I also use BofA’s Keep the Change program. I’ve never been charged a fee for my savings account with them (which is really just a money “holding pen” and the Keep the Change thing), and it’s a nice virtual equivalent to my real-life change mug.

My husband uses his memory. He does not use any kind of written thing at all. He does not even look at his credit card statements, I’m pretty sure. And he pays bills at the end of the month, usually about 2 weeks after everything was due. So he pays a lot of late fees.

This is why all the utilities are in my name and I pay them on time.

And his method is, for me, a very good reason for us to have separate finances!!!!

I am a Quicken user. I think the 1996 Deluxe edition was best out of all the versions I’ve used. The latest one drives me nuts. I’ll probably get the 2007 Deluxe upgrade soon though.

Re: Quicken for Mac

I use the 2004 version, which was current when I last purchased a new computer. It does what I need to, even if it isn’t pretty, so I don’t feel a need to upgrade. This is particularly true since the reviews of each new version are generally awful. Quicken for Mac seems to be an afterthought for Intuit.

I also own Quicken Home and Business 2001 for PC (from before I switched back to Mac). It’s light-years ahead of Quicken 2004 for Mac. In fact, I’m really looking forward to installing it now that I have an Intel-based Mac running parallels. The interface is so much nicer.

But, as I say, I’ve been using the same version on my Mac for almost four years, and while it isn’t pretty, it gets the job done. Ah, how I long for the days when I used to use Andrew Tobias’ “Managing Your Money” on a Macintosh SE…

To me, the rounding of transactions to the nearest dollar seems too clever by half, kind of like setting your watch fifteen minutes ahead. If you know you’ve got a hidden cushion, what’s to stop you from taking advantage of it? Also: checking accounts don’t get very good returns, on average.

But, as always, do whatever works for you. (This phrase pops up so often here, I think it ought to be prominently displayed, kind of like how “personal finance that makes cents” is.)

I have found the Yodlee Money Center to be more my speed - once you put your info in you don’t really have to do anything. It has much more basic functionality, but it helps you budget, creates graphs, etc. Can anyone recommend other online alternatives to Quicken? I’ve heard good things about MSN Moneycenter.

I glance at the statement to check that no unusual payments went out (I use direct debit for everything I can). I phone occaisionally or use an ATM to find out the balance. I live off the budget in my spreadsheet. That goes down to zero each month, but in practice I use credit cards for some things and debit cards for others so it won’t reconcile easy.

Life’s too short for me to worry about things that I “know” I’ll never do.

Right now they give Quicken (the Premier edition) the edge over Microsoft Money, but it’s usually neck-and-neck.

Note for Mac users: Quicken for Mac is but a pale shadow of the Windows version, but it works…I’ve been using it for about 12 years now with few complaints.

I reconcile to paper statements for my credit cards, though, because, I think, in the late 1990s, the transaction download from the bank didn’t always match up with the paper. It’s probably not a problem now, but I use the paper out of habit, and also to indicate when the statement period closes (and when I have to pay), so it’s a reasonable way to do things.

Have you heard of the new BofA checking account feature that does that automatically, and deposits the difference into your savings account? Although I do not like BofA, I thought that was a pretty cool idea. Makes balancing the checkbook easier and forces you to constantly add a little bit to your savings. Hopefully it catches on.

In short: yes, I do reconcile my accounts, and to the penny. Every month. I suspect this has more to do with anal-retentiveness on my part than anything else. (Actually, it probably stems from my chronic overdraft problem in the mid-nineties. When you’re living paycheck-to-paycheck, you need to know how much you have in the bank.)

My wife never reconciles her checkbook. She also (shudder) rounds every transaction off to the nearest whole dollar, essentially building some obscene cushion into her account.

I, too, sometimes have to spend an hour chasing down twenty cents. Sometimes it’s frustrating. But most of the time it’s actually kind of fun. But not as fun as having things balance from the start. That is financial nirvana!

Do you reconcile all of your accounts? Just curious — I keep talking to people who say they don’t, and I wonder if I should encourage them not to worry about it, or if I should make it easier for people to do that.

For myself, reconciling sometimes gives me a good chance to remind myself of what I’m spending and whether I’m overspending; but sometimes it just feels like a headache, spending an hour chasing down the last $0.20 that I can’t seem to find.

Thanks!