1. If you spend more than 50% of your credit limit every month, this indicates to the Credit Bureau that you do NOT have enough cash on hand to meet your monthly expenses. This will identify you as a high credit risk and will actually reduce your credit score by 60 - 70 points overnight (Fair
Isaac).
2. If you miss 1 or 2 payments on your credit card debt, the issuing company will skyrocket your interest rate to a whopping 27% -
30%!
3. Out of a random sample of 3 million American consumers (included in Experian's National Score Index), 51% of them have at least 2 credit cards and 14% of them have 10 or more credit cards.
In this day and age, virtually everything is just a phone call away - including
lower monthly bills. It doesn't take any kind of special skill or know-how,
just threaten the company with the loss of you as their customer, and they will
do anything to try and keep you. Even though you may only save a few dollars
here and there, in the end, those few dollars here and there can add up to
several hundred dollars per year. Don't eliminate anyone either - you would be
surprised who may be willing to give you a discounted rate, including cable,
Internet, and insurance companies.
Calling For Lower Phone Bills
Saving on your cell phone and land line phone bills can be annoying, at best.
You should begin by researching your options, including current specials being
offered by your current provider. Then call your provider and ask what your
cancellation fee would be, and state that it would be worth it to pay that fee
for the deal being offered by their competition. It will take a great deal of
persistence, but you just might come out with a better deal. Also, if you have
a high speed Internet connection, you could use Skype instead - which charges
$30 per year for unlimited nation-wide calling, and you can forward it to your
"smart" cell phone with no extra fees if you have an unlimited data package.
Video: How Much Can You Save?
Energy and Electric Bill
Shavers
There is a lot you can do to save a great deal of money on your electric bill,
even though you often can't re-negotiate the rate. First and foremost, make
sure your house is sealed up tight - a good roof coating, all leaks sealed, and
new energy-efficient appliances and windows will help make sure all the work
you put into heating and cooling your home doesn't go to waste. If you can't
afford to do those things now, here's a quirky little trick that really does
work - unplug everything when you're not using it. Don't just turn off the TV -
unplug it. Unplug the toaster, unplug your chargers once the gadget is charged,
unplug your microwave and anything else you leave plugged in all day and night.
Believe it or not, even when they are turned off, these gadgets and gizmos
still drain energy and can hike up the bill by as much as 15%.
Video: Tips To Lower Your Grocery Bill
Consolidate Debt and
Refinance Monthly Bills
Last but most certainly not least, the best way to save big right away is to
pay off your credit related bills by putting all of them into one "simple
interest" payment. You want a simple interest payment because the interest is
calculated every time you make a payment, instead of once a month on the due
date like a scheduled loan. This can save you several thousand dollars if you
just split up the amount you pay each month into two payments - thus causing
the interest to re-calculate based on the new, lower principal more often. For
example, a $100,000 scheduled loan at 7% interest will cost you roughly $39,500
in interest, and won't be paid off for 360 months. However, the same loan at
the same rate but as a simple interest loan paid bi-weekly will cost just over
$5,000 in interest, and will be totally paid in 284 months. Tough choice, isn't
it?
Companies To Contact For Discounts
Auto Insurance
Progressive Insurance
(888) 284-8869
Liberty Mutual
(617) 357-9500
Answer Financial Inc. Auto Insurance
(866) 733-0890
Nationwide
(877) 669-6877
Farmers Insurance
(800) 667-1060
Mortgage (Loan Modification)
Citicorp Trust Bank
1-800-737-6011
CitiMortgage
1-800-519-3727
CitiBank NA
1-800-925-2484
Option 8
Sun National Bank
(800) 760-4786 (toll-free)
American Loans
(801) 262-2221
Land Line Phone
Comcast Digital Voice
(888) 266-2278
Vonage
(866) 702-7697
A Telcom Brokers
(888) 853-9664
Charter Communications
(608) 785-4123
Skype
Skype.com
Cell Phone
Verizon Wireless
(866) 378-1502
Sprint
(800) 877-4681
US Cellular
(866) 933-2070
AT&T
(866) 662-4548
Cricket
(800) 274-2538 (toll-free)
Internet
Earthlink
(866) 539-9295
Verizon DSL
(877) 270-2375 (toll-free)
Comcast
(866) 609-8707
Get Cheap Telecom
(858) 876-0054
Optimum Online
(800) 804-6203 (toll-free)
Cable
DirecTV
(866) 383-9386
DISH Network
(866) 737-6823
Charter
(866) 523-4189
Time Warner
(866) 586-7018
Call to Compare Offers
(866) 698-5622
Other
Delray Credit - Debt Management
(877) 329-5564
Lower My Bills
(310) 998-4000 CA
(816) 753-7775 MO
Negotiating Your Way to Lower
Monthly Bills
In this day and age, virtually everything is just a phone call away - including
