Paper checks yes or no?

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Determined
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Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Determined »

I am in the process of moving my checking account to a different bank. I already have the second account, but I don't use it for anything except paying my mortgage. I want to close the local rewards checking because there the interest rate is no longer worth it.

I pay everything online, autopay, bill pay, etc.. except for local things, BMV, hair dresser, school fees, graduation or memorial gifts and such. It's the way I've always done it, and I am not in the habit of carrying cash. I probably write 25 a year.

We also are looking to move, but there is nothing available.

Checks? Yes or no?
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cheese_breath
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by cheese_breath »

At least 25 of them.
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Dottie57
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Dottie57 »

Determined wrote: Fri Aug 10, 2018 10:26 am I am in the process of moving my checking account to a different bank. I already have the second account, but I don't use it for anything except paying my mortgage. I want to close the local rewards checking because there the interest rate is no longer worth it.

I pay everything online, autopay, bill pay, etc.. except for local things, BMV, hair dresser, school fees, graduation or memorial gifts and such. It's the way I've always done it, and I am not in the habit of carrying cash. I probably write 25 a year.

We also are looking to move, but there is nothing available.

Checks? Yes or no?
Yes.
soccerrules
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by soccerrules »

yes.
You may not order them as often as you did 10 years ago, but there is still a place for the paper check.
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barnaclebob
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by barnaclebob »

Yes, I think I've gone through 1 or 2 of the original box I got from the bank a decade ago.
Freefun
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Freefun »

No. Don't remember the last time I used checks. I use several bill payment services and they'll do their own check writing if they can't pay electronically- all transparent to me. For gifts I'll give gift cards.
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pspice78
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by pspice78 »

I literally just had to order checks yesterday. I don't know if it's just our area but many of the kids activities are still not set up to take credit cards or pay online. So just yesterday I wrote my last check to pay for school pictures. I also pay my property taxes twice a year via check because I don't want to pay the "convenience fee" of using a card online. I could technically get away with no checks because I get free cashiers checks at my bank but who has time for that?
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Sheepdog
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Sheepdog »

Yes....many places such as some charities, wife's hair dresser (that alone is 52 per year), my barbers. garbage collector, property tax, dog groomer, etc, do not take credit cards. We are not about to carry cash. We wrote 77 last year and 48 so far in 2018.
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Stinky
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Stinky »

Yes. Many charities, maybe a gift to a niece or nephew, etc require checks.

But order a lot fewer than you would have 20 years ago.
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Phineas J. Whoopee
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Phineas J. Whoopee »

I seldom, which is to say more often than never, write them, therefore I make a point of having some paper checks for any checking account. The most recent one I wrote was only a couple of months ago, to pay somebody an amount I had agreed to reimburse them for, and they did not like personal electronic payment businesses. That's fair enough.

Yes, I'd say, and even more so if you typically write 25 per year. It's a matter of having more options.

A few years ago when I changed brick-and-mortar banks (it literally is a brick building, and the architecture is quite fetching), they offered me free checks as one of the benefits of an optional $5 per month package. I responded that $60 per year seemed like a lot to pay for free checks.

I shopped online and bought a box for $10. I think it was from Walmart, but I don't so much recommend them as I remember they were the least expensive place I found at that moment.

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open_circuit
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by open_circuit »

I can think of several places where we use checks because credit cards and cash are not accepted. Property taxes and private child care (before / after school) stand out as the largest dollar amount ones.
KyleAAA
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by KyleAAA »

We use maybe 1 a year, if that. Useful if you need to pay for a new roof or HVAC or something like that, although some may accept CC.
JBTX
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by JBTX »

Occasionally some out of network individual medical providers take them. They either don't take credit cards or change a credit card fee. Also occasionally need for kids public school functions.
Mike Scott
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Mike Scott »

I still use checks for a variety of reasons including a few places that provide discounts for payment by cash/check otherwise everything goes on a card.
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Doom&Gloom
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Doom&Gloom »

Why not? If they work for you and are the most convenient option, do it.

