Reward yourself with a rewards checking account!

By Jim Sloan

Although the interest rates banks are paying these days are painfully low, students and others just out of college should consider opening a rewards checking account. Rewards checking accounts offer some of the highest rates around, and the little extra you can earn in interest with one of these accounts can go a long way when you're just starting out.

Rewards and returns

Rewards checking accounts pay interest on your balances up to a certain level but require that you meet certain levels of account activity.

According to USA Today, rewards checking accounts are often a better investment than certificates of deposit, which lock up your money for a set term. Also, these checking accounts often give you better access to your cash than even the best savings accounts or money market accounts. Interest checking accounts provide an incentive to save and are a great way to get established and handle most of your day-to-day financial needs.

Good interest checking accounts can be found with many of the best online banks. But in addition there are often excellent interest rates paid for rewards checking accounts with smaller local banks and credit unions.

Terms to be aware of when comparing rewards checking accounts

One of the best checking offers available these days comes from Consumers Credit Union...

By Jim Sloan

Let's face it: Interest rates for savings accounts are dismally low these days. You have to work pretty hard to find a bank paying more than 1 percent, and even then you don't know how long the best online savings account or high interest savings account will remain at the top.

MoneyRates.com has taken the legwork out of finding the best high interest savings for you with a recent analysis of approximately 100 banks to determine which ones provide the most consistently high yield savings and money market accounts.

Top 10 banks for savings accounts

The website does this quarterly by measuring the average rates offered by banks over each day of the three-month period to calculate the best high-yield savings account offered over the long haul. You can use this information to put your money in a high interest savings account that has a history of being consistently high.

For instance, even though the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation recently reported that interest rates nationally averaged an abysmal 0.15 percent, the MoneyRates.com analysis found seven banks offering high interest savings above 1.00 percent in the first quarter of 2011. That list was headed by American Express Bank at 1.269 percent and was followed by Discover Bank at 1.224 percent and Capital One Bank at 1.221 percent.

Another measure of the consistency of this group of banks was the fact that...

By Richard Barrington

Overdraft protection.

The words sound almost comforting--like an extra layer of security around your checking account--or perhaps a safety net to catch any mistake you might make in your account records.

Under certain circumstances, overdraft protection can be those things, but to many bank customers, overdraft protection is an exorbitant expense that just makes overdrafts worse.

Since one of the things you'll be asked to do any time you open a checking account is whether to have overdraft protection for your account, you need to know how overdraft protection works, and whether it is likely to work for you or against you.

Overdraft protection--how it works

An overdraft occurs when you use more money than you have available in your checking account. If you have overdraft protection, the bank will temporarily make funds available to you to cover the purchase--think of this as a short-term loan. This way, you are able to complete your transaction without having a check bounce or your debit card declined.

By helping you out in this way, overdraft protection can save you from inconvenience and embarrassment. However, there is a hefty cost for this service. According to economic research firm Moebs $ervices, the average overdraft fee is currently $27.50. These fees are charged per overdraft transaction, so if you use your debit card four times while your account is overdrafted, you would incur four overdraft fees.

Trends in overdraft protection

Over the years, overdraft fees

By Clark Schultz

I have always thought of banks as the bad guys. They charge too much on my credit card balances. They pay too little interest on my savings. And they charge me fees for every little thing. In the last couple of years we even had to endure our tax dollars going to bail out banks that went a little crazy with their lending.

Lately, though, I have started to look at banks differently. In the last year, banks have become more responsible with their lending and have implemented features and services that are useful to me. And it looks like that is just the tip of the iceberg. I think 2011 is the year that banks become the good guys again.

Here are six banking innovations to look for in the coming year that can help make life easier:

By Clark Schultz

The Apple iPhone is the one of the world's biggest technology phenomena. Behind the popularity is a wide selection of unique mobile applications that can be easily downloaded. This includes banking applications that are about to take mobile banking to the next level.

Setting up mobile banking

Mobile banking has been around for close to 10 years. Up until this year, the most popular way to access banking information with a phone has been through using SMS text messages or mobile Internet browsers. Both methods have limitations and can be frustrating for users.

All of that looks set to change with the explosion of applications being developed for the iPhone by some of the best online banks. Banking applications allow a faster and more secure connection to a bank's server than if you use a mobile browser or SMS. Developers are continually adding more mobile banking features and security enhancements to banking apps.

If you have an iPhone, you can check the iTunes store or your bank's website for the most current mobile banking applications. Wells Fargo Bank, U.S. Bank, PNC Bank and USAA Federal Savings Bank are just a few of the financial institutions that have applications that can be downloaded for free. After your application is up and running, you can check balances, pay bills, transfer money, set up banking reminders and find the closest ATMs.

Securing your financial data

Accessing

By Priscilla McEver

Now that you've graduated from school, you may find yourself acquiring not only a diploma, but also heaps of debt and a whole new set of responsibilities. Credit card payments, car insurance, utility bills and maybe even student loans that were once covered by your parents are now resting squarely on your shoulders. You have a lot of choices to make and perhaps not a lot of money to make them hastily.

So, if you've decided to use a debit card to track most of your spending, you know there is nothing more infuriating than getting hit with an overdraft fee. And now you may be asking yourself, "Should I sign up for overdraft protection?"

Why overdraft protection?

Here's help to decide if enrolling in overdraft protection is right for you. Overdraft protection may be a good option for you if:

• You have a lot of traffic in your account. If multiple checks or several automatic payments go through your account each month, overdraft protection can provide you with an extra layer of safety to ensure that everything clears your account. Now that you're on your own or starting over, you may notice that everything seems to be due all at once: high-interest credit card debt, compounded by your student loan payments, utilities, cell phone bill, and rent payments. If you're feeling unsure about making withdrawals from your account because of