|
...of Creative
Frugality
|
Creatively
Frugal Ways
to Save on Banking
What creative strategies do you use to pay the least amount
possible when it comes to banking and financial services?
"We use a bank that offers
free checks. It has a $10 a month fee but we can write as many checks
as we want with no minimum balance." ~ Donna
"Having money
costs money. Most of the time trying to change money costs money.
For example, when I was a member at a certain financial institution,
they charged me nearly a 10% fee to cash in rolls of change. They
charged me money to put money into my bank account! This was the
last straw and that is when I said, 'Five minutes of my time is worth it
if I can avoid things like this in the future.'
I believe that taking a little
time to plan up front can save you a lot of money and a lot of hassle to
boot. First off, I now belong to a credit union that has no fees
on checking or savings, except for stop-checks and overdrafts (which, if
you are managing your time and money, aren't likely to be incurred).
I pay an annual membership fee of $5, which I happily contribute for
their excellent service. Now, my credit union is based in
Columbus, Ohio where I used to live. When I moved to the Metro
Detroit area, however, I found that they had just one branch in
Michigan, about half an hour from my house. This isn't always the
most convenient, nor cost effective, so I had to do some research.
I found a series of Credit Union 'network' ATMs located near my house
and near my job that allow me to withdraw money for no fees, even though
the ATMS are not run directly from my credit union. This lets me
enjoy the benefits of ATM withdrawals from my credit union without the
fees or hassles of using too much gas driving in traffic to my local
branch. This makes sense after I once added up a month's worth of
ATM fees. I paid nearly $20 to withdraw about $120 in cash before
I decided to do my research.
Another way to take advantage of savings financially is in the
retirement investment arena. Your retirement savings is your
money, too, even if you cannot draw on it for many years. With
some clever planning here, you can save money while you make money.
For instance, my employer offers 403(b) investments (the 'non-profit'
version of 401(k) accounts) through two companies that traditionally
service non-profit institutions. I don't make enough money to have
my own personal investment counselor or financial guru at my fingertips,
but I want to maximize the returns on my own 403(b) portfolio
contributions and my employer's 10% contribution (read that: 10% of my
wages for free every two weeks). If I simply pick up the
phone and call the HR department or call the investment company
directly, they will let me know when representatives are available to
meet with me at my office location. This is free financial advice,
paired with the research that I do online through reputable websites and
at the local library where librarians can assist with data retrieval
free of charge to me.
At one point in my life,
I was looking for credit counseling to help repair the credit balances
that I racked up during my late teens and early 20's. I checked
out the websites http://www.consumer.gov/
and http://www.ftc.gov
as well as doing some additional research to find an accredited and
reputable non-profit credit counseling organization that provided free
financial counseling and low- and no-fee debt management plans.
The savings went, well, into my savings and I was only out $9 for a
credit report (which, by the way, you can now get for free per a
decision by the U.S. government).
There are other things you can
do to reduce fees where money is concerned, including avoiding credit
cards (that $12 purse that was on sale can be tripled or quadrupled or
more when you finally get around to paying it off), bank- or
company-hopping for best rates, doing online research and networking to
find the best rates and least amount of fees. Regardless of what
companies or financial institutions that you choose to go with, however,
doing your research up front will leave you confident with the decision
that you have made and generally less burdened with day-to-day
annoyances." ~ Carrie
"Our bank offers a 'sunshine' account service. A
minimum deposit of $500 must be in the account at all times. In exchange, we get free checking.
To further save money on our banking, we use an
outside source to print our checks. Current is just
one of many such services that do very good work at a reasonable price
(usually 1/2 of what the bank charges. In fact, our bank recommended we
use them rather than their printing services!).
We signed up for online service which allows us to
transfer money from one account to another. If we
called the bank and requested a transfer we paid $2.00 for every
transaction.
The only fee I've found no way out of is the fee for
NOT using the ATM machine! It costs me $1.25 a month if I don't
use the ATM at all. It costs me $1 for every time I do use the
ATM. I save exactly $.25 for using the ATM once a month to
withdraw cash." ~ Terri/GA
"I, too, cringe every time I have to
write a paper check now that they have gotten so expensive. In the
past, I would write 40 plus checks a month and not blink an eye. I am
using new strategies to save on checks and now average about 7 a
month. I pay most of my bills online using a credit card that
earns me cash back on each and every purchase. Several times during
the month (sometimes once a month) I pay off the entire balance
(again, online) from my checking account. Now I am able to save on the
cost of paper checks, earn cash back and make the reconciliation of my
bank statement much easier." ~ Tisha
"We hardly ever use checks.
