Bank Reccomndations

[maxpower]

The credit unions? have you ever bounced a check? they make a living off your ass. I was part of Security fedral credit union and I know folks who use the teachers credit union, it's a scam,

Simple, don't bounce checks.

[Brodels]

I'm a big fan of credit unions. Anyone can join the one I belong to as long as you live in my particular county.

I'm not sure if it's the same there, but in my state, credit unions offer a lot of things that other banks can't match. With shared branching, I can do my banking at most of the credit unions in the state. That means I can deposit money and do most of whatever else I need to do in just about any town. I know that shared branching has been used in some cases to apply for loans, but I'm not sure if that's the norm.

I also have access to surcharge-free ATMs all over the state. All of the credit unions here participate in SURF - a program that allows any credit union member to use any credit union ATM in the state without paying surcharges.

The only thing I don't like about credit unions is that most of them have hours that coincide with when most people work. Many banks (especially in the city) are open at night or on Sundays. But since I need to go to the branch office only rarely, it doesn't matter much to me.

Overall, I'm happy I left my ripoff bank for my credit union. At least I know that making shareholder rich is not the primary goal of my credit union.

[SpursWoman]

I've been at Broadway Bank for about 15 years, and they've always been really good to me, their fees are lower than most banks I've seen, too.

[Gatita]

Bank of America has my car note, has given me a unsecure credit card, and am a preferred customer, so I am happy with them. You can't beat all the available bank and ATM locations.

[samikeyp]

notice ATMs in your daily routine driving path

that is why I chose BoA. Their customer service has always been good too. Sorry Manny that you have had so many issues.

[Clandestino]

usaa, free online bill payment with direct deposit... you can use any atm worldwide and they will reimburse you for all the atm fees up to $15 bux a month. if you happen to have any checks you need to deposit, they will send you self-addressed stamped envelopes to mail them in... they always have low aprs for loans too... fees? i can't think of any... and you even get a rebate for using your debit card if you use the pin and not like the credit card...

[gophergeorge]

I want to join Frost Bank because of that commercial with the kid promising to eat more chicken fried steak....

[Clandestino]

BOA pisses me off as well... my brother has them.. he moved out months ago and boa still sends to my house even though he's changed his address like 50x!

[Shelly]

I've been with BofA since some of y'all were knee high to a grasshopper!

Seriously, I've never had a problem with them and what's nice is that every state I lived in has one, so no problem finding an ATM. Both of us are on direct deposit so the only time we go to the bank is to get cash out of the ATM. Also, they are one of the few banks that hasn't been bought out. The bank we use for work has been bought out twice. It finally ended up being Citibank.

However, the one thing that sucked about them is that if you move to a new state, you really need to open an account with the local branch. When we moved from AZ to TX, it totally confused the TX branch. I had to always tell them it was an AZ account number. We finally ended up closing that one and opening a new one.

[MannyIsGod]

I'm actually thinking about using Valero FCU because my mother works at Valero so I can open an account there. I understand you can use BofA atms in Diamond Shamrocks for no charge, so I may go ahead and do that. But having only one branch really does blow.

[Mark in Austin]

I'm so happy w/ SSFCU I still use them even though there isn't a branch in Austin.

[desflood]

We've been with SSFCU for many years and have never had any problems or complaints. We even used them in Germany and California.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Manny, go with USAA. Free checking, free online bill pay, access to financial planners for free (if you're into that kind of thing), highest rate of return on your savings account that I've found shopping around, no fees on checking or savings.

I just made the switch from Wells Fargo (its where I had my student loans for college at so I just kinda went with them when I got to Dallas), been really happy with them so far.

[Clandestino]

yeah, if you have usaa... ANY atm is your atm! it is free to you! whether you are overseas or in san antonio...

[Johnny_Blaze_47]

yeah, if you have usaa... ANY atm is your atm! it is free to you! whether you are overseas or in san antonio...

I didn't know that anybody could join. I might just have to open an account there.

Thanks.

[Vashner]

Frost is the best.

[King]

Manny, go with USAA. Free checking, free online bill pay, access to financial planners for free (if you're into that kind of thing), highest rate of return on your savings account that I've found shopping around, no fees on checking or savings.

I just made the switch from Wells Fargo (its where I had my student loans for college at so I just kinda went with them when I got to Dallas), been really happy with them so far.

I'm with BoA, and haven't had any problems with them. Just recently opened car insurance with USAA and the guy was telling me about their banking. Supposedly, on every debit purchase you make, you get .5% back into your account, so you make money. Not a big amount, but no other bank offers that that I know of. I might make a switch to USAA...only problem is the convenience. I'd pass eight BoA's before I got to USAA.

[Clandestino]

I'm with BoA, and haven't had any problems with them. Just recently opened car insurance with USAA and the guy was telling me about their banking. Supposedly, on every debit purchase you make, you get .5% back into your account, so you make money. Not a big amount, but no other bank offers that that I know of. I might make a switch to USAA...only problem is the convenience. I'd pass eight BoA's before I got to USAA.

what do you have to go to the bank for?

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

What convenience is it that you're looking for?

You get cash back on your debits, and you can make an ATM transaction anywhere and they're reimburse you for any charges you get stuck with.

If you need to deposit checks and you're nowhere near USAA (I'm in Dallas), they'll send you a self addressed envelope to send back.

You can pay all your bills online with no fees, so no more checks being written for them.

Not sure what else you're looking for.

[King]

It was mainly the occassional deposit. Maybe twice a month, I'll deposit some cash. But, twice a month I can do. I have direct deposit, so paychecks are no problem.

The only convenience is the geography. My BoA is literally a half mile from the house, where as USAA is off 10. Whenever I've had to make a trip to the bank, it's right up the street. But, trips are so few and far between that it'd be ridiculous to make that my deciding factor.

[MannyIsGod]

USAA sounds pretty awesome. I will go by there on Monday and look into opening an account there.

Last night, I got denied on a 3.27 debit card transaction. Today, no problems with the card even though it had plenty of money both times. So strange.

[Babu]

IBC Bank has been very good to me....very good to me.
Free checking and MC Debit Card.
Overdraft protection.
Online Banking.
It is the sheet!!

[spurschick]

Manny - sounds like you're going with USAA, but if you wanted to scout around some more, I suggest SSFCU or Lone Star Capital Bank.

[Mr. Ash]

Supposedly, on every debit purchase you make, you get .5% back into your account, so you make money. Not a big amount, but no other bank offers that that I know of.

There's actually three credits applied to your checking account each month. A refund of any ATM fees (up to $15 or so), the .5% rebate you mentioned, and it's an interest bearing checking account. It's not much, but better than nothing. I've banked with them for 17 years and not had a single problem.

[ididnotnothat]

I bank with IBC and have never had any problems.
I like the fact that they are open on the weekends too.