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Worried About Missing A Credit Card Payment?

Forty-six million Americans (almost 1 in 5 adults) think they will miss at least one credit card payment due date in 2020, according to a new WalletHub credit cards survey released today. This indicates that cracks in the foundation of consumers’ finances are beginning to show, under the strain of mounting debt. The average American household already owes a near-record $8,700 to credit card companies. In light of that, WalletHub’s survey examined people’s experiences with late payments and their attitudes regarding the likelihood of future encounters.

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Why do so many people expect to miss credit card due dates in 2020?

“The reason that roughly 46 million people expect to miss at least one credit card due date in 2020, according to WalletHub’s latest credit card survey, is that we’re stretched too thin – in terms of both time and money,” said WalletHub CEO Odysseas Papadimitriou. “U.S. credit card users started 2020 with more than $1 trillion in credit card debt. Up until this point, we’ve managed to keep our accounts in good standing at historical rates. However, expecting to miss due dates is a sign of cracks in the foundation. And not only do 18% of people expect to miss at least one credit card due date in 2020, but 30% us say that not having enough money is the reason we’re most likely to be late.”

What are some tips for credit card users concerned about late payments?

“The easiest way to avoid late payments, and the fees and credit score damage that can accompany them, is to set up automatic monthly bill payments from a checking account for at least the minimum amount due each month. This will at least remove forgetfulness as a potential cause,” said WalletHub CEO Odysseas Papadimitriou. “Automated payments won’t do much good if you don’t have enough money in your bank account, however. So careful budgeting and saving are key, too.”

Is it worth asking credit card companies to waive late fees?

“Credit card users who almost always pay their monthly bills on time but fail to do so once in a blue moon should definitely try to ask their credit card company to waive any associated late fee. It really can’t hurt, and 9 in 10 people who’ve tried in the past say they’ve been successful at least once, according to WalletHub’s new credit card survey,” said WalletHub CEO Odysseas Papadimitriou. “This is actually one reason why credit cards that emphasize ‘no late fees’ as a feature are sometimes overrated. You might get that on other cards, anyway, just by asking. Plus, ‘no late fee’ often actually means no fee the first time you miss a due date. After that, all bets are off.”

Key Survey Findings

Credit card issuers are forgiving…if you ask nicely.

Nearly 9 in 10 people who have tried to get a credit card late fee waived were successful. Women are 18 percent more likely to have tried to get a fee waived than men but are also 2 percent less likely to have been successful.

Payment priorities change with age.

People aged 18 to 44 are most worried about missing credit card payments. The 45-59 demographic is most concerned about their mortgage, while those over 59 put tax payments as their biggest worry.

Luxury can lead to lapses.

People with high income are almost twice as likely to miss a credit card payment due to forgetfulness as people with low income.

Men and women react differently to fees.

When asked about their attitudes toward getting a late fee, women are 39% more likely than men to feel “punished.” Men are twice as likely to feel “indifferent.”

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Children of Debt: Using Your Financial Struggles as Tools for Teaching

All households can experience tough times, and some more than others. Having less to spend is not all bed new, though, and It’s actually quite common that children of low-income families grow up to be more financially savvy than their peers. If your family is going through a dip in finances at the moment, you can easily take advantage of this to teach them a few valuable lessons – just avoid the pitfalls.

Here is how some families use financial struggles to safeguard their children from similar problems, as well as a few words of warning on what to steer clear of.

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Image credit: Pexels

Have constructive money conversations

Talking about money problems with children is on the top of the to-do list. When times are tough, and you keep it to yourself, it tends to cause a bit of confusion. Be open about it and you’re giving your children a chance to understand the situation.

Explain that you need to save money, as a household, and that they can be of big help by simply remembering to use less electricity. These conversations are healthy and constructive; the problems are presented together with a solution, rather than mindless worries.

Some parents take the money-talk too far and burden their children with it. The conversations about money are used to unload themselves of worries, and the parents may even feel a sense of relief afterwards – while the child is left with a sense of being unable to help.

Admit your mistakes

While we should all learn from our own mistakes, your children are in the unique position of being able to learn from your mistakes as well. Take responsibility for the situation you’re in, admit that you haven’t been as on top of your finances as you should have, and avoid blaming it on your circumstances.

