Bank of America is about to lose another customer.

[¿spoom]

Here's the problem with the CC idea: if you don't carry a balance every month then they'll just cancel your card.

If all banks start doing it then I'll just bust out my Early Cuyler "Cash Is KING!" trucker hat and start carrying wads of green again like I used to.

You mean if you pay it in full they'll cancel your card? No offense, but I've paid mine off every month for over 35 years and not had that happen with any card company yet. Currently w/Chase and the balance is usually $2k-$3k a month, and I pay it in full on time, with no fee. That's around $60/month in merchant fees, they love me.

[The Anvil]

Here's the problem with the CC idea: if you don't carry a balance every month then they'll just cancel your card.

If all banks start doing it then I'll just bust out my Early Cuyler "Cash Is KING!" trucker hat and start carrying wads of green again like I used to.

You mean if you pay it in full they'll cancel your card? No offense, but I've paid mine off every month for over 35 years and not had that happen with any card company yet. Currently w/Chase and the balance is usually $2k-$3k a month, and I pay it in full on time, with no fee. That's around $60/month in merchant fees, they love me.

Could be I just didn't use mine enough either. I generally pay cash or debit for everything. I only keep credit cards for things like renting a car but I try to at least make one or two small purchases a month just to keep it active. They canceled me anyway. 

[¿spoom]

I can dig it. I don't see the whole $5/mo fee as being a big deal except for folks who don't qualify for a credit card, and even then it might be worth it to help establish a credit rating. I say that because I've never understood why someone would want to use a debit card in the first place. I'd rather write one check a month and use their money prior, than be in a rush to have the money zoom outta my checking account the instant I make a purchase. I'd drop the debit card in an instant before I'd pay the $5 fee. I respect their right to charge it, but like an annual fee, I'm not gonna pay it!

[Valkahuna]

Here's the problem with the CC idea: if you don't carry a balance every month then they'll just cancel your card.

If all banks start doing it then I'll just bust out my Early Cuyler "Cash Is KING!" trucker hat and start carrying wads of green again like I used to.

Not exactly true.  Cards are cancelled if you don't use them.  If you use them every month, but pay the balance in full, they're happy... 'cause they charge the merchant for your transactions.  

P.S.  There is no annual fee on any card I use.

Neither is a given. I've had TWO cards canceled even though I used them regularly. I carry a small balance on my lone credit card now for that reason.

My wife and I both have our own BofA CC and pay our balance off every month. No annual fee, no cancellations, for many years now.

[John Schmidt]

I can dig it. I don't see the whole $5/mo fee as being a big deal except for folks who don't qualify for a credit card, and even then it might be worth it to help establish a credit rating. I say that because I've never understood why someone would want to use a debit card in the first place. I'd rather write one check a month and use their money prior, than be in a rush to have the money zoom outta my checking account the instant I make a purchase. I'd drop the debit card in an instant before I'd pay the $5 fee. I respect their right to charge it, but like an annual fee, I'm not gonna pay it!

I don't really follow your line of reasoning. First, a debit card generally won't have any impact on your credit rating to establish credit worthiness. As for my wife and myself, our CC's have a  high credit line plus we have a home equity line. We've never had to use the equity line to the max thank goodness(made a good dent in it after the 2004 hurricanes hit us). But the jerks just keep raising the CC limits regardless of how much we use it except for the equity line which is an established figure, it won't change. We have separate bank accounts and separate CC's in our own names. The bank accounts are set up joint so we can access them in case the spouse is disabled, but we never go into each other's account. The CC's are not joint and if either of us should pass away with a balance, too bad, the remaining spouse has no obligation to pay it off. As for CC's, I keep a very low balance if for no other reason than to keep it showing as actively being used. Interest on $300 +/- is minimal at best, but the longevity of the open accounts have a huge impact on your credit score. I have one that's approx. 35 yrs. old and still active, another is with AOPA and close to 20 yrs. old, the third is about 10 yrs. old.

