Another Boomer Thing that (Apparently) has Died Off

[Hamster]

At our Credit Union, checks, registers and covers are all free. I did pay $10 once for a Notary, but I can't remember ever being charged a fee for anything else.

 

[MC Rider]

I used to use a lot more deposit slips than checks. Scanned a couple and printed my own. Bank was fine with that. I'd print my own register if I kept one.

 

[jim584672]

Last check I wrote was many months ago. Hopefully the last one.

 

[badatmath]

I have a checking account I opened back when I was in junior high (er, middle school.) Yeah, it's got six digits in the account number. I don't use it for much, mostly for buying gifts for DW so she can't see I've purchased them and also several streaming services monthly subscriptions. Not too much activity. Every couple of months I put a couple hundred bucks in there to replenish it. The problem is I've used up my last checkbook registry. Remember those? The lined grid where you would pencil in the checks you've written, by check number, date, and the amount. You'd also keep track of deposits and once in a while you'd balance the registry against your bank statement (which used to be mailed.)

I could probably get a whole year's worth of activity onto a couple of pages in the registry. I could see at a glance what I spent and when I spent it, and also my current balance. Much more convenient than going online and looking at 12 months worth of .pdf documents.

Today I searched and searched the bank's website looking for where I could request a new check registry book. Couldn't find it anywhere. In fact, there was no search function AT ALL on the bank website (Huntington Bank.) I called them, was told there was a 20 minute wait and requested a call back. I finally got a hold of a human and after a grilling interrogation about my name, address, account number, SSN#, phone number, DNA, etc. I asked about the checkbook registry. I played up the humor, you know, boomer likes to write checks (I don't), boomer uses a check registry, etc. Surprisingly, the customer service rep said they had checkbook registries.

$36.06 via US Mail.

Silly me, thinking they were complimentary! I went to an online check printing company I've used before, apparently in 2016 because that is the first year in the calendar section of my currently filled check registry. They have them for $2.99. Yes! Proceeding to checkout the shipping charges were $12.99.

Next step is to go into a bank branch office and beg for a check registry.

Chalk up the check registry as one more Baby Boomer experience that has died.

I get checks from "Walmart Checks". I don't know if you can just buy a registry or not but it about $13 or so for 120 checks (had some deposit slips too) and they did come with a registry. I opted not to pay for tracking shipment and they arrived quickly.

I'm far too cheap to pay what the bank is asking. They should last years.

 

[badatmath]

I forget, what is the check registry for again? Even though we write 4-5 checks a year, I can't quite remember why I'd need to write them down. We used to have to balance the registry against the statements but the banks don't send them anymore. And if I want to see what I wrote them for I can look online.

IDK what banks you use but I get bank statements every month from 2 of mine and quarterly from the other. It is a choice you can take or not take. The one that sends quarterly will send an extra statement if I have "activity" which is rare since it is only savings but I do get non-quarterly paper from them now and again.

 

[athena53]

I write a few- just write one to each of my grandchildren's 529 accounts because I can use mobile deposit. As others have said, some home improvement/repair businesses prefer them, probably to avoid bank fees on credit cards. I've learned to ask when the job is quoted because I get fixated on my 2% cash back from Fidelity. I'm also the Garden Club Treasurer and get a lot of cash. Rather than drive it over to the bank, I carefully document all of it then write a check to the Garden Club and put it in my cash supply. (They know this and are fine with it.)

My "check register" is in Excel and includes all my credit card charges so I know what the bills will be when they come in. No way I can duplicate that in a paper register- maybe with a separate list.

 

[MarieIG]

My most recently opened checking account gave me free checks and a free registry. I stopped writing checks from the brick and mortar banks which charged for the checks. I don't recall getting checks and not receiving a registry along with the checks. My last two checks were to medical care providers, and my next two checks will be for estimated taxes.

I don't write that many check anymore, but I have always recorded my checks.

 

[5Miler]

Like many others I haven't ordered any checks/registers in well over 15 years. I ordered registers on Amazon once but decided since I always document in my Quicken online register, why duplicate the effort so it's Quicken all the way now.

DGF hasn't written in a register or balanced a checkbook since I've known her, 33 years now. Never bounced a check.

 

[aja8888]

I take a photo of a check when I write it and keep those photos in a file folder on my phone. I can check my balance online. No real need for a registry document.

 

[RunningBum]

Just started my 14th year of keeping my checkbook register in a spreadsheet. Most of my transactions are online so I'm already on my laptop. Saves time, fewer mistakes, easier to search for transactions, and virtually impossible to use since I do backups.