I still have, and use, paper checks for my two active checking accounts. But they go a lot farther than they used to. I can't recall the last time I ordered checks.
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dm200
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by dm200 »

I still use paper checks.
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whodidntante
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by whodidntante »

I accept paper checks if they are free, because sometimes you have to give money to the elderly or to the government. But I have never paid for checks.
livesoft
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by livesoft »

Yes. We get paper checks from our bank for free. They are the best way to pay our property taxes.
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core4portfolio
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by core4portfolio »

Determined wrote: Fri Aug 10, 2018 10:26 am I am in the process of moving my checking account to a different bank. I already have the second account, but I don't use it for anything except paying my mortgage. I want to close the local rewards checking because there the interest rate is no longer worth it.

I pay everything online, autopay, bill pay, etc.. except for local things, BMV, hair dresser, school fees, graduation or memorial gifts and such. It's the way I've always done it, and I am not in the habit of carrying cash. I probably write 25 a year.

We also are looking to move, but there is nothing available.

Checks? Yes or no?
Yes.. lately bank started to charge for fee.
Opened fidelity cash management account for free checks.
I gave rent with cheque whenever there is a fee for online payment
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Wilderness Librarian
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Wilderness Librarian »

I prefer to pay by paper checks in several kinds of circumstances among them property tax (they charge extra for credit cards) & in home services such as plumber, upholstery cleaning and yard maintenance. Concept of diversity also useful here. I would prefer to have several payment options available in part because there are security concerns with everything.
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GerryL
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by GerryL »

I finally stopped carrying my checkbook with me just a couple of years ago, but I intend to keep it handy for those few occasions when a check is the most convenient (for both me and recipient) way to pay. Only a few times a year, but twice in the past month or so.
LiterallyIronic
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by LiterallyIronic »

My bank provides free money orders and I use at least a couple per month (electric bill and gas bill, at a minimum). Maybe you could look into that?
rgs92
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by rgs92 »

I'm curious why you need to pay your mortgage with a check. Thank you.
Maybe you can set up a savings account at the mortgage provider if possible and have autopay from that account.
Fund this account by EFT.
(I would be very nervous if my mortgage payments were not on autopay, somehow.)
As for the question, I avoid paper checks whenever possible.
Broken Man 1999
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Broken Man 1999 »

Wilderness Librarian wrote: Fri Aug 10, 2018 12:22 pm I prefer to pay by paper checks in several kinds of circumstances among them property tax (they charge extra for credit cards) & in home services such as plumber, upholstery cleaning and yard maintenance. Concept of diversity also useful here. I would prefer to have several payment options available in part because there are security concerns with everything.
The folks who help keep my home running smoothly are often small business owners who don't take credit cards. And, even some who do take CC, I'd rather pay with a check so they don't have to eat the card costs.

So, if you like your small business folks, they would probably prefer a check.

I used to give people checks for birthdays and such, but no longer. From now on it will be gift cards or cash, so I don't have to keep checking on the status of a check.

The last time I ordered checks was hopefully the last time I will have to order checks. I foolishly just did the "reorder" option which mirrored my previous order, and ended up with 200-300 checks. :oops:

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drawpoker
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by drawpoker »

Have racked my brains and still can't remember the last time I wrote out an actual paper check. 2010, 2011 maybe.

Not to go off-topic, but is there anyone here whose bank does not offer the free bill-paying service? The invention of that is what brought about the demise of check-writing for me. :D
Twood
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Twood »

I still use mine, and am glad I carry them regularly. I've been surprised by unusual activities requiring non-cc payments, for example our dentist recently switched (with no communication) from pay your bill by cc before you walk out the door to get a 5% discount, to pay your bill by cash or check for that 5% discount; and I don't have $0.8k in cash randomly in hand for the dentist.
Broken Man 1999
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Broken Man 1999 »

drawpoker wrote: Fri Aug 10, 2018 2:04 pm Have racked my brains and still can't remember the last time I wrote out an actual paper check. 2010, 2011 maybe.

