After watching M.Moore's new movie I don't feel like supporting the business of either citi group nor Bank of America. I am looking for a recommendation for a credit union or a relatively ethical banking (oxymoron?) institution that would provide the following services in the Los Angeles area (Westside).
I pay all my bills Incl. rent online and would like to continue doing so. I sometimes write checks I sometimes withdraw cash I have a bunch of services like Netflix associated with a credit card I use a credit card for most purchases and extra identity theft protection is important
I have never banked with a credi union but am open to trying.
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First, let me say that Moore's movie is incredibly biased and inaccurate. I wouldn't recommend you make any decisions based on that. However, it is true that BofA is a truly awful place to bank.
I highly recommend Alliant Credit Union. There's a long thread about it here. You can easily search on their website for free ATMs in your neighborhood. The only real downside is that there's no easy way to deposit cash, but aside from that, they're great.
The nearest branch is in El Segundo, but I've made it to this point without ever visiting a branch.
I would suggest you look into working with a local bank. You'll probably find something you like here: http://www.highyieldcheckingdeals.com/2008/03/high-yield-reward-checking-accounts-by.html
lol only a fool would make financial decisions based on a Michael Moore movie. The man is an idiot that exploits other idiots for profit. I hope you did not need to watch a movie to realize that BOA, CITI and Chase are all miserable banks to deal with. Basically any smaller bank or credit union will work for what you want, a lot of people on this board speak highly of Pen Fed, personally I use USAA as my primary bank and they are very good but only open to Military .
Message edited by: chimeer on 2009-10-11 10:56:26 CDT
Ignore the haters who have never even seen a Moore movie, but who would spew bile against him no matter what. I seem to recall a lot of people railing against TARP last year, and now many of these same people rail against Moore for... railing against TARP. I don't get it.
OP, you raise a valid concern, and most any credit union would help you accomplish what you want (I also happen to like Alliant CU). On top of that, another suggestion is to be as unprofitable to BOA/Citi as possible (i.e. be a "deadbeat" customer), as in never paying interest, keeping checking balances minimal, and taking advantage of as many sign-up bonuses as possible.
Moore IS an idiot, who makes huge profits from his movies and makes up a lot of the stuff you see in his films, which he presents as facts.....but i can understand how you might not like to deal with huge commercial banks who tend to offer very low interest rates, and don't seem to be that customer oriented...so i would recommend a smaller, community type bank or a Credit Union, and i would absolutely agree about the suggestion on Alliant CU...they are terrific and you can read more about them in the FW Alliant CU thread....Highly Recommended....
Message edited by: craig10x on 2009-10-11 11:13:18 CDT
ThePessimist said:First, let me say that Moore's movie is incredibly biased and inaccurate. I wouldn't recommend you make any decisions based on that. However, it is true that BofA is a truly awful place to bank.
Does anyone else chuckle at this sentence?
Translation: Ahh, let me poo-poo someone elses opinion and instead of making a movie or producing any proof let me offer my own.
Under the covers, most banks are about the same. One bank is NOT more ethical than another. They are all in the same business. The large banks, because of their size, get more bad press than the smaller ones.
I have had very good experiences with Bank of America.
Personally, I don't have a problem with someone choosing not to do business with people they feel acted unethically. If the only thing that drives you is getting the best deal, does that make you any different than the people that risked the money of honest Americans? (including their pension funds?).
I recently inherited some money in BOA, and I am in the process right now of getting the money out of that bank. Part of the reason is their branches are always busy, and it takes longer to do my business, and the other reason is I don't want to support a system of banks that are "too big to fail".
I think you are doing the right thing for a wrong reason. Moore is no more ethical than the big business he went after in his movie. That said, some small banks offer better and more personalized service than Citi or BOA. If you use ATMs a lot, one feature to look for is a free use of other banks ATMs. In general, make sure that the bank meets your needs.
craig10x said:Moore IS an idiot, who makes huge profits from his movies and makes up a lot of the stuff you see in his films, which he presents as facts.....but i can understand how you might not like to deal with huge commercial banks who tend to offer very low interest rates, and don't seem to be that customer oriented...so i would recommend a smaller, community type bank or a Credit Union, and i would absolutely agree about the suggestion on Alliant CU...they are terrific and you can read more about them in the FW Alliant CU thread....Highly Recommended....I opened an account with them yesterday, we'll see how this goes. I've been using Fidelity, but all their products have very low rates and transfers take a fricken WEEK to clear.
Thank you for the suggestions! I am interested in a service provider that is in the business of service rather than the business of extracting maximum profit from me. I think that commitment to max profit *only* is a detriment to the quality of service and relationships. We all have our opinions re Moore's movies, I was hoping to hear advise on how to proceed with the choice I made. For me, the time has come to ask myself who and what do want to I support and empower with my money.
I'll inquire in Alliant and Penfed, let me know if there are other good options.
aaandre said:Thank you for the suggestions! I am interested in a service provider that is in the business of service rather than the business of extracting maximum profit from me.Every publicly-held company (this includes most banks) are required by their shareholders to maximize profit.
