Wells Fargo No More Free Checking Accounts

plan of action
Apparently Wells Fargo is making some changes.  Last week when I did the banking for my employer, and deposited my payroll check, the teller informed me that Wells Fargo is no longer allowing free checking accounts.  I have had this free checking account with Wells Fargo for almost twenty years.  She told me starting on September 12th, 2011 I will be charged $7 a month for my primary checking account unless I do one of three things: Set up a… Read the rest

How to Import Bank Transactions into Quickbooks

time is money
One of the most frustrating things I have experienced with doing Mr. A's bookkeeping is the company which holds his credit card does not include options to download transaction in Quickbooks format. It is the same with his checking accounts through the credit union. You can download to Money or Quicken or Excel format, but not Quickbooks format. This means I have enter each and every transaction manually.  I have known about a program that could be used for downloading… Read the rest

How They Did It in the Olden Days – Feeding Lots of Children on a Tight Budget

Blast From the Past
I recently had the pleasure of spending the day with two great wise women who had raised about seventeen children between the two of them.   They saw their share of hard times, but they found ways to make ends meet. They both lived in Phoenix in the early 60s and money was tight.  They never asked for a handout from the government, instead they found ways to make the limited funds stretch. One lovely lady, I'll call her Mrs. Simone,… Read the rest

Phone Banking with First Credit Union – How to Transfer Funds to Make a Loan Payment

Questions and Answers
My boss banks with First Credit Union and recently they underwent some big changes in both their online access and telephone access.  So much so that the telephone operators who answer the phone when you call the bank don't even have the first clue on how to get through the phone tree.  My boss asked me if I would help her figure out the instructions to make her loan payment since when she called the credit union they were unable… Read the rest