I was a member of a local credit union before it was ever open to the public. I think I had that account for close to a decade, and then rules and regulations changed and they decided to start growing. Shortly after they built a fairly large new central branch they started charging me fees on my saving account because I didn’t meet some new arbitrary minimum amount. I closed it shortly after that. While people bitch about BOA, Wells, and the big banks, I see just as much greed/gluttony from my local credit unions as I do them.
1 Like
Or in other words if you have some basic level of common sense it is easy to obtain (and maintain) a zero cost checking account. I have relatives that work in the banking industry and I can tell you, common sense isn’t common enough. I don’t know anyone who actively pays for checking/savings (either upfront or from fees of any sort).
And honestly if people are bitching about fee driven banking services why hasn’t a revolution started over things like origination/process fees for mortgages/loans? That is nothing more than an up front cost you are paying the bank when they still are making loads off the interest.
Americans should look into the brokerage companies’ banking arms. I have a Schwab checking account that has no maintenance fees, no foreign exchange fees, no ATM usage fees and no minimum balance requirement, pays interest (although it’s currently almost nothing), sends me free paper check refills when I run out, and even rebates unlimited ATM fees charged by other banks for using their ATMs so you can use almost any ATM anywhere in the world.
There are only two “catches”: One is that Schwab doesn’t have meatspace bank branches, so your cash withdrawals are limited to the ATM daily limit, and your deposits need to be made either electronically (they have an iPhone app where you take a photo of a check to deposit it) or by mail (they’ll send you postage-prepaid envelopes for mailing in checks that you can’t deposit with the iPhone app).
The other catch is that you have to open a Schwab brokerage account to get the Schwab checking account. But the brokerage account also has no fees or minimums, so you can just leave it empty without consequence (I haven’t touched my Schwab brokerage account in years).
I believe some of the other discount brokers (Fidelity, ETrade, etc.) have similar offerings.
1 Like
I am not really familiar with the American banking landscape, but what does this offer that a piggy bank doesn’t? Can you pay with your paycheck at Gamestop?
2 Likes
A “bank” that doesn’t insure my money, requires me to go in person to pick up my money (I step foot in a bank maybe once every six months), and doesn’t accept direct deposit. Hooray!
Not to mention you could only handle maybe a thousand dollars or so this way, and it would require you to maintain a massive spreadsheet. Plus your “banking rewards” are shitty little lanyards and awful DLC.
Like most things from 4chan and Reddit, it’s slightly humorous and completely terrible. If you’re really having issues with your bank giving you fees, you should absolutely move to a different bank or account type, but this is not a solution. As a previous poster said, I have no idea why this guy wouldn’t just keep his money in a safe, or in gold. Way more convenient and safer than this scheme.
3 Likes
Somehow I trust my bank not to go under and take all my money with it more than I trust Gamestop to be around in a decade.
Short lines at Gamestop?
There is always a huge line at Gamestop and even if there is not, it takes them 10-15 minutes to ring every single customer because there have 800 upsells, warranties, clubs… Hey this shitty resurfaced game you bought probably won’t work so you need to pay an extra $3 or we won’t give you your money back.
Plus they spend a ton of time having stupid conversations with people.
I hate having to stop at gamestop. The only reason I ever go there is to buy Giftcards it’s always at least 15 minutes in line.
1 Like
One more plus: unlike coffee-bot, Gamestop is unlikely to achieve sentience.
I use a credit union today, and from now on I always will. Many of them are still not-for-profit and offer cheap loans and actual dividends on savings balance. The only downside is fewer branches, but I really only need the one I can walk to.
4 Likes
Credit Unions compete against banks on cost handily, since they are non-profit. The problem is that most people don’t know about them.
1 Like
Actually, origination fees are for paying the individual or organization who puts your loan together and matches you with whoever is actually giving you the loan. Unless you’re actually getting the loan from the bank you walk in to (which is not very common), the bank you take out the loan at isn’t the one giving you the loan - they’re just a middleman, and the origination fee is how they get paid.
My credit union is in some kind of consortium that gives me access to free ATMs all over the place (including 7-11 convenience stores). I can make deposits at other CUs in the network and at most 7-11s. Its a lot better than gaming Gamestop.
2 Likes
This post is complete bullshit. No one with the idiotic mindset that can’t handle to track his money would pre order a ‘shitload’ of games. That takes more time than its worth. then go through and pick and choose which ones to harvest from. Why is this even a story?
In the USA, buying gum is great way to get cash out for nearly free. Make a petty debit card purchase and get cash back without an extra fee.
You can also do that at a post office even if you just buy one stamp. There is a growing movement to make post offices to offer light-duty banking services again, although I haven’t seen anything about how they would offer ATM access.
1 Like
Hack value.
For the same reason your comment is even a comment, despite the garbled and incomprehensible grammar?
2 Likes
And that’s the problem with fee based banking. It’s another poor tax.
4 Likes
Or that GameStop is basically a glorified pawn shop.
I did a service call at a few gamestops for adsl installation, and after being there for a while, I couldn’t shake the vibe, people bringing in consoles/games and selling them at ridiculous rates in my mind.
1 Like
I dumped BofA for a credit union, and I’m very happy. I never go to the bank anyway, so the limited number of branches isn’t an issue.
1 Like
How is this anything like a bank? You can’t use money “banked” this way for electronic or online transactions, you gain no interest, and there’s no FDIC to insure that your money continues to exist. You can’t have your employer direct-deposit your pay to Gamestop, and you can’t autopay your car loan with video game preorders. In other words, the only thing that makes this in any way different from The First National Bank of A Coffee Can Buried In Your Backyard is the fact that you get to piss off gamestop employees.
Idiotic.
2 Likes
