The pros, cons, and safety of banking and paying bills online.Like what you hear? Help us out by writing a review at iTunes. Questions go to money@qdnow.com. Thank you!
Money Girl
120 MG Save Time, Save the Planet, Bank Online
Hey, Fidelity. How can I remember to invest every month? With the Fidelity app, you can choose a schedule and set up recurring investments in stocks and ETFs. Oh, that sounds easier than I thought. You got this. Yeah, I do. Now, where did I put my keys? You will find them. Where you left them. Investing involves risk, including risk of loss. Fidelity brokerage services LLC member NYSE SIPC. We wear our work day-by-day, stitch-by-stitch. At Dickies, we believe work is what we're made of. So whether you're gearing up for a new project or looking to add some tried-and-true workware to your collection, remember that Dickies has been standing the test of time for a reason. Their workware isn't just about looking good. It's about performing under pressure and lasting through the toughest jobs. Head over to Dickies.com and use the promo code Workware20 at checkout to save 20% on your purchase. It's the perfect time to experience the quality and reliability that has made Dickies a trusted name for over a century. Hello everyone and welcome back to Money Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for a richer life. I'm your host, Laura Adams. This episode is about the pros, cons, and earth-friendliness of banking and paying bills online. You've probably done some online banking, right? You can log in, check your account balance, and see which payments and deposits have cleared. But can you view your credit card or mortgage balance on your bank's website even if they were issued from a different institution? Can you send a check to your brother without looking an envelope or buying a stamp? If not, you'll be amazed at the time and paper that today's online banking can save. I'm going to highlight some of the common online features and benefits that large banks offer. If your particular institution is smaller, it may not be so technologically advanced. I recommend that you find out more about what's available to you by investigating your bank's website. Online banking is not the same as an online bank. Online or virtual banks don't have physical branch offices. They operate solely by way of online transactions and exist only as a website for customers who are internet savvy and don't want a lollipop from a drive-through teller. Virtual banks usually offer the same types of services and have the same federal regulations as a local bank or credit union. Because they operate with much less overhead than a traditional bank, they can offer some pretty competitive rates. Their low expenses can mean lower fees, higher interest, and more benefits for customers. Bankrate.com is a good resource to help you find virtual banks with the best rates. The disadvantages of using an online bank include difficulty in getting cash and making deposits. Because online banks don't have ATMs, you typically will be charged a fee to use one for a cash withdrawal. Some online banks allow you to leave deposits in an ATM. But if they don't, here's a tip to avoid having to make deposits by snail mail. Open an account just for deposits at a convenient local bank. Then transfer the funds to your web-only bank account. Maybe you can still get that lollipop after all. Even if your bank is a traditional brick and mortar institution, you can most likely still do online banking. A growing number of traditional, national, and regional banks offer some level of online banking. For example, you may be able to view account balances and initiate transfers between accounts. And most of the large banks offer online banking with all the bells and whistles. Whether you choose a web-only bank or a traditional local branch, here are some of the best benefits available in online banking. Number 1. Convenience. Do your banking day or night from any location with an internet connection. For example, if you wake up in the middle of the night and realize you forgot to make an important account transfer, no problem. You can log into your account and complete an online transfer even at 3 in the morning. Number 2. Save time. Manage your bank accounts the fastest way possible. Get email alerts in real time about unusual account activity or dangerously low balances. Number 3. Efficiency. You can manage all your bank accounts, such as checking, savings, money markets, CDs, and IRAs on one website. It's simple to view account history, transfer funds, and view canceled checks, for example. Number 4. Software compatibility. Download new transactions into accounting programs, such as Quicken, QuickBooks, and Microsoft Money. Number 5. Integration tools. Account aggregation is a technology that allows you to view real-time balances on accounts, even those you have with other financial institutions. That includes bank accounts, loans, credit cards, and lines of credit, as long as you're registered to access them online with a username and password. Number 6. Less paper. You can opt for bank e-statements and e-bills. Going paperless saves trees and means less waste or filing on your part. You