What you are looking for is a credit union. That said, I have an account with a minimal balance at BOA for convenience (mostly for depositing/cashing checks), and I don't pay a dime in fees. I don't see anything wrong with large banks, as long as you are aware of what products and services you are using.
Message edited by: jayK on 2009-10-11 16:37:12 CDT
I think you will like them a LOT once you get all set up with Alliant CU, Crazytree.... Transfers at Alliant only take 2 days and are available immediately...and of course, the Savings rate is always the best there....
And for the OP aaandre....Based on what you mentioned, i think you will like the "concept" of the Credit Union....unlike Banks, a CU is a Financial Cooperative which is non-profit and exists to serve it member/owners (yes, every member in a sense is an owner) and all profits generated go back to the membership in the form of higher rates on savings products, lower rates on loans and other benefits....
Glad to hear you are looking into Alliant...check out their website...watch the cute little videos they have...and you will get a "feel" for how nice their set up is....
And the Surcharge free atm network coverage with them is outstanding....
Message edited by: craig10x on 2009-10-11 19:41:10 CDT
dmlavigne1 said:ThePessimist said:First, let me say that Moore's movie is incredibly biased and inaccurate. I wouldn't recommend you make any decisions based on that. However, it is true that BofA is a truly awful place to bank.
Does anyone else chuckle at this sentence?
Translation: Ahh, let me poo-poo someone elses opinion and instead of making a movie or producing any proof let me offer my own.Well, I in turn have to chuckle at that - as if those 2 things - "making a movie or producing any proof" - were in any way synonymous?
In any case (I think I can recall that far back) OP's original topic was, basically, good banks or credit unions. I wholeheartedly second the recommendation of Alliant CU, although since they got their start as the CU of United Airlines (“Big Business! Capitalism! Lions and Tigers and Bears!! Oh My!!”), they might not meet Micheal's litmus test. However they have low fees, generally good service & CSRs, and are currently paying 2% on liquid savings through the end of October. They even more-or-less tell you your credit score, or at least an approximation thereof, for free. You can join by joining a PTA somewhere (anywhere, I think).
A 2nd choice might be PenFed, mentioned above, if it were not for the fact that they are of course Military -related, which I'm sure is a Michael no-no. (My 3-year 6.25% PenFed CDs will be coming due early next year.) There are a number of ways you can join - relatives in the Military , other ways, etc. See website. (Please try not to mention the name “Michael Moore” to any of the PenFed CSRs who may have relatives/friends in the Military .)
A personal 3rd choice might be NWFCU in DC. They are competent, low or no fees, good website, etc. They had some great 3.75% add-on 2-year CDs a few months ago which since we dove into a low-rate environment are still a good deal for adding-on. However, they are (& they make no bones about this) “where the CIA employees bank”. That's probably the biggest Michael no-no of the three.
In fact, the CIA could be the feature of Micheal's next movie, unless Oliver Stone gets there first.
Message edited by: fw9999 on 2009-10-11 21:31:58 CDT
by the way...this is a bit off the financial aspects of this topic...but many people who like Michael Moore and his movies may not be aware that he is absolutely in love with (really admires) the Castro's Cuba way of governing a country....so it is easy to understand his rather "tainted" attitude and portrayal of big businesses.....
back on the main topic, OP do be aware that despite the fact that Alliant CU is one of the largest Credit Unions in the country (8th biggest from what i have read)...their "philosophy" is the same as ALL Credit Unions (and that i had previously outlined to you).....And that was true even before they expanded their "scope" and changed their name from the United Airline's Employees CU (their original "specific" field of membership) to what they are now.....
While I don't always agree with Michael Moore, I do sympathize with OP's concerns. I'd much rather do business with an institution like a credit union whose purpose is to serve their customers (and offer them decent products and services), rather than a bank whose purpose is to serve their shareholders (and turn a profit for them).
I'd bet that the for-profit banks that I do business with probably lose money having me as a customer, since I wouldn't be doing business with them if it weren't for the signup bonuses/CC rewards programs/0% no-fee BT's/etc that they offer. Aside from offers like those that are too good to pass up (and where CUs often do not have very good offers to compete), I usually go with either my local credit union or USAA (for Military only) for my financial needs. Both have great customer service and USAA has a few perks (Deposit@Home, ATM fee refunds, etc) that are great, and my local CU I can make deposits and they usually have very good CD rates.
As for the "experience" of using a credit union...credit unions aren't that much different from banks aside from how they operate internally and how they operate within the law. For instance the CU has to place limits on who can join the credit union (you live/work/study/worship within a certain area, work for certain companies, etc)...but for the popular ones there is almost always a fairly easy way to join; read the threads here. I'd also look at local CUs that you maybe eligible to join, some of them have good offers and good customer service too.
(BTW I don't understand how the mods thought that my post contained "political commentary", especially compared to some of the other posts in the thread.)
Message edited by: scottxmso on 2009-10-12 15:53:04 CDT
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