bank fees

Given the way capitalism works, we're all bound to overpay sometimes. The key is to avoid making it a habit. Here are 10 common things you're most likely paying too much for, and tips for keeping more of that cash in your pocket.

The average fee for overdrafting your bank account rose again last year, but evidently, more Americans are doing a better of job managing their checking accounts, because the amount paid in overdraft fees dropped by $1.5 billion in 2011, after a $4 billion drop in 2010.

Wells Fargo stopped offering free checking to new customers in 2010, but if you already had it, they didn't take it away. Now, it's introducing a $7 monthly charge in six (thus far, unidentified) states for customers with those formerly free checking accounts.

A surge in earnings by the biggest banks at the end of last year made 2011 the most profitable time for the industry in five years. More earnings and fewer troubled banks suggest the industry has healed since the 2008 financial crisis.

Switching banks is a hassle, but outrage over the big financial institutions' efforts to pile on new steep fees pushed more than 2 million people to close their accounts over the past 3 months. Is Bank Transfer Day becoming Bank Transfer Year?

Savers love cash-back cards, which return a fraction of what you spend in good old U.S. currency. Disciplined consumers can bank hundreds of dollars yearly: The key is knowing how to maximize your payback.

Savers have taken it on the chin for years, with banks paying almost nothing on checking and savings accounts while charging big fees. So when a new financial website offered a 6% interest rate on an insured savings account, it got a lot of attention.

In 2011, shoppers were hot -- sometimes too hot -- for bargains, and a little too sensitive to the day's financial news. Savings gurus Jean Chatzky and JB Orecchia weigh in on the year's major spending pitfalls, and how to dodge them in 2012.

When people talk about the American dream -- buying a home, going to college, starting a business -- banks are usually somewhere in the background. But what if, instead of making your dream come true, your bank relationship actually costs you money?

Americans feeling disenchanted (or worse) with their banks after years of ever-increasing fees are increasingly turning to a cheap alternative tool provided by the world's largest retailer: the Walmart MoneyCard.