At stores, I use my debit card. We have several bills
that we pay by automatic deductionsm, which also means we have to keep
an eye an our account to make sure the money is in there but also no
late fees." ~ Carol
"We use a credit union where the
fees are lower or nonexistent." ~ Suzie
"We quit using ATM's -- paying
those fees to get MY money burned me up. Once a month or so, we
stop by the bank (while doing other errands, of course) and take
out a prescribed amount of cash for 'running' money. Most of
our recurring bills are paid by automatic debit to our checking
account. Otherwise we charge purchases on a credit which is paid
off each month -- absolutely. We have a 'money-market' type
savings account with checking privileges and also regular
checking. If I open a CD thru our bank, I can do that thru fund
transfers. I do not write a check unless I have to. We pay our
church tithe by check each month instead of weekly and soon our
chutch will use bank account debit." ~ Kathi
"As a former credit union
employee and frugal person for decades, here are some suggestions:
** I ALWAYS order my checks by mail. There are many
companies who advertise in the Sunday coupon section, most have 'new
customer specials'. I
alternate between companies so I usually qualify for these special
prices. I can get 4 boxes of checks for the same amount I
would pay for one box at
my bank.
** My bank had a $2 monthly service charge on checking accounts
that did not maintain a certain average balance -- which I did NOT
-- but when I went in and talked to them about it, I found out
that there was no service charge if you had direct deposit. We
signed my husband up for direct deposit of his
paychecks and have found that to be wonderful in many ways, as
well as eliminating the bank's monthly charge!
** When I needed a couple of cashiers checks recently, I found out
that my bank offers one PER DAY free, but charges for any after
the first one per
day . So I went in two days in a row and got the free one each
time.
** I don't like to carry a lot of cash, but the fewer checks you
write, the longer those checks you purchased will last you. So I
will go to the bank in person and withdraw cash to pay my electric
bill, then take it to the utility company office and pay during
business hours, rather than dropping a check in the night drop.
** Most banks and credit unions have several different types of
accounts -- TALK TO THE BANK STAFF and find out which one best
fits your needs. You may simply be able to change from one type of
account to another and avoid monthly fees.
** Whenever you need to have change counted, need travelers
checks, etc, CALL AHEAD AND ASK WHAT THE BANK'S RULES ARE.
Often, they will count change for free, but only on certain days
or at certain times, and charge you if you
have it done outside of those times. Sometimes travelers
checks are free for certain ages, or for certain account holders
-- always ask!
** Shop around! And if you find a better deal at a different
bank, tell your existing bank why you are closing your account. They
may offer to waive fees, etc to keep you as a satisfied customer."
~ Becki in Indiana
|
|
"Our bank gives us free checking and
no charge for using the ATM if you keep an account with a certain
dollar amount. I don't use the ATM, but have saved with free checking.
I use my debit card to reduce the amount of checks I use in a year,
therefore the box lasts longer. Also, I do a lot of bill paying
directly online; I don't have to write a check and save money by not
having to use a stamp. As far as checks go, I have found in the last
few years that the cost is getting higher and higher. You used to
be able to buy two boxes for around 20.00 duplicate, now it is around
28.00. With the new '21' law going into effect, you have to have
duplicate to protect yourself since you will not be getting your
cancelled checks back." ~ Liz
"My bank doesn't charge me fees because I am a disabled veteran
and on SS as well. My checks are direct deposited so I get
free checks too. Most banks in our area (Dallas-Fort Worth, TX) have
free checking accounts if you have direct deposits." ~ Pasty
"The debit
card saves because after the initial $5 for the card there are no
charges. I write fewer checks so save on buying checks. I have an
account that only charges $3 per month and then more only if I use
more than 20 checks per month. The debits do not count against the
20.
