Monthly Archives: January 2021

5 Reasons You Should Utilize Online & Mobile Banking

Besides the obvious positive of having constant access to your bank account on your own device, Online and Mobile Banking bring various benefits to the table. If you haven’t downloaded our Mobile App yet, keep reading to find out why you should.

1. Deposit Checks Anywhere

Save yourself a trip by making it possible to deposit checks from the comfort of your home. It’s an easy process, too! All you do is endorse the check like normal, check the box that says it’s a mobile deposit, take a picture of each side and enter basic information. Your check will be processed in seconds – it’s as simple as that!

2. 24/7 Access

Say goodbye to working around the bank’s hours to do simple tasks like checking your balance, viewing your transaction history, transferring money, depositing checks or printing bank statements. With Online and Mobile Banking, you have access to these services and information 24/7, even outside of bank hours.

3. Quick and Easy Transfer

There may be instances when you quickly need to transfer money from your savings account to your checking account or vice versa. This process is simple, too, and in just a few steps, your transfer will be processed. Mobile banking is also helpful in situations where account balances get too low and you have automatic payments. You can set up notifications to make sure you transfer money before dropping below a certain amount and overdrawing.

4. Never Miss a Bill with Bill Pay

Bill Pay is easy to set up and allows you to pay your bills without having to lift a finger. By filling out a few quick forms online, money will automatically be sent out or transferred each month to pay your bills in a timely manner. Not only is this convenient for you, but it allows you to completely avoid the risk of paying a late fee.

5. Print or Download Statements

Save yourself another trip to the bank with access to e-Statements anytime. If you’re wanting to print or download statements for tax purposes or personal records, you simply login to your online account and print off what you want. This makes organizing your personal records easy, too, whether you want to do so on paper or safely and securely on your computer.

Now that you know why Online and Mobile Banking are so great, it’s time to get started! Click here to learn more about our services, ask us questions and to find out what your next online banking steps are.

Identity Theft: How to Protect Yourself

Protecting yourself from identity theft is more important now than ever before!

Rundown of Identity Theft

The first step in prevention is recognizing what identity theft is and why it’s dangerous. A simple description of identity theft is a crime in which an individual’s personal and/or financial information is illegally obtained, most commonly for financial gain. With your information, that criminal could then:

Withdraw money from your bank account
Steal your tax refund
Sell your information to others
Apply for loans, credit cards, etc. in your name

Recognizing Identity Theft

Now it’s time to understand what the signs of identity theft are so you’re prepared if you were ever put in this situation. If you start noticing any of these things, identity theft may be the problem at hand:

You notice unusual or unrecognizable withdrawals from your bank account
Your tax return received a rejection notice
You are turned down for a loan for bad credit when you have good credit
You notice an absence in your household bills coming through the mail

Preventing Identity Theft

The good news is there are a lot of things you can do to protect yourself from crimes like this. To make it not so easy for criminals to steal your information, follow these important steps:

Never give out personal information such as your Social Security number or bank information
Destroy private records with a paper shredder before throwing it in the trash
Check your bank account and credit reports regularly for suspicious activity
Create strong passwords and use different passwords for each account you own
Don’t click on unknown links and don’t enter any login credentials on an unfamiliar login screen
Never carry your Social Security card on you, but instead keep it in a safe and secure place in your house unless you need to access it

When it comes to protecting yourself from identity theft, the more precautions you take, the better! Make 2021 the year you decide to up your security game and take proper action. To learn more about cybersecurity or to discuss the financial services we offer, visit our website.

Break These 5 Bad Financial Habits This Year

During 2021, we want everyone to focus on a few ways to enhance their life and habits. Financially, you are always able to make a change for the better and increase your savings. Heartland Bank offers helpful tips to break these five bad financial habits this year.

1. Impulse Buying

When you see an item you think you need to have and buy it instantly, that hurts your bank account. That item may be on sale somewhere else and that deal they are giving probably won’t expire that day and will be extended. Take time to think before you buy. It’s also important to watch your feelings and mood when you want to buy something. Yes, retail therapy can help boost your mood, but you don’t want to continually buy things when you’re sad or need a pick-me-up.

2. Paying the Minimum

While it’s good to at least pay the minimum so you don’t get charged with late fees, it doesn’t mean you should always just pay the lowest amount possible. If you can, begin to pay off your debt faster by making more than the minimum payment. This can help you find financial freedom faster!

3. Pushing Retirement Savings

Even though retirement is far away, saving takes time. If you are going to live well past your retirement age, you must think about all the bills you’ll need to pay (housing, groceries, utilities, phone, medical and so on). You don’t want to save up for retirement a few years before it’s time because that’s a large sum of money to accrue in a short amount of time. The earlier you save, the longer you have to save and the longer your accounts have to accrue interest.

4. Spending More Than You Earn

Even though you have credit cards, it doesn’t mean you can afford to spend the whole limit. Truly think about what you make each month and find a budget to stick to. This will help you to not overspend and fall behind in your savings and payment goals.

5. Not Saving

While you may have money in a savings or checking account, that doesn’t mean you are actively saving. You need to create a budget and set aside money each month to actively put in your savings account for certain purposes like an emergency fund for you or college fund for a child.

We hope you break these bad financial habits this year. It’ll help put you onto the road to financial success! Save your extra money you’ll gain in a savings account with us.