Congrats!

Yay congrats, Speedo!

wtf!?!?!?! I opened the acct with 50.00...now i have 2.01 left!!!! they charged me for checks and the annual fee is due in jan. so i have 2.00 left!
hey you need to open a checking acct?! GREAT!!!! Bend over...

Dude....you went to the wrong bank. There are loads of great offers out there. You got hosed!

Now, Mama Phalaeo is going to help you out here so you don't get charged any more.

How were you paying for things before? If you have a different bank than what you were using before, ASK them if the money comes directly out of your account if you use your card as either debit or credit at a store.

My other bank took the funds right out if it was used as credit, but if I used it as debit, it took three days. I always used it as credit cause I could immediately check my account after a purchase.

My NEW bank is reverse. I ended up thinking I had more money than I did, making purchases and ending up with overdraft fees and couldn't figure out what the fark was going on. I lost around $250 this way until I thought to ask at the bank.

Oh, and don't ever get checks through the bank- they charge you out the nose.

This is the company I use. May not be the cheapest, but they have cool checks and are cheaper than the bank.

http://www.checkgallery.com/home.aspx

Oh crap, I forgot....

Congrats!

WaMu gives me free checks always

then again, WaMu is now owned by chase

i just bought the checks from the bank...DOH! and i got the credit debit card. it gives me points for hotels and stuff that i can use in vegas. (like living on my own, i will have vegas money)

dude, but you need it for an emergency hoff trip to vegas.

!

only when he calls me. its a bootyhoff. IM KIDDING..

*sigh*

You need to get a *real* adult to sit down with you and guide you through the rocks and shoals of the financial world.

I'm serious as a heart attack, Matt. By your own description, you've been living on the brink of financial appocalypse for some time now, and it doesn't have to be that way.

For starters, ditch that goddamned credit card NOW. I've been following your life ever since you came here, and I can say with confidence, it will only get you in trouble. Or should I say, deeper spit?

oh yea! she has done the bills for 17 years. im taking my bills and getting that crap taken care of. i have a ledger i bought and im going to start out right.

I don't know if it's been said, but ask about how many self and full-service transactions you can make. My bank doesn't have a max that I know of, (either that or I just haven't bought enough random pairs of shoes yet), but I know they can charge you for that.

Edit: Online transactions count as self-service.

Congrads Speedo!

After my divorce, I learned soooo much about who I was really married to, be tough!

Ledger??? Quicken (I think it's around $20) is a very, very easy program that will help you budget your money and you can pay your bills on-line for FREE (no checks)! Or if that is to complicated, you could work off an excel spreadsheet to track your spending. Best words of advise from someone who works with money, pay yourself 10-20% of your takehome. I know that is going to be very hard at a time like this but, you need to have your emergency money! GOOD LUCK!

Bash is right, Matt. If she's been taking care of your joint financial stuff for that long, you need to be really careful what you do and ask questions about everything. All of us here will be willing to help, you just need to ask.

You have to be really careful with everything right now in general. I know that you never intended to hurt your wife, but as much as you feel bad about the situation, you need to protect yourself. Divorces can be ugly- I would see a lawyer BY YOURSELF ASAP. Don't tell her you're going. Don't commit to anything. But you're going to need to talk with one eventually and honestly, it's best to do it sooner than later.

Try legal aide in your area, their fees are based on your income and you need to protect yourself.

QFT