Buying plain checks through the mail is cheaper, though less
convenient than buying them from my home bank." ~ Elece
"I have put
as many bills on automatic payment through our bank's on-line bill
pay service as possible to save on checks and stamps. They allow me
to pay 10 bills a month for about $3. For bills that take me beyond
the 10-per-month allowance (where I would have to pay more), I pay
those directly on-line using a debit card (which acts as a credit
card and charges nothing to use). One or two of the biggest, fixed
payments (i.e.: mortgage), I have taken directly out of our paycheck
using an allotment payment before the money even hits our account. I
take out our gas and grocery money in cash directly at the beginning
of the pay period to keep us from overspending in these areas. I do
this directly from a bank-owned ATM (no fees) or from the teller. I
manage to keep one box of checks for six-months to a year before
having to consider ordering more." ~ Melissa
"In order to
avoid bank charges for service fees, check usage and debit card
usage, I opened what my bank calls a Mutli-Account. Of course, my
checking account is always close to zero because that's what I do
with it...write checks. What this account does is combine your
checking and savings account balance and if you maintain $1,500 on
either account or between the two they don't charge you a penny. I
keep my balance in the savings and that way you have an emergency
fund too, just in case." ~ Marisa
"We
save money on bank fees and such because:
(1)
We pay our credit card balance each month in FULL. We pay no
annual fee to have this credit card and they actually give us a
rebate each month for 1- 5% of everything we spend on the card, so
we feel like we are cheating the system and coming out ahead. By
paying the bill on time we pay no interest, either.
(2)
We have begun paying our bills online through our credit
union. This means we never forget (we schedule ahead) to pay
on time so we don't have late fees and we also don't use stamps or
checks doing it this way, so that is another savings. Our
credit union does NOT charge anything for using the online bill
paying feature, either!
(3)
We have our checking account set up to overdraft to our savings
account so if we do mess up and have a check that would bounce, it
overdrafts instead so we have no fees to pay.
These
3 simple things help us to save loads of money on banking!"
~ Karen
"Just a comment about cutting costs on banking. Some
cost-saving shortcuts can lead to risks that could end up costing
you a lot of money. Read The Art of the Steal by Frank
Abagnale (the ex-con-artist whose life was made into the movie, Catch
Me If You Can). He warns against mail-order checks,
and recommends getting them from your bank. Identity theft is a
really big deal." ~ Jennifer
"We have found an online-only
bank which has no fees for regular banking. It takes a bit longer
to set up the account, and things like a bank draft are trickier
and take more time, but we have free cheques, free
Internet or phone bill-payment, free debit card purchases, and
free withdrawals at approved bank machines. And we get interest on
our chequing account." ~ Lisa
"If you are able to get into
a credit union, that's a good way to go. Usually the accounts are
all free of any service charges or restrictions. If you cannot
join a credit union, then it is good to do some research on
different banks and ask plenty of questions. My husband I recently
joined a bank where we were able to obtain free checking if
he had his paychecks automatically deposited into the account. We
also have a savings account with the bank. If we keep a
minimum of $400.00 a month in it, we do not have to pay a monthly
service fee. Also, we opened up a home equity loan through the
bank and saved .5% on the interest rate because we signed up to
have the payments automatically deducted from our checking
account. We are even getting a $25.00 gift certificate to use at
Home Depot for opening the loan with the bank at that particular
time. We also save a ton of money on stamps and TIME because we
have all of our bills
automatically deducted out of our checking account. Personally, I
find it is easier than doing online banking and I have not had any
problems in doing so. But of course in order to do that, you have
to make sure there is a constant cash flow in the account, which
at times can be rough (especially if you are living on one
income), but God always
provides!" ~ Jillian
"Here in Canada we're VERY
lucky. Our family has banked with President's Choice
Financial Services (offered through the Real Canadian Superstore
grocery store chain) for about 7 years and has NEVER (I repeat,
never) paid a single bank charge in that time. We don't
even pay for cheques to be printed. It truly is a no-fee
bank account!" ~ Carolyn
"We use a local credit
union. There is free checking and online bill pay. We use
automatic debit for all our utilities, mortgage, etc. We use
bill pay for the rest. They even mail it to our creditors
at no charge!
The only downsides are that
our monthly statement is online rather than mailed to us and
we must use Quicken or some other software to automatically
download the account history.
Being able to see our daily
transactions online keeps us on top of our spending and helps
watch for identity theft." ~ Margaret
Margaret in FL
Editor's Note: Thanks to everyone who took the time to share
his or her ideas!
|
|
