Posts Tagged ‘saving money’

With the exception of bouncing checks left and right, bank fees aren’t necessarily going to “break the bank” – but at a time when everyone is trying to cut back and spend less, saving money on unnecessary bank fees can add up to savings over time. Here are some tips for avoiding bank fees:

• Use a bank with free checking. There are so many banks offering checking accounts without a monthly maintenance fee that you’re probably wasting your money if you’re paying a fee to keep an account at a bank.
• Forget about “float.” It used to be that you could write a check and know you had a good week before it would get cashed! These days, checks can be processed as quickly as swiping your debit card.
• Stop paying ATM fees – use your ATM card at your own bank only. Why give another bank $1.50 to $3 to withdraw your own money?
• Know your bank’s policy regarding using your debit card for shopping – some banks charge a fee when you swipe the card and use your PIN (debit) but charge nothing if you choose “credit” at checkout!
• Give yourself your own overdraft protection by depositing an extra $100 or so (don’t record it in your check register). If you make a mathematical error, you’ll have a buffer of your own money to rely on rather than having to pay the bank bounced check fees.

A recent Pew Research Center poll shows that just 11% of Americans are satisfied with the way things are going in the country today. That’s the lowest level ever recorded by a Poll research survey. (One has to wonder how even 11% of those surveyed could be happy with the current state of affairs, unless, say, you’re a blissfully unaware preschooler or billionaire.)

More consumers are taking concrete steps to rein in their spending, according to the October 9-12 poll, compared to just a few weeks earlier in September. More people are now saying that recent economic events have caused them to scale back vacation plans (59%), eat out less often (55%), postpone major purchases (39%), delay home buying or home improvements (38%) and defer new car purchases (36%). This trend has retailers, car dealers and restaurateurs in an absolute tizzy, so expect to see continued deep discounts in everything from Christmas toys to SUVs.

And for the first time in a Pew survey, more people say that Americans should learn to live with less (49%) than those who say, “There are no limits to growth in this country” (41%).

There’s pretty broad agreement about how we got into this mess, with a majority of those polled blaming people who took on too much debt (79%) or banks making risky loans (72%). Far fewer point the finger at weak government regulations (46%), a complicated financial system (36%) or growing global financial ties (35%).

Has the nation’s economic crisis forced you to change your spending habits?