annaraven - more random update stuph

[FarmerChick]

yikes. BOA stinks. $5 for every debit transaction. Imagine that monthly bill adding up. Insanity! I never used a debit card. Cash, check or credit card that gets paid off. WOW they want every dime we make for sure lol

 

[colowyo0809]

Just saw that Bank of America is going to start charging $5 for using your debit card in stores, starting January. Tomorrow, DH gets paid and I'm going to take the grocery money out in cash and start using the envelope method of budgeting. I used to use the debit card, just because it allowed me to track my purchases online. Now - I guess I'll be doing it differently.

I saw this and I was wondering how they could charge $5 for every in store transaction. Then I went and looked it up and realized that it's a monthly fee Granted, it's still not pleasant, but a lot better than per transaction would be Good luck on the budgeting! I have to start doing that for our household, especially since I'm not working at the moment!

 

[FarmerChick]

monthly not as bad but still screw it lol
why pay when others are free now.
if they all go fee, then back to cash and checks lol

 

[AnnaRaven]

So, yesterday DH got paid. I got half the monthly grocery budget out in cash. Did a bit of shopping last night and today (Farmers Market and Trader Joes). Kept track of what I was spending. Don't know if it'll make me more mindful or not but for now, I'm much more concerned about not running out of the money in that envelope!

DH and I inventoried our emergency supplies shed today. (I have a shed in the backyard that has backup emergency supplies in case the house gets destroyed in an earthquake.) We've got a pretty good start on things. There's some stuff we thought of to add but not too much.

Target had a sale on bandaids today. I got good prices for a bunch of different sizes and styles. Yay.

And I made lard from my leaf fat finally. It's gorgeous. Can't wait to make something with it. Like pie crust.

 

[framing fowl]

I'd go ahead and make the whole pie... not just the crust . I know what you mean though. You just can't get that stuff at the store!

 

[~gd]

Has this trend come to your area yet? I just traveled to NY state and there independent gas stations are selling gas for less if you do not use a credit/debit card. I asked why and was told that the major cards were charging more for fees to the merchants in order to pay for their 'cash back' card holders. The cash discount was usually .06 off of $3.80/gallon gas. I suspect they want you to come into the store to buy high priced drinks/food/lottery tickets. I decided that pay at the pump with a card was worth the average 0.60 fill up savings that I would get for two trips to the store now that they all want you to prepay to get the pump turned on. It makes me wonder how much extra I am paying to use my cards at other places, anybody know?

 

[lighthawk]

Apparantly BOA is under fire for more than debit card fees...

BOSTON (AP) Police have arrested two dozen protesters for trespassing during a demonstration against Bank of America's foreclosure practices at the banking giant's offices in downtown Boston.

The Boston Herald reports that the event was an act of civil disobedience that the organizers intended to send the message that the lender's practices were unfair.

"They wanted to be arrested, and we obliged," Boston police Commissioner Edward F. Davis told the newspaper.

Organizers say about 3,000 people joined the protest.

There was no mention of Bank of America's planned debit card fees, which recently have generated headlines and frustrated customers nationwide.

 

[AL]

Look for most commercial banks to start charging for debit transactions or even for having a checking account. The Durbin Amendment in Congress reduced drastically the amount merchants are charged for using the credit card system, thus drastically reducing the income for financial institutions. They have to make up this shortage somewhere (even not for profit credit unions) or we'll be looking at more bailouts. So cash in mason jars may end up the only way you can have YOUR money for free.

ETA - the amendment said that by reducing what merchants are charged it would pass on savings to the consumers because all those honest merchants out there would gladly reduce their prices if they didn't have to pay .21 cent per transaction. Let me know if you notice a difference.

 

[Lady Henevere]

Has this trend come to your area yet? I just traveled to NY state and there independent gas stations are selling gas for less if you do not use a credit/debit card. I asked why and was told that the major cards were charging more for fees to the merchants in order to pay for their 'cash back' card holders. The cash discount was usually .06 off of $3.80/gallon gas. I suspect they want you to come into the store to buy high priced drinks/food/lottery tickets. I decided that pay at the pump with a card was worth the average 0.60 fill up savings that I would get for two trips to the store now that they all want you to prepay to get the pump turned on. It makes me wonder how much extra I am paying to use my cards at other places, anybody know?

At many gas stations here the cash price is up on the sign, and if you pay with a card you pay more. It's not well marked, so it's very easy to pay extra if you're not paying attention. Other businesses around here also give cash discounts (restaurants, etc.). I always assumed it was because they could get away without claiming cash on their books, but I don't really know. I tend to use cash most of the time anyway for various reasons.

 

[moolie]

I'm a small business owner with a debit/credit card terminal, and most banks/terminal lease companies (like Moneris) don't allow charging extra if the customer pays by card--it's in the service agreement. The companies doing this could face severe fines if someone complains to the terminal lease company...