Checking If you re like most young adults, you spend a lot of time thinking about money. How to get money? What to spend your money on? Where to keep your money in between? A MoneyLink Checking account is a perfect fit for you. A checking account is a transactional account that gives you flexibility in how and when you access your money. What?!? That was a mouthful. Here it is in plain English. A MoneyLink Checking account is a place where you can park your money and use it when you need to, without the risk of carrying cash. MoneyLink Checking accounts can be accessed by: Writing a check; Using SageLink s Online Bill Pay Service; Initiating an Electronic (ACH) Transaction; Using an ATM or Debit Card; or Coming into the Credit Union. MoneyLink Checking accounts also teach you important skills about money management that you will need as you gain more and more adult responsibilities. Ever wonder where that $20 in your wallet went? With a MoneyLink checking account you ll be able to find out. All of your deposits and purchases can be easily tracked through MyCU@Home (online banking), Mobile Banking, and Telephone Teller (automated phone system). Uneasy about getting started? Not to worry. SageLink Credit Union has trained employees to help you every step of the way. Let s start with some important checking account terminology: Check - A paper instrument used to make purchases and pay bills from your checking account. ACH - An electronic transaction into or out of your account. ATM - Automated Teller Machine is a machine that is used to get access to cash by using an ATM card or Debit card. POS - Point of Sale transactions are transactions done at a store using your ATM card or Debit card and your personalized PIN number. Debit - A transaction done at a store using your Debit card and your personalized PIN number. Debit card transactions are deducted from your account immediately. Credit - A purchase done at a store using your Debit card as a Credit Card anywhere that MasterCard is accepted. Credit transactions require a signature. These transactions do not get deducted from your balance immediately. Instead an authorized hold is placed on the money in your account until the purchase is settled by the store. Page 1
Authorization Hold - A money hold on your account created by Credit purchases. This will create a difference between your balance and available balance. MyCU@Home - FREE online banking system used to monitor your account and initiate transactions between credit union accounts. Telephone Teller - FREE automated telephone system used to monitor your account and initiate transactions between your balance and available balance. Mobile Banking - FREE mobile banking system used to monitor your account and initiate transactions between credit union accounts. Direct Deposit - An electronic deposit of your payroll check. NSF - Insufficient funds. This is what happens when you write a check and there is not enough money in your account. Okay, now that we have that out of the way, let s review how a checking account works. Remember, a checking account is a place to park your money until you decide to spend it. This is where you will put the money you want or need to spend. When you want to save money, which you should do, you should put it into a savings account. When you decide to spend the money in your checking account you: Write a check; Use SageLink s Online Bill Pay Service; Initiate an Electronic (ACH) Transaction; Use an ATM or Debit Card; or Come into the Credit Union. Writing a Check Checks can be ordered through the credit union or through other vendors. Checks typically come in boxes of 150 checks that will be broken into 6 books of 25 checks. Every box of checks will come with a checkbook register. You will record all your purchases and deposits in the checkbook register. Checks can be written to anyone or to anyplace where checks are excepted, although that is getting more and more rare. These days if a store accepts checks, they either check your name through a check verification system such as Telecheck or ChexSystems, or they will convert your check into an electronic check transaction. See below for information about completing a check. After the check has been written and presented to a person or store than the payee (the person you wrote the check to) has to cash it. When a check is cashed that means that it is presented to a financial institution (bank, credit union or other retail banking institution) for payment. It may take several days for the check to clear (the money is deducted from your account and the check is paid to the financial institution where it was presented) your account. That means you must monitor your account and keep accurate records of your purchases and deposits to ensure good money management. Poor money management can result in returned checks (NSF) and additional fees from the credit union and the person or store to whom you wrote the check. See your list of fees and charges for any fees that may be associated with your account. Page 2
Write the recipients name on the line that says "Pay to the Order of." If it's to an individual, include both their first and last names. If the check is going to an organization, write out its full name Write in the Date Joe Sample 1234 Main St Anytown, MI 12345 Sally Smith May 29, 2013 1.99 One dollar and 99/100s 0000123456 Write the amount of the check in word form on the line under the "Pay to the Order of" line, but with cents expressed as a fraction of 100. For security reasons, it's good practice to include the word "only" after you write the amount and to draw a line to fill up the rest of the space. Continuing our example from above, you can write: "One Dollar And 99/100 -----------". Sign the check on the line in the bottom right corner. Your check will be invalid if it is not personally signed. Routing and Transit Number Your account number Write the amount of the check in the box to the right of the "Pay to the Order of" line. For example, if you want to write a check for the amount of one dollar and ninety-nine cents, write $1.99. Record and track your transactions using one of the following: Paper Check Book Register Computer spread sheet Check book App on your phone or mobile device. Page 3
