Most everyone needs a checking account to deal with their every day expenses. It is needed to cash checks, deposit your income and pay bills. Plus, although not required to obtain credit, having a checking account is a sign of stability and is often a factor that is looked at. But, if you are going to have a checking account anyway, why not make sure you have one that is most beneficial to you? Is your money working for you through your checking account? If not, you may want to look at how you can change your checking account to get the most of it.
- First, you should have an interest bearing checking account. You may have an interest bearing savings account but you have cash in your checking that can earn money too. You should take advantage of this. This is especially true of you need a minimum balance in order to waive or reduce monthly fees. If you must have a certain amount in your account, it should be working for you.
- Do you pay a monthly fee for your checking account? If so, shop around to other financial institutions to find free checking. There may be certain requirements that are needed in order to waive a monthly fee but if you can manage it you can save hundreds of dollars each year.
- Keep the minimum amount of money in your account needed to maintain a minimum balance as well as pay your monthly bills. Do not let your account dip under the minimum amount required to keep the account free and deposit enough each month in addition to cover bills. You can then use the additional income generated from the interest and use it to pay bills or invest it in higher yield investments.
- Choose an account with the lowest possible fees. If you can have ATM fees waived or if the bank has a variety of available ATM’s in convenient locations, this can save a lot of money each month.
- Find a checking account that offers rewards for debit card purchases. This is a fairly new benefit but one that is gaining in popularity. As with some credit cards that offer bonuses such as cash back, air miles or travel bonuses, some debit cards linked to a checking account are also offering such benefits.
- Get a checking account that offers free overdraft protection. While it is best to not overdraw your account and bounce checks, if you have a means to secure payment in case something happens, you can avoid costly overdraft, insufficient funds and returned check charges.
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