Not to go off-topic, but is there anyone here whose bank does not offer the free bill-paying service? The invention of that is what brought about the demise of check-writing for me. :D
Bill-paying is great, I use it.

But not too many small tradespeople would appreciate a bill-pay check they receive a few days after their work was done.

I have offered bill-pay or credit card options to larger companies. Most seem to prefer a CC, probably a trust issue; I certainty wouldn't blame them.

Broken Man 1999
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Toons
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Toons »

No checks
Use billpay by check.
I have one check a year.
Cap360 mails the check.

"Set up 360 Checking Bill Pay and save on time, money and writer’s cramp."

https://www.capitalone.com/bank/360checking-guide/
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livesoft
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by livesoft »

drawpoker wrote: Fri Aug 10, 2018 2:04 pmNot to go off-topic, but is there anyone here whose bank does not offer the free bill-paying service? The invention of that is what brought about the demise of check-writing for me. :D
Although my bank has free bill paying service, I like to keep that interface clean without payees that are one-off or once-a-year. I use the interface for the monthly payments. For a few monthly payments, I have them auto-bill my credit card instead and the credit card is paid by bank bill pay. That gives me the 2% cash back and keeps the bank interface clean.

Finally, I can pay property taxes with a check in late December or early January after making a decision of the moment. It is not onerous to drop by the tax office on the way to lunch plus I get to chat with the government official about taxes.
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likegarden
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by likegarden »

Yes, we pay most of our bills via checks. I do not like when other places have easy access to pull money via internet out of one of my accounts, I want to control that. Paper checks were always safe for us.
Topic Author
Determined
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Determined »

I am glad to hear many thanks for your you using checks. My brother likes to hassle me. As I read, the are a few other random things I use checks for. Where I am banking does not have free checks, but it's not worth it to me to open a new account online because I am trying to streamline with the business and trust accounts.
DiploInvestor
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by DiploInvestor »

My situation is very different, but DW and I write many checks each year. We live overseas mostly, working at US embassies in countries where using credit cards and ATM cards is sketchy at best. We cash checks a few times a month at the embassy to have cash on hand for everything local. Credit cards get used and paid off online only. We've never gotten out of the check writing habit, but like I said, it's not a typical situation.
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denovo
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by denovo »

Determined wrote: Fri Aug 10, 2018 10:26 am I am in the process of moving my checking account to a different bank. I already have the second account, but I don't use it for anything except paying my mortgage. I want to close the local rewards checking because there the interest rate is no longer worth it.

I pay everything online, autopay, bill pay, etc.. except for local things, BMV, hair dresser, school fees, graduation or memorial gifts and such. It's the way I've always done it, and I am not in the habit of carrying cash. I probably write 25 a year.

We also are looking to move, but there is nothing available.

Checks? Yes or no?
Walmart.com or other sites will give you checks for a much better price than the bank if they aren't giving it you for free. Also, please note that there is a very common scam these days involving acid-washing checks and draining accounts. I would avoid writing checks as much as possible.

See below, but you can find several examples on the web.

https://patch.com/pennsylvania/te/tredy ... shing-scam

I know of at least two people that this has happened to.
Last edited by denovo on Fri Aug 10, 2018 5:48 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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denovo
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by denovo »

open_circuit wrote: Fri Aug 10, 2018 11:36 am I can think of several places where we use checks because credit cards and cash are not accepted. Property taxes and private child care (before / after school) stand out as the largest dollar amount ones.
I would hope your county allows ACH property tax bill payments.
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jharkin
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by jharkin »

I very rarely use them anymore but occasionally something comes up where there is no other option.

