My colleague Jackie Crosby wrote a story about a new report on overdraft fees . The report, released by the Center for Responsible Lending this week, found that banks and credit unions generate $17.5 billion in fees each year from charging consumers $35 bucks for buying a latte when over the limit.

The authors recommend that banks be required to warn customers when an ATM withdrawal or debit card transaction will put them in the red.

Banks argue that that would be an inconvenience and an embarrassment to consumers.

I don’t know about you, but I’d rather be $34 richer and have a sales clerk know I’m skating close to zero in my bank account than in negative territory with a burger in hand (My few overdrafts have resulted from some ridiculously small purchase that I made just hours before a deposited check cleared).

Like all financial endeavors these days, finding the best place to open a Roth when nearly any money-related institution sells one

The U.S. House Education and Labor Committee is currently meeting to debate 401(k) fees, which are often hidden and higher than they need to be.

By one consultant’s estimation, someone with a current $30,000 balance contributing $150 per pay period for the next 25 years will earn about $500,000 if their portfolio returned 8 percent.

Add 1 percent in fees and the balance drops $80,000. Add another percent and the balance is reduced by $150,000.

Yikes.

Do you know how much you pay in 401(k) fees? Have you tried to find out?

I’ve looked at my company’s Form 5500, which discloses some fees under ERISA, but I’ll tell ya, it’s