WHEN do you do your bills?

[MrsChambers]

Do you pay your bills right when they come in? sit down, make out the check or automated payment on the computer and just get it done and over with right then and there?

Do you pay your bills once a week?

do your pay your bills twice a month? (like when you get paid)

or do you just wait till the end of the month and do it all in one shot?

HOW DO YOU PAY YOUR BILLS?

I WANNA KNOW!

[PrincessPerky]

umm, maybe I should go check if I need to pay any?

Actually most of them are on auto withdrawl, I would never make it without!

I do have a zipper binder thing that all my bills go in, and I try to sit down once a week and balence it all out. Usually before we go to the grocery store.

[DivaJen]

I have a spot that all bills get placed in, and once a week (maybe once every two weeks) I check them to see if any need to be paid. I pay the phone bill online and get a reminder when it is due.

[txjman]

I generally pay my bills once I receive my paycheck.

[miclason]

the same day I receive my paycheck (since most of it is going towards debt, I just calculate the very basic living expenses and then try to allocate the remainder as well as I can...)

[Lori63]

I have a calendar where I write when things are due as they come in. A few days before payday I sit and write all the checks that are needed for the next two weeks and write in the corner of the envelope when I need to mail them.

[Tree0164]

I generally pay them 2x a month based on my husband pay schedule.

[PennyPincher]

I pay bills twice a month ~ usually the 1st and 16th. I've basically compiled a little spreadsheet of all my bills and when they are due, and split it by due date. I also have a column for when it was paid so that if I should change my schedule, I know it's still taken care of. It works well for me writing everything down; fewer things get lost in the shuffle of daily life or my forgetfulness!

I also have about 30% of my bills auto-withdrawn, and pay another 40% online. I write very few checks these days...

[MrsChambers]

yes. Just this past friday was my first time using the billpay through my bank. I paid: 2 credit cards, the gas bill, and the insurance. It was EASY..(but then again, arn't paying bills pretty easy when you actually have the money to pay them?... I digress)

but my questions is this? when I made those billpay payments, some of them said that it wourld take days for it to get there... yet they withdrew the money from my account immediatly. so what's the deal? do they get paid when I paid them or when the money gets to the "vendor"? what happens if it gets there late? am I screwed?

oh, all this new tech. stuff!!

[PennyPincher]

I would err on the safe side there ~ and still pay ahead of time as you were mailing the bill and allowing time for it to get there.

I experience the same, as money is gone from my checking, but floating in cyber bank space for some time before it is recognized as PAID by the company or vendor. Most say to allow for a minimum of 24-48 hours for the payment to post.

[kashi]

if I have the money in my account, I pay the bill right when I get it. If I don't, I wait until pay day. I also have all of my bills listed in an Excel file, with their due dates, and I check them off when I pay them. It really does help keep track of it. If I let bills sit on the desk unpaid for too long, they are bound to get buried.

[seaar2000]

Every two weeks when I get my check. If I have extra money in the checking and a bill comes in I pay it. Never was behind on a bill and never want to be behind on a bill.

[kzz]

I pay them the same day I receive them. My hubby says it's because I'm my father's daughter.

[Tammy]

Every other Thursday I pay the bills. Some are paid online, some are mailed. I keep 2 folders by the desk labeled 1st check and 2nd check. I put the bill in the folder that I need to pay it out of.

[csaville]

We pay our bills on pay day. We also have them split by first - 15th bills and 16th - 31st bills. We use bill pay for all of them.

I think the reason you have money floating in cyberspace is that they probably use an ACH transfer to pay your bill. It is free to do for them, but takes a day or two.

[jhd815]

Bills? What bills? I jest!

I normally pay them twice a month, however, I just signed up for my bank's online billpay service, and I love it!

I can sit down at the computer, grab a pile of bills and then input the amount and when I want them to be paid. If my bank has a "relationship" with the payee, the bill can usually be paid the next day. If not, the worst case scenario is usually five days.

I love being able to sit at my computer, input the amounts and the day to pay and then it is done automatically. No checks to write, no stamps, no return address stickers, no trips to the post office. And I get a confirmation number with each payment made.

Couldn't be simpler ... wish I would have done this a lot sooner.

[baselle]

I pay them as soon as I get them, assuming that by paying them I keep a small cushion until next payday. If they are too large (very rarely), I wait until next payday.

I do some online bill paying, but I mostly use online accounts to watch my bank balances - on-the-fly reconciliation.

I've been doing online transfers to savings, savings bonds, DRPs (first rule of savings: you are a bill and you're paid first!). Gotta watch for fee charges though...in some cases I've run across a buck or two ACH fee. Remember, its gotta be cheaper than the 37 cent stamp!

[jhd815]

I get paid twice a month so I've always set up payment of my bills in line with my two paydates. Certain bills get paid mid-month, the rest get paid at the end of the month.

Up until this January I was paying bills by check and mail. Since January I've been using my bank's online bill pay service and I love it! I can sit down at the computer two times a month and plug in my payments and when I want them (or need them) to be paid and voila! I'm done and over with it.

I really wish I would have taken advantage of this opportunity sooner.

P.S. Will I ever graduate from the sixth grade?????

[gakline]

I pay about 1 - 1 1/2 weeks before they're due. I use a software that tells me what's coming up. I'll then pay a few at a time. I think it ends up being about twice a month.

[gypzye]

Every other week, when I get paid. I deposit the check then go home and pay all the bills for the next two weeks. It usually works out that I fill up my gas tank and go grocery shopping, too. Then I know the bills are all paid and I rest easy for two more weeks. If I have plenty of extra money (hasn't happened much lately, but I just started a new job so I anticipate a change in that shortly!) I pay bills for the next pay period. That way I never have to worry about forgetting.