“Fee Income” is money banks take other than interest earned, such as overdraft or not sufficient funds fees. Banks in year 2015 took a whopping $34.6 BILLION dollars in such fees. Let me word that more plainly – in 2015 banks took $34.6 billion dollars from people who had no money. Many times this is done by charging fees on top of fees because each fee charged to the account overdraws it further, and thus incurs yet another fee, and the consumer sometimes is never even told s/he is overdrawn until a letter arrives in the US Mail, allowing the banks to continue this abuse for days before they are caught.
The total amount of fee income created by banks in 2015 was a whopping $34.6B. Shockingly, that amount of fee income averages out to about $107 per American (323.6M people), including every man, woman, and child, account holder or not. That would be about $4.75 per person if calculated for the entire world’s population. Those are steep numbers, and that’s just for one year’s worth of bank fees!
Banks Make How Much Income From Fees?!
BY Rodney C.
https://www.depositaccounts.com/blog/banks-income-fees.html
Even though Fee Income is a small part of total banking income (3%-4%) it perpetrates a disproportionate amount of harm on those least able to bare it.
A Pew study from 2012 shows that nearly one-fifth (18 percent) of consumers incurred an overdraft fee within the previous year, with lower-income (< $30,000) and younger (18-35 year old) consumers hit the hardest by the penalties. Over half (54 percent) of those who received a penalty reported overdrawing between two and five times, while 14 percent reported overdrawing between six and ten times. Of those same respondents, 23 percent reported paying extended overdraft penalty fees after not paying back the negative amount plus the original overdraft fee quickly. Those penalties add up, and 35 percent of respondents reported closing their accounts as a result.
More than 50 percent of the respondents in the 2014 Pew study paid between $30 and $100 per overdraft, including extended fees for remaining overdrawn too long. 53 percent reported that they did not learn about their overdraft for 2 or more days, many of which were made aware through a paper statement in the mail.
Review of Common Banking Fees: Overdraft and NSF
BY Ken Tumin
https://www.depositaccounts.com/blog/review-common-banking-fees-overdraft-nsf.html
Much of the time the banks get these fees because people are careless: they don’t plan, or they try to keep track of their account balance in their head, forget something, and that bagel with cream cheese or latte at the mall costs them a lot more than they planned – in the form of unexpected bank charges of $30 – $100 on a one cent overdraw.
They look at their checking account balance on-line, think they’re good so they buy something on-line, then they remember that other thing they bought on-line that was somehow not shown in their checking account yet. And it’s too late – they get hung out to dry – there is no extra money to quickly deposit before the ax falls and they are overdrawn. And the bank wins again and again at the cost of the consumer.
Banks took $34.6 BILLION from people who overdrew their accounts in 2015 – $34.6B from people who had no money. There is a way to protect yourself and your family.
You can live and eventually retire with dignity, with a life style you and your kids and grand kids can enjoy. But it can’t happen until you consciously take control of your money.
55 is not “too late”.
18 is not “too early”.
Join one of our Financial Peace University classes. You’ll learn how to take control of all the money you earn today, and make a plan for the future.
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