As for the use of a debit card as opposed to writing a check once a month to use "their" money, you forget...that's your money, not the banks. I choose not carry or keep available large amounts of cash either on me or in the house. The debit card is a convenience, more so than stopping to write a check when you don't happen to have the cash with you. And, the card fits in my wallet, the checkbook doesn't, and it's also easier(and safer) than carrying a wad in my pocket. Is the debit card fee of $5 a major issue for us? No, not a financial issue, all of us will waste many times more than that in a month. To me, it's more like Anvil's analysis: GREED, pure and simple. If the Credit Unions and independent banks can survive and make billions without charging a debit card fee, then SunTrust, BOA, Wells Fargo, etc., can also survive. Many independent banks even refund you the exhorbitant ATM fee charged when you don't use one of their ATM's. Try and get that from the big banks I've listed above. It's GREED on their part, nothing more, especially when it's all done via computer in a split second so they're not paying for huge amounts of time per transaction on another company's computer system. And, when it comes to paying by check as some endorse, more and more here in the Orlando area they have a check reader which acts just like a debit card reader. They scan your check, it takes the money out of your account at that moment and they hand you back your cancelled check. You might just as well have used a debit card and not gone through the trouble of carrying and writing the check.

[Michael K (Az.)]

As a future ex-B of A customer, I agree with you wholeheartedly on the greed factor. I haven't written a check for so long for public purchases, reading about your point on check readers strengthens the argument. Now I have to do some research to find a bank / C.U.that will satisfy my limited income retirement needs before the Jan. rape begins.

[BigAl]

Vote Dodd and Frank out , they sposored the bill so the Banks will take it in the Catookas over these cards.

It was charged to the store before.

Now guess who gets it.

Dodd and Frank bill did it.

Wait are they the Dems looking our for America.

They usually get it wrong don't they.

They should stay out of it.

Al

[f6gal]

As a future ex-B of A customer, I agree with you wholeheartedly on the greed factor. I haven't written a check for so long for public purchases, reading about your point on check readers strengthens the argument. Now I have to do some research to find a bank / C.U.that will satisfy my limited income retirement needs before the Jan. rape begins.

Try Arizona Federal
https://www.arizonafederal.org/membership/index.cfm

[Michael K (Az.)]

As a future ex-B of A customer, I agree with you wholeheartedly on the greed factor. I haven't written a check for so long for public purchases, reading about your point on check readers strengthens the argument. Now I have to do some research to find a bank / C.U.that will satisfy my limited income retirement needs before the Jan. rape begins.

Try Arizona Federal
https://www.arizonafederal.org/membership/index.cfm

Thanks Connie!!

[doubletee]

Here's the problem with the CC idea: if you don't carry a balance every month then they'll just cancel your card.
If all banks start doing it then I'll just bust out my Early Cuyler "Cash Is KING!" trucker hat and start carrying wads of green again like I used to.

Not exactly true.  Cards are cancelled if you don't use them.  If you use them every month, but pay the balance in full, they're happy... 'cause they charge the merchant for your transactions.  
P.S.  There is no annual fee on any card I use.

Neither is a given. I've had TWO cards canceled even though I used them regularly. I carry a small balance on my lone credit card now for that reason.

If you say so.  Personally I've had many cards cancelled for non-use, but never for not carrying a balance.  
In fact, the cards I use give me either cash back or miles every month and I've never paid them a dime in interest.  I pay for EVERYTHING with cc's, pay in full at the end of the billing cycle, and reap my 1% cash back.... I've done this for many, many years.

+1   

[¿spoom]

"...that's your money, not the banks" I don't follow. When I purchase something with a credit card early in the billing month and pay for it a month later at no interest, who's money am I using? Not mine, for that period. Use a debit card and it comes right out of the corresponding bank account, so that's my money for sure. I'm obviously missing something, what is the advantage of a debit card over a credit card?

[KY,Dave (AKA Misunderstood)]

"...that's your money, not the banks" I don't follow. When I purchase something with a credit card early in the billing month and pay for it a month later at no interest, who's money am I using? Not mine, for that period. Use a debit card and it comes right out of the corresponding bank account, so that's my money for sure. I'm obviously missing something, what is the advantage of a debit card over a credit card?

