Ways to avoid increasing bank fees

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) -- A new survey finds that consumers are facing more fee than free when it comes to banking and checking services.

Despite a continued rise in those service fees, there are ways to cut those costs.

According to an annual look at banking fees by Bankrate.com , Americans are paying more to use their money.

"We continue to see an increase in monthly service charges for checking accounts," they said. "With a decline in free checking, not only are more accounts charging a monthly fee, but the fees themselves are moving higher, both interest and non-interest checking accounts."

The Bankrate survey found ATM surcharges for a bank's non-customers rose 4 percent over last year,  the average overdraft fee rose 1.4 percent, and the average monthly fee for a checking account is up 25 percent.

At the same time, the percentage of free checking accounts shrunk to 39 percent, way down from 2009's peak of 76 percent.

The good news is that most fees can be avoided, whether it's through more discipline when choosing an ATM, or in the case of many checking accounts, maintaining a minimum monthly balance.

Otherwise, a change in banks may be in order.

"There are still plenty of smaller community banks, credit unions, and online banks that continue to offer those stand-alone free checking accounts."

Just keep in mind that smaller banks may not have the full range of financial services, such as loans and mortgages.