SultanOfSwing

Yeah, sounds like our house.

GeoffM

Try having a variable income throughout the year! Usually around 4-5 big payments which taper off until the next payment. But the wife is bi-weekly so it's usually every other one of hers that gets put aside for the mortgage.

Anian

Live within your means as if two paychecks are your monthly income. Then you get a nice bonus twice a year.

scrubbedexpat091

I've never been paid monthly as bi weekly and 2 times a month is the norm in Canada (monthly may be illegal here) but I'd not like only being paid once a month, hard enough to get through 2 weeks between checks.

Here though most companies give a bi-weekly or 2 payments a month option, our car payment is bi-weekly and matches up with our pay.

Only monthly bills we have is car insurance and rent, everything else is bi-weekly payments, so sometimes 2 a month, sometimes 3 a month.

For the monthly stuff, like rent, I take 1/2 out of each check, so no one check has to be the primary one for anything, plus one check of 2 weeks pay wont cover rent, so have to take money from the other checks to bring it up.

I don't really see it as difficult, its the only thing I know though so suppose makes a difference.

I also made every bill due on the 1st of the month and just save and put away the money during the month for everything coming out the first, easier to manage then having random payment days since pay dates vary too much to say that 25th of the month will always be after payday and money will be available on that day for something...

companies will some pushing and annoying by the customer will usually change a due date, just be persistent if they say no.

scrubbedexpat091

I get paid bi weekly and my other off 2 times a month, so we have income every week as my pay days are always opposite week to her's.

ChocolateBabz

We got used to it pretty quickly. What I do is I have a separate account where all our bills are paid from - when the mid month pay comes in I make a transfer to that account and then what's left plus the end of month just stay in our 'using' account.

I transfer enough to cover all our monthly outgoings and our annual bills (property tax, home insurance, HOA fees etc) and we never withdraw from that account so don't need escrow with the mortgage company. As a bonus there is usually enough leftover in the bill account a the end of the year to cover the Christmas credit card bill.

Bob

It's a pain in the arse, but got used to it.

The missus gets paid every fortnight, I get paid middle and last day of month.

It isn't as bad if you're able to stagger your bills but for a time, we had all the utilities and rent due within a couple days, so it was a bit of a struggle if things came up but after a move or two, utility bills moved around the due date so works much easier now.

petitefrancaise

you are so organised...I keep meaning to do something like this. Well done. Mr PF gets paid biweekly but the bills seem to have ended up spread out throughout the month anyway so we manage in our usual haphazard way. Be nice not to have to stay in all January though to pay the crimbo bill....

RICH

We just did this switch in the new year. The switch over involved a short pay period, new more expensive "benefits" deducted, annual bonus added, December overtime added. This month, a modest pay rise will kick in. I have no idea what my biweekly take home norm will even out at.

scrubbedexpat091

I work exactly 30 hours a week so 60 in a pay period, it never varies. I know my checks will be within a 20 dollar range, but they vary check to check, you'd think they would be the same. Only time they vary a lot is when holiday pay is involved.

username.exe

I don't yet have a job, so no need to worry about this pesky 'bi weekly pay' problem. Every cloud...

sir_eccles

My pay is bi-weekly and is also based on how much work I do so it varies. The annoying thing is trying to work out if a bit of work is going to count for this paycheck or the next as the cut off is the Monday before they cut the check and I'm sort of reliant on my line manager approving it in time.

Then there was a point at the end of last year we had some big outgoings and somehow my paychecks got out of sync with the mortgage payment. Lots of panic while I double checked it wouldn't technically be a late payment for 15 days.

Thankfully my wife now has a new job, should even things out.

Pulaski

We used to be on an automated debit for our mortgage which was always drawn on the first day of the month, but when we refi'ed a few years ago we went to a manual (online or phone) payment, and now we never pay on the first, but usually it's between 10th-12th; sometimes it is the 15th.

Michael

With today's low interest rates paid by banks, if you had $5,000 worth of bills that you delayed paying 15 days per month, you might save $20-$30 per year if the money was in a high interest account. I save more than that per month by using the correct credit card when making purchases and paying them in full at the end of the month.

Anian

Time to get all judgy! Sounds like a lot of people need to cut back on the spending for a while to build up enough float money. A single unexpected minor operation or car repair would wipe out your finances instantly. You're supposed to have enough savings to cover three months of bills, I'd be rattled with nerves if I had to live hand to mouth every month and juggling payments.