Only real benefit is that with a debit your using your money and will probably think twice before spending. Using a credit card is like anesthesia (sp?) and since you don't feel anything when using most people tend to spend more then they would otherwise..

Disclaimer: I use and payoff the balance every month on a CC, but am working my way to using a debit and no longer a credit card

[musclehead]

Bank profits are up 109%. Lending is down almost 10%. America invested in the banks by bailing them out of their own mess (when we should have just let them fail to teach them a lesson) and they're not returning the favor. I wouldn't s stand for that s**t for one minute and you shouldn't either.

maybe Yahoo finance is wrong but it doesn't look like BofA's proftis are up at all. in fact haven't they announced 30,000 layoffs? not all banks appear to be rolling in the dough....

looking at the 5 year, they are on a slide.

http://finance.yahoo.com/echarts?s=BAC+Interactive#chart1:symbol=bac;range=5y;indicator=volume;charttype=line;crosshair=on;ohlcvalues=0;logscale=on;source=undefined

[Cruzen]

Only real benefit is that with a debit your using your money and will probably think twice before spending. Using a credit card is like anesthesia (sp?) and since you don't feel anything when using most people tend to spend more then they would otherwise..

I have heard all the folks that claim they pay it off at the end of the month but like a car salesmen,  I tend not to believe them.  Debit cards control those types of impulses that get Americans into trouble.  I have not used a CC in over 25 years and am completely debt free and enjoying every minute of it and if I'm gone from home over 30 days or so I do not have to worry about paying some CC bill.   

 

[hubcapsc]

I have not used a CC in over 25 years and am completely debt free and enjoying every minute of it and if I'm gone from home over 30 days or so I do not have to worry about paying some CC bill.

I don't believe you 

-Mike

[John Schmidt]

I'd rather write one check a month and use their money prior, than be in a rush to have the money zoom outta my checking account the instant I make a purchase
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Did you mean by your statement that you'd rather use a CC(their money) for the month, followed by a single check upon receiving the end of month bill? Do that in place of using a debit card? If so, then I misunderstood your meaning. In that case I tend to agree with you on a limited basis, except that I personally prefer to keep the CC balance as low as possible. Basically, if I can't afford to pay for it up front, I either don't need it or will put off the purchase until I can afford it. Naturally there are times when a sale item is just too good to pass up and I will use the CC if the cash reserves aren't available.

[Cruzen]

I have not used a CC in over 25 years and am completely debt free and enjoying every minute of it and if I'm gone from home over 30 days or so I do not have to worry about paying some CC bill.

I don't believe you 

-Mike

Sorry but it's true.  Those who know me personally know this is true.  No payments other than utilities and insurance.  I write five checks per month to pay all my billed expenses such cable phone and utilities and another twice a year for vehicle insurance.  I own my house, two Corvettes, one 55 Chevy, two motorcycles and have been unemployed for over a year and I'm not worried about having to make payments on anything and I just posted the results of my recent trip to Colorado all paid for with my debt card.  This is all because my parents who never had a charge card taught me to live off the money I had and not someone elses.  They never financed either of their two houses or a car or anything else.  Life is good being dept free!!

[¿spoom]

I'd rather write one check a month and use their money prior, than be in a rush to have the money zoom outta my checking account the instant I make a purchase
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Did you mean by your statement that you'd rather use a CC(their money) for the month, followed by a single check upon receiving the end of month bill? Do that in place of using a debit card? If so, then I misunderstood your meaning. In that case I tend to agree with you on a limited basis, except that I personally prefer to keep the CC balance as low as possible. Basically, if I can't afford to pay for it up front, I either don't need it or will put off the purchase until I can afford it. Naturally there are times when a sale item is just too good to pass up and I will use the CC if the cash reserves aren't available.