 

[Bestwifeever]

This where I order my checks. The registers come with them. Order Checks Online: Save Up to 50% | Checks Unlimited

Thanks for this! Under “Accessories” $2.50 for a 31-page register and ***free shipping***. Woohoo! I just ordered 8!

I record everything in our old school check register so DH has a paper trail record (don’t judge) and it’s easily reconcilable against the bank’s numbers. Amazon’s registers were several pages shorter than the registers that came with my checks and other sources for more robust editions were a lot more expensive. I faked a template to print a register and it’s pretty pathetic, so your source is most timely and welcome.

 

[Zona]

Next step is to go into a bank branch office and beg for a check registry.

Chalk up the check registry as one more Baby Boomer experience that has died.

I use Quicken to record the handful of physical checks we write each year, what with electronic billpay and apps like Venmo & Paypal. But, I have a dozen or so empty registers lying around because prior to using Quicken I kept my register in excel -- it might be time to clean out the office and get rid of my boxes of decades-old check carbons! PM me if you want me to mail you a few blank registers, postage is on me

 

[tulak]

I haven’t written a check in years and luckily, I haven’t needed to. When I did, I used my CU bill pay and they’d send the check for me. But that’s at least 5+ years ago.

And even then, I’d track the payments in Moneydance, or MS Money/Quicken before then.

 

[disneysteve]

I forget, what is the check registry for again? Even though we write 4-5 checks a year, I can't quite remember why I'd need to write them down.

I don't only enter checks in the registry. I enter all transactions for the account, deposits and withdrawals including electronic payments, auto-pay, Zelle, etc. Then I use that to balance the account monthly when the statement comes.

 

[sengsational]

In 1982, when I got my first IBM PC, that was the last time I entered an item into a paper register. Since then, I've spent five times as much effort putting checks into the computer

 

[jollystomper]

A picture is worth a thousand words. We do not write that many checks anymore to need a register:

We last ordered checks and registers in 2019, and should not need to order checks again for a few more years.

 

[Graybeard]

I get free checks from my local bank. When I need a new register I get 2 or 3 for free from the bank. They also give me a free calendar. I don't write a lot of checks but I do write them, some months 3 or 4 other months 7 or 8. My next check is # 7965, almost made it to 8000! I've had this checking account since 1996 or 1997 and I used to write 30-40 per month, now I use credit cards for most purchases. The interest is 4 bp but I transfer most of the cash to Vanguard once all my bills are paid. Most entries in the register are pulls from a company or bank cc, I have a lot of entries each month but that's money going in and out not so much checks.

 

[mebden]

I use Capital One checking and they gave me free checks and all the registry books I want I just have to go to the branch to get them.

 

[statsman]

We keep getting new registry books because we keep ordering checks. While not a lot, I was surprised how many checks we wrote in 2024. Many of them were for services where we got a discount for cash/check, or where we wanted to avoid "convenience" fees for using credit or debit cards.

Quarterly pest control (4). Mowing/edging services we paid once a month (8). DW's hair salon visits (12). Dentist visits (4). HOA yearly fee (1). Property tax bill (1). Gifting (2). Garage door repair (1).

 

[Amethyst]

Checkwriting refuses to go away where I live. Every contractor charges 3.5% to use a credit card, and more and more local businesses - even dentists - are going that route. My credit union offers free checking, and I use a spreadsheet rather than a paper register.

Last year, I locked myself out on a weekend (long story) and had to call an emergency locksmith (nearly $400.00, and he drilled out a good lock and replaced it with garbage). He would take only cash - or Zelle, which I of course had to use. They love Zelle because it's instantaneous, so you can't stop payment on it.

 

[MC Rider]

I guess nobody uses the Joe Walsh method?

I have accountants pay for it all.

 

[nwsteve]

We still are finding a need for checks. In fact, just had to order for the first time in 6 years. Dentist alone gets about 8-10/yr to earn cash discount.

 

[isisdave]

Amazon has a dozen registers for $6. And yes, we still use them.

I get two years out of one, and buying a 6-pack felt, at age 75, like buying green bananas. Now I have a goal to use them all (12 years worth) by which time I suppose checks will be totally obsolete. Actually, I write about three checks a year, but there are about ten electronic transactions a month.

 

[audreyh1]

I guess nobody uses the Joe Walsh method?

I have accountants pay for it all.

Maybe one day…..

 

[Stormy Kromer]

My bank had me order checks from Delux. They stopped offering the register so I switched over to a piece of 7 column ledger paper.

My small town bank got sold a couple of years ago. I had a whole box of checks with the former bank on them. They honored them for a couple months and I had to buy new ones with the new bank's information on them.