Electronic (ACH) Transaction An ACH can be initiated by giving your routing number and account number to a store. The store will request the money from your account electronically and the money will be taken right away. A detail of the transaction can be viewed in your account history on MyCU@ Home, Mobile Banking or Telephone Teller. Just like a check, the ACH transaction will be rejected if the money is not available in your account and you be charged fees. ATM and Debit Cards ATM and Debit cards are the two types of cards offered at the credit union to allow you instant access to your account 24/7. Why have two types of cards? Great question. Debit cards can do everything an ATM can do, plus it can be used anywhere MasterCard is accepted. Debit cards offer more flexibility and even more access to your account. How do ATM and Debit Cards work? ATM and Debit card can be used in several different ways: 1. ATM - You can use your ATM or Debit at an ATM machine to: 1. Take out cash; 2. Deposit cash or checks; 3. Make balance inquiries; and 4. Transfer money between credit union accounts. 2. POS or Debit - You can use your ATM or Debit card at many retail locations by swiping your card at the machine and entering your PIN number. The money from a POS/Debit transaction is deducted from your account immediately. The transaction will be denied if you do not have enough money available. 3. Credit - Credit purchases can only be done using your Debit card and can be done anywhere MasterCard is accepted. You cannot get cash back on a credit transaction and unlike a POS/Debit you must sign your name on the receipt instead of entering your PIN number. It s important to note that even though it looks like a credit card and has a MasterCard logo, the money for the purchase is taken from your account immediately in the form of an authorization hold. When the money is on hold, it will not be available for you to spend. When the store sends their credit card transactions the money is taken from your account. This can take up to 3 business days. It is very important to write down your purchases and cash withdrawals. Failure to write down transactions could result in additional fees and embarrassment when your card transactions are declined. Pay special attention to balance and available balance in your account. Remember: Available balance means you can spend it. But, if you ve written a check you better make sure it has been deducted from your account balance by looking in the transaction history of your account. The credit union doesn t know when you ve written a check until it has been presented for payment so any outstanding (un-cashed) checks will not be deducted from your available balance. To assist you with balancing your checkbook you can: Page 4
Use the checkbook register that comes with your box of checks; Get a checkbook register from the credit union when you open your account; Use a spreadsheet program on your computer or tablet; or Download a checkbook app on your mobile device. Overdraft Protection SageLink Credit Union offers you an extra layer of protection against NSF fees. If you have money saved in your savings account, we can set it up to automatically move the money from your savings account to your checking account when you do not have enough money available to pay your check or approve your ATM or Debit card transaction. There is small fee for this service. See the list of fees and charges for fees associated with your checking account. Checking Account Safety Checking accounts are a great alternative to carrying cash; however, you must still protect your account information just like you would protect the cash in your wallet. Follow these precautions to safeguard your money: Never give your account information to someone on the phone unless you initiated the call and are confident of who you are talking to; Only use your Debit card or pay by check feature online when visiting secure websites. One way to tell if the site is secure is that URL will be https instead of http. Be cautious when setting up recurring payments. It is often difficult to stop these companies from taking money out of your account once you have given them the information. Never allow someone else to use your Debit or ATM card; Never give your PIN number to anyone; Your card will come with a PIN number which can be changed to something that is easier to remember. When choosing the PIN number: Make it something you can easily remember; Don t write it down and if you do don t leave it with the card; Don t choose an obvious PIN like your birthday. If you can t find your card contact the credit union right away to get your card blocked so that no one else can use it. Monitor your account activity on MyCU@Home, Mobile Banking and Telephone Teller. Compare your transactions in your checkbook register to the transactions listed on one of these convenient services. Notify the credit union right away of any transactions that are unfamiliar. Checking account overload or checking account expert? Take this quick financial literacy quiz to test your checking account knowledge. (quiz link) Upon completion of this test print the results, grab $5 bucks and bring that and two pieces of identification to your closest credit union branch to open your MoneyLink Checking account today! Remember: our trained Member Service staff is available to assist you every step of the way. Page 5
Online bill pay is simply a better way to pay. Why do so many people choose online bill pay? Because they know it means more freedom, control, savings and security. Now it s easy to pay a friend, take care of a utility bill, and keep track of every payment. Convenience and control in just a few clicks Online bill pay makes it easy to control your payments and manage your account. Schedule single or recurring payments in just a few steps, and you ll never worry about missing a bill or late fees Track your payments history at a glance and follow all past, present and future scheduled transactions Receive helpful e-notifications that let you know when payments are due or a bill has been paid Use the convenient online bill pay messaging center to keep tabs on account activity or inquire about your online payments Save time and money every single month. You ll start saving right away with online bill pay. Save money on stamps and trips to the post office because payments are online Save money on checks by submitting your payments electronically Save time by setting up payees to organize the people and places you pay each month Pay all your bills anywhere, anytime Safety and security with every transaction. Online bill pay delivers peace of mind to you. Protect against check fraud with electronic payments instead of unsecured mail Guard against identity theft from lost or stolen checkbooks, bills and statements Increase your privacy because only you can access your account information, account numbers and payment history Maintain tighter control of your account with real time access to your payments activity Sign up for online bill pay in 3 easy steps 1. Login to your MyCU@Home Online Banking at www.sagelinkcu.com. 2. Use the bill payment link to access the enrollment form. 3. Complete the enrollment form and you re all set. Page 6