Year: 2018

Finance Guru: Dealing With Medical Bills

Even with health insurance, all it takes is one major illness or injury to be stuck with overwhelming medical bills. When this happens, you might feel like there’s nothing you can do but pay the entire amount owed or file for bankruptcy. In most cases, however, there are several measures you can take to whittle down medical debts both big and small.

1. Check any medical bills you receive carefully. You should receive a detailed statement for any services or procedures you receive. Make sure that you have actually received what you’re being billed for. Did you receive each medication and service listed? Do the dates of service listed on the bill match up with your records? Are you being billed more than once for the same service or supply? The easiest way to check your bills for accuracy is to keep a record of what treatments your receiving and when you’re receiving them.

2. You’ll also need to check your insurance policy and make sure that the insurance is paying for what it’s supposed to. If they have denied payment for treatment or services that you think should be covered, ask for the matter to be reviewed.

3. Try to settle the debt for less than the amount owed by negotiating with providers. If you know in advance you’ll need treatment, negotiate beforehand. Offer to pay a discounted amount upfront, for example. This tact can work with emergency or unplanned treatment after the fact. If you simply can’t pay the whole amount, most providers would have something rather than nothing and will work with you.

4. Get help to pay the bills. There are programs available for people who can’t pay their medical bills. Ask your provider.

Don’t sacrifice your own future to pay for Your Child’s Education

Of course you want to be able to pay for your child’s college education. Who doesn’t? It’s every parent’s dream, right? For those who can afford it, paying for college for the kids outright is a great thing. For most middle-class people however, the thought of paying the bill for four years of higher education or taking on more student loan debt can be downright nightmare-inducing.

Here are some things to remember when planning for your children’s college education:

1. Start setting aside money when they are young if you can, but it’s never too late to start.

2. Apply for every scholarship you can find. Start researching scholarships and involve your college-bound child in the process. As soon as your child is a junior in college, start looking for scholarships. Make it your child’s job to apply for any scholarship you can find, no matter how big or how small. Those small scholarships can add up quickly!

3. Don’t sacrifice your own future to pay for college. Don’t forego funding your own retirement account in order to pay for your child’s college. Think of it this way. Your child can get loans to pay for college and then work for years to pay them off, but you can’t get a loan for retirement and work to pay it off.

 

Get Your Financial Affairs in Order

You can work on getting your credit card debt, student loan debt, and other financial troubles under control, but until you get organized with your finances, you’ll never be able to fully achieve financial freedom. Here are some tips to get organized with your finances.

1. Prepare a budget and stick to it. You should know exactly how much money is coming in and how much money is going out. These amounts need to be balanced.

2. Make a list of all debts and total amounts owed. Seeing it in black and white might surprise you but you need to know the bottom line.

3. Set aside a time each month to pay bills. Whether you choose to pay bills online or through the mail, it helps to have a set time to pay bills.

4. Keep a calendar, either hard copy or on your computer, with bill due dates clearly marked. Decide when you need to pay these bills in order for them to be on time and record these dates as well.

5. Keep bills and bill-paying supplies in one place.

6. If your stack of bills seems like it’s a mile high, consider consolidating some of your bills to take some of the pressure off.

7. Don’t pile up unopened bills on the kitchen counter or elsewhere. Go through your mail every day. Throw away junk mail, open bills, and record their due dates immediately. Billing cycles vary and even though your Visa bill was due on the 5th last month, don’t count on the fact it will always be due on the 5th. Opening your bills will help you avoid unpleasant surprises and late payment fees.

8. While there are certain records you’ll need to keep for a long time, like tax returns and proof of paid off accounts, you can shred utility bills once the payment has gone through.

9. Just as you are being diligent to ensure you’re paying all your bills and you’re paying them on time, make sure you’re getting paid as well. Check direct deposits for accuracy and monitor savings and investment accounts.

10. Keep a file with separate file folders for paycheck stubs, tax returns, sales contracts, and anything else related to your finances.

10 tips to earn $625 a month extra!

What would you do with an extra $625 a month? You could put that money towards credit card debt or build up your savings account. We’re talking $7,500 a year, and you don’t need to get a raise or start saving dryer lint–you just need to cut back in little ways that add up. Try these ten tips for saving up to $625 a month.

1. Make fewer trips to the store. If you are going to the grocery store more than twice a week, chances are you’re spending too much. By only going to the grocery store once a week, with a list, you could save $50 a week (cut out those little $25 trips).

2. When making your grocery list, refer to the store’s circular and plan your weekly meals around what’s on sale. You could save another $25 a week.

3. Cut back on eating out. If you cut out one meal out a week, you can save at least $25 a week.

4. Drive less, plan your trips wisely. You could save a tank of gas a month, or at least $10 a week.

5. Cut back on cable. Chances are there are plenty of channels you aren’t watching. You could cut another $25 a month from your budget.

6. Shop around for car, home, and life insurance. If you cut $10 a month off each of these, that’s $30 a month.

7. Eating lunch out more than once a week? Cut out even two times of eating out a week and you’ll save $50 a month.

8. Instead of going out for drinks once a week with your friends, host a wine night at your house once a month. You can still have your nights out the other three weeks of the month, but save at least $25 a month by having a BYOB get-together on that fourth week.

9. Bypass the coffee store. Treat yourself once a week rather than three or five times a week. Cut out two lattes a week and save $25 a month.

10. Try to shave $10 a month off of your water, electric, gas, phone, and other utility bills that fluctuate month to month. You’ll save at least $30.

If you follow all of these tips, you can save $625 without changing your life all that much. Even if you followed some of these tips, imagine what $500 a month could do. The little things add up.