How to be Lannister and Pay Your Debts on Time

A Lannister always pays his debts. Perhaps you should too. It may sound obvious to state, but paying back certain loans on time is the best way to keep debt from spiraling out of control.

If you ignore certain debts, they will only increase over time. In the end, you could be facing an eviction notice, or personal bankruptcy. You can avoid a bleak scenario like this by following the tips below for paying debts on time.

Pay Bills as Soon as You Get Your Monthly Paycheck

Monthly bills, like for the mortgage and credit cards, should be paid right away. Some people schedule their bill payments to end of the month. This is a highly problematic habit. If you receive your paycheck at the start of the month, you will be using the funds available to buy other things. By the end of the month, you could be out of funds to pay the bills you cannot avoid. Therefore, when there are essential payments like for a student loan, pay those bills when you have money at hand.

Schedule Grocery Runs for Later

When you receive your paycheck, don’t immediately go shopping. Most people spend money making compulsive purchases at grocery stores. Your budget should be well balanced between loan payments and everyday essentials. You cannot reduce loan payments, but you can reduce the amount you spend on buying inessential groceries. Therefore, always schedule grocery payments for after you have paid off the loan bills.

Delete Your Credit Card Information Online

Compulsive buying is one of the top reasons why people sink deeper and deeper into debt. Online stores are big facilitators of compulsive spending. If you have your credit card information stored on a favorite retail site, it’s easy for you to end up buying a $50 pair of shoes when browsing in the middle of the night. You can end such impulsive purchases by deleting all stored credit card information online. When you do that, you will have to enter credit card info every time you make a purchase. That should give you ample time to decide if you really want to buy what you are about to buy instead of repaying loans.

Keep Track of Your Debts

If you have incurred multiple debts, it’s important to keep track of them all. It’s possible that you could simply forget that a loan bill is due. A simple mistake on your part could end with hefty late fees, notices, and interest increases. So, write down every debt you owe, and the monthly due date for each bill.

On some months, you might not be able to repay certain bills on time. For example, your employer could delay your salary or contractor fee. If something like this happens, you should immediately call the creditor and inform them in advance of your situation. If you do, the creditor might sympathize and not charge a late fee.

If you commit yourself to paying back monthly loan bills on time, as explained in the tips above, you will soon be free of a crushing debt burden.