How many of you banking with Wells Fargo, Bank of America or Chase are going to continuing doing so even with their newly imposed fees for basic checking?
I ask this question because I'm trying to get a feel for what the everyday consumer/citizen feels about these new charges. Are you keeping your money with these banks? Are you heading for a credit union? What's your reaction?
I sat down with a Wells Fargo banker this week for a little "interview."
He asked me questions about my renter's insurance and if I had any. I didn't.
He asked if my employer offered direct deposit options for my paychecks. They don't.
He asked me what my savings goals were. I politely told him that it wasn't his business to know.
He asked how long I'd been with Wells Fargo. I told him that I was with Placer Savings before they were swallowed up by Wells Fargo and didn't have much say in the matter, but that, for the most part, I was happy with the bank.
Great, he said.
He assured me over and over again that he really wanted to save me money. I nodded and waited patiently for the bad news. He told me that I qualified for a discounted checking account costing $8 a month. I receive paperless statements so I get a $2 discount. Yay for me.
The tough thing to swallow is the fact that one day I pay nothing for this bank to invest and profit from interest off of my money and then, suddenly, I'm paying them to do this.
I understand that they're hurting like every other business, company and individual in this economy, but being charged to give someone my money seems like a foolish financial decision.
There must be other ways for them to keep afloat. Maybe they should consider making cuts or downsizing rather than plugging holes in a sinking ship and making their customers pay for the plugs.
Back to my original question; What are you doing about these fees? Is it annoying enough to make you switch banks? Are you fine with the additional service fee?
The feeling I get about these new bank fees are similar to the feeling I have at the box office when I notice that another 25 cents has been added to a movie ticket price. I complain about it and then pay anyways. The difference with this situation, however, is that I'm not sure I'm going to go ahead and pay this extra charge. I don't want to get used to paying a bank to play with my money just how I never wanted to get used to paying $10.25 for a movie ticket.
If we complain about these things, but take no action then we deserve the treatment we're getting.
...ramble on...
Um. Okay, full disclosure, I am not exactly financially savvy. So, take the following and do what you want with it. I left Wells Fargo when I was 18. I do not like them at al. I don't like paying for them to invest my money either. I have been a loyal member of Golden One Credit Union ever since. I love them. They helped me solve an international financial problem when I was in Costa Rica when I was 20, and they have fabulous customer service. I never experienced the lines and bureaucracy that I had to deal with at WF. So I am a fan. I highly recommend them. I know nothing of these new fees, as I have been living abroad for nearly two years, but it annoys me none the less. So why don't you give Golden 1 a try? The only downside is that they are a Northern and central California Bank so you can't get to a bank outside of the area, however there are no fees to take out money at other member credit unions... that is my two cents.
ReplyDeleteI refuse to deposit my money into a financial institution that charges me a monthly fee and then invests "my" funds where I see zero profit. With that said, I do have automatic deposit so US Bank does not charge me on a monthly basis. I have considered moving my banking and my HUGE life savings ($21 and some change) to the local credit union as it keeps the money local and I tend to trust the local homeboys more than the Wall Street executives (just for the record, I am not one of the so called 99%, I am pro-capitalism and fiscally conservative).
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