What Should I Look for In A Business Banking Account?

Whether you are starting a new business or are running a growing company—you will want to make sure that you have the right bank account to support it. This means getting a business banking account that offers modern conveniences and security. Services like online business banking, credit and debit cards, and loans/financing along with low monthly maintenance fees and high transaction limits are just some of the things you should look for in a business bank account. Here is a more detailed look at these factors:

The bank

Start by seeking out the right bank. You can’t go wrong with a bank that has a proven reputation for helping small businesses acquire the services and loans they need. You can usually tell if a bank is business-friendly by looking at their website. Do they have a section devoted to business accounts? Some of the best banks even provide a business loan calculator online, among many other tools and resources for entrepreneurs.

Online banking

You should also make sure that they offer reliable, secure, and around-the-clock online business banking that is completely free. After all, online banking is at the heart of the financial operations of most modern businesses. You must be able to view recent activity and balances, pay bills conveniently, and initiate money transfers within the same bank and other financial institutions. Check if the bank offers a mobile banking app as an option too, so you can make transactions no matter where you are.

Fees

It’s usually free to open a personal bank account, but you may have to pay fees to open a business account. This is normal; it’s a way for banks to make sure that you are not doing any shady transactions that could put them at risk. That said, the bank should not charge exorbitant fees to open and keep a business account. You should also be able to use certain services like the business loan calculator at no cost.

Be sure to check the monthly maintenance fees of the bank you are considering using and compare them with fees imposed by other banks. Expect fees to go higher as your business grows and becomes more complex. That said, you can still limit these costs and enjoy the lowest possible rates with the right bank and banking account. Make sure there are no charges for basic banking transactions, such as checking your balance. Some banks may even waive certain fees if you are able to meet certain requirements such as keeping a minimum balance in your business account.

Integration with your accounting system

Choose a business banking account that can easily integrate with your preferred accounting system. That way, it is easy to send or receive ACH transfers, especially if you are running an online business.

The bottom line

You can’t go wrong with Queensborough National Bank. Open a business banking account with Georgia’s most established community bank today. Since 1902, Queensborough National Bank has supported local businesses and it continues to do so to this day.  It offers secure and reliable online business banking as well as checking and lending services. Whether you are looking to open a checking/savings account or acquire a credit card for your business, this bank has it all. It likewise offers cash management and Q merchant services, plus remote deposit.

How to Protect Your Internet Privacy - Three Tips for 2020

This pandemic has forced everyone to become even more reliant on online banking to do everyday transactions, from paying bills to sending financial assistance to causes we care about. This has exposed our personal data to even more threats. It’s ever more important to know how to ensure safe online banking and retain full control over your personal and financial information.

After all, having your banking details stolen can create a barrage of problems. Hackers can do fraudulent wire transfers to drain money from your account. Identity thieves can use your personal information to get credit cards in your name and go shopping with those cards.

While banks in GA invest in various security measures to ensure the safety of their clients, you still have to do your part in ensuring that your online financial information remains safe. Here are some tips:

1. Create strong and unique passwords

Many people make the following mistakes that make their passwords easier to hack, to without them knowing:

• Using their name, date of birth, address, and other personal information as passwords
• Creating short passwords
• Using simple number combinations and common words
• Failing to update their passwords regularly

These things might make remembering your passwords easier, but they also make it so much simpler for cyber criminals to guess your passwords and ultimately access your online financial information. So the next time you have to create a password for online banking, be sure to follow these tips:

• Don’t use common number sequences (like 1234)
• Do use a mix of lowercase and uppercase letters
• Think of words and phrases no one will guess—don’t use anything obvious like your pet’s name or the date of your anniversary

It’s also a good idea to never store your username and password in your mobile banking apps. Update your passwords on a regular basis—ideally every three or six months—to lower the risks of your login details being decoded or stolen.

2. Don’t use public Wi-Fi

Free internet you might get from cafes and other public places are not good enough to ensure safe online banking. You just never know if it’s secure. Public Wi-Fi Networks pose a lot of security threats, including the so-called “man in the middle” attacks (where cyber criminals eavesdrop electronically on your online banking activities). There is also the problem of malicious hotspots, spyware and malware, and risks of data transmission over non encrypted networks.

3. Sign up for banking alerts

Allow your bank to send you notifications whenever there’s significant activity in your account, such as new credit card transactions, password changes, failed logins, or at going transfers. Notifications can also let you report anything malicious (such as fraudulent purchases) to your bank right away.

