Mondays Financial Challenge: Balancing Act

June 30, 2008 | Written by: Connie Brooks

Good morning ladies and gents! It’s that time again. Time for Monday’s financial challenge here at Thrifty Mama’s!

Today’s mission (should you choose to accept it) is to preform a balancing act.

This mission is a simple one, that many of us tend to avoid. It’s time to balance your checkbook. Trust me, I know how easy it is to get things out of balance, especially if you regularly use your debit card. So, to give some support to your balancing act, start by visiting your bank online. Print a copy of your recent transactions, and work from that. Estimate the amounts of anything not showing up.

Set a timer for 15 minutes and have a go at it. It doesn’t have to be perfect. You can always round to the next dollar amount. Just spend a little time with your finances so that you can be sure your next transaction won’t end up costing more than you planned in bank fees!

Also, be aware of some sneaky changes that are going on with various banks recently:

A few banks that had previously credited deposits before withdrawals are no longer doing that. Check your bank’s policy to make sure they have not changed. If you occasionally run to the bank to cover checks you have already written (And yes that is horrible financial policy, but most of us have done it at one time or another) you could be in for a nasty surprise.

Good luck!

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