Years of crappy service, tons of hidden fees, and most importantly, an economy destroyed by their greed - it was time to take the plunge and commit to never dealing with a bank again. I don't know why it took me so long!
This week was the last straw - a check bounced because of the horde of hidden fees that hit my account - $6 for using someone else's ATM, many $ worth of fees for using the debit function at a merchant, and most insultingly of all, fees for 'entering the wrong pin #' when trying to withdraw cash at an ATM.
I'm done. I joined a credit union.
Most of you folks probably know about credit unions and their advantages, but I'll just name a couple.
-- Today I had the opportunity to call the credit union and it took me less than ten seconds to reach a real human being. A friendly, knowledgeable and helpful one, no less! I inquired about the status of my application and while I was on the phone, they actually walked over to another department and found out for me. Unheard of!
-- Credit unions are not for profit organizations owned and controlled by the people who have their money in them. Wall street douchebags, so long!
-- I had heard credit unions didn't have a lot of ATM's, but this turned out not to be the case. In fact, there are 10 ATMs part of my credit union's network within walking distance of my work, which is 10 more ATMs than my bank had.
-- They offer pretty much everything a bank does, at better interest rates.
-- Most have no point of sale fees.
For those of you already enjoying the benefits of a credit union, you are probably chuckling at my youthful enthusiasm here. But I'm sure there are enough fools like me out there that haven't made the switch yet who might benefit from this reminder.
To them I say: Jump in! The water is warm.
Hey, wow - recommended list? Thanks folks! I'm glad this piddling little diary got so much attention, because it probably means a bunch more people are going to make the switch!