Late Payment Fee Business Definition

Checking Account Fees and Other Pitfalls

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A checking account has more upsides than downsides. Without one you'll be missing out on interest payments on your savings, the safety of carrying a banking card rather than cash and the insurance cover provided by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which covers up to $250,000. A checking account allows employers to directly deposit your earnings into your bank so there's no need to cash a paycheck, but there are disadvantages too. Checking accounts have fees. Some fees are monthly charges. Others are small fees for ATM withdrawals or over-the-phone transactions. If you think a checking account will work for you, which bank should you go with?

Bank Checking Account Promotions

As with credit cards, checking accounts come with promotions that tempt you in. It's important not to get drawn in by the promotions as they might mask a range of fees that end up dwarfing the monetary value of the promotion on offer. Cash bonuses for opening an account seem like a great idea but they're not if you end up paying it all back and more in fees. Air miles are another common freebie offered by banks.

Bank Checking Offers

The best offers are those that give you the best interest on your savings or the lowest interest on your borrowings. The banks that offer the best rates generally ask for a maintenance fee and have a minimum balance and minimum deposit rules but if you're making more from your savings than you're being charged, you'll end up ahead. Cashback offers are another bonus worth looking at as you'll earn money every time you spend. These are really the only offers worth considering when you open a new checking account.

Bank Fees

A truly free checking account is a very rare thing today so expect to pay a monthly maintenance fee for the account. That might be anywhere from two to twenty dollars depending on the bank and the perks associated with the account. Keeping a high minimum daily balance is often a way to avoid the highest fees but you might also find that making regular deposits or executing a minimum amount of transactions in a statement period also lowers your monthly charge.

Free Checking Accounts

There aren't many banks that offer their services for free. You'll find less than ten if you check online. Most are smaller banking institutions or checking accounts attached to insurance firms. Some are exclusively online so they don't have the overheads that other banks need to cover with their checking account holder fees. A low-interest rate is typical when you're not paying to a bank so you might be losing out if you're a high earner who maintains a large balance most of the time.

Checking Account or a Savings Account?

Most people need both a checking account and a savings account because a checking account allows them to make withdrawals and send payments directly. A savings account is just a place to put your excess money. It's restricted by a federal law called Regulation D which states that the account holder is limited to six withdrawals per month. That sounds like a lot when you're thinking about taking money out but try paying your bills through your savings account and you'll hit the limit very quickly.

Types of Checking Account

If you've decided which bank to leave your money with, have you worked out which type of checking account to take out? Banks normally offer several types of account. There will be at least two: a basic one that only needs a low initial deposit, and a high-interest account that offers better returns for those who have a lot of money to deposit. As well as a more competitive interest rate, the more exclusive account will normally have a few other perks like free withdrawals when abroad and overdraft protection options that aren't available with the more basic accounts.

Late Payment Fee Business Definition

Source: https://www.life123.com/article/checking-account-fees-and-other-pitfalls?utm_content=params%3Ao%3D740009%26ad%3DdirN%26qo%3DserpIndex

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