Why can't I withdraw the $57 in my account?

Question

Friday, I noticed that there is still $57 remaining in my checking account after paying bills and withdrawing the cash I needed. I tried using it for food, but I'm unable to spend or withdraw the $57 and not sure why. I checked to see if it was a pending transaction. There's a couple on there which I already knew about, but nothing in that amount. When I cashed my check, they said I would only be able to use $200 that same day and the rest would be available on the following day (Saturday). I decided to wait an extra day and see if the amount would be available. Nope. Still in the same place. Will I ever be able to use the money in the checking account or is it just gonna sit there? It's very frustrating. Please help!

Answer 1

Is there a debit card accessing this account?

When you spend money on a debit card for certain item, including, but not limited to gas, restaurant, hotel, a bit extra is held in reserve. For example, a $100 restaurant charge might hold $125, to allow for a tip. (You're a generous tipper, right?) The actual sales slips my take days to reconcile.

It's for this reason that I've remarked how credit cards have their place. Using debit cards requires that one have more in their account than they need to spend, especially when taking a trip including hotel costs.

Answer 2

Given you mention a check clearing, in addition to debit card holds as JoeTaxpayer notes, you may also have funds that are on hold for that reason. While the bank may have stated it would be a one day hold, some banks may mean business days (Monday-Friday), and so it will become available on Monday.

This is because checks are not always instantly withdrawn from the other account (although this is becoming much more common post-electronic check reform), so the bank wants to make sure it actually is getting the money from the check; after all, if the check you deposited bounces, the bank doesn't want to end up footing the bill.

The bank allows you some portion up front, largely as a customer service; the amount varies from bank to bank, but it's generally a small amount they don't mind risking. $200 is a pretty good amount, actually; back when I was just out of college and frequently spending the last $50 in my account, the pre-clearance amount was usually $50.

If the bank does this to you regularly and you feel that it is unfair in how long it holds checks, you might consider shopping around; different banks have different hold policies, or might allow you a larger amount up front. In particular, online banks tend to have more favorable terms this way.