Queensborough National Bank and Trust Company invests in the latest technologies to ensure safe online banking for its clients. Still, you have to do your part in being vigilant and protecting your own data. If you get any suspicious emails or phone calls asking for your banking information, please report it to us right away.

 

How Much Mortgage Can You Afford?

One of the biggest mistakes you can make is buying a home you can’t afford. If you borrow too much, a bad turn of events—like job loss—can quickly make monthly mortgage payments unmanageable. Luckily, there are mortgage loan services that can help you estimate how much you can truly and comfortably spend on a house. It’s also a good idea to remember the following when deciding on how big of a mortgage you should take on.

The formula

Most home buyers can afford to buy a property that’s worth between 2 and 2.5 times their gross income. So if you’re earning $100,000 annually, you should be able to afford a $200,000 to $250,000 mortgage. But that’s just a general guideline. A mortgage loan officer in Georgia will be looking into other factors, too, such as what they think you can afford and personal criteria outside of your finances.

Every lender has a unique set of criteria, but the terms and size of the loan and your ability to purchase will largely depend on these factors:

• Gross income – This is your income before taxes. It includes your self-employment earnings and/or salary, any child support, disability, alimony, or social security you receive, etc.

• Front-End ratio – This is the percentage of your yearly gross income that is dedicated to monthly payments (the principal, interest, taxes, and insurance). In general, monthly payments shouldn’t exceed 28 percent of your gross income. That said, some mortgage loan services allow certain borrowers to go beyond 30 percent or even 40 percent.

• Back-end ratio – Also called ‘debt-to-income ratio,’ this is the percentage of the gross income that goes towards covering debts like outstanding loans, car payments, and child support.

The impact of your credit score

One of the functions of a mortgage loan officer in Georgia is to assess how good you are at paying loans. To do this, they look at your credit score. A low score—which indicates that you’re a higher risk borrower, may result in higher interest (annual percentage rate) on the loan. So, if you’re planning to buy a home in the future, it’s best to start building a good credit score today.

Calculating the down payment

A down payment is usually required by lenders and is typically at least 20 percent of the property’s purchase price. However, some lenders allow a smaller down payment. Of course, the more money you can pay towards the down payment, the less financing you will need.

How lenders make their decision

Lenders will often look at your income, assets, liabilities, and debt. They want to know how much you are making and the current and future demands on your income. Their job is to make sure that you can consistently make payments. Ultimately, it’s the down payment, your monthly expenses, and your income that serve as base qualifiers, and your credit score and history determine the rate of interest.

Don’t be house poor

Keep in mind that a mortgage loan officer in Georgia will consider more than your gross income when establishing how much home you can afford. If you want to be financially prudent, look at your net income or take-home pay instead. Make sure that you’re not putting more than 25 percent towards mortgage payments. Otherwise, you could become ‘house poor,’ without enough money for other essentials and nothing left to save for your retirement.

It’s also important to take a good hard look at your personal financial situation and ask yourself if you’re truly ready for a mortgage. Are you living from paycheck to paycheck? If yes, then the smallest deduction from your monthly budget could be disastrous. Perhaps you should build your income first and secure the stability of your job.

Lenders will only look at your existing debt when calculating the back-end ratio. But what about the other expenses that you might have in the future? Be sure to take into account your children’s college fund, a new car you might want to get someday, or a vacation you want to take.

Don’t forget the costs beyond your mortgage. There are many other expenses that come with being a homeowner, such as home maintenance costs, utilities, décor and furniture, and neighborhood association fees.

Finally, think about your lifestyle. Are there changes you can make to make paying for a home less stressful? Review your spending habits and make adjustments as necessary.

6 Reasons You Need to Be on Top of Your Personal Finances

Do you find the ins and outs of money management overwhelming? If so, you are not alone. The good news is that personal finance doesn’t have to be intimidating. You can learn how to handle your money and grow real wealth once you begin being more responsible about your finances.

Signing up for a personal banking service is key to organizing your money and building financial stability. You don’t need to have millions in the bank to get access to personalized financial services, because some of the best banks now offer them online to all of their clients. These banks also offer wealth management in Augusta GA to help you make informed and balanced decisions about the financial products and services available to you—decisions that will ultimately benefit your financial health and help secure your future. Here are just some of the many reasons why you need to stay on top of your personal finances.

