1,000,000 people transferred to credit unions according to ABC

[tabatha]

OccupyBoulderCO Occupy Boulder
by RRowleyTucson
1,000,000 people transferred to credit unions according to ABC (!) News?! fb.me/sx0Vwsg3
1 hour ago

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/bank-transfer-day-marches-planned-banks-nationwide/story?id=14889051

[Pisces]

1. That is great news!! We transferred awhile ago to a Regional Bank and couldn't be happier.

[mucifer]

2. anyone else find it hilarious that if you watch the video you have to watch a citibank comercial?

:rofl: poor citibank.

[roguevalley]

13. now remember, when you get a mailer from them write OCCUPY

WALLSTREET on a shim and send it back in their envelope. :-D

[diane in sf]

21. lol!!!!

[47of74]

10. I moved from a large national bank to a local bank about five months ago

The large national bank got a little too fee happy for my tastes. I said screw it and moved. My family had been with that bank for over 30 years when it too was just a local bank but merged with other banks, and eventually got acquired into the large national bank. They've moved away from that bank as well in recent years. I was probably the last holdout in my immediate family to still have accounts there but now none of have accounts at that bank.

[RaleighNCDUer]

3. Nonsense. CNN - the most trusted name in news - assured me

that it was "tens of thousands". (Technically, that is correct - many, many, many tens of thousands.)

[B2G]

4. OK, I've read this twice

and I don't see where is states that 1,000,000 people have done this. Am I missing something?

[DLnyc]

5. I see 650,000, not 1,000,000

third to last paragraph on first page:

"At least 650,000 people have already switched to credit unions since Sept. 29, according to the Credit Union National Association, after Bank of America announced plans to charge a $5 debit card purchase fee next year. The bank announced Tuesday it was canceling the fee.

"The association estimates that credit unions have added $4.5 billion in new savings accounts."

[tabatha]

12. If you listen to the video, 1,000,000 is stated by Diane Sawyer.

[GreenStormCloud]

6. I'm still with BoA.

I went online and searched for a credit union that I could join. First I had to fit their membership requirements, and pass a credit check, and then it had to be reasonably convenient to where I live. Since I had a bankruptcy two years ago and haven't used any credit since then, my credit rating is terrible. I found one but they charged $6.00 per month for checking unless I kept an average daily balance of $750.00, then it was free. At BoA my checking is free if I have a direct deposit check coming into the account. MY SS check and payroll check are both on direct deposit.

Further, the CU had a lock on using their debit card out-of-state.

They did have great rates on new car loans, but last month we made the last payment on our car and expect to drive it for the next ten years, or longer.

Other services were the same. So for me switching would have been a losing proposition.

[B2G]

7. Same here but not with BofA

Free checking and I've disabled overdraft protection. That's what was killing me. Easy...don't let me overdraft and everyone's happy.

My banking fees are zero. Why would I move?

[Webster Green]

8. I've been pretty happy with my Chase account.

I have free checking due to my SS direct deposit, and I've talked them into reversing overdraft fees at least a dozen times, each time with them telling me it would be the last. :shrug:

[B2G]

9. You should be able to opt out of OD protection

I believe the law now is that you have to consciously opt into it rather than getting it by default.

Neither of my college kids have OD protection. Momma ain't no fool. :-)

[Zorra]

37. Chase Bank Found Guilty of Secretly Financing Terrorist Organizations

http://www.chase-sucks.com/

The link below goes to the Settlement Agreement between the Treasury Dept. and Chase (pdf file)
http://www.chase-sucks.com/jpmorgan-chase-terrorism.pdf

[sarcasmo]

15. Did you only check one credit union?

[GreenStormCloud]

16. I was only able to find one.

First you have be in the group they serve. That leaves me out of almost all of them.

Then it has to be reasonably close to me. I don't want to drive to the other side of Dallas.

That left only one.

And I have free checking with BoA with good service so I don't have any gripe with them.

