Bank of America: $60 per year just to use their debit card.

[Disneyliscious]

$5 per month if you use a debit card with BoA. Swiping it as debit/credit doesn't matter. I hope to see a mass exodus from this crooked bank. And yes, other large banks are following suit. Hopefully, "supporting your local merchant" will become a thing of the new, instead of a thing of the past.

 

[Sadie22]

Changing fee structures in order to stay in business do not make a business crooked. Limits were placed on other fees that were charged in the past so the shortfall had to be (partially) made up. Other banks were already charging similar fees. I hope the employees at my local branch can all keep their jobs due to this small change. Only some bank customers will be affected.

 

[Diabolicdesire]

Got notice from Suntrust that they would also be charging 5.00 month. Looks like we'll be moving DH direct deposit to the credit union.

 

[LisaNJ25]

Great... Any idea if that is per card on your account? Is their a date is starts?

 

[Disneyliscious]

Changing fee structures in order to stay in business do not make a business crooked. Limits were placed on other fees that were charged in the past so the shortfall had to be (partially) made up. Other banks were already charging similar fees. I hope the employees at my local branch can all keep their jobs due to this small change. Only some bank customers will be affected.

In the past few weeks alone, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Cisco Systems and Borders have all announced massive layoffs. Borders is closing its retail stores, auctioning off its holdings and letting go 10,000 employees as, due to online competition, the company is no longer profitable and filed for bankruptcy earlier this year. In contrast, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and Cisco Systems have all posted profits in the last few quarters – in some cases, record highs. Alhough according to the latest data, 9.1% of Americans are unemployed, major US corporations are slashing jobs not out of necessity but out of greed. The revived focus in Washington on creating jobs may be pointless if corporate America no longer needs workers.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2011/aug/24/profit-wall-street-recession (just one of several similar articles I found reporting on this).

 

[dvcgirl]

Changing fee structures in order to stay in business do not make a business crooked. Limits were placed on other fees that were charged in the past so the shortfall had to be (partially) made up. Other banks were already charging similar fees. I hope the employees at my local branch can all keep their jobs due to this small change. Only some bank customers will be affected.

No, it doesn't make them crooked to charge $5 a month for debit fee use, but what really should be examined is why they were able to provide free checking and debit fee use for so long. They were able to do that because they made so much money in the crooked debt markets selling homes to people who in no way could afford them.

Now BofA, and all the rest of the big banks, aren't seeing anywhere near the profits that they saw in those "pie in the sky days". And so now they're going to come up with every possible way they can to stick it to their customers.

I think that this fee will be the one the really backfires...and customers will leave in droves.

 

[Bonniec]

Yep, we will be leaving. Limits were placed to protect customers, now they are just finding ways aroound it.

 

[Disneyliscious]

Great... Any idea if that is per card on your account? Is their a date is starts?

September 30, 2011 (CHICAGO) (WLS) -- Bank of America is going to start charging customers to use their debit cards, and the move comes ahead of major reform go into effect Saturday.

Bank of America said Thursday that it will start charging a $5 monthly fee when customers make debit card purchases. The fee will be rolled out starting early next year.
(this includes using the debit card as a crecit card)
Bank of America's new announcement of a $5 per month fee goes days before new regulation goes into effect. A bill sponsored by Sen. Dick Durbin regulates fees banks can charge retailers, so now Bank of America is sticking it to consumers and blaming it on Durbin's bill.

Bank of America says it needs the money from somewhere, but Durbin says that banks rake in excess profit in an unfair system. Bank of America is the country's largest bank with a 7 million customers. Other banks like JPMorgan Chase are testing a $3 debit card fee. Bank of America's fees starts in 2012.
"Fees for debt cards usage is just something were giong to see a lot more of in the weeks and months ahead because banks are going to be making a lot less revenue every time a consumer swipres that card," said Greg McBride, senior financial analyst, Bankrate.com.

"With this economy, I think it's hard for those of us to take that extra hit right now," said Maria Cuevas, a Bank of America customer.

PNC, Citibank and U.S. Bank all say that for now, they will not charge a fee but experts say that this could become the norm, all for that convenience of using a debit card.

