Between working, spending time with your friends and family, and pursuing your hobbies, there never seems to be enough time in the day. As a result, we are all looking for ways to cut the amount of time spent on mundane chores. Setting up automatic payments for recurring bills is a modern convenience that saves …
Continue reading “Why You Should Monitor Your Automatic Payments”
Between working, spending time with your friends and family, and pursuing your hobbies, there never seems to be enough time in the day. As a result, we are all looking for ways to cut the amount of time spent on mundane chores. Setting up automatic payments for recurring bills is a modern convenience that saves a significant amount of time. As long as you have the funds in your account, you’ll simply be able to set it and forget it, right? Yes—you could, but here are a few reasons why you should monitor your automatic payments:
Overdraft Fees
When making manual bill payments, you can always check to ensure you have sufficient funds in your account before you pay. When you enroll in auto-pay, there’s a greater risk of an overdraft to your account. While truly being able to set it and forget it would be great, it’s a good idea to continue checking in on your accounts before your automatic payments clear each month. This is especially crucial if you’ve automated any variable expenses, such as a utility bill. Try to get in the habit of checking your account balance before your auto-pay clears. While it’s not exactly a “set it and forget it” approach, it’s still more convenient that manually paying your bills each month.
Unnoticed Errors
There are a number of benefits to enrolling in auto-pay. It’s convenient and you’re less likely to miss a payment. A major downside, however, is actually something out of your control. Payees do occasionally make mistakes. While rare, these mistakes could be costly. If you aren’t monitoring your automatic payments, a significant mistake could go unnoticed.
Cancelled Services
If you’ve enrolled in auto pay and had only positive experiences, you might simply let your automatic ACH or Bill Pay services take care of everything. However, your auto-pay service doesn’t know when you’ve stopped going to the gym or canceled a service. If you’re letting your auto-pay take care of everything, you may find yourself wasting money on subscriptions you’re not using. Instead, simply check in on your account statements each month to ensure that you aren’t throwing your hard-earned money away.
If you decide to sign up for auto pay, set up eAlerts using the Compass app. You will receive a notification when your balance is low or when a transaction has occurred. It’s a great way to stay on top of your payments without having to manually make them yourself. Auto pay is incredibly convenient and is a payment process that is certainly worth looking into, but it’s important to have good financial habits rooted in an awareness of what you’re paying and when.
Buying a home is often one of the biggest financial decisions you can make. The process of becoming a homeowner can take a great deal of patience and fiscal commitment, but in the end, it’s an incredibly rewarding milestone to achieve. However, it’s important to remember the total cost of buying a home encompasses more than just your down payment and monthly mortgage. Below are some often overlooked and unexpected costs of buying a home.
Utilities
Typical utilities include electricity, water, internet, heating, cooling, and waste management. Be sure to factor in utility costs when determining whether you can or can’t afford to purchase a home. If you want a better idea of what the costs will be for a home you’re interested in, request a copy of previous bills from the real estate agent.
Homeowners Insurance
Your home is far more than a roof to sleep under. In many cases, a home is one’s most valuable asset—an asset that most can’t afford to replace out-of-pocket in the event of disaster-related damage or total loss. Homeowners insurance helps protect your asset. Additionally, most lenders require that you have insurance on your home, as it safeguards them (as well as you) against financial loss. Make sure you add in the cost of protecting your home when putting together your monthly budget.
Property Taxes
Beyond your mortgage, down payment, and insurance, it’s important that you also remember to factor in property taxes. The cost of your taxes will vary depending upon where you live and the value of your home. The taxes will either be billed directly by your local taxation office or paid through your mortgage lender. If paying directly, you’ll usually make two payments each year. If paying through your lender, the cost will be added to your monthly mortgage payment. Make sure to budget for this ongoing, recurring cost, as you will always need to pay property taxes.
Maintenance and Repair
As a renter, your landlord was likely responsible for regular maintenance and repairs. If your furnace stopped working, you could call your landlord and they would coordinate making the repair at no extra cost to you. As a homeowner, though, it’s up to you to fund maintenance and repairs. According to the one percent rule, you should set aside one percent of your home’s value each year for home maintenance. If your home is valued at $200,000, you should be setting aside $2,000 to cover any repair costs.
When you’re ready to take that next step to buy your home, Compass is here to help you with the financing. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us at 707-443-8662 x5.
In short, a credit union is a cooperative financial institution where people work together to make everyone’s lives better. Everyone who has an account here is a member. And every member is an owner.
Rather than making profits to send to far-off shareholders, Compass CCU reinvests in our credit union. Which means we reinvest in YOU. That’s why we say that, at Compass Community Credit Union, we guide you to better banking.