Yes sir. I purchase virtually everything on my credit card, and pay it in full every month. No interest to pay and the card has no annual fee (or any other fees). Chase doesn't mind because the average merchant fee is around ~3% and I cost them very little in admin fees since I pay up without being chased down   I have an interest-bearing checking account that is paying under 1% but hey, it's something so I like to keep my money in it as long as possible. I understand the concept of some people needing a debit card to keep them from overspending, but that's their problem not mine. I don't buy what I can't pay for, but if it helps others stay solvent using a debit card over a credit card, then $5 a month seems a small price to pay for saving them from themselves. "I'm from the gummint-I'm here to help?".

[hubcapsc]

Sorry but it's true.
--------------------------

I was just yanking your chain for saying you didn't believe us... 

One thing is true - life is good, and life without debt is really good.

Me and my wife have only 1 credit card between us, we use it constantly, and
haven't carried a balance since sometime in the 90's...

-Mike

[¿spoom]

I have not used a CC in over 25 years and am completely debt free and enjoying every minute of it and if I'm gone from home over 30 days or so I do not have to worry about paying some CC bill.

I don't believe you 

-Mike

Sorry but it's true.  Those who know me personally know this is true.  No payments other than utilities and insurance.  I write five checks per month to pay all my billed expenses such cable phone and utilities and another twice a year for vehicle insurance.  I own my house, two Corvettes, one 55 Chevy, two motorcycles and have been unemployed for over a year and I'm not worried about having to make payments on anything and I just posted the results of my recent trip to Colorado all paid for with my debt card.  This is all because my parents who never had a charge card taught me to live off the money I had and not someone elses.  They never financed either of their two houses or a car or anything else.  Life is good being dept free!!

I'm obviously too dense to grasp this, so please type your reply real slow

How would your recent trip to CO have been any different if you'd used a credit card for the exact same purchases and mailed them a check later?

[Cruzen]

Sorry but it's true.
--------------------------

I was just yanking your chain for saying you didn't believe us... 

One thing is true - life is good, and life without debt is really good.

Me and my wife have only 1 credit card between us, we use it constantly, and
haven't carried a balance since sometime in the 90's...

-Mike

Yea Mike, I saw the smiley.  I figured you were in a similar situation as me.  Some folks do doubt me though but those who klnow me don't.  Isn't it feel good when you do not have those burdens caused by owing someone something.  You sleep in a bed you own, in a house you own and drive a vehicle you own.  I may not be eating steak every night but those hamburgers and beer sure taste a lot better to me because I know everything is paid for.

[Cruzen]

I'm obviously too dense to grasp this, so please type your reply real slow

How would your recent trip to CO have been any different if you'd used a credit card for the exact same purchases and mailed them a check later?

Until you write that check to pay your CC invoice, someone own's you.  They got your boys in their hand.  Something happens to you to keep you from writing that check on time like maybe an accident or having to leave town for a family emergency or something and they start tightening their grip.  They got you!!  Trying to explain living debt free to anyone who is not there is like trying to explain a Valkyrie to a die hard HD rider.  You just don't understand until you get there.  Once you do you never want to go back.

[musclehead]

Sorry but it's true.
--------------------------

I was just yanking your chain for saying you didn't believe us... 

One thing is true - life is good, and life without debt is really good.

Me and my wife have only 1 credit card between us, we use it constantly, and
haven't carried a balance since sometime in the 90's...

-Mike

all you debt free peeps are sooooooo weird, I wanna be just like you. soon I will be 

[¿spoom]

I'm obviously too dense to grasp this, so please type your reply real slow

How would your recent trip to CO have been any different if you'd used a credit card for the exact same purchases and mailed them a check later?

Until you write that check to pay your CC invoice, someone own's you.  They got your boys in their hand.  Something happens to you to keep you from writing that check on time like maybe an accident or having to leave town for a family emergency or something and they start tightening their grip.  They got you!!  

Sorry, but IMHO that's just one step short of tinfoil in your hat. I don't owe for anything I didn't take, same as you. I don't buy anything I don't have the money for, same as you. I pay once a month vs several times, that's the only difference. If I drop dead or get beamed up to the mother ship or anything in between the money's still in my checking account and my estate will take care of any bills I leave behind (except refueling the mother ship).

