This is a guest post by Nisha Sharma. If you want to guest post on this blog, check out the guidelines here.
If there is one thing that investors today can take full advantage of that investors in the past could not, it is the information that used to be given only to the elites of the financial world. Nowadays, the financial information that you need to make money or break out of debt is all freely available online for the average person to access and use as he or she pleases. What this means is that you can get the information that you need to do these things from the Internet without having to call anyone or go through any type of bureaucracy or financial hierarchy.
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One of the more helpful types of information sites that you can find online is the price comparison site. The first thing that most individuals and families have to do in order to break out of debt is to somehow find a way to cut back on expenses. The easiest way to do this is to find the lowest price on things that you would think are untouchable, such as car insurance, property insurance and many other bills that companies would prefer you not negotiate.
The truth of the matter is that many bills that seem like rock-solid, nonnegotiable items, are actually quite negotiable if you use price comparison sites. For instance, if you look at an automobile insurance price comparison website, you might find that there are many different types of ways to lower your car insurance payment each month without giving up any type of service.
Price comparison sites give you an overview of the market
In the example with automobile price comparison websites, accessing information that allows you to see what kind of price and service you can get for your particular driving record from all the reputable companies in your area gives you a powerful advantage. No longer are you subject to the whims of the agents of individual companies that are trying to hard-sell you on their programs without you having the benefit of a side-by-side comparison. Not only can you compare one company to another with the right price comparison site, you can also compare your current company to the market as a whole, giving you the right perspective when it comes to knowing exactly what you can and should be getting for your money.
Price comparison sites give you the lowest price at any given moment in time
In the auto insurance industry, one of the most competitive industries in the world, the lowest price for the best value does not stay at the same company all of the time. As a matter of fact, many independent third-party watchdogs of the automobile insurance industry recommend that you compare your premium payments to what you’d pay competitors at least twice a year, which not so coincidentally coincides with auto insurance periods.
The company that has the best price today might not have the best price tomorrow, and you should not be ashamed to switch in a hurry if someone else has a better deal. This is a way to keep from paying too much for services that you can receive for a lot less.
Price comparison sites keep you doing business with reputable companies
Price is not the only concern when it comes to breaking out of debt. When it comes to insurance, you definitely want to deal only with reputable companies that have policies that actually protect you in case of an emergency. If you do not, you may end up paying much less as a monthly premium, but you will possibly be completely unprotected in the event that something bad happens. For most people, it would take only one emergency to completely destroy their financial plans, which makes finding a reputable insurance company one of the highest priorities for those who are trying to seriously break away from debt.
My name is Nisha Sharma. I love to write, especially about travel, finance and offer business advice.
Along with price comparisons for insurance and other costs, it’s important to also look at your home mortgage. Using HARP 2.0 to refinance (even to a shorter term fixed loan) could significantly improve your home equity and even save some money (if you reduce the rate).
If you can cut expenses and begin paying off debt through these methods, you can start trying to reach the highest credit score for your current situation. At that point, you can begin to work on the rates of your credit cards and other consumer loans.