Should I change banks?! Help! A good bank?Bank of America has rapidly gone down hill in the last few years. They are giving accounts to people who should not have them and other things that aren't kosher. They keep claiming that we are making more than the allowed (3) transfers/withdraws out of our savings account but we never make withdraws, only... | |
I suggest that you visit several banks and speak to the customer service personnel. Bring a written list of questions which are important to you. Find out the features and charges of each of their accounts. Find out how many ATMs are available, and whether there is a service charge for using the ATM.
Make sure you get everything in writing. Do not accept anything the customer service person tells you verbally.
There is no good or bad bank or credit union. You need to look at the totality of the bank’s services, accounts, and fees. Every bank and credit union offers several accounts with different features and different fees. Some banks may have low overdraft fees, but high fees in other areas. Some accounts waive all fees if you maintain a minimum balance. The minimum balance varies from bank to bank. For example Bank of America in Dallas sets its minimum balance for its checking accounts at $5,000 to avoid monthly maintenance fees. Other accounts have a monthly fee, but no fee on each transaction. Other accounts have no monthly fee, but a fee for each transaction.
Some banks have a large number of ATMs which you can use without a charge. Other banks have a charge for ATMs.
By the way, I live in Garland, TX and I use Bank of America.
All banks are the same.
Just treat bank of america's transfer policy with respect and only do 3 transfers a month.
No one should really be doing more than this.
Try to keep at least 2 weeks pay in your checking at all times to avoid having to transfer money around.
With credit unions you won't see as many of these little fees.
But. They have few ATMs (sometimes just one).
And limited things you can do online.
They are strict on some things.
One time they held a check for 10 days after it cleared because they said it was too large. Over $1,000. To me that's not large, its a mortgage payment.
They have limited business hours.
If you lose your debit card, you have to wait till the next business day to report it lost.