[sarcasmo]

17. In Michigan they are pretty much open for you if you live in the same zip code.

[GreenStormCloud]

18. None in my zip code. N/T

[intheflow]

25. Your profile says you live in Dallas.

Dallas has shitloads of credit unions: http://creditunionaccess.com/TX-Dallas-credit-unions.htm

If you're only looking in your zip code, you're ignoring huge swaths of your own city. What, if you can't walk there, you can't bank there? Dallas has no buses? Puh-lease.

[GreenStormCloud]

33. Read the thread.

I was responding to a poster who said that in MI there were credit unions that only required that you live in their zip code. So I let him know that there are no credit unions in my zip code so I can't use that as a method to qualify.

I list Dallas in my profile because very few would know where my actual town is, which is just outside of Dallas County. What do busses have to do with anything? I drive.

All credit unions have some sort of restriction on who can be a member. You can't just walk in and open an account.

[dpibel]

44. Not all

The one I belong to had no restrictions. None.

But I get the feeling that you're actually not interested in that information.

[closeupready]

47. I'm not calling you a liar, but I find that impossible to believe.

I've looked here in New York City (five boroughs) and can't find a single credit union to which I could join if we were going 'by the book'. If I want to join a certain parish or volunteer to help an NGO, then I'd meet some requirements of some of them.

Joining a credit union isn't such a breeze for everyone that people here on DU can make it sound.

[Sgent]

48. Impossible

Credit unions by law must be a limited membership organization. Some of them have taken that to mean anyone who lives or works in XXX geographical area, but all have restrictions of some sort.

[dpibel]

49. Oh, you got me!

Really stringent requirements:

"Pipe fitter, physician, cook or carpenter, if you live or work in Washington State, you're eligible to become a member of Kitsap Credit Union."

[intheflow]

46. I wasn't assuming you could drive.

Many people are, in fact, carless.

I'm sure there's a credit union that serves your area, available to you. If you work in Dallas County, that makes you eligible for even more. You're being obtuse if you're saying there are no credit unions you could join based solely on your zip code.

[Turn CO Blue]

19. Moveyourmoneyproject.org

<http://moveyourmoneyproject.org/find-bankcredit-union>

There were dozens and dozens of credit unions when I put in one single Dallas zipcode.

[GreenStormCloud]

23. I actually live one mile outside of Dallas County.

In MY particular rural zip code there are no credit unions.

I list Dallas as resident because most people know where it is, and because I don't want to list my actual very small town.

Besides, if my current BoA is free, why should I move?

[Shagbark Hickory]

27. Even better. Small towns are notorious for having small banks. n/t

[dpibel]

50. Why, indeed?

Maybe because Move Your Money isn't really about whether the accounts are free or not. Maybe because there's a bigger point to be made.

But that's just a guess.

[Capitalocracy]

20. Similar factors prevented me from doing this

partly caused by one big bank that totally screwed me, partly by my complicated situation (poor and living in another country).

I found out my current bank is owned by the Waltons. :scared: But they're the only ones that would take me and they've been good to me so far.

[Dover]

22. Have you considered a community bank?

They generally offer everything that the big banks do, and often better!

[GreenStormCloud]

24. Why? My BofA account is free.

And because they are a huge national chain they have ATMs everywhere. So I almost never pay an ATM fee.

And local banks can be purchased. I did have a secondary account some years ago with a local bank, which was bought out by Wachovia, which was bought out by Wells Fargo.

[Shagbark Hickory]

29. I'll give you a reason why.

Because if you ever have a problem with your account....

Some examples would include...

*- you made a deposit with the teller but it never posted to your account.
*- someone's making unauthorized withdrawals from your account
*- A whole slew of checks bounced as a result of the bank posting checks in an order that would cause more checks to be bounced rather than fewer (b of a made headlines for this practice)

It is much harder to get it resolved with BoA because they just don't give a shit. They don't care if you're a customer. They don't care if you have a problem. Their policies clearly dictate that you are wrong and if you feel this is an error, press "7" to hear your account balance.

