Many people have trouble paying their debts. These simple suggestions will help you stay out of financial hot water.
Periodically check your budget against your actual spending patterns and readjust your figures and spending habits accordingly.
When you see something you hadn't planned to buy and don't actually need, don't purchase it on the spot. Go home and think it over. It's less likely you'll return buy it after having had a chance to think it over.
Buying a $500 item on sale for $400 isn't a $100 savings if you didn't need the item to begin with. It's spending $400 unnecessarily.
And it might not have been a real sale. Some stores mark items down almost immediately to make people think they're getting a bargain.
Even a stopgap policy with a large deductible can help if a medical crisis comes up. You can't avoid medical emergencies, but living without medical insurance is an invitation to financial ruin.
If you think you'll just go to the emergency room if something dire comes up, realize two things: 1) This plan doesn't help you with chronic conditions like cancer, and 2) Although the emergency room can't turn you away for lack of insurance, they still expect you to pay the bills later.
If you don't currently have the cash, don't charge based on future income. Sometimes, future income doesn't materialize. Meanwhile, you'll be paying exorbitant interest rates, which might wipe out any savings you gained, even if you got a great deal.
Try tossing all your credit cards into a drawer and committing to living without credit for a while.
Obligate yourself only for what you can now afford and increase your mortgage or rent payments if your income rises. Consider refinancing or applying for a loan modification if your house payments are unwieldy.
Your signature obligates you as if you were the primary borrower. You can't be sure that the other person will pay.
If you incur a joint debt or tax bill, you're probably liable for it all if the other person defaults. In many cases, such liabilities have been known to outlast the relationship.
Avoid investing in speculative real estate, penny stocks, and junk bonds. Instead, invest conservatively, opting for certificates of deposit, money market funds, and government bonds.
For a friend's birthday, take them on a picnic rather than to an expensive restaurant. When someone suggests meeting for lunch, propose spending time at the museum on its free day or going for a walk in the park.
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