The purpose of this article is to help you minimize the financial cost that comes with repeated overdraft and bounced check fees. Not only do they add up at the end of the year, but are a symptom of poor financial management skills, which can be very bad for your future.
What's an overdraft? When your bank has to pay for a transaction that you make for more than your available account balance, the resulting negative balance is an overdraft. Whether you write a check, withdraw money from an ATM, use your debit card to make a purchase or make an online bill payment, if it's for more money than you have, it's an overdraft.
Your transaction puts your bank in a position where it has to decide whether whether or not it's going to pay the amount. Either way, the bank will assess you a fee. If the amount is paid for although you didn't have enough funds, the bank will assess you an overdraft fee. In case the bank decides that the check should be returned unpaid, it will assess you a bounced check fee.
The best way to minimize such fees is to manage your bank account so that you're not in a situation where you overdraw it. There are many ways you can keep close track of your account balance. Record all your transactions when you make them, without forgetting that any banking fee you usually pay has to be accounted for.
Pay special attention to your electronic transactions. Record your ATM withdrawals and fees, debit card purchases, and online payments. Don't forget about online bill payments you may have set up for utilities, insurance, or loan payments. Keep an eye on your account balance. Remember that some checks and automatic payments may not have cleared yet.
Make balancing your accounts part of your monthly routine. If you need to check, at any given moment, which of your transactions have cleared and which ones haven't, make a phone call to your bank, view your account online, or visit an in-network ATM to avoid fees for checking your balance.
Unfortunately, sometimes overdrawing your account just happens. What you need to do then is to get your account back to positive as soon as possible. You will have to not only cover the amount that you did not have, but also include whatever you got charged by your bank. If you would like to avoid this altogether, you can ask your bank about other ways of covering overdrafts.
Odds are, you will be given two choices: linking your checking account to a savings account, or getting an overdraft line of credit. The first option involves linking your checking account to a savings account so that funds are automatically transferred from the latter to the former to prevent any overdraft situation. The second option involves filling out a credit application (which will be treated as a loan) for an overdraft line of credit. What this does is that you're allowed to withdraw funds that you don't have, up to your credit limit. The used portion of your credit line generates interest, and the line itself may be subject to an annual maintenance fee. - 15224
What's an overdraft? When your bank has to pay for a transaction that you make for more than your available account balance, the resulting negative balance is an overdraft. Whether you write a check, withdraw money from an ATM, use your debit card to make a purchase or make an online bill payment, if it's for more money than you have, it's an overdraft.
Your transaction puts your bank in a position where it has to decide whether whether or not it's going to pay the amount. Either way, the bank will assess you a fee. If the amount is paid for although you didn't have enough funds, the bank will assess you an overdraft fee. In case the bank decides that the check should be returned unpaid, it will assess you a bounced check fee.
The best way to minimize such fees is to manage your bank account so that you're not in a situation where you overdraw it. There are many ways you can keep close track of your account balance. Record all your transactions when you make them, without forgetting that any banking fee you usually pay has to be accounted for.
Pay special attention to your electronic transactions. Record your ATM withdrawals and fees, debit card purchases, and online payments. Don't forget about online bill payments you may have set up for utilities, insurance, or loan payments. Keep an eye on your account balance. Remember that some checks and automatic payments may not have cleared yet.
Make balancing your accounts part of your monthly routine. If you need to check, at any given moment, which of your transactions have cleared and which ones haven't, make a phone call to your bank, view your account online, or visit an in-network ATM to avoid fees for checking your balance.
Unfortunately, sometimes overdrawing your account just happens. What you need to do then is to get your account back to positive as soon as possible. You will have to not only cover the amount that you did not have, but also include whatever you got charged by your bank. If you would like to avoid this altogether, you can ask your bank about other ways of covering overdrafts.
Odds are, you will be given two choices: linking your checking account to a savings account, or getting an overdraft line of credit. The first option involves linking your checking account to a savings account so that funds are automatically transferred from the latter to the former to prevent any overdraft situation. The second option involves filling out a credit application (which will be treated as a loan) for an overdraft line of credit. What this does is that you're allowed to withdraw funds that you don't have, up to your credit limit. The used portion of your credit line generates interest, and the line itself may be subject to an annual maintenance fee. - 15224
About the Author:
Are you in ChexSystems because of overdraft fees? Read my report on banks that do not use chexsystems on Money Galaxy, a personal finance blog I contribute to.
