There are only three things in life that are absolutely certain: death, taxes, and expenses. Every month, you have to give money that you’ve worked hard to earn to various parties, including landlords, banks, utility companies, and cell phone service providers. If you live in a major city, the average monthly cost of living may be close to $1,000 for you.
The good news is that you can negotiate and save on many of these charges. Here’s how:
1. Be Tough with Service Providers
Do you want to take the reins of the negotiation yourself? Be prepared to defend your position. Your cable company, Internet service provider, and mobile phone company all want your business, and they are willing to do whatever it takes to keep it.
If you wish to bargain with service providers, you must speak with the appropriate people.
- Avoid calling customer service and technical assistance.
- Notify the automated system of your would like to terminate the service.
There are customer retention teams at service providers that might provide various discounts and incentives to keep you around.
Make sure you are not convinced to purchase additional services. It may seem like a money-saving opportunity, but examine the numbers before agreeing.
Other factors to keep in mind include the following:
- Cable and internet providers will disclose prices exclusive of taxes and fees.
- When the promotion expires, you may have to pay significantly more for the service.
The conclusion? Before signing up for a promotional offer, ensure that you fully understand the terms.
If you don’t like what your service provider offers, you should switch to a different one.
- Get rid of your cable subscription and sign up for a couple streaming services instead, such as Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon.
- Switch to a prepaid service like Verizon’s Visible or a pay-as-you-go service like Ting.
2. Use a Service like Billshark
Consider it impossible to save money on your monthly payments. Think again. Billshark will bargain with service providers on your behalf to lower your prices while maintaining the same level of service.
Billshark has conducted over 50,000 negotiations with an 85% success rate. They claim that customers save $285 annually on average for every bill they negotiate. One of their customers saved almost $10,000.
Which bills are open to negotiation?
- Satellite TV Cable TV
- Mobile phone service
- Internet access
- Satellite radio
- Home security
If Billshark is unable to save you money, you will not pay them. You have nothing to lose (other than expensive monthly payments) by using their service.
3. Consolidate your Credit Card Debt
The typical family in the United States owes more than $8,000 on their credit cards. In addition to absurdly high interest rates, you are also required to monitor all of the cards you possess. If you are late with even one payment, you will be subject to additional fines and penalties, which will result in an increase in the total amount that you owe.
You might be able to cut costs by consolidating the debt from your credit cards. Consolidate all of your credit card debt into a single loan for convenience’s sake, which will have a cheaper interest rate.
InCharge provides a useful directory of organizations that provide debt consolidation services.
These three suggestions can assist you in obtaining lower bills and saving money if you find that your monthly expenses are excessively high. But you should also take advantage of some tried-and-true advice, such as developing a spending plan and minimizing frivolous expenditures.