As a followup to my recent post about IRA rollover rule changes, I wanted to share another bit of news from the IRS… In Notice 2014-21, the IRS has declared that Bitcoin and other virtual currencies are to be treated as property for federal tax purposes. This means that such […]
Banking News, Views, Tips & Tricks

“A bank is a place where they lend you an umbrella in fair weather and ask for it back when it begins to rain.” – Robert Frost
Love them or hate them, banks are a central (and necessary) part of our financial system.
This page is home to articles about all aspects of banks and banking. Topics of interest include checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, online banking, interest rates, certificates of deposit, and more.
Time for a quick story… This morning, our 16 year old son needed a check written for soccer registration. We were busy getting the other kids ready for school so he offered to write it. He then asked me for instructions. I told him how to fill out the various […]
Welcome to February. Right about now, you may be wondering when the balance of your tax paperwork will show up. Sure, you might have received a few things by now. Maybe a 1099 here or there, possibly your W-2. But you can’t really file your taxes until you have everything. […]
A former employee recently asked me about mortgage gift letters. She had just accepted a new job and would thus be buying a new house in a different area. “My father-in-law is giving us some money to help with the down payment. Our realtor mentioned that the bank will probably […]
This is just a quick note to let you know that Capital One 360 is getting in on the Black Friday action. For a limited time, they’re offering bonuses worth as much as $125 for opening a new checking or savings account. Here’s the deal: Open a new 360 Savings […]
It’s no secret that I love (or at least loved) Ally Bank thanks to the flexibility afforded by their generous early withdrawal penalty on CDs. For those that are unaware, Ally has always (or at least as long as I’ve been aware) allowed you to break a CD, no matter […]
When I logged in to check the status of our accounts with Bank of America this past weekend, I was greeted by a message announcing changes in how they post transactions to customer accounts. It’s been my experience that policy changes at major banks typically come at the expense of […]