For example, I just had a new roof put on the house. Contractor doesn’t accept credit cards, and I’m not taking going to hand him a 5 figure stack of Benjamin’s ;)
yousha
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by yousha »

I am probably one of the few so far who have answered on this board that still pay most of my bills by check. Almost 80 years of age and have been doing so since I was 18. Hard to make the change to other forms of payment.
UpperNwGuy
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by UpperNwGuy »

I wrote a paper check today to pay my maid service. First check in two weeks. My maid service used to let me pay through PayPal, but PayPal recently increased the charge paid by businesses to receive such payments, so now my maid service wants a check. As long as electronic payment services like PayPal continue to be greedy, it will always be good to have paper checks as a backup payment method.
goaties
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by goaties »

My most frequent use of checks: to pay camping and parking fees at unmanned National Forest sites (the "iron ranger", for those in the know). Who has exactly $3 or $18 in their wallet these days? So, I write them a check.

Also our county charges a big fee if you use a credit card to pay your property tax. And last I checked, using bill pay wasn't possible either.

Aren't gel pens supposed to be resistant to acid washing?
Wilderness Librarian
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Wilderness Librarian »

yousha wrote: Fri Aug 10, 2018 6:30 pm I am probably one of the few so far who have answered on this board that still pay most of my bills by check. Almost 80 years of age and have been doing so since I was 18. Hard to make the change to other forms of payment.
Actually this is probably not that uncommon. Until retirement about two years ago I did more or less the same. That was in part because I was only away from the job or my home for short regular and predictable times. Now that I am retired want most on auto deduct so I can come & go at irregular intervals and not worry about timing of bills. Furthermore while working health insurance deducted from paycheck. Now 3 additional monthlys (medicare, medigap & medicare part D).

Thanks to Goaties to mention National forest fees. I did not know they would accept checks. My strategy would be to carry a large amount of $1 bills (Side comment about one experience in National Park): One time I deposited a $20 bill to cover 2 camping nights. The second morning they sent 3 separate people by to collect my second $10. I asked them if they counted the money before sending anyone. No they hadn't even attempted to count the money they just assumed one envelope = one night only.
denovo
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by denovo »

UpperNwGuy wrote: Fri Aug 10, 2018 6:36 pm I wrote a paper check today to pay my maid service. First check in two weeks. My maid service used to let me pay through PayPal, but PayPal recently increased the charge paid by businesses to receive such payments, so now my maid service wants a check. As long as electronic payment services like PayPal continue to be greedy, it will always be good to have paper checks as a backup payment method.
If you look carefully, there are many ways to pay people electronically that are free. If you and your maid both can enroll in Zelle, that is free.

https://www.zellepay.com/get-started [participating banks]

Venmo is another option.
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Doom&Gloom
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Doom&Gloom »

Broken Man 1999 wrote: Fri Aug 10, 2018 2:13 pm
drawpoker wrote: Fri Aug 10, 2018 2:04 pm Have racked my brains and still can't remember the last time I wrote out an actual paper check. 2010, 2011 maybe.

Not to go off-topic, but is there anyone here whose bank does not offer the free bill-paying service? The invention of that is what brought about the demise of check-writing for me. :D
Bill-paying is great, I use it.

But not too many small tradespeople would appreciate a bill-pay check they receive a few days after their work was done.

I have offered bill-pay or credit card options to larger companies. Most seem to prefer a CC, probably a trust issue; I certainty wouldn't blame them.

Broken Man 1999
These posts made me check how many times I have used each this year:
Paper checks: 6
Bank bill pay: 1
Direct pulls from my checking account: everything else

I charge almost everything on credit cards these days. And it wasn't too long ago that I paid nearly everything via my bank's bill pay service. Several years prior to that, it was almost everything via paper check. Things change quickly these days. I wouldn't be surprised if my primary bill paying method is something quite different in a few years.
drawpoker
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by drawpoker »

goaties wrote: Fri Aug 10, 2018 7:03 pm
....our county charges a big fee if you use a credit card to pay your property tax. And last I checked, using bill pay wasn't possible either.....
Not possible? Why? Doesn't sound quite right.

