The road to being wealthy is not always by making more money but often by reducing your expenses and saving more money. Often times it is the little things you do that add up to large amounts of savings over the long term. One of our clients was discussing his monthly banking fees with us the other day, let’s call him Jerry! Jerry had three seperate bank accounts, one primary where he pays all his bills and writes cheques etc., a secondary for savings and a third account for his business/rental income and expenses.

He didn’t realize how much money he was throwing away each month in banking fees alone by using his accounts the way he was for the last decade. His primary chequing account was with a major bank that charged him almost $15 per month for having unlimited withdrawals, bill payments, debits and ATM withdrawals. He was also getting charged additional costs each time he used an ATM from another financial institution.

Here is how we suggested he start saving some money right away:

1. Use His Line of Credit as His Chequing Account: Lines of Credits do not charge per transaction, you have unlimited use to pay your bills etc. There is interest charged for money owed on the line of credit but if you transfer the day before pay all your bills, the interest is minimal.

2. Get Rid Of His ATM Accesscard: The easier the access, the more you spend. Also most banks charge per use of the card and especially when you need money from another financial institutions. Use your Credit Card for incidental purchases instead – you get unlimited transactions with your credit card.

3. Use His Savings Account Only for Savings: Savings accounts generally pay a higher interest rate but also charge much higher per withdrawal transaction. Be aware of these charges and if you can, try to limit these withdrawals to the maximum allowable transactions each month (usually 1 or 2 free of charge)

By making these small changes to the way you do your banking, just imagine how much money you will save. Start making these changes today, and you can beat the bank!