Don't Throw Away $169 a Year

Sept. 28, 2007 — -- If you paid $2 or more for an ATM withdrawal or bounced a check and got hit with a hefty fee, you're not alone.

Across the country bank fees continue to creep up, hitting new all-time highs in several areas, according to a survey by Bankrate.

Want to use an ATM that doesn't belong to your bank? It will cost you an average of $1.78, up 14 cents from last year.

The $2 fee is now the most prevalent, but the fee stretches higher, with 22 of the 249 banks surveyed by Bankrate charging more than that. This is up from just four banks last year.

Bank of America recently announced that it was raising ATM fees to $3 for noncustomers -- that's an increase of $1 more every time you want some cash.

While only a dollar or two at a time, these fees add up quickly.

Make one withdrawal per week from another bank's ATM paying a $2 surcharge and $1.25 fee to your own bank and you'll pay a total of $169 over one year.

Bankrate estimates -- using General Accounting Office data on the number of ATMs and nonaccountholder transaction volume -- that consumers will pay nearly $4.4 billion in ATM fees in 2007.

But it's not just ATM fees that are climbing.

Bounced check fees rose to an average of $28.32, up from $27.40, while monthly service fees on interest-bearing checking accounts climbed from to $11.72 from $10.74.

When shopping around for a bank, customers need to ask themselves: "What is my financial lifestyle?" said Greg McBride, senior financial analyst with Bankrate.

If you get cash a lot, you probably want a bank with more branches and ATMs near you, McBride said. But you if travel frequently and are doing the bulk of your banking from a laptop in a hotel room, look for a bank with strong online banking features.

McBride points out that some online banks are offering checking accounts with "pretty attractive yields."

If you're worried about bounced-check fees, it pays to get overdraft protection. But, McBride said, "If you're shopping on the basis of bounced check fees, that signifies a greater problem."