Looking for a New Bank (Bell: credit, travel, work)

[mshs2]

We are moving down there and thus will need to switch banks immediately. Any recommednations or banks with free ATM usage from any ATM?


Thanks in Advance.

[cmj_fla]

Washington Mutual does not charge you for using non Wamu ATMs. However, you be charged the ATM fee from the actual machine itself. We just switched to them from Bank of America and are very happy so far.

[burnw005]

We joing the Partners FCU when we started working at Disney. Great service, and low fees. Basically, that's it. Any larger employer will have an association with a credit union, so take advantage, its a win-win.

[Wilshire81182]

Originally Posted by cmj_fla

Washington Mutual does not charge you for using non Wamu ATMs. However, you be charged the ATM fee from the actual machine itself. We just switched to them from Bank of America and are very happy so far.

I did the opposite switch recently because WaMu's online banking is very poor and they made some severe accounting errors on my accounts. The first couple times I ate some overdraft fees and consequences, but it got to the point where I had to switch. Bank of America has been a dream come true since I do all my billing and accounting online and everything clears and is accounted for the minute you swipe your card. Also, on www.bauerfinancial.com, WaMu is not very stable for the size bank it is.

[Lindsey_Mcfarren]

I had been thinking of changing from Bank of America because of some problems I have had with them and Wakovia offered an account for students with over draw privileges. However there has been some interesting news of late about Wakovia that makes me hesitate. I had wanted to still be with a bank that had good coverage across the US but I'm not sure thats going to be posible now.

[jemelb]

I would recommend joining some kind of credit union...

I have used Fairwinds Credit Union for more than 10 years, so far so good...

[cmj_fla]

Wilshire, I have really missed the real-time online banking that they provided. It was a real easy way to bank so now I have to keep track of things a little better. However the reason I switched is because Bank of America has changed many of its rules lately and it was just too hard to keep up. Plus, they have recently taken on a huge liability of purchasing Countrywide which worried me as well.

Credit Unions are a great idea knowing all the banking problems with the BIG banks like BOA and Wamu etc.

[pianogal]

I second the credit union and recommend Insight Financial. We've been with them for 25 years (actually it was Bell South, then Bell Tel and now Insight) had great service and never a problem. We haven't had to pay for any banking services in all those years - gotten great interest rates on our cars, free traveler's checks, etc.

[nap]

We recently moved from out of state as well, but I've banked with Wachovia for years. I do billpay directly through Quicken and have never had a problem. I do 90% of my banking online.

I had a bank in Hawaii that reimbursed ATM fees, but since we're here, I've had difficulty finding a place I'm happy with. For ATM access, I just opened an account at Bank of Internet in San Diego. I don't use a lot of cash, but I hate to pay those stupid fees or go to weird places to get cash from an ATM. BofI reimburses up to $8 in ATM fees either every statement cycle or every month, I don't remember which. I'm not crazy about their website, but the no fee ATM withdrawals works for me.

Good luck.

BTW - if you want information on fees and the ratings of institutions, a good place to check is www.bankrate.com.

[cwaz]

I also use Wachovia