However tempting it may be to point out that you’ve gone through a costly divorce or that the economy is tough, save these blame-shifting talks for your friends. When you’re talking to your children about it, it’s all about being the grown-up, and grown-ups take responsibility.

If your child or teenager ever find themselves in the same situation, they won’t spend time on pointing fingers but instead get right to work and sort things out; just like you taught them.

There are so many words of wisdom to be found in financial problems, and you can use the situation to teach them about the importance of budgeting, the code of practice 9, and general saving alternatives. By being stubborn and proud, you’re just letting a fantastic teaching opportunity slip away from you.

Growing up in a family that needs to save money rather than spend it can actually be quite healthy for their future finances. It teaches them to understand the value of money and how important it is to have a backup fund in case something should happen, so keep teaching the right kind of values while picking yourself up. http://credit-n.ru/microzaymi-blog-single.html

Uncovering The Links Between Poor Health & Debt

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The vast majority of people out there have some form of debt. It might be a home loan, for example, a credit card, or maybe just a monthly prescription you pay for services received. But, whereas debt seems to be entirely normal these days, bad debts are a huge issue – not just to people’s finances, but also to their health and wellbeing. And if you are looking for reasons to teach your kids about the importance of sound financial knowledge, the fact that bad debts will harm them in the future should be all you need to start educating them right now. Let’s take a look at some of the links between bad debts and poor health – and see how we can all make sure our children never suffer from either.

High blood pressure levels

Having bad debts means that your lenders will, to all intents and purposes, be after you. Phone calls, letters, emails – your creditors will be trying their damnedest to get their money back by almost any means necessary. Unsurprisingly, this can lead to stressful health issues such as high blood pressure. A study in Norway found that adults with high debt-to-asset ratios suffered from higher blood pressure than others, and also suffered from poor health in many other areas. And it’s also important to note that those adults studied were in their prime, too; between the ages of 24-32. It’s important to bear this in mind for your children, as it could only be a decade or so before bad debts could start impacting their lives – and blood pressure. Don’t’ forget, developing a higher blood pressure means people will be more at risk of heart attack or stroke – it’s that serious.

Lowers immunity

Chronic stress doesn’t just affect your blood pressure – most researchers and scientists understand that stress can also suppress your immune system. So, the more down the dangerous debt spiral you go, the more your blood pressure rises, and more at risk your body will be to general illnesses. Being in debt also has a tendency to keep you awake at night with worry so you won’t be sleeping well. And, as every doctor will tell you, sleep is vital for giving your body a chance to recover and recuperate, as well as fighting off any infections.

Feelings of anxiety

It’s not much of a surprise to hear that the more debt you are in, the more anxious you will become. Anxiety is a symptom of stress, and owing a lot of money is obviously an incredibly stressful experience. Feelings of anxiety can seep into all kinds of different areas in your life. You might struggle to be sociable, for example, and withdraw from your friends and family networks. It can impact on your productivity at work, too – meaning you are more likely to have to take time off or maybe even lose your job. And anxiety is also an indicator of high blood pressure, which, as we mentioned above, can lead to heart problems and stroke.

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Depression

When you owe a lot of money and can’t afford to pay it back, you tend to feel helpless. And the impact of those feelings can be dramatic on your psychological makeup. Unhappiness can quickly lead to depression, and the feeling for many people in debt is that they are underwater and incapable of helping themselves, which exacerbates those depressive feelings even further. And while many people discount depression as not a serious issue, the simple fact is that it has a terrible impact on people and those that love them. Families can break up, people can lose their jobs and find themselves unable to work, which increases the debt spiral further. As a parent, one of the worst things you can face is your beloved child developing depression, and feeling like there is nothing you can do to help them.

Doctor’s visits

When you owe a lot of money, some things in life that you deem unnecessary will often take a hit. That might mean paying fewer visits to your doctor, even when you are sick. There is a direct link between those who have high levels of credit card and medical debt and those who are less likely to visit their doctor for regular checkups. And the simple truth is that when you tie in the many health problems debt can cause and fail to see a doctor, there is more chance of serious issues arising.

