Golden 1 Credit Union

Hate to admit it, but «Overdraft Protection» is a godsend some months.
SITREP
I always try to make sure my MONEY-​OUT is on par with, and especially does not over balance, my MONEY-​IN. However, these last 18 months with the California State Economic crisis have proved to be more of a struggle at times just trying to balance my personal budget.
What’s worse is knowing that the money is COMING, but for whatever red-​tape, bureaucratic reason, it’s delayed. YOU still have to pay your credit card bills for the expensive outlays on work-​related trips, but you still wait one month, (god-​forbid) TWO months to get your travel-​reimbursement back from work. And if this is an amount in the hundreds, and even on those rare occasions in the thousands, it can prove DISASTROUS to your budget that month.
SET-​UP
Golden 1 has one of the MOST generous overdraft protections I’ve seen or experienced at any financial institution. My account actually allows for an overdraft of up to $ 500, and yes, that has come in handy.
The criteria to allow you to continue to use this feature is that your account must be back into the black within 20 business days of when you first go into the red. So, yes, theoretically, you can actually have two (2), maybe even three (3) separate transactions accrue to your overdraft. [And doesn’t it seem that when it rains it POURS? LIke a domino effect: it’s not just one overdraft, but 2 – 3 bills that hit all at once, screwing with your account!]
So it’s nice that Golden 1 will allow for this clusterf*ck of bills impacting your account. However, to continue to maintain your good standing with this feature, Golden 1 asks that you have your balance go back to black within 20 days of when your FIRST overdraft hit your account.
Each overdraft charge is $ 26, and obviously adds to your total balance owing. So this is NOT a cheap habit that you want to get into.
THE LOWDOWN
If you have circumstances spiraling out of control a particular month because you are waiting for others to pay you what is owed, it is extremely nice to have the peace of mind that you can still pay your bills on time.