casually.

Now the funny thing was the person’s response afterwards was that he had no power to make these decisions in paying for the bill and that the person in charge wouldn’t be back until a year or so. And yes, this is a business I am talking about here.

I can see residential people doing this, but a business? It wasn’t too much money either as for a business this should be equivalent to say a $10 mail courier charge for a regular household individual. Was humorous at least.

So recently I switched phone companies for one of my lines and it just so happened that I received a bill from the old provider even though my number is no longer attached to them. I then phoned in to question about it and sure enough it was an error on their part. Their reasoning was that it was a semi automated process and so they didn’t get around to stopping the billing process.

As a result, I had a balance to pay and questioned whether or not that I should pay for it still. The lady mentioned that I would be credited the amount charged in the next month’s billing and so it would be up to me to pay it or not. The thing is though, for these situations I always pay for it anyways and then wait to receive say the credit check.

The reason for this is that if I don’t pay it then I wouldn’t be surprised if they started charging interest on it while only crediting me the amount of the initial bill. Hence, you will have to go in circles again to get it straightened out. Sometimes it is just better to safe than to potentially go through all the hassle when it comes to these types of bills.

Just a few days ago I started doing my monthly credit card charges to pay various vendors and as usual I try to take advantage of the monthly cut-off dates for transactions on my credit card to keep more money for myself such as earning more interest in a savings account.

What I mean by this is that credit cards have a billing cycle where if certain transactions do not get posted on your credit card by a certain time period of the month then the charged amount will be posted on your next month’s bill instead. Therefore, you get to keep the money in your bank still and won’t have to worry about it for more than 30 days later.

As an example, for myself any transactions that do not get posted to my credit card by the 16th of any given month won’t appear on the upcoming bill but rather the next one. So let’s take a phone bill that I receive monthly usually around the first to second week of the month. Like most bills, it indicates that payments need to be received by a certain date like say the 28th of the month or else you will incur a late penalty.

Now, if I just paid the bill right away with my credit card upon receiving the bill like say on the 12th of the month then that means I would need to withdraw my own money to pay for it in the upcoming billing cycle. Instead, because there is a rather good grace period for the bill I wait until the 17th of the month to pay the bill with my credit card. Therefore, it satisfies the vendor as they got paid on time and I don’t really have to withdraw money to pay for it until more than 30 days later.

One thing to keep in mind is that if you try this technique then it would be wise to make sure you pay the bill with at least two to three days before the actual due date of it as many times there is a delay in receiving your payment. If your due date was the 28th and you submit your payment on the 27th with your credit card there is a good chance that the vendor won’t receive it on time and hence you will incur penalties. This technique has worked very well for me personally and is another example on how a credit card can be a great tool if used responsibly.