How would you like to save up to $144 on Bank fees every year? Did you know that First Community Bank in Dallas (4 Branches) gives you free checking with no minimum balance. And no fees!
Here are some ideas on saving money on banking:
-Check Out Your Checking Account. Just 45 percent of non-interest checking accounts are now free, down from the peak of 76 percent two years ago, according to Bankrate’s 2011 Checking Account Survey (August 2011).
Monthly checking account fees can add up to $60-$144 (or more) annually. If your bank requires a minimum balance, see if you can link several accounts together to reach the minimum. There ARE still some free checking accounts available with no minimum balance, so search them out.
-Save On Savings Fees. Savings accounts can also require a minimum balance to avoid fees, so be sure to ask about that too.
-Get ALL the ATMs – just because it’s a big bank doesn’t mean they have the most ATMs in their network — and you pay a hefty fee for using an ATM out of network. For instance C**** Bank has about 17,000 ATMs in their network — but other banks have networks with more than 40,000 ATMs. Also, did you know that many stores (grocery stores, CVS, etc.) will let you get cash back at no charge when you use your debit card to pay for a purchase?
-Pay Less For Paper – if you do still write checks, check out several online printers before buying. We “checked” three different sites. It’s always cheaper to order four boxes vs. just one at a time, but we also found a big difference in the prices by site. At Lifechecks, 1 box of checks is $17.95 — at Checkworks, it is $9.95! Four boxes at Lifechecks is $51.80, but it’s $27.80 at Checkworks, — and Checkworks has lots of great designs, so you aren’t stuck with “generic” checks.
-Always On The Lookout – unfortunately, banks are always trying out new fees. One major bank recently tested the idea of charging $5 just to have a debit card, although they dropped the idea after consumer protest. Some banks in the Northeast have started charging you a fee to cash a check written on their bank if you aren’t a customer. (For instance, if I wrote my babysitter a check, and she went to my bank to cash it, they would charge HER a fee to cash my check!) So if it has been a while since you examined all of your bank fees, it wouldn’t hurt to take another look.
Now if you want to vent about your bank, we have an incentive. 10 people who vent about ihatebigbank.com and leave a comment below will be given a FREE toaster. That’s right — don’t spend any more bread, put it in your new toaster.
. Plus, you probably have a few hundred stations on your TV that you haven’t even noticed yet.
)
