Get the Most out of your Banking: Understanding and Avoiding Fees

Working with a financial institution, such as a bank or credit union, is imperative to keep your money safe, and for a wide variety of monetary transactions. If you are not careful, however, then you may find that your responsibility in using a banking system is offset by an expensive string of fees for which you were unprepared.

Read on for information on the various fees and other costs charged by banks, as well as ways in which you might bypass such costs so that you can have the most profitable banking experience possible.

Fees, Fees, and More Fees

Abandoned Account Fee: This fee is charged when people simply stop working with their accounts for a long period of time – whether they simply forget about it or otherwise. This really does happen! If the bank in question charges this fee, then usually after about 3 to 5 years the account-holder will be charged up to $10 or more each month.
The Solution: Before leaving a financial institution with whom you have done your banking, confirm that all of your accounts are reconciled and closed.

Account Closed Early Fee: If you open a bank account and then close it after only a short period of time – perhaps under three or six months – then you might get hit with this fee, which can be as much as $50.
The Solution: Think ahead. Except in very rare unforeseen circumstances, there really is no reason to be subject to this fee. If you do find yourself in a position where you will have to close an account early, however, then explain your situation to the bank. If they normally charge this fee, you may be able to get out of it.

Account Maintenance Fee: This fee is charged by many banks to customers with certain accounts simply for the use of those accounts. Different banks have different account guidelines, so this fee may be attached to any number of accounts including those that are both interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing. Some fees are as much as $25 per month.
The Solution: Many banks have various account options, some of which do not have fees attached. If you are set on an account that does charge a fee, then ask your banker if the fee can be forgiven once you have a certain amount of money in your account.


Account Reconciliation Fee: If you need help sorting out your banking records or if there is a discrepancy somewhere, then you might enlist a banker to help you. You could be charged for this service, which often runs people about $25 per hour of help.
The Solution: The only real way to avoid this fee, if your bank charges it, is to keep up on your bank records and to communicate with your bank any questions you might have before they become too confusing.

ATM Surcharge Fee: If you need to get money from an ATM that does not belong to your bank, then you almost certainly will be hit with this fee, which can be up to $2.50 or so per transaction.
The Solution: When you find yourself at your bank’s ATM, take out a bit more money than you anticipate needing so that you do have to use another bank’s ATM later. If you find yourself at the ATM of different bank, definitely take out more than you anticipate needing. The fee is per transaction, so it is much better to take out $40 once than to take out $20 two different times.

Bank-owned ATM Fee: Similar to the ATM surcharge fee, this fee sometimes is charged to individuals who use an ATM of a bank that is not their own. Only in this case, the fee is charged by one’s own bank for going elsewhere.
The Solution: This fee is not especially common, but check with your bank on their specific policy before hitting up ATMs. If your bank does charge this fee, then you likely will be hit with double fees every time you use an out-of-network ATM, so you definitely should avoid using them if at all possible.

Bounced Check Fee: If your funds are insufficient to cover a check that you wrote, then you almost certainly will be charged a fee for this – probably around $20 to $40.
The Solution: Know for sure that you have enough money in your account to cover all checks that you write before you write them. Do not rely on the “floating” time between when you write a check and when the check probably will be cashed.

Cashier’s Check Cost: To obtain a cashier’s check from most banks will cost between $5 and $15.
The Solution: N/A

Check Cost: Some banks charge for each book of basic checks that you need.
The Solution: There really is no way to avoid this if it is your bank’s policy, but you can avoid spending more than necessary by just going with the standard checks. Why get something fancy when you are just giving them away anyway?

Coin Counting Fee: Really! Though rare, some banks charge a very small fee for the time-consuming task of counting coins.
The Solution: These fees are very uncommon and small, but if you do want to avoid them then simply roll your own coins.

Credit Card Overdraft Protection Fee: Banks sometimes allow individuals to attach a credit card to their bank accounts as a form of protection against overdrafts. If the credit card needs to be used to cover expenses, then the bank probably will charge a fee per transaction, which can range from nothing up to $20.
The Solution: Do not refrain from keeping a careful watch on your bank accounts just because you have a “back-up” against overdrafts. It is not meant to be your primary defense against overdrawing – that should be your own diligence and watchful eye!


Credit Reference Cost: Sometimes banks will provide a report of your banking history by your request, usually for about $10 or so.
The Solution: N/A

Debit card PIN Fee: When you use a debit or check card to make a purchase and input your pin number, that number serves as your “signature” on that purchase. Some banks charge a small fee, such as $1.00 or so, for you to use your PIN to sign.
The Solution: Instead of signing with your PIN, you can ask that your card be run as a credit card. You will sign instead of using your PIN in this case. Fortunately, this fee is pretty uncommon nowadays and may be phased out completely.

Inactive Account Fee: This fee sometimes is charged when several months have passed without any account activity, such as deposits or withdrawals. This could be as much as $10 or more each month.
The Solution: It will take only a small amount of activity to avoid this fee, so deposit just a bit of money if you plan to keep the account. There certainly is nothing wrong with putting a small amount of money aside for saving.

Money Order Cost: To obtain a money order from most banks will cost between $5 and $15.
The Solution: N/A

Notary Fee: To use the services of a notary at a financial institution may cost as much as $10, but usually is free.
The Solution: N/A

Not Sufficient Funds (NSF) Fee: Using a debit card to make purchases for which you do not enough money will result in NSF fees. These fees, usually between $10 and $40, generally are charged for each transaction. So, if you make several purchases without noticing, you will owe a LOT in fees even if the purchases were small.
The Solution: The importance of knowing the status of your account before you spend money cannot be overestimated. If you have difficulty with this, then you might talk to your banker about your overdraft protection options.

Rejected Check Fee: This fee may be charged if a check that you write out cannot be read by the computer, requiring someone to input the information by hand. Charging for this is very rare, and probably will be less than $5.00.
The Solution: Take those extra few seconds and write legibly.

Return of Check Fee: Because it no longer is considered necessary with the widespread use of electronic imaging, some banks charge for returning checks with individuals’ bank statements. The cost may be up to $10.00 per month.
The Solution: If you use online banking, then you probably can view copies of your checks from the comfort of your own computer. If this will not work for you, then compare the cost of checks with copy paper attached to any applicable return of check fees.

Safe-Deposit Box Cost: If you would like to keep valuable belongs or important documents in a secure safe at your bank, then it may cost you anywhere from $15 on up to $100 or so per year.
The Solution: N/A

Stop Payment of a Check Fee: This fee, which usually is around $30 or so, is charged when someone wishes to stop payment of a check that has been written.
The Solution: If your bank charges a fee, then be sure to weigh the cost of the fee with the cost of the check to determine your best option.