Top 7 Tips for Back-To-School Savings

1. REUSE ITEMS FROM LAST YEAR “Calculators, pencil cases and even backpacks may withstand more than one year’s worth of wear and tear. Buying fewer items can save quite a bit of money.” – Tiffany Jenkins, Vice President and Senior Marketing Officer, Poplar Bluff

2. SET A BUDGET “Allot a certain dollar amount for clothes, supplies and backpacks before you start shopping. With Card Center, you can set limits on how much you spend to make sure you stick to your budget, and ensure you’re protecting your debit card purchases from fraud.” – Julie Hinkle, Banking Service Manager, Batesville

3. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF TAX FREE WEEKEND “Plan to go shopping Aug. 5-6 in Arkansas or Aug. 4-6 in Missouri, when the states do not charge sales tax on school supplies and clothing. It really helps reduce spending.” – Lisa Cates, Banking Service Manager, Thayer, MO

4. BACK-TO-SCHOOL FAIRS Attend back-to-school fairs! Businesses and organizations are there representing their business and giving back to the community by passing out free notebooks, pencils, rulers and much more! -Gena Kelly, BSM, Van Buren, MO

5. PURCHASE END-OF-SUMMER CLOTHING “When stores are trying to get rid of their summer inventory, you can save a lot of money. And short-sleeved tops work great under jackets during fall.” – Jamie Sisco, Banking Service Manager, Alton

6. GET CRAFTY “Instead of spending extra on notebooks and art boxes with cartoon characters, purchase basic supplies and let your children decorate them.” – Candi Sims, Banking Service Manager, Forsyth Start back-to-school saving with helpful tools like Card Center and a checking account, available from Southern Bank. Learn more

*$100.00 minimum to open account. When qualifications are met, you will receive 4% cash back on check card purchases up to $200 in total check card purchases during the monthly qualification cycle or total cash back of $8 per monthly qualification cycle. The cash back rewards will be credited to your account on the last day of your statement cycle. Domestic ATM fees incurred during monthly qualification cycle will be reimbursed up to $10 and credited to account on the last day of monthly statement cycle. ATM fees of $4.99 or less will be reimbursed up to a maximum of $4.99 per individual transaction. ATM fees of $5.00 or higher will be reimbursed if the appropriate ATM receipt is presented to a representative at one of our facilities. ATM-processed transactions do not count towards qualifying check card transactions. Transactions may take one or more banking days from transactions date was made to post and settle the account. "Monthly Qualification Cycle" means a period beginning one day prior to the first day of the current statement cycle through one day prior to the close of the current statement cycle. Domestic ATM fees incurred during qualification cycle will be reimbursed up to $10 if qualifications are met within monthly qualification cycle. Limit of (1) one Kasasa account per social security number. Accounts are available to Missouri, Arkansas and Illinois residents and for personal use only. Effective July 2017.