We are living in very busy times and it’s easy to overlook things. Like how much you’re really paying in credit card interest or ATM fees. And do you really know how much your deposits are earning? We all say we’ll look into that as soon as we have the time but that time never seems to come.

At Fifth Third Bank, we know that especially in today’s environment, we have to make the most of our hard-earned money so we can pursue our dreams of home ownership, college tuition, family vacation or even retirement. Getting a handle on where we really stand financially can give us peace of mind and a feeling of being in control of our financial situation.

So where do you start? At Fifth Third Bank, we encourage all of our customers and potential customers to come in for a Financial Needs Analysis or FNA. It’s really very simple. We’ll ask you some key questions to get an idea of what you want to achieve. We’ll ask you what’s most important to you – getting the best interest rates, reducing service fees, saving for a particular goal, protecting your savings, etc. You talk and we listen.

We may ask you to bring in some items to help us get to know your current financial situation:
• Mortgage information
• Credit card statements
• Money market or CD account information
• Checking and savings statements

From this information, we’ll be able to point out where you might achieve a better interest rate, reduce your fees or properly title your accounts for your own protection.
And if you’re looking to save, we can help you get the best rate while still having full access to your funds. If you’re really serious about your goals our Goal Setter Savings accounts lock up your funds to help take away the temptation to withdraw them before you’ve reached your goals.

Financial Needs Analysis is important for anyone – young or old. For students just starting out, the FNA can be a great learning experience and make the student more financially savvy. For retirees, it is a good, ongoing discipline to review your finances on a regular basis and make sure there aren’t better products or services available that you can take advantage of.

In my 30 years of banking experience, I have found that this simple exercise is the best way for customers to really understand where they are financially. Many times, it’s little things that slowly erode our funds like cash advance fees you didn’t even know you were paying for or a credit score that’s affecting your ability to get the best rates for loans.

At Fifth Third, we don’t have any magic wands but we do have the tools to help take the scare out of managing your finances. Come see me at our new Wayne State University branch in midtown or call me at 313-309-2603 and we’ll get your money working harder for you.