It is not your intent to miss a payment. Whether money is tight, you are too stressed to look at your finances, or you forget deadlines, these tips are for you!
The downside of missed payments is that it affects your credit score. The missed payment takes about seven years to fall off your credit. If you want to make a big purchase like a car, house, or rent a home, you should protect your credit at all costs.
Good credit means lenders trust you will repay them; in return, they lend you money with a lower interest rate.
Here are six tips to avoid a missed payment even when money is tight:
Prioritize and organize your payments
Get your payments organized because you can better prioritize when you can see all your numbers. Start by prioritizing all essential payments, such as housing, utilities, and insurance.
Creating a list helps you pay for the most crucial areas of your life and by which payment is due next.
Communication is key
Call your creditor and let them know your situation if you cannot make a payment on time. They can give you a temporary solution while trying to get back on track. Often, they can pause a payment for a month, extend the due date, or not report the missed payment to credit bureaus.
Creditors can be intimidating, but when they hear about your hardships and your experience, they can often help. It is time to over-communicate! Give them a call to update them every month on how your money situation is going.
Create a budget and get clear on your expenses
Create or update your budget to reflect your current finances. List all sources of income and categorize necessary expenses.
This time around, cut down on unnecessary expenses to cover the crucial payments approaching.
Set up automatic payments and reminders
Consider setting up automatic payments. This is a game-changer. You set up your budget once, automate your bills, and feel like you are not budgeting. This takes less work on your part.
Set reminders from your banks when due dates are to keep you on alert and ensure you do not miss payments.
Increase income
Look for additional sources of income, such as part times, freelance, increasing your 9-5 salary, etc. The more money you have, the sooner you can escape survival mode.
There is only so much you can cut back from in your finances. Increasing income will make the most significant difference.
Resort to your emergency fund
When money is tight, it is why you built a safety net! Do not be afraid to use your savings to avoid missing a payment. If you do not have savings, consider slowly making one to take care of future you, who may need it. If there is one thing we know about life, it can be a rollercoaster of emotions.
Build that safety net, and be bold and use it.
My experience with missed payments:
Growing up, I always heard that I had to build credit to buy a home, rent, or buy a car. However, no one taught me what credit was, how to use credit cards, or how to manage my money.
I was being an A+ student by applying for credit cards to build my credit score. I quickly found myself with sixteen maxed-out credit cards and in a very dark, stressful place. Personal finance is not obvious!
In 2018, I tried to increase my income to pay off debt. I ended up with two part-time jobs where my income increased, but commuting from one job to another was stressful. I had to quit one part-time job, and three weeks later, the second one was no longer a fit for them and myself. This left me with two months, during which I could not pay my bills, and I never called my creditors.
I felt a lot of shame. Knowing what I know now, I would have made phone calls sooner.
Two months later, I landed a job with a $35K increase in salary. With this job, I paid $30,000 in consumer debt in one year and a half. And finally, my missed payments were removed in 2023, and my credit score increased! That took five years.
When we work together:
- I help you increase your income to get out of survival mode
- I help you create a budget that reflects your current financial standing
- I help you set a money routine where you do not miss payments and nurture your credit score back to health
- I help you address money anxiety to avoid a missed payment or avoidance to review your budget
If this resonates with you, I invite you to work with me! I want to help you empower yourself with your finances rather than avoid taking action. I want you to change the trajectory of your finances and the feelings you experience around money.
I cannot wait to be part of your journey!