With my bank, if the creditor isn't already in their database, they let you add it/him/her/whatever.
If the payee is so obscure they can't be paid electronically the bank makes out an old-fashioned (paper) check, sticks it an envelope, slaps a stamp on it, and mails it to whatever address you specified.

Whether someone at the bank licks the envelope, or uses a machine for that, I just Don't Know. :P
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peetsperk
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by peetsperk »

Use on-line bill paying but believe there is still a role for the written check. Just reordered two boxes. Last order lasted 3.5 years. My guess is these will last 5.
MikeG62
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by MikeG62 »

I wrote 14 checks in the last 12 months. They were pretty much exclusively for quarterly property taxes and gifts to family/friends.

I would like to write no checks, but am not there yet.

On a separate (but somewhat related topic), I have recently (last 6 months) gone cashless. Well not 100%, because there are things I need cash for - tip for hair cut (or car valet at restaurants), purchase small items at local farm stand. However, while I used to pay cash for small purchases (less than $20), I now charge everything regardless of how small (even coffee for $1.50). Not only more efficient (and less touching of dirty bills and having to deal with coins), but makes expense tracking so much easier. Now, if I could only get the DW on board with it...
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jdb
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by jdb »

I pretty much stopped using paper checks a couple years ago after an unknown fraudster copied my checks and issued several checks for thousands of dollars which were cleared by my bank before they alerted me. The bank reversed the charges but I was surprised after talking with bank fraud dept how common and easy it is for fraudsters to copy checks. Also having fraud problem with credit cards, had to replace two in past few weeks. I am migrating to using billpay and authorizing direct debit of checking account to regular creditors. There is a lot of fraud out there. Good luck.
scrabbler1
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by scrabbler1 »

MikeG62 wrote: Sat Aug 11, 2018 7:09 am I wrote 14 checks in the last 12 months. They were pretty much exclusively for quarterly property taxes and gifts to family/friends.

I would like to write no checks, but am not there yet.
Wow, we are alike in that I have also written exactly 14 checks in the last 12 months. Most of them are for doctor visits and charities, with a few for other purposes such as tax payments. The last check I wrote was back in June, for a charity. I don't like including CC info in the mail to a charity, so I send a check.

Every year, I find a way to write one or two fewer checks than the previous year. This year, my homeowners insurance (State Farm) finally allowed me to pay their premium on line using a CC (they had already allowed CC for my auto insurance), so I did. Many medical service providers allow CC on line with their bill, so I now use it.

Last year, I ordered a new set of checks. They used to give you 200 but they downsized it to 150, not that I cared much. At 14 checks per year, that will last me 10 years.

I have checkwriting on one of my mutual fund accounts, a second-tier emergency fund. I average just under one check per year from it, many years writing no checks from it.
Yooper16
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Yooper16 »

We pay all of our bills by check and will do so until ????.

Two biggest reasons we still pay by check

1-- DHs pension is from the USPS. We don't want to bite the hand that feeds us
2-- We walk the bills to the PO as part of our exercise/health routine.
mpsz
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by mpsz »

Yes, paper checks are still useful.

I only wrote four checks last year — two for state/local taxes to avoid convenience fees (I refuse to pay for their convenience of not needing to process a paper check), and two gifts. I still keep a stock of checks in the house but the box of 120 checks will last me until retirement.
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munemaker
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by munemaker »

I avoid paper checks to the degree possible, but as others have pointed out, times come up when I am forced to write one.
Old Guy
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Re: Paper checks yes or no?

Post by Old Guy »

Automatic withdrawal for utilities. Pay credit cards and mortgage electronically. Just built a pool and all that had to be paid by check. Also pay handyman by check as well as some charities. So, checks are still important in my situation.
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