Every financially responsible adult generally has a budget. If you are not meeting that budget, it may be because you are overpaying for some of the bills or other items you purchase. When considering your monthly or yearly budget, you should look for ways to lower your payments instead of completely cutting out items. Here are three things you should stop overpaying for.
Cable
Entertainment is the number one area most people overpay. Many get cable packages with hundreds of channels, and studies show that people generally regularly watch about seventeen of them. There a few ways you can save money when it comes to cable.
Get a smaller cable package: Knowing that most people only watch a handful of channels, you should assess what channels mean the most to you and get a cable package that includes those channels and as few channels more as possible.
Use cable services you can customize: A few services will let you completely customize the included channels, so you can choose to leave out channels you never watch and keep only the ones you do.
Cut out cable altogether: Many have “cut the cable” and never regretted it. You can have multiple streaming services which generally carry many of the shows you love. If you add up the monthly subscriptions with access to hundreds of movies and shows, you can have them all and still pay far less than cable. Also, you can choose when you watch the shows.
Car Payment
Many people overpay for their car and often because car salespeople are good at what they do. You can, however, beat them at their own game with a few pro tips.
Never purchase payments: Often, when in the negotiation process, a salesperson will at some point ask you what kind of payment you can afford. This is where it gets tricky. Never give the maximum you can afford, and be sure they don’t come back and give you only the car payment and length of the loan. Even if the payments are comfortable, you may have agreed to pay significantly more than you should because of the length of the loan. Be sure to ask for the total cost of the car and the interest rate.
Get a Loan Yourself: Many people don’t realize that they can go to their banking institution and get a preapproved loan for a certain amount if they have decent credit. They can then look to purchase a car for that amount or lower using that preapproved loan. This is a way to get a super low-interest rate and no hidden costs in the car purchase because you strictly negotiate the price.
Boost your Credit: The higher your credit score, the lower the interest. If you have a good or great credit score, it gives you the negotiating power to get the lowest interest rates on your car loan possible. You can sometimes save thousands on your car purchase by having a low-interest rate.
Utilities
Of course, there are so many areas of life we can save or be more frugal, but utilities is an area most of us can stop overpaying. Here are a few ways you can save on your utilities.
Cut your usage: We all have been guilty of leaving lights and electronics on when not in use, but you can also cut your usage other ways besides remembering to turn things off. Many utility companies now offer thermostats built-in money-savers such as automatically adjusting the temperature for a few hours a day while you are at work, or less likely to need cooler or warmer air. You would be amazed at how that adds up.
Payment plans: Many utility companies have payment plans in which you pay the same amount every month at a fixed rate. This payment plan is generally an average calculated by the previous year’s usage. If you don’t use as much as you paid, you get the money back or get it as a credit on our account at the end of the year. If you overuse, you will have a balance due. Most find they will use less with this type of payment arrangement.
Conclusion
While there are many areas we can save in our budget, these areas are usually the three all household budgets include. However, now that you have your mind on not overpaying, you shouldn’t. Look at other areas you can adjust. You may be surprised at how naturally thrifty you are!
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