The Value of Reviewing a Bank Statement

I have written before about the money that we have and don't even know about, and I came across another example this weekend. I was setting up my tracking spreadsheet for my April project, and paying some bills online when I decided to look through my last month's transactions to see what might be coming up that I could put into my spreadsheet in advance. Well, you can imagine how surprised I was to see a payment for an internet service that I haven't subscribed to since I moved in November! I had set up an automatic bill payment and paid 4 months past the end of the service!!

Needless to say I got on the phone today and spoke to them about it. I am now happily expecting a $160 cheque in a few weeks. Nice.

While I was on the internet I also realized that my slowness in selling my old car is hurting me more than just not getting the cash for the car. I somehow forgot that it is still insured and I am spending some portion (I estimate $60-80 per month) of my car insurance bill to keep it parked. Talk about a waste of money!

So to make a long story short, it pays to pay attention to your finances. If you review your bank statements regularly you may find hidden treasures or financial leaky faucets and painlessly improve your situation. Of course, if you are more organized than me, you might not have these issues in the first place!