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=8373759

 

[TinkPirateMom]

Looks like I have to get rid of my account and use our credit union account. I think the credit unions are less likely to charge these fees.

 

[POPCITY]

It doesn't bother me at all. Five bucks a month for the convenience of having the card is a bargain to me.

 

[eliza61]

It doesn't bother me at all. Five bucks a month for the convenience of having the card is a bargain to me.

Nope, not for me.
60 bucks a year to use my own money which the bank is making a profit on through lending and interest.
On top of the fee for using a non bank atm, on top of any fee you get for the actual account.

Bank of America charges a fee if you're checking account is below $1500 bucks. Now generally I don't keep 1500 extra dollars in my checking account especially one that is not paying interest. so now you have the potential of 20 dollars a month!! They ain't that dang convenient.

I'm so glad I got rid of my national commercial banks long ago.

I have a savings account at my local bank for convenience and my mortgage, savings and credit card are all through my credit union. No fee whatsoever.

 

[Plumeria9]

I left B of A a few months ago because they started charging me $25/mo to have a checking account there, even though I kept a minimum of $1500 in there, per their requirements. I used to have a mortgage there, and my acct was free until I refinanced last year. I never used the B of A debit card anyway. I moved my B & M banking to a credit union. I'm glad I made a really good decision there!

 

[Kitzka]

I have had a BOA account as a secondary account (saving for a specific thing) for years but if they are going to be charging I am going to have to close the account. I will either move it to my local bank where DD has her saving account or something similar.

i really hope other banks do not start following suit. i know that's wishful thinking but i'm trying to think positive.

Lara

 

[thomas998]

You just have to be very selective in where you bank.

I managed to find a credit union that offers a checking account that will pay 4% interest in any money you have in it up to $30,000... the only catch is you 1)have to use the debit card without using the pin number 12 times a month, 2)have to have a direct deposit of at least $500 a month going into the account and 3) have to do an electronic bill pay from the account at least one time a month.... No fees, just better interest than I could get on my money if I had stuck it in a CD.

So look around at the local places and you will be amazed at what you can find.

 

[Jeff_G]

The problem I have with all of this, the interchange fees charged to a retailer by various banks will be capped tomorrow, so you and I and everyone knows the retailers are NOT going to be lowering prices tomorrow. Prices will remain the same, now those who's bank choose to charge for debit card usage will pay twice. Once from the retailer who already factored in these charges into their pricing model and now from the bank.

 

[SaraJayne]

If a bank ever tried to charge me to use my own money, they'd lose our business immediately.

I'm so glad we use a local bank and credit union.

I hope every single customer of BOA and Suntrust take their money elsewhere.

 

[Planogirl]

I plan to stay with BoA even with this fee. It doesn't bother me because I expected them to make up the loss in revenue due to the new law in some way.

I really expect all banks both big and small to do the same eventually.

 

[Swimalie]

I have had a BOA account as a secondary account (saving for a specific thing) for years but if they are going to be charging I am going to have to close the account. I will either move it to my local bank where DD has her saving account or something similar.

i really hope other banks do not start following suit. i know that's wishful thinking but i'm trying to think positive.

Lara

For saving up for something, I recommend something like an ING account. We have money automatically transferred to a savings account there each month.

My husband belong to a credit union for 40+ years. Then they started charging a monthly fee. No thanks. We closed the account and stayed with our free, national bank. We don't use or even own a debit card so those fees won't affect us. Maybe at some point they will add in a fee for our account but for now we're sticking with it.

 

[mischief32]

I only has a credit card with BOA but if I had a checking account I would move my money also. I think we should all go back to using checks just for the principal of it. I only use checks to pay some household bills. I have had a checking.saving account at the local Credit Union since I was 17.

 

[disykat]

I wonder how this will affect businesses like Costco? DH and I discussed it and Costco is the only place we use debit. We can use cash or check inside, but will probably just buy gas elsewhere.

For me, if everyone starts charging $60 will not be that big of a deal and I'll just avoid it. My teens, however, have very limited funds and use debit pretty much exclusively. We have to look for another option for them.