Establishing a bank account is important. You can pay your bills online and track the money you spend and save.
General Information
The first step in banking is deciding where you want to do business. You can choose a bank or a credit union.
Banks are large businesses and have numerous ATMs. Often there are bank locations across Maine, which means you will have access wherever you are. Banks tend to have large fees for their customers who overdraft (overdraft means you have taken more money out of your account than you actually have) or require monthly maintenance.
Credit Unions are established to serve your local community. Credit unions may not have as many chains and ATMs, but they usually reimburse a fee if you have to use an ATM outside of where you live. Credit unions typically have smaller fees because it doesn’t cost as much to run the business and they often have higher satisfaction ratings with their customers.
Opening & Maintaining your financial accounts
Using both a checking and savings account will help you organize your money and budget easier. This way you keep your money safe, pay bills, and can directly deposit your work check into your account. After opening the accounts, you make a deposit, which means you give your money to the bank for safekeeping. The bank will provide a checkbook and a debit card for withdrawal of money from your account and make purchases.
In order to open an account you need the items below:
- Identification (Driver’s license, state ID, or Social Security Card)
- Proof of Residence (Utility bill or lease)
- Money to deposit into the account
Bouncing a check or overdraft fees occur if you write a check or use your debit card for more money than you have in your account. This means the bank may honor the check for the amount written, but charge you a penalty fee. The bank may also send it back unpaid, which means the person or company you wrote the check to will not be able to cash it. Writing bad checks on purpose can result in legal action and fines. Businesses can also publically display bounced checks written by customers.
Resources
To learn more about balancing a checkbook and writing a check, search YOUTUBE.com for instructional videos, such as this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z582K3QevH0