Piece of advice and reaon why I am not bright

[Marlinchaser]

If you can qualify for a credit card through the same bank you can have OVERDRAFT protection linked to your credit card. That way if you write a check the bank pays for the check no 20 to 50 dollar returned check charge, but you will get hit for a cash advance fee, they do a cash advance against credit card, mine does it in $100 dollar incredments so you pay 2% plus start paying interest immeadiatly, but that is nowheres near the overdraft charge, and provided you pay it off at end of month(or sooner/ as soon as you realize you are overdrawn) it DOES NOT hurt your credit, actually will look like you used card and paid it off.

 

[hypnofrogstevie]

I was getting hit with $10 a day for not having the money in there. I am starting to miss my old bank. This one wont let you do transactions over the phone.

 

[patandchickens]

can you find a bank that offers free or very low fee online banking? that will let you pay bills and do other transactions online, and also easily keep tabs on your balance and what transactions have occurred. It is worth paying a little bit for, for most people, since it can let you protect yourself from bigger costlier oopsies.

I know some folks worry about security issues with online banking, but as long as you have a reasonably safe computer to do it from (i.e. a home computer with reasonable firewall/malware protection) if a problem were to occur it'd likelier be on the *bank* end of things, which *not* having online banking won';t protect against anyhow.

Plus, to reiterate, pay cash whenever humanly possible -- it's your BEST defense against being overdrawn, and far more secure than any other transaction. I mean, even if you get mugged, all they can take is what you''ve got in your pocket then -- as opposed to what can happen if thieves get access to your plastic's info or your checks...

Good luck,

Pat

 

[hypnofrogstevie]

there is no online banking fee for this bank. my old bank changed alot of there fees. $10 I have to pay if somebody elses check bounces and $35 if I bounce a check.

I am stciking with this place till i can find something better. Maybe chase?

 

[patandchickens]

I've been out of the States for about 6 years now, but at least by 2002 standards you are already getting a normal-to-pretty-good deal.

So, check your account frequently (you can use a spreadsheet program to do a simple balance sheet, it can be really helpful and doesn't take much work). And as someone suggested, talk to your bank about overdraft ptotection, as there may be a way to arrange it for cheap or even for free if you have a credit card or savings account there. Can't hurt to at least see what they say.


Pat

 

[Marlinchaser]

Quote:
Try a credit union, they usually have lower fees. Used to be hard to get into, but some now offer, if you live, work, or worship in thier area. They have to have stipulations as to who can join and this gets around most of those stipulations.

 

[wegotchickens]

Quote:
Try a credit union, they usually have lower fees. Used to be hard to get into, but some now offer, if you live, work, or worship in thier area. They have to have stipulations as to who can join and this gets around most of those stipulations.

If you can find a credit union bank to join, that is the BEST way to build up a credit history. Plus, they are easier to work with if you do mess up now and then. Mine charges no fees as long as I keep some $ in a savings account, I can check my account as often as I want online, and pay all my bills electronically for free. I probably save $5 or more a month in stamps by paying electronically.

Plus, a credit union can help you get your car, with a loan at a decent interest rate. A lot of them offer incentives if you set up an electronic withdrawal of the payment, too.

 

[hypnofrogstevie]

I will try to find one around here. Thank you for your help!

 

[silkiechicken]

That sucks, if you are looking for a car too, I say get a credit card to build up your credit. That way if you have to finance the car, you can get a better rate. Paying out right "cash" or check is always the best if you can do it as you can't pay for something you don't have the money for that way. That's what my parents do for all their cars and then you never have to worry about fiance at all which make you pay for like 1.5 cars if it is long enough.

I have 3 gas cards, and one credit card that my dad takes care of and I have two debit and one credit that I take care of. One important thing with all the cards is to save the receipts and after each transaction, log online and check to make sure they actually match. Then with bill pay, I make sure that I initiate it myself monthly, so that I can acccount for every penny that goes though. It's too easy for little charges to slip by when you're not looking.

Good luck!

 

[SeaChick]

To expand on P.C. and patandchickens advice about a "cushion".... I have one that I don't record in my checkbook. In other words, there's always $400 more than the balance in my checkbook shows. But I pretend its not there. I go by what the balance ion my checkbook shows.

That way, if I mess up and forget to enter a debit card payment -or much more likely, my DH forgets to...grrrr!!!- there should be enough to cover it. This system has worked really well for us!

Oh, and we belong to a credit union as well. They definitely have more of a "small town" mentality and lower fees. PLus I like the whole member-owned idea.

Stacey