[DarkMeister]

[/quote]

all you debt free peeps are sooooooo weird, I wanna be just like you. soon I will be 
[/quote]

My version of that:

all you debt free peeps are sooooooo weird, I wanna be just like you. I never will be   

[bscrive]

Well, I am in debt.  I have a mortgage on my house, a loan on my car and I use both my debit and my visa cards.  I sometimes have a balance on my visa card and sometimes I pay it off.  I still sleep like a baby at night.  I plan to go out of this world having the time of my life, if that means I am going to rack up some debt so be it.  My wife is set up pretty well if I die so we enjoy life.  If there is some money left over when we die the balance will go to charity.  No one ever got anywhere in life without risk and being in debt at sometime.  Only a few are debt free and they usually get their money from mommy and daddy after they die, I am not so lucky.

[Casper96]

I have my own reasons why I would NEVER do business with that bank. It may be the bank of america but why did they hand out so many home loans and credit cards to people that didn't even have social security numbers...

[Farther]

Are you 'greedy' for wanting to be paid for what you do? 

Yes, if the services provided are less than their value.

[Michael K (Az.)]

Are you 'greedy' for wanting to be paid for what you do? 

Yes, if the services provided are less than their value.

+1

[¿spoom]

How about all those demostrations against Wall Street and the big banks going on right now?

They read the map wrong and thought they were in Washington, DC? 

[Scott in Ok]

My argument for using a credit card(paid in full each month), vs using a debit card:

When we travel, I prefer to use my credit card.  In the unlikely event that someone steals my debit card, or gets ahold of my debit card information....my bank balance is at risk.  Sure I can probably contact the bank and go through the process of getting those transactions removed but the entire time, the thief will have the money in my checking account.  And some banks don't offer the same protection for fraudulent charges on a debit card as they do on a credit card.

Now, if that happens on my credit card.....I call, let them know about the fraud....and start working through getting it resolved.  None of my bank balance is involved until I ultimately have to pay the balance on the credit card at the end of the month(which by that point should have any fraudulent charges removed).

Debit cards have their place, as I use mine almost daily, but there are plenty of times that using a credit card makes more sense.

-Scott

[Farther]

I carry both a debit card and two credit cards.  The debit card is just used to get money from the ATM and the credit cards are use for every puchase that will take a credit card with no minimum.  At the end of the month I have a complete record of all my purchases and the credit card is payed off monthly. 

Three people walk into a store an purchase a 6-pack.  One pays with cash, another with debit card and the third (me) with a credit card.  All three pay the same price.  However the credit card holders money continues to accrue interest in his savings account and he also get cash back on his credit card purchase.  In effect the credit card user is paying less for each of his purchases.  The down side is if you carry a balance on your card, and I don't period.

[¿spoom]

Where's the joke? Washington is the whore of big money.

Sorry, I was a little obtuse. The banks only got away with what their well paid senators and reps (both parties) allowed them to. Ultimtely when a supposedly "regulated" industry screws us like the banks did and still get bailed out with virtually no strings attached, it's the regulator's fault not the banks IMO.

[¿spoom]

My argument for using a credit card(paid in full each month), vs using a debit card:

When we travel, I prefer to use my credit card.  In the unlikely event that someone steals my debit card, or gets ahold of my debit card information....my bank balance is at risk.  Sure I can probably contact the bank and go through the process of getting those transactions removed but the entire time, the thief will have the money in my checking account.  And some banks don't offer the same protection for fraudulent charges on a debit card as they do on a credit card.

Now, if that happens on my credit card.....I call, let them know about the fraud....and start working through getting it resolved.  None of my bank balance is involved until I ultimately have to pay the balance on the credit card at the end of the month(which by that point should have any fraudulent charges removed).

Debit cards have their place, as I use mine almost daily, but there are plenty of times that using a credit card makes more sense.

-Scott

Very true, by law you can only be held liable for the first $50 on a lost/stolen credit card but any similar protection with a debit card is voluntary on the part of the issuing bank..