can always print out e-documents that you want to save. September is a great month for planning. We start thinking about the rest of the year, whether it's back to school, big year-end work projects, holiday plans, or travel. Planning ahead is crucial in life, especially when it comes to what happens when you're gone. Getting life insurance may sound daunting, but policy genius makes the process a breeze. With policy genius, you can find insurance policies that start at just $292 a year for a million dollars of coverage. Some options offer same-day approval and avoid unnecessary medical exams. Policy genius's technology lets you compare quotes from America's top insurers in just a few clicks to find your lowest price. It's the country's leading online insurance marketplace. And if you ever need help or guidance, they have an expert license support team to answer your questions, handle all the paperwork, and advocate for you throughout the process. It's never too late to plan ahead. Go to policygenius.com or click the link in the description to get your free life insurance quotes and see how much you can save. That's policygenius.com. We wear our work day by day, stitch by stitch. At Dickies, we believe work is what we're made of. So whether you're gearing up for a new project or looking to add some tried-and-true workware to your collection, remember that Dickies has been standing the test of time for a reason. Their workware isn't just about looking good. It's about performing under pressure and lasting through the toughest jobs. Head over to Dickies.com and use the promo code Workware20 at checkout to save 20% on your purchase. It's the perfect time to experience the quality and reliability that has made Dickies a trusted name for over a century. My dad works in B2B marketing. He came by my school for career day and said he was a big row as man. Then he told everyone how much he loved calculating his return on ad spend. My friends still laugh at me to this day. Not everyone gets B2B. But with LinkedIn, you'll be able to reach people who do. Get a $100 credit on your next ad campaign. Go to linkedin.com/results to claim your credit. That's linkedin.com/results. Terms and conditions apply. Linked in the place to be, to be. And seven free bill pay. Ah, free bill pay. I saved the best for last. This is undoubtedly my favorite feature of online banking. Once you enter your bills and link them to a payment account, the bank can send your money electronically or mail a check to arrive on the day you specify. If you want to pay your brother $50 for the bet you lost, you just add him as an online bill. It's as simple as entering his name, mailing address, and the amount to pay. You can set up one-time payments, recurring payments, and bill reminders. You can view a list of all your payments by their status, scheduled, in process, or paid. Let the bank do all the heavy lifting. They can pay any person or company on your behalf, and you can quit stocking up on checks, envelopes, and stamps forever. If you're like many people who haven't yet made the leap to online banking, security may be your primary concern. I don't want to give the impression that online fraud doesn't happen because it can and does. When you register for online access to your accounts, you must be careful about the user names and passwords you create and how you manage them. The only thing I might recommend more than online bill pay and go to my PC is RoboForm. RoboForm is a fantastic password manager that can automatically generate secure random user names and passwords, store them securely, and automatically log you in to all your online accounts. It even has a way around keyloggers, those pesky hackers who can track what you type on your keyboard by not using the keyboard to enter your passwords. You can download their free version at roboform.com. I swear they're not a show sponsor, but you really will wonder how you ever live without them. Join me next week when I'll discuss much more about identity theft and how to stay safe on the internet. My yellow lab Dixie and I are excited that the Dog Trainer is a new podcast on the Quicken Dirty Tips Network. Subscribe to the show in iTunes or get it streamed to your iPhone by downloading Stitcher. It's free today at Stitcher.com. I'm glad you're listening. Send your thoughts and money questions to money at quickendirtytips.com. Chachain. That's all for now. Courtesy of Money Girl. Your guide to a richer life. Dave's your supply chain wizard. He also has diabetes. Maybe it's time for a group dental plan with support for chronic conditions. Grin from within. United Concordia Dental. Learn more at grin with ucd.com products under written by United Concordia Insurance Company. When you need meal time inspiration, it's worth shopping king supers for thousands of appetizing ingredients that inspire countless mouth-watering meals. And no matter what tasty choice you make, you'll enjoy our everyday low prices plus extra ways to save, like digital coupons worth over $600 each week and up to $1 off per gallon at the pump with points. So you can get big flavors and big savings, king supers, fresh for everyone, fuel restrictions apply. [BLANK_AUDIO]