You know how the fire department tells you to change the batteries in your smoke detector twice a year, when we turn our clocks back and forward for Daylight Savings Time? Well, it’s a good idea to get your free credit reports once a year, and it seems to me that pegging it to tax time will make it easy to remember to do.
Money doesn’t make much sense to me. Combine that with ADD and well, you’ve got a woman who finds it difficult to pay bills on time. Which is silly, because there’s a pretty simple formula that says: make money, deposit money, get bills, pay bills. Or something like that.
Now, combine that with the fact that I just pulled up my credit report to find things from my ex still biting me in the posterior. Like the fact that he never paid our hospital bill from our son’s birth. Utility bills from when we moved overseas in 2004 are apparently still outstanding, though I was told they had been taken care of. I’m up to my eyeballs in debt I could have controlled if I had been more assertive and proactive about my financial health. You best believe I’m going to be on the phone working these issues out.
It just occurred to me last night that my ex can no longer coerce me into putting charges onto my credit card, or the emergency card my parents gave me when I moved overseas. I can no longer be forced to spend money I don’t have. My credit is my own responsibility now, and my own fault from this moment forward if I can’t keep it healthy. I am going to speak to my bank about how best to apply for a credit card, and I am going to build up my credit by careful spending — and timely payments.
Online banking makes paying bills easier. So do electronic calendars that pop up annoying reminders every five minutes until you turn them off. Or do what they ask you to do. There really isn’t any reason to be behind on bills unless you don’t have the money to pay.
If you are broke, or can’t make ends meet, don’t wait for them to come to you. Call and make arrangements to pay down the debt over time. And if you find you are in danger of having an essential service shut off, like water, gas or electricity, there are programs that can help you before the situation turns dire.
This weekend I’m going to start fighting the good fight, and I will post what I learn along the way.
Anna, thank you. I’m going to work your comments into today’s post. You’re a great help!
This was a big deal for me when I split with my ex because I made all the money but he was in charge of the finances, and did an absolutely horrible job (we foreclosed on a house and had a car re-poed while he was in charge). As soon as I took over (when we separated), things changed. Get to know the people at your bank — they actually bent the rules for me a bit! Doing my own finances has been a learning experience. I recommend mint.com — helps you keep track of your spending, etc. and it’s got some pretty nice endorsements from major names like Kiplingers, money magazine and PC magazine.