These days, most adults (and a good portion of school-age children) have cell phones. Many people even consider traditional landlines unnecessary, or altogether obsolete, and opt to go without a home phone. Should you cancel your home phone now that you have a cell phone? Here are some things to consider:
Do you have a need for more than one line?
If you have a big family, then you need to think about how you may have to divide phone use time between family member when you have only one phone. Now, if you are not the only family member with a cell phone, then there may be plenty phone to go around; however, if there is only one cell phone to share, you might want to consider hanging on to that land line.
How much does your landline cost you?
If you are taking advantage of a cable provider’s bundled rate for cable, Internet service, and a land line, then it may just be that you won’t save any money at all by getting rid of your home phone. As a matter of fact, your monthly cable bill could even go up by a considerable amount if you unbundle your services just to get rid of your home phone line. It is a good idea to ask your cable provider about changes to your monthly bill if this scenario applies to you.
Who has your home phone number?
If you have your home telephone number on file at a multitude of places (your employer, your children’s schools, your bank, etc.), then it may be a huge inconvenience to get rid of your land line. Consider how much time and work (and perhaps even research, if you aren’t sure of who has your home phone number listed as your primary contact number) it will take to notify places of your number change before you make the decision to get rid of your home phone.
What do you use your home phone for?
A home phone line can come in handy when you don’t necessarily want to give out your cell phone number. On the other hand, a home phone line can be a real nuisance when the only calls you receive on it are from telemarketers. Assess your home phone use to determine whether or not it is worth hanging on to.
It’s also important to remember that a home phone is essential for teaching children to dial important numbers, like 911. If there is ever an emergency, they’ll be at the mercy of being able to locate your cell phone. Having a minimal landline may be necesassry with children in the home.
As you can see, there are many factors that go into determining whether or not you should cancel your home phone in favor of using your cell phone for all of your telephone communication. Only you know what’s best for you. These pointers should help you make that decision.
