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by Hope

One of the things that has continued to get me are auto-renewal payments or even monthly subscriptions.  As I mentioned previously I really fell off the wagon with record keeping some time ago and am really just getting back into Quicken to track and plan things…and that has been really slow going.  So without that, and the historic data with say dates things are going to renew, I am often surprised when a renewal comes out and I’m not expecting it.

Many times, these are business expenses so not something I address here on the blog, but there have been a couple lately that got me.  First, Sea Cadet’s Christmas present from my dad was a subscription to Loot Crate *affiliate link for my son.  My dad sends me the money, I put it on my card…but it auto-renewed this past week for $55!!  No way.  I emailed their support team and as one time courtesy, they cancelled it and refunded me the money (you are supposed to cancel 3 days prior to renewal, but they don’t send out a warning that it’s going to renew.)

Then the same week…I get a charge for $81.  Ugh!  What is going on here?  And this was for our Invisible Fence at our old house (not an affiliate link but a product I highly recommend if you are like me and love your animals AND your wide open spaces.)  What?!?  I haven’t had time to call them yet.  But really?  This is one that I definitely did not sign up for and the only thing I can think is that they have somehow put us on a subscription for batteries for the collars, which we are no longer using.

So the point of the story is, that 1) I really have to get my act together and get all these auto-renewal dates down and into my records and 2) making those phone calls does help especially if you weren’t planning to renew.

For my monthly subscriptions and expected renewals, I have designated one of my credit cards (the only one I’m keeping after pay off) to take those charges.  This will serve two purposes: 1) keep me from being surprised out of my main cash account which is how things have been up until now and 2) continue to earn points for travel for when we can resume that.

The same card will be used for business and personal, I just want to make things easy for myself and keep it all in one place.  Charges that reoccur are Personal: Netflix, Insurance, milk delivery, pet food delivery, EZPass for toll roads (mostly used when transporting Sea Cadet) and Business: subscriptions for business tools, cloud service for storage, domain name and hosting fees, etc.

How do you handle those pesky renewals and subscription charges?

Hope

Hope is a resourceful, solutions-driven online business manager with over two decades of experience helping clients streamline operations, manage projects, and grow their businesses through digital marketing and technology.

But life has a way of rewriting your plans.

A year ago, Hope made the decision to move in with her aging parents full time – a season she wouldn’t trade, even as it came with its own financial and emotional weight. Earlier this year, she lost her mother, and is now walking the tender, disorienting path of grief while learning what “forward” looks like from here.

Hope came to the Blogging Away Debt community in 2015 as a single mom raising five foster and adoptive children. She’s written through job changes, financial setbacks, and the bittersweet transition to an empty nest. Her kids are finding their footing in the world now – and so is she.

Rooted in faith and fueled by the same perseverance she’s brought to every hard season, Hope is ready to face her finances with fresh eyes and an honest pen. She believes that clarity, courage, and community can change the trajectory of anyone’s story including her own.

She lives in Austin, TX with her dad, loves adventures with her dog Addie, and is figuring out, one step at a time, what this next chapter is meant to be.