Save Money on Bank Fees

Cut Your Banking Costs by Hundreds of Dollars

You probably don't give much thought to the cost of banking: monthly checking account fees, ATM fees, bounced-check fees, etc., but if you can shave banking expenses, you can save money and put it in your own pocket. Remember: it's easier to find lots of ways to save a little money than it is to earn more income, and lots of little savings add up.

Save Money on Your Checking Account

• If you're paying for the use of your own money by paying fees to maintain a checking account, look for a bank with no-fee checking. Many banks offer no-fee checking if you keep a minimum balance in a savings account or maintain a minimum combined balance in your savings and checking accounts.

• Get information from several banks and choose the one that best fits your habits. If you always dip below the minimum balance, it does no good to have "free" checking, since you'll incur a fee if your balance goes below the minimum.
• Potential Money Savings: $96-120/yr.

• Buy your checks through a discounter such as Checks Unlimited (www.checksunlimited.com)1-800-204-2244; Checks in the Mail (www.checksinthemail.com)1-800-733-4443, or CheckWorks (www.checkworks.com)1-800-971-4223. Discounters charge around $6.00 to $8.00 for 200 checks, as opposed to the $20 to $25 your bank charges. Potential Money Savings: $15-38/yr.

• Balance your checkbook every month and do not bounce checks. Typical fees for a check written against insufficient funds range from $20 to $35. If more checks clear before you're aware of the problem, you can easily bounce two or three additional checks for a total cost of $100 or more. Potential Money Savings: $100 or more/yr.
• If you keep a significant balance in an interest-bearing account, keep it in a bank that uses the average daily balance method for calculating your minimum balance and interest. You're much less likely to be charged a fee if you dip below the minimum balance during the month (as long as your average daily balance for the entire month is not below the minimum), plus you earn interest on all your money. Other methods of calculating interest can cost you hundreds of dollars a year in interest that would have been credited to your account under the average daily balance method. Potential Money Savings: $100-300/yr.

Save Money on ATM Fees

Move your checking account to a bank that has a large ATM network with branches near your home and work. Potential Money Savings: see below.

Use only Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) that don't charge fees. If you withdraw $20 from an ATM and are charged $1.50 by the ATM owner, you have in effect paid a 7 1/2 % surcharge for access to your own money. Your bank may also charge you an out-of-network transaction fee, doubling the actual cost to you. Potential Money Savings: $78-156 or more/yr.