Paying Bills (POLL)

amother

Mustard

Sat, Nov 23 2019, 11:23 am

amother [ Jade ] wrote:

I'm in charge of finances but DH is mostly in charge of bill paying (whatever isn't on auto pay which I'm not sure is anything at this point.)

It started back in the day when you had to go in to the post office here in Israel to pay your bills. DH's hebrew was much better than mine and his schedule was more flexible so it fell on him and hasn't changed.

It hasn't been like that for years and years and years.

It seems that with all the complaining about Israeli bureaucracy, we are light years ahead of the States at this point.

I don't know anyone who sits down once a month and has to actually 'do bills' or pay for things like the laundry machine or internet. It's all automatic, on the credit card. Even rent is automatic, though often not with a credit card - but who sits down and writes a check every month? You write 12 predated checks for the year.

amother

Coffee

Sat, Nov 23 2019, 6:32 pm

I do the taxes (well, prepare e/t for the accountant), fill out mortgage & insurance applications etc. I discuss any major decisions w DH of course.

But I'm looking at a friend who was recently widowed and has no clue about her finances, and I want to shout LADIES! YOU NEED TO GET EDUCATED ABOUT FINANCES!!!!

Don't leave it til cholilah you must.

amother

Floralwhite

Sat, Nov 23 2019, 7:09 pm

DH usually does, but lately he has no time so busy at work that he hired someone to manage his bills for him. He begged me to do it and I tried, but he has his specific way of doing it all, certain bills paid from certain accounts, etc. another 3 different excel sheets that it had to be entered in, etc....I couldn't do it his way, gave up.
if it would be as simple as having a check book, sending out a check to the bill, (or an online system of online paying) and document it on 1 place, that I can do. I'd like to know that if the bills fell to me for whatever reason I would be able to handle it but honestly its been so many years since I looked at our finances I wouldn't know where to start. I'd have to figure out my own system if the need arises.

shabbatiscoming

Sun, Nov 24 2019, 5:00 am

Neither one of us. Everything (minus one bill that we are taking care of to change) come off the credit card as horaat keva, automatically. We get the bills in the mail or in email, but I have not had to go to the bank to pay a bill in over 5 years, at least.
Growing up, I remember my parents would spend hours every few sundays, "doing the bills". Thankfully those days are over.

amother

Lawngreen

Sun, Nov 24 2019, 11:16 am

I'm in charge but I often hand him bills and say "pay this/these on the way to ___" or "you need to go here, here, and here, do it in that order, if you don't have time drop this one, that one is most important." And I make him lists sometimes too. So you could say both of us because it is kind of a team effort. If he doesn't do it when I want I take it with me when I go somewhere and make a detour and pay it myself. Which is no biggie, I don't mind, it just means I come back later and he holds down the fort for longer. I actually like paying the bills, especially when he has all the kids. Very Happy

It wasn't agreed upon that I would be in charge, it just ended up that way because when he's tired he gets scatterbrained. And we're very often tired.

amother

Tangerine

Sun, Nov 24 2019, 12:01 pm

amother [ Lawngreen ] wrote:

It wasn't agreed upon that I would be in charge, it just ended up that way because when he's tired he gets scatterbrained. And we're very often tired.

This is interesting. What kind of bills are you paying that it needs to be dropped in person?

amother

Lawngreen

Sun, Nov 24 2019, 2:04 pm

amother [ Tangerine ] wrote:

This is interesting. What kind of bills are you paying that it needs to be dropped in person?

It needs to be done at the bank. We don't automate bills unless there's no choice (like rent we gave checks in advance, cell phone companies nowadays won't accept anything but credit card). It's our shtick maybe but we agree on it and agree on the reasons for it.