Contrary to some opinions, most landlords want their tenants to be successful. As as a landlord myself, it is in our best interest to have tenants be successful in all facets of their lives. From having safe and happy homes to financial success. When tenant’s are successful everyone wins.
Here are three financial tips for tenants to help avoid some common financial pitfalls.
Tip 1: Avoid Predatory Debit Cards
My step son recently received a solicitation in the mail from one of those direct deposit debit card companies. I have heard a lot of landlords tell me their tenants get paid directly to a debit card and I have wondered why they would choose this option over a traditional bank account.
Pay close attention to the tradeoffs you’re making when having your paycheck directly deposited to a prepaid card. Consider the costs for each withdrawal of funds, service fees, transaction costs when processing a card payment online. How much money are you throwing away in fees? Does the card charge you for withdrawing money at the ATM?
Tip 2: Leverage Technology to budget
Are you having trouble keeping up with what’s in your bank account? Take advantage of opportunities to open free checking accounts. Use one free account to pay bills and the other account for every day expenses. You can schedule automatic transfers around your pay schedule to put money aside for recurring expenses like rent, utilities, etc. Whatever is left over is your everyday money. This approach to budgeting is one small step you can take to start avoiding costly late fees or overdraft fees.
How many of you are paying late fees because you forget to pay your rent? What are those late fees costing you a year? $50 might not seem like a lot each month but add that up over a year and you are paying an extra $600. That’s a couple of car payments!
Tip 3: Educate yourself
Thought leaders like Dave Ramsey have a lot of great content, available for free, to help you evaluate your personal position in life and make achieving your goals more attainable. Whether you like blogs or podcasts, there are several sources available to you – you just need to know they are out there.
Summary
Life is more fun when you are winning and winning isn’t luck. Winning is getting organized, having a plan and sticking to it.
