Know What Your Bank Is Throwing At You? You Should!

It’s a horrible time to be a banker right now!

With the economy slowing, the banking industry is doing everything that it can think of to stay afloat, and even though these greedy bastards got us into this mess, they’re certainly not fessing up to their drastic mistakes. In fact, instead of doing the right thing by trying to change, they are continuing, to this day, to add all kinds of extra fees onto everyone’s account in the hopes that they can make up for at least some of their loss. And most, if not all, are trying to get a piece of that $700 billion federal pie while they’re doing it!

Are you reading your bank’s fine print when it comes to fees, online banking, interest rates and more? I think you better, because things have taken a definite turn for the worse, and I bet your “friendly” bank officers didn’t mention any of this to you while you were there. Am I right? Well, at least protect yourself by knowing the following …

Always get a free checking and savings account. Banks are notorious for nickel and diming its customers on dumb crap like too many ATM withdrawals, too many checks written, or any funds transfers. Make sure your bank allows you to access online banking, and you can pay bills and manage your account without any attached fees. Also, failure to keep track of your bank accounts can easily cost you money from unnecessary overdraft fees. Your debit card can easily throw you in the red if you don’t know what’s in your checking account.

Think they’re going to decline your card due to insufficient funds? Think again. Don’t learn the hard way! If you use your card while it’s in the red, they are going to slam you with banking fees. Also, unless you have an automatic overdraft protection that enables funds from your savings account to be transferred, you can become way more broke than you ever imagined in one, short weekend. Make sure you know what banking fees you’ll be spanked with if you make a mistake.

Take the free checks that the bank offers in the maximum amount they allow (my bank was initially going to give me fifty, but for some reason I thought I needed more right away and paid $5.95 for another fifty). If you need more after this, you can simply go online and order more, but leftover checks are a more common scenario than not, especially with online bill pay options becoming more popular. Checks are becoming both obsolete and nothing more than wasted paper.

Pay credit card bills on time. Companies love to charge late fees to people who love to pay late (this is common knowledge) and sometimes they like to charge as much as $50 per month. Why not play it smart and make sure you never go over your credit limit — this can help to guarantee your bank is not getting rich off your poor judgment.

When it comes to protecting yourself against bank fees, no one is going to do it for you. In fact, it’s probably a good idea to stand on your own two feet and show these tricky companies who is boss. While you’re at it, take a lollipop when you leave (and maybe a pen too).

Remember this: Banks work for you, not the other way around. Without customers they would cease to exist, so be sure to let them know you know this. Thank you for your time!