[The Anvil]

Sorry, I was a little obtuse. The banks only got away with what their well paid senators and reps (both parties) allowed them to. Ultimtely when a supposedly "regulated" industry screws us like the banks did and still get bailed out with virtually no strings attached, it's the regulator's fault not the banks IMO.

John Mellencamp once said in a song (about bankers ironically) "callin it your job don't make it right". Don't let the banks off the hook by putting it all on everyone's favorite whipping boy (the government). That's like blaming the person who left the keys in the car and not the person who used them to steal it. Might not have been a smart move to leave your sticks in the hole, but it's still wrong to take someone else's car.

[Valkahuna]

Hey Cruzen!!! Just because you can't control your spending habits does not make me a liar!

A Credit Card is a tool that there is nothing wrong with if you control yourself! We taught our kids the same logic, and helped them get CCs while in college. It set them both on the right path, and established excellent credit references for both of them. Guess what? We also taught them self control and how to be responsible adults, and even they continue to pay off their entire balance each month!

Nothing like painting everyone with the same broad brush! You need to be more careful about who you decide to call liars. 

Only real benefit is that with a debit your using your money and will probably think twice before spending. Using a credit card is like anesthesia (sp?) and since you don't feel anything when using most people tend to spend more then they would otherwise..

I have heard all the folks that claim they pay it off at the end of the month but like a car salesmen,  I tend not to believe them.  Debit cards control those types of impulses that get Americans into trouble.  I have not used a CC in over 25 years and am completely debt free and enjoying every minute of it and if I'm gone from home over 30 days or so I do not have to worry about paying some CC bill.   

 

[Valkahuna]

What makes you assume that because someone uses a credit card, and pays the entire balance off monthly means that they carry debt?  That's a totally irrational statement! But since you are so set to brag on yourself, I (we) also are totally debt free except for things like utilities and insurances. And that includes both of our humble abodes. And yes, it does feel good, but it's also a lot of luck in todays economic situation. I unfortunately know some very responsible people who due to no fault of their own lost their employment. Or what about the poor guy who has had health issues? You certainly do jump quickly to unwarranted conclusions!

What does that have to do with using a credit card wisely?  ???

Sorry but it's true.
--------------------------

I was just yanking your chain for saying you didn't believe us... 

One thing is true - life is good, and life without debt is really good.

Me and my wife have only 1 credit card between us, we use it constantly, and
haven't carried a balance since sometime in the 90's...

-Mike

Yea Mike, I saw the smiley.  I figured you were in a similar situation as me.  Some folks do doubt me though but those who klnow me don't.  Isn't it feel good when you do not have those burdens caused by owing someone something.  You sleep in a bed you own, in a house you own and drive a vehicle you own.  I may not be eating steak every night but those hamburgers and beer sure taste a lot better to me because I know everything is paid for.

[musclehead]

Where's the joke? Washington is the whore of big money.

well let's fix that

www.fairtax.org

[Oss]

i dont pay bank charges

citibank and several credit cards and I have NEVER used an ATM

I was told by a friend who had kids in college to pay monthly for the kids college on the card and pay
the bill by the time statement comes in  You then show a hefty balance paid your credit score goes up
and you get tons of miles to take airplane trips  Many colleges let you do this, its paid for my vacations to florida and out west when I got to see Westernbiker, TP and will cover my GOTF flight also

we have played the float the zero transfer fee for a year game with other cards when things got tight

like a prior poster I just went to the bank when I got a fee notice and said close all my accounts, payroll, operating escrow and all the estate accounts   Boy that sure got noticed and I got all charges waived and a so sorry mr rogers speech  lol  I make sure Citibank knows HSBC is courting me and opened a few estate accounts to keep em happy and clients coming in

Also a thank you note to a VP when something actually goes right gives you the best service
I like to thank tellers and the folks who sit at the desks for help and the positive reviews do
go in their files to help them avoid layoffs if the bank is downsizing or a promotion if the bank has an opening higher up the food chain. Again it also helps bring in clients from those same reps

I am a big believer in win win

[The Anvil]

Where's the joke? Washington is the whore of big money.

well let's fix that

www.fairtax.org

That would be like trying to fix the Hindenburg, commentary and all.