1. Financial management keeps you from overspending.
Everyone knows how easy it can be to spend money without even thinking about where all your hard work goes. Without proper money management, you are prone to go over your budget on a regular basis. When you are not careful about restricting how much you spend, you limit your future spending power, as more of your monthly income is channeled to debt payments. Determine a working budget for your monthly spending so you can know when to stop spending.

2. Managing finances helps you get closer to your goals.
When you have a budget plan, you prioritize your spending and focus your money on things that matter most—be it getting out of debt, starting a business, or perhaps saving up for a new car or a new house. A budget helps you plan and gives you a way to track your progress.

3. Money management saves you money.
People who don’t budget their income tend to save less, if they are at all able to save anything. When you budget, you get to allot specific portions of your income for certain things—from paying your bills to transferring money into an investment or savings account. Budgeting also helps keep you from dipping into your monthly savings.

4. Managing your money stops worry and allows you to enjoy your hard-earned money more.
When you budget, you get to decide where you put your money, therefore removing the guilt of spending a significant portion on things you enjoy most, so long as you are still meeting other needs and are able to save for the future.

5. Managing your money increases your financial flexibility.
Budgeting helps you move your money around more flexibly and efficiently between the categories you’ve set and even add more categories, if your budget allows. This makes adjusting for and covering unexpected expenses easier.

6. Wealth management puts you in control.
When you budget your finances, you gain full control of your money by prioritizing spending, tracking your finances, and ensuring a solid plan is in place to help you reach your financial goals.If you need help with wealth management in Augusta GA, Queensborough National Bank and Trust is the best way to make personal banking services truly personal, providing you with the most attentive services to ensure your personal financial wellness.

Online Payment Fraud and How to Reduce It

Online payment fraud comes in many forms. By definition, it refers to any type of illegal or false transaction initiated and completed by a cybercriminal. In a fraudulent online payment transaction, the perpetrator deprives victims of funds, property, personal interest or any other sensitive information over the internet. This is why banks and other types of organizations and businesses that conduct transactions online rely on robust online banking security measures to ensure safer online transactions.

Online payment fraud can take the form of fraudulent or unauthorized transactions, false refund requests, returned and/or bounced checks, as well as stolen or lost merchandise.
Ecommerce businesses charge clients and customers for services and products through electronic transactions. With the increased volume of online and electronic payment transactions comes a rise in the occurrence of fraudulent activities as cybercriminals find even more opportunities to conduct their sinister deeds.

Online banking is also a target for hackers. Some of the most common forms of payment fraud online include identity theft, phishing, pagejacking, merchant identity fraud, and advanced fee/wire transfer scams. Because of this, ecommerce businesses, online retailers, and banks with online facilities must look for ways to combat and protect their clients from becoming victims.

Preventing fraud has a lot to do with knowing exactly how fraud happens. Cybercriminals and hackers are tech-savvy and are skilled at obtaining people’s information online. They typically pose as legitimate representatives of companies who are authorized to ask for and collect sensitive information through email interactions, sending malware to smartphones and inboxes, instant messaging, phone calls, rerouting traffic to harmful or fraudulent websites, and through online auctions, among many others.

Cyber thieves are also very adept at penetrating network security systems by means of exploiting patches and glitches, as well as systems that have not been updated recently. Such gaps give hackers a way around firewalls, making it easy for them to obtain sensitive information illegally.

Most online businesses do their best to fight fraud by ensuring that their network security systems are constantly updated with the latest protection. Robust antivirus software and firewall systems are designed to serve as shields against hackers’ attempts to access and penetrate secure networks. By constantly updating their system and software, they ensure that your information and sensitive business data are safe from fraudulent activity.

You also have to be vigilant in order to protect yourself from these schemes. Here are some tips to keep in mind:

1. Try to be aware of the latest fraud activities and trends
2. Routinely change your login credentials (particularly your online banking passwords)
3. Log out of your account even if you’re the only person using your phone or laptop
4. Report anything suspicious to the online merchant or bank

It’s also important to make sure that your online bank has all the systems in place to ensure that your information remains secure. Queensborough National Bank and Trust is a leading provider of safe online banking, keeping systems and security features up-to-date to ensure clients’ peace of mind whenever making online payments and performing monetary transactions online. For sure online banking security, choose only Queensborough National Bank and Trust.