Sign of Weakness by Union Bank?

[CricketOnTheHearth]

A couple of weeks ago, I received a notice from UnionBanCal (Union Bank of California) that their minimum combined balance for waiving monthly fees had gone up. Now, they announced, they will charge a $20/month fee for your checking account unless the combined balance of all your accounts with them exceeds $25,000.

What makes me scratch my head is that this is more than Wells Fargo has ever charged me. They used to charge me $8/month, but ever since my combined balances exceeded $8,000, they waived the fee. My current combined has sat at around $16,000 for years and never a monthly fee has raised its head.

Is this a sign of weakness on Union Bank’s part? I looked them up on “Safe and Sound” and read their ‘details’ page… it didn’t look to me like their financials were bad.

Your thoughts?

(Safe and Sound)

[Coronita]

I think it’s more they are just trying to extort as much fees as possible from customers since everyone else is doing that these days… Just look at the stunt Verizon Wireless tried to do yesterday with the $2 fees, and then them backpedaling today…

At any rate. I ended up keeping two accounts.

1. Charles Schwab Bank + Charles Schwab Brokerage. I love the convenience of using mobile deposits and accessing any ATM anywhere for free.

2. Wells Fargo Bank: I kept them only because I have my mortgage serviced by them. And as a result, I’m part of this thing called a “PMA account”…Which makes almost everything free.. I get 1000 free trades each year from the Wells Fargo Brokerage account, and I never need to pay for a bank check, plus most of the minimum balances and monthly fees are waived.

I open and close a chase account every so often… Mainly because I hate them, and want to take advantage of the $150-250 credit they give offer each time, since I hate them so much.

[sdrealtor]

As a Wells Fargo PMA customer they also refund all ATM fees anyone else charges you which is really nice.

[Coronita]

[quote=sdrealtor]As a Wells Fargo PMA customer they also refund all ATM fees anyone else charges you which is really nice.[/quote]

I did not know that… Hmmm. Now I can go full circle.

When I’m not at Wells Fargo, I’ll use my Wells Fargo ATM card just so I’ll exercise my freebie so that Wells can refund me those fees.

Then when I’m at a Wells Fargo ATM, I’ll use my Charles Schwab ATM card, so that Charles Schwab will refund me the fees too.

…Just because I can….

FLU 1, Big Banks 0

[bearishgurl]

Make sure you have at least one monthly direct deposit to your checking account and they should waive the service charge.

[mike92104]

I don’t understand why anybody uses the big banks. I have free checking with free atm at my credit union as long as I have $50 in savings there. They do charge me $5/month to use the bill pay features, but that’s it.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=mike92104]I don’t understand why anybody uses the big banks. I have free checking with free atm at my credit union as long as I have $50 in savings there. They do charge me $5/month to use the bill pay features, but that’s it.[/quote]

Union Bank of CA, “NA” is not a “Big Bank.” It is exclusively in CA (formerly “Union Bank” and before that, “CA First Bank”). It is now Japanese-owned and has always been HQ’d in SF. As far as I am aware, they are solvent and have many, many longtime commercial accounts. They also have a multitude of proprietary ATM machines in nearly EVERY CA locale.

Having been with them (and their predecessors) for well over thirty years, I can attest that I have never rec’d such a notice and do not typically “maintain” a $25K combined balance with them. My accts and online bill-pay are free and always have been. I also get a free safe deposit box.

CricketOnTheHearth, I would be interested to see your (redacted) letter you recently rec’d from Union Bank posted here.

[Coronita]

[quote=mike92104]I don’t understand why anybody uses the big banks. I have free checking with free atm at my credit union as long as I have $50 in savings there. They do charge me $5/month to use the bill pay features, but that’s it.[/quote]

that’s already too much fees imho

[sdduuuude]

3 words:

Schwab Investment Checking.

[UCGal]

I think BAC recently proved that consumers have a ripping point wrt fees. And Verizon learned yesterday the same lesson. (Not a bank but Verizon was going to charge a fee for paying your bill by CC or debit, and reversed that decision 24 hours after it was announced because of the