[GreenStormCloud]

35. WRONG. I have had problems and they were resolved quickly.

The branch where I have the account is close by so I just drop in. I have been treated very nicely each time and the problem has always been resolved to my satisfaction. With BoA I get an email whenever there is a problem, and by checking the online daily statement I get until the next posting time as a warning before an OD posts, giving me time to resolve the problem. In the nine years that I have had the account I have never had an OD, although I have had to scramble a few times to avoid one. But I was able to avoid it because I checked the daily statement.

[Shagbark Hickory]

38. You've been lucky so far.

That's all I can say.

[GreenStormCloud]

43. Nine years worth of "luck" says that it is more than luck. N/T

[Shagbark Hickory]

45. I should say so! n/t

[Dover]

34. Oh...I mistakenly thought you wanted to make a change....

so I was problem solving with you. But apparently the status quo is working just fine for you.

[GreenStormCloud]

36. I checked to see if a CU could give a better deal.

There used to be CUs that paid interest on checking accounts on the average daily balance. But that appears to be something that is no longer done. I now find that a CU would be more expensive for me that BoA.

[Shagbark Hickory]

39. You're ignoring the value of improved service and financial stability.

Earning 0.000002% interest on a checking account may sound like it's a much better deal but it requires more time reconciling and bookkeeping those accounts than it's worth. Especially if you don't keep that much money in the account.

[Dover]

40. Not much interest to be had anywhere these days. Best of luck with BoA.

That is probably the last place I'd want to keep my money (and I'm including the mattress in that choice!). But whatever works for ya.

[Shagbark Hickory]

28. It's not that community banks do what the big banks do...

It's that the community banks do what the big banks SHOULD be doing.

Namely giving a shit, not treating customers like dirt and enacting all kinds of illegal policies that make them more money.

[Shagbark Hickory]

26. Switching is not a losing proposition. Could you not find a single community bank in all of dallas?

I'm not talking about credit unions. People are under the impression that credit unions are the perfect financial institution and that they are immune to all kinds of problems and as you've found out, that isn't true.

But your area must have dozens of small locally owned banks- not credit unions, but banks. Where they have several branches or maybe a few dozen branches, or agreements with one of the supermarket chains for free ATM use. Where you call up and a human rather than a computerized menu answers the phone. Where if you have a problem that no other person can solve, you can literally walk into the president of the bank's office and speak to them about it.

I'm a customer of such a bank. Lots of people here on DU are. They have free checking with very no strings attached, decent online banking and free atms all over the area.

Keep shopping. Don't give up. BofA is terrible, especially for someone in your predicament.

[louis-t]

11. With more to come.

That is all.

[sarcasmo]

14. Nice number, now we need to keep up the anti mega bank effort.

[Shagbark Hickory]

30. It's about time. I don't know how so many millions of people could still be banking wit such sleaze

[Le Taz Hot]

31. +1

Sorry to have read this from the woman who claims to have started the movement:

The 27-year-old art gallery owner from Los Angeles said she had never participated in any Occupy activities, and posted the following disclaimer on her website:

"While the Bank Transfer Day movement acknowledges the enthusiasm from Anonymous and Occupy Wall Street, the Bank Transfer Day movement was neither inspired by, derived from nor organized by Anonymous or the Occupy Wall Street movement, and the Bank Transfer Day movement does not endorse any activities conducted by Anonymous or Occupy Wall Street," the Facebook page for BankTransferDay.org states.

She seems a bit clueless.

[thereismore]

32. I am one of the 1,000,000, and proud of it. nt

[Wait Wut]

41. Checked into it switching...not beneficial.

There's only one CU in our area and they don't offer a decent business account, which my husband needs. Also, I had some odd conversation with a woman there that wouldn't give me a straight answer on out-of-state transactions, debit card usage out of state, etc. She kept saying that the "benefits to transferring" far outweighed the inconvenience. Uh...no. They don't.

Too bad, really. My husband and I are at separate banks and want to find one that fits both our needs. Not happening. The "community" banks in our area are awful and unstable.

[L0oniX]

42. ...and many of them will tell others what they did ...which will attract even more transfers.