Checking Study: Bank Fees Still Rising

A few months ago I noted how Americans were spending billions simply for getting their own money. Now, this piece from Bankrate says that bank fees are going even higher. The key findings from their recent survey:

Banking fees, balance requirements for checking accounts and ATM costs continue to rise while interest earnings on checking accounts do not, according to a Bankrate.com survey.

Getting whacked with bounced-check fees can leave quite a welt on your wallet. The average bounced-check fee is $27.04, and with more banks using a tiered structure, the cost can quickly escalate.

ATM surcharges hit a new high and are more prevalent than ever. The fee that banks charge to nonaccount holders now averages $1.60, with 98 percent of banks owning ATMs charging a fee.

The average balance requirement on interest-checking accounts hit a new high of $2,465. And you're not getting much in return, as interest-checking yields remain in the cellar.

Well, we all know that banks are in business to make money, but it seems a bit different when you see the cold, hard facts. Plus, it's much different that in the "old days" when loans made up banks' fees and most of the other stuff is free. I guess those days are over.

We don't pay bank fees. Here's how:

1. We have free checking and keep just enough in it to avoid all fees. (The rest is spent paying bills or automatically transferred to an investment account.) The interest we "give up" to do this is a few cents a month.

2. My wife goes to the bank every once in awhile on the way to the store and withdraws a good amount of cash. We haven't used our ATM card in years. We spend it as needed, which isn't often because...

3. ...most places we go, we use a credit card (one that EARNS us money). As such, our cash lasts us a long time.

Personally, I have a philosophical problem with paying to get my own money because even a small leak can empty your money bucket quickly. If you do too, consider steps such as those listed above.

Comments

[Diana]

I work in a bank and it's amazing how people don't care about the fees. Especially young people. It's also amazing how few people don't know how to fill out a check, calulate a deposit slip, fill and balance a checkbook register or read a bank statement. The future of America lies in our young and I'm scared, really scared.