Comments

1
I think there's quite a lot of people beyond those considered "low-income" who don't have $20,000 in their savings and checking accounts.
2
So if you don't have $20,000 in liquid funds, you're "low income"?

3
I sure as hell don't have $20,000 lying around, and it seems to me the kind of people who do will have it somewhere it'll collect more than a fraction of a percent in interest.
4
You should probably point out that $25 billion for all of the banks isn't anything compared to the fines that Bank of America alone could face. This is a sucker deal and there's a reason CA and NYC are running from it.
5
I was under the impression that the fees were across all BoFA accounts - and somehow included mortgage loan debt if you held your mortgage at BoFA. I could be wrong; I didn't read that far into it.

Also. Unitus Community Credit Union is rad.
6
Hopefully people will see this for the red herring that it is. BoA is likely to back off of this plan for the moment, while tension is high, and try to bring it back at a later date while no one is watching.

Also. Umpqua Bank is rad, too. And they give you cookies. :D
7
It was fun closing my Wells Fargo yesterday.
8
Any "low income" peeps who don't bank at a local credit union are stone cold morons.
9
Bail the Failed !

If you do not have a private banker you are better off at a credit union.

If you do have a private banker then you are at a small regional bank.
10
Advantis, also rad...
11
I have a lot of issues with how the bank bailouts were handled and whether there should even be bank bailouts. I also have many concerns about compensation for executives that do a poor job.

However, having a checking account is a service that costs banks money. Most of us, probably almost all of us, get that service for free unless we do something stupid, like bounce a check or its equivalent: have an overdraft. They don't charge us for the cards we use. They don't charge us to come in and cash our checks. They don't charge us to get $20 in quarters. They don't charge us for using their very expensive ATMs. They don't charge us for having the account in the first place. Most of the people they have on staff are there to serve us and our free checking accounts. It's only when we get a loan or credit card that we start paying for our services. So the banks try to charge a pretty minor fee (about the price of a pint of beer or latte) per month and people freak the fuck out like it's a sign of the apocalypse.

Ironically, people were getting charged more indirectly before. Anyone who runs a business that takes credit cards is very familiar with the fees for debit and credit cards. Anyone who used their debit card 10 times in a month had already had a business pay that $5 fee (and had probably had much of it passed on to them in higher prices). Now that the banks attempt to make the fees transparent for everyone, then people get upset. Now what's going to happen is they'll find a new, hidden or less obvious way to make up those fees.

There's further irony in that this is all happening around the same time as Steve Jobs's passing. My twitter feed has been filled with people lamenting the death of someone not just in the 1%, but the .1%, who helped create a company that is now one of the most profitable in the world, making huge sums of cash on products that are largely toys for our entertainment. I enjoy my iPod, but the banking system is a necessary ingredient in wealth creation, wealth that has given us the longest, healthiest lives in history with little fear from crime, war, or famine.

But by all means: iPod profits good, check card profits bad.

12
I don't buy into the argument that checking accounts cost the banks money one bit.
First off,they use our deposited money to invest with and make money from.
Also, banking people are in the business to make money, and if it were a losing deal to begin with, they wouldn't offer it.
13
This is awesome! I was just reading about this! Has anyone else heard about the Facebook group called "Bank Transfer Day"? This article has some information at it: http://www.creditcardprocessing.net/bank-o…

Apparently tens of thousands of people are moving their money this Saturday! Awesome!!
14
I am floating on a cloud of elation from dumping my crappy B of A mortgage today. CELEBRATE GOOD TIMES COME ON!!
15
It felt awesome dumping B of A on November 5th. What a load off! Unfortunately, they've hinted that they will be finding new revenue models to recoup their projected losses. Already, big banks are boosting rewards programs to get people to charge instead of use their debit cards. Source: http://www.creditcardprocessing.net/credit…

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