Which banks suck the least?

The the last decade or so I have been going bankless because it was cheaper to spend 3-6% for a check cashing fee than to rack up $80 or so in ATM fees and debit card use fees and NSF fees and fee fees every month.

The place that I used to go to (Money Mart) has apparently cleared out of Ohio for whatever reason, and no other place I have found is willing to touch a handwritten payroll check. So, it appears that I have to do the bank thing again.

What I am after is minimal fees and a debit card. The really nice thing about Money Mart was that they were affiliated with Momentum Visa, which had only a $10/month fee, no per-use fees.

Try a Credit Union.
Learn online banking with check deposit via photo from smartphone.

Illinois law is written oddly to favor local banks. That said, I went local. Big ass banks only care about getting your money, often in a ruthless, vindictive way. Local banks want your money, but in a kinder, gentler, ruthless way.

Paying a bank for the privilege of having YOUR money is bullE36 M3.

Federal Credit Union.......end of discussion. Free withdrawals from any other FCU's ATM machine, no debit fees, etc.

They're better than banks in pretty much every way. Stay away from non-federal institutions like Teachers credit union though.

Local or regional. I use 2 regional banks. I'm happy with their service level. Both have free checking.

For the record, the bank that I used to use years back WAS a local bank. They got swallowed up by PNC. They sucked before that, but I used them because of inertia - Mom gave me a bank account with them for my birthday one year, and I kept with them because it was the devil I knew.

But that was before slimy things like largest-to-smallest, withdrawals-before-deposits balance calculation existed. I can't wait three days for a check to clear before I can use the money. I'm afraid that if I got a bank account and found out that they did that and sucked $500 away from me in NSF fees, I'd quit my job and go live under a bridge somewhere and babble at rocks.

Just switched to a local credit union and so far it has been better in every way than any of the banks I have been with in the past. No fees for anything.

I'll also recommend the credit union option. I have one with a linked savings account.

No monthly fee, ATM/debit card, and check deposits using my smart phone. I have my paycheck direct deposited, so that may be the reason for no fees.

Even if I use an ATM with a fee, the credit union deposits the fee amount into my savings account. I think it's limited to 3 transactions a month, but with free transactions at any credit union's ATM it doesn't pose a problem.

I was looking into credit unions, but the ones I've seen require that you are an employee of a partnered company.

There was one that only required that you live/work/worship in Franklin County. No offense to my Columbus-living friends but I'm not going to move back there

I'll ask da boss tomorrow. I know he recently shifted the company over to a different bank because of Reasons, and IIRC he mentioned that he personally banks with the guys he just switched to.

Dear god stay away from Hells Fargo

Appleseed wrote: Paying a bank for the privilege of having YOUR money is bullE36 M3.

I'm sure that they have really missed the privilege of hanging on to my $3.52.

I'm exactly the kind of person that banks hate. I never take out loans and I never keep much in the way of a balance. The only way they can profit from me is with fees.

Augh! I just looked at the check that has been mocking me since Friday. We bank with PNC. Dammit! I walked away from them when their fees NSF'ed me into a $250 hole made entirely of fees, and they refused to mitigate them.

Do you not have any banks that offer no fee banking?

ryanty22 wrote: Dear god stay away from Hells Fargo

I've been with Wells Fargo since they bought out Wachovia. I've got 4 accounts with them. As long as you don't operate at the bottom of the account, they aren't too bad.

If I was starting over, I'd consider other places, but Wells Fargo isn't bad enough to make me want to move.

My NSF problems weren't so much "don't spend so much money" but rather "the monthly fees are larger than your balance". And it is hard to keep the balance up when you are unemployed and you don't get the notice in the mail that you are negative balance for three days, at which point you REALLY can't do anything about it.

In reply to Datsun1500:

I think if you're spending more than you have, bank fees aren't really your problem.

FCU all the way. I'm with Randolph Brooks FCU and it is far and away the best banking experience I've ever had.

Knurled wrote: My NSF problems weren't so much "don't spend so much money" but rather "the monthly fees are larger than your balance". And it is hard to keep the balance up when you are unemployed and you don't get the notice in the mail that you are negative balance for three days, at which point you REALLY can't do anything about it.

As for the negative balance, online banking would allow you to daily/hourly/minute/second check your balance. It will also notify you immediately of a negative activity like overdaft.
You can see pending future activities like scheduled payments.

Where are you? You make mention of Ohio but only state that Franklin County is not where you want to bank.
We may be able to recommend something closer but not sure where that is.

Say away from TCF, they changed from free checking to a monthly fee if you don't have X amount of transactions. I got no notification and lost $300 some dollars. I promptly closed my savings account and took my secondary banking to a local credit union.

I've never had an issue with USBank.

I use First Citizens. They have free checking if you sign up for estatements. You get a debit card too.

JohnRW1621 wrote: As for the negative balance, online banking would allow you to daily/hourly/minute/second check your balance.

Online banking didn't really exist yet at the time.

I'm in Cuyahoga County. My biggest worry right now is having to use a paycheck to open a bank account with, and having essentially no money for the next week or two. (I can drive to work until maybe Wednesday)

Here is a list of some:
http://www.ibanknet.com/scripts/callreports/fiList.aspx?type=statecounty&state=39&county=39035&sort=name

Big banks for sophisticated online banking, nationwide access, otherwise stay away. We use Wells Fargo for the first reason and haven't been disappointed for any reason. We know they are not our friend, though, and that our business doesn't move any needles for them.

Local banks for friendly service from human beings.

Don't know about Credit Unions personally, but I always hear they are much more consumer oriented/focused than most banks. That's all they do, whereas banks are typically more business oriented.

If you are looking for ATM banking, State Farm Bank has 0 ATM fees and will cover any ATM fees assuming you meet the (easy to meet) requirements as far as direct deposit go.

Knurled wrote:

JohnRW1621 wrote: As for the negative balance, online banking would allow you to daily/hourly/minute/second check your balance.

Online banking didn't really exist yet at the time. I'm in Cuyahoga County. My biggest worry right now is having to use a paycheck to open a bank account with, and having essentially no money for the next week or two. (I can drive to work until maybe Wednesday)

Can you cash the paycheck at the bank it is drawn on, and then deposit the cash into your new account?