Washington Mutual's overdraft legal theft policy

Setting up electronic payments to go out when the funds aren't in the
bank to cover them is actually illegal - it's the same thing as
'kiting checks' - and incurring fees can be the least of your
problems. You can end up in jail for it. I've never heard of a bank
pressing charges, but the payees do. As a fellow poor money manager, I
sympathize, but you should buy yourself some money management software
or, as one person suggested, use a check register for every debit
before you get into serious trouble. It's not the bank's fault.

I'm amazed that someone without the most basic abilities to manage
money is able to own a home.

You really need to use a check register and not authorize payments or
spend money until you are sure it's in your account. They are well
within their rights to charge you fees in accordance with the terms
and conditions of your account.

"Once they overdrafted my account because of a check that wasn't even
signed by me"

Someone forged your signature? If so, I hope you filed a fraud
report. And I hope that they credited the check back to you and
agreed to refund the overdraft fee. If not, then someone on their end
made a mistake.

However...

"You would think after paying them mortgage interest for four years
they would give you a break on some overdraft fees."

Why would you think that? Did anyone ever put in writing a promise
that they would give you a break? Or did you just assume? Surely,
you don't think people should conduct business based only on
assumptions, right? If so, how do you explain the following...

"I wish they had told me when I opened my checking account that it
would be the wrong kind of accont."

When you opened the account, I hope they shared with you the options
you'd have, based on what you were opening your account with and what
you expected to put in the account. Even time I open a new bank
account, they ask me "what kind of balance do you think you'll keep?"
They they tell me the account that fits. They also give me a brochure
that explains the fees and policies. At least, my bank does this.

All of this said, banks DO have terrible policies about how they deal
with overdraft fees. The easiest way to avoid these problems (short
of the fraudulent check you described) is to always carry a balance
such that all checks will clear. Never write a check that requires a
deposit to clear.

You'll (almost) never end up in trouble that way. If you don't have
enough money to make a cushion, try to save up (cancel your cable
subscription) to put away $1000 that you never touch.

Or, stop paying with checks, whenever possible. Physically get the
cash needed to pay bills.

Um, no. Your mortgage and checking account are two completely
different animals. The bank isn't in business to afford favors to
customers who don't follow the rules.

I had one $30 overdraft fee in my 25 years, and it taught me an
important lesson. I don't plan for it to happen again, but I have a
philosophy on this. If I spent 20 hours a year balancing my checkbook
compared to two $30 overdraft fees for lack of record keeping, that is
a wage of $3 per hour. I would rather pay the $60.

In your case, it sounds like you desperately need to keep a register
and track your balance. It simply isn't worth the fees they are
justifiably charging you for not maintaining a sufficient balance.
You may call the terms "dubious," but you agreed to them. Check your
aggreement.