Bills bills bills, that's all life seems to become after a while, if on fixed lower economic scale income.
(Where regardless of what Hannity, and other fake conservative talk radio types say, simply working hard will not, repeat, will not increase prosperity in life, it will simply wear your body down)
I mean think about it, if those who earn $240,000 a year, have issues paying their bills, how is it that those earning 400-800 a week not ever suppose to have issues with bills, just trying to 'stay afloat?'
Limited income means one has limited fiscal choices when things just 'happen'.
And if poor and have family, the just 'happens' scenerio compounds.
Long to the short, here's how I deal with bills now.
1. First always take care of essential bills first, no matter what, as in
a. Rent/Mortgage (That space you pay for or rent, is the most important thing in life, even if everything else falling apart, having that private paid for space, is what helps keep you sane)
b. Transportation, as in auto insurance, auto payment, ext, in 2017, especially if employed or want to be, must have reliable vehicle, and if have must maintain payments on it in that as long as have newer vehicle, newer vehicle, even if made to go homeless, means shelter, a place to sleep, and mobility and sense of self dignity, in that even if homeless, yet have newer vehicle, when go places no one will suspect your homeless, unless you tell them.
c. Food, of course, for without health, none of the above or below matters, food is energy, vitality.
Once the above 3 taken care of, then can sort through the rest...(assuming are single)
If a parent with 3 kids, ignore the above, your priorities are totally different)
The trick, or trap, giant credit card companies, department store cards (which are owned by same giant credit card companies) often do to those struggling is the following
1. late fees, late fees and more late fees.
I don't play that game anymore where a 30 dollar payment suddenly balloons to a 80 dollar payment which then balloons to a 150 dollar payment.
Now if have 5 credit cards that are all playing that same 'late fee' game, just do the math.
Now, I simply pay what I can afford with disrupting 1, 2, or 3. (from above) which was basically food, water and shelter.
In other words I pay what I owe, not late fees or penalty BS, and if they want to cancel card, fine, cause then they know won't get anything, as they'll drop to bottom of priority list.
I don't owe enough on any one card that it's worth them going to court for, we're talking under 1000 type of stuff, 300 here, 400 there, 200 here ect.
But if not careful, can mess around and end up paying 300+ a month on the whole late fee game, and basically stay stuck in fiscal pit just giving your money away while executives eat, and you get no where in life, and struggle from depression cause can't get ahead.
(This is real life I'm talking, not fake plastic radio BS where millionaire talk radio hosts pretend to know what's best for the working class poor)
As such, I pay what I can, and if what I can pay isn't good enough for them, than their move, and it's really that simple. They get what I can pay or they get nothing, F the fees and all the other BS.
When poor, working poor, either you have the money or you don't, and talking to 'credit councilors' and all won't make a bit of difference, all they'll do is annoy you, like little programmed robots hired to do a job, when in reality they could care the less about you, and your life circumstance, they simply call you, want you to call them, to 'threaten' you, make you feel as if 'must pay now or else'.
And when you call, get some out sourced person from Asia anyways who in no way shape or form feels your 'pain', if anything they laugh at it.
Nothing against them personally, they're simply doing job hired to do, but it would be like them, in Asia, having to get on phone with woman/man, from Kansans, to talk about issues in Singapore, they'd be annoyed as well.
Anyways, in closing, I now pay what I can, and not what these greedy companies demand.
Not going to pay 200 dollars in late fees, when that would take away from me being able to pay rent or auto payment, just not happening.
And I pay by mail only now, none of that pay online stuff for me anymore, cause that's how I forget to pay, where as if bills are in shoe box, right in front of me face, I know they're there and to pay them. (but that's just personal choice)
And I save at least 6 months worth of payments, or payment statements, where I write on stubs what I paid and when, and even check number in case future issues arrive.
The reality is is that in today's world, you can be 100% responsible, but if only earning $4000.00 a month (just a generic figure), and have $6000.00 of 'issues' that arise, you're going to be 2 gran in the hole no matter how nice, sweet or angelic you are, and this is when these companies show their true colors.
Take care of self first, cause when self is gone, there is nothing.
And that which is left, you'll be oblivious to it.
