Whether it's a gym membership, a cell phone contract, or an extended warranty, getting locked into a bad contract can be frustrating and very costly.  So we wanted to share some advice to avoid potential risks involved. Let's take a look.

<div class="block">Whether it&#39;s a gym membership, a cell phone contract, or an extended warranty, getting locked into a bad contract can be frustrating and very costly.  So we wanted to share some advice to avoid potential risks involved. Let&#39;s take a look.</div>
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Wake Up With Cheddar

Stretching Your Dollar: How to Avoid Pitfalls of Financial Bad Agreements 

Welcome back, friends to wake up a chat and wake Machado. And now for your right, whether it's your gym membership, a cell phone contract or an extended warranty getting locked into those back contracts are frustrating and it's very, very costly. So we wanted to share some advice to avoid some potential risks involved. Take a look, a contract is a legally binding agreement and a recent study found that 13% of people don't even fully read the agreement before they sign it. And if you don't know what you're signing, you could lose money on your home. And so much more what I call a toxic contract is something that has the potential to derail your life. If you sign it without reading it, no amount of clever lawyering can get you out of a bad contract if you sign it without reading it. And Margaret Krosa is an asset protection attorney. She says even your cell phone and gym contracts need to be read carefully. We all sign small contracts myself included without really reading it. And we think that it's not really a big deal. Well, it can be a big deal at the very least it can be annoying reading the fine print on how to cancel or if money is owed is key and could save you hundreds down the line. It could also save you time speaking with the customer rep about your issues later and when it comes to financial or home loans, make sure you understand how it may impact your credit. If you co sign any type of loan including a student loan, the entire amount of that debt goes on your debt to asset ratio and it will immediately reduce your credit score. So at the very least, if you decide to co sign the loan, know what you're getting into bottom line. Don't feel pressure to sign if you're filing a joint return with your spouse, make sure you know what you're signing and don't leave a lot of blank spaces in a contract, mark it with an X initial it to make sure that no one can add extra content later on. I'm Janice Lieberman and that's the real deal. All right, thanks to Janice Lieberman for that report. Now, it is astonishing how many of us unknowingly find ourselves trapped in unfavorable contracts. And it's a reminder that we need to be aware. We also be proactive when we're entering into any agreement out there. Let's talk about the figure in the story that 13% of people don't read a contract before they sign it. I'm actually surprised that number is that low. I know, uh, do you read every single contract? I would say yes. Yes. I mean, even if it's not the smallest detail, I will at least comb through it and make sure I know exactly what's going on. But even, I mean, even think of the Apple ones that you do, for instance, when apple sends you new terms of agreement and you just click it and you don't even know for all, you know, I mean, I obviously like all of us click it, but it just goes to show none of us are reading a lot of the fine detail on those things and support and understand that not all contracts are created equal and something like that seems like a simple agreement can have major consequences. If you do find yourself in a bad situation. There are some things you can do like the report said, always advocate for yourself, speak up, discuss the terms of the contract with the uh customer service representative and never forget that some contracts will allow you to modify them. And this can be an opportunity to negotiate those high fees. Absolutely indeed.