Severe injuries

You can be leading a perfectly sensible lifestyle one minute. But a serious injury or accident can change everything in a single moment. Not only will you have to consider quitting your job, but you might also have to find tens of thousands – possibly hundreds – to pay for medical care. Health insurance can help, of course, as can finding a personal injury lawyer to claim for compensation. But there are no guarantees that your insurance company will pay out, or that you will win your case. The reality for many people who suffer serious injuries is that their finances will take a hit, their lifestyle opportunities will dramatically reduce, while their debt levels will increase. You can’t teach your child to avoid accidents, of course. But you can teach them how to prepare for the worst.

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Aches and pains

Nasty letters from debt collectors and angry lenders can even lead to you developing physical symptoms such as headaches, pains, and muscular tensions. In fact, researchers have found almost one in every two of those who were in bad debt also reported frequent migraines, headaches, and digestive problems. So, if you want your child to grow up physically healthy, it’s worth teaching them the benefits of financial security.

Eating habits

When you are in the midst of a severe debt problem, it’s not unusual to stop being mindful of what you are eating. Stress levels can keep your hunger at bay, and when you eventually crash, you will often reach out for quick fixes such as sugary snacks and fast food. And make no mistake about it, when you are eating too much garbage, it is going to have a grave impact on your body’s ability to fight other issues. Your stress levels will rise, too, as you aren’t getting enough nutrients, and feelings of depression are also likely to follow because you end up not taking care of yourself. Again, it’s being in debt that can lock you into a vicious cycle of ailments that can lead to others – and increases the damage they cause.

Exercise

As surprising as it might be to hear, research suggests that more than sixty percent of people with bad debts don’t take enough exercise every week. While the reasons for the link are not clear, it is an alarming statistic, given that exercise is part of the key to a healthy and long-lasting life. Exercise releases endorphins in the brain, which can protect you against depression and stress, both of which can arise due to having bad debts. For parents with growing children, it’s important to realise the positive impacts of exercise on their futures. And it’s also vital to understand that if they do have bad debts, it might even protect them against some of the many health issues that being in debt can cause.

As you can see, there is a broad range of links between poor health and bad debts. The pressures and strains of being in debt can take a toll on anyone’ s mind and body – and it’s something you need to prepare your children for in the future. We have been recommended this comprehensive guide about what action you can take when feeling blue and how a mental health diagnosis can be empowering.

Frustrating Finances: Three Reasons That You Might Be Having Money Problems

 

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It’s pretty common to worry about money. In fact, it might be the most common cause of worry and anxiety that there is. People’s financial situation is constantly hanging over their heads, causing them to fret over even the simplest decision. If things get really bad, it can stop people from feeling able even to open their mail a lot of the time. Once things have reached that point, then it’s become pretty clear that things can’t go on as they have been and something has to be done. The problem is that it’s very difficult to know where to start. The answer is actually rather straightforward and obvious. Before you can solve any of your financial problems, you’ve got to be able to identify exactly what it is that’s causing them. Of course, there are plenty of potential reasons that you might have some money troubles. Here are just a few and how you can deal with them to get yourself back on track.

Out of control spending

This is by far the most common cause of a lot of people’s financial woes. In reality, most of us don’t actually realise how much money we’re spending on a day to day basis. You might think that a small purchase here and there won’t make any difference at all. After all, what are a few dollars count for in the grand scheme of things? While this might be true, the problem is that those few dollars start to add up over time. The only way to get this under control is to start budgeting more carefully. If you are able to keep track of your money, then you’ll probably discover that over time, those little purchases add up to a pretty significant sum of money that you could be using much more sensibly.

Debt

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Debt can have awful effects on you beyond just your bank balance. It can have some serious, long-lasting psychological implications as well. After a certain point, dealing with large amounts of debt can make it feel impossible ever to get yourself out the financial situation that you’re in. Not only that but debt has catastrophic effects on your credit score. A lot of people tend not to think about their credit score, but a bad one can set you back pretty badly. This includes making it harder to get approved for a loan as well as discouraging landlords from accepting you as a tenant. Check out yourcreditblog.com for more details on how to check up on and improve your credit score.

Household bills

A lot of people don’t realize just how much less they could be paying for their household bills. By making just a few simple changes to your lifestyle, you can cut your energy bills by as much as half! Far too many people waste huge amounts of heat and electricity that basically counts as money down the drain. Look into ways to save energy and you will find that your general monthly outgoings go down significantly.