I think you missed my point. You should not write a check for more money than you have, (you can but you are taking a risk that it will bounce). You do not need a buffer, you need to track your money better. The second that you write a check, it should be deducted from your, (your meaning the record you keep not the banks record), balance. In this scenario, when you wrote the check, the balance would be -$1. That is the problem here. The bank can clear or not clear things in any order, but if your recording is better, you will never have an issue. The benefactor you speak of is your own records, if you do not keep them, you are doing yourself a disservice.