Having a hard time building up that savings account?

Text messages might help you - assuming you won't have to pay more to receive them.

Economists studied how people behave when they receive text messages about their bank accounts.  If the texts pester and scold you for failing to save, not much will change.  However, more positive text messages that remind you of your savings goals are likely to help.

If you think this would be useful, find ways to make it happen.  As Lifehacker points out, you can send yourself personalized, encouraging text messages.  Set up periodic reminders with an online calendar system like Google or Yahoo, and let us know if it helps.

The Federal Reserve just released the quarterly Senior Loan Officer Survey on Bank Lending Practices. The findings? Banks are still scared to lend money but there are glimmers of hope.

Consumers and businesses alike have a tough time getting money.  We're not even asking for loans as much as we used to - either because we've given up or we don't want to take on the risks that come with more debt.

The results of this survey might be described as "slightly less bad" than previous ones.  At least it's not as bad as it was one year ago.

Banks also expect to tighten lending standards on credit card debt with new legislation in the pipeline.  Lawmakers want to make it more difficult for banks to change terms on credit card loans, so banks plan to do any tightening before the laws go into effect.

Further reading:

• Banks Tighten Lending Standards
• What is Credit?

529 college savings plans allow you to save for higher education, and you may qualify for some tax benefits.

Most parents invest in mutual funds, hoping they'll be able to earn enough (combined with their contributions) to create a healthy college fund.  However, those accounts can also lose money.

For a government guarantee, you'll need FDIC insurance on your 529 savings.  This is hard to find, but Virginia's 529 program recently added an FDIC insured option for conservative savers.  You don't have to live in Virginia to use the program, but you should investigate your home state's program before using a different state's 529.

Before you get too excited, consider whether or not you need FDIC insurance on your 529 savings.  You won't lose anything on insured deposits, but you'll only earn bank-like returns.  This may or may not make sense, depending on your situation.  A financial planner and tax advisor can help you understand how a 529 will impact your finances.

Further reading:

• Overview of 529 Plans
• Saving for College from About.com
• How FDIC Insurance Works

If you download bank transactions into any program or online service, you know that you have to use specific file types.  What if your bank doesn't give you what you need?

Geeky Chick describes her struggle to convert CSV to QIF ("when your bank is too lazy or stingy to do it for you").  By using an Excel add-in, you can get your data into the right format.

With all the bank failures, mergers, and changes going on, you may find this information handy.  Banks sometimes transition your account to a new system, and you may have to adapt.  You can also use conversion tools to slice and dice data in ways that your software doesn't allow.

I have not used the product she mentions.  Take precautions before downloading, installing, and working with sensitive banking information.  Make backups of your existing data, and do some homework to make sure the software does not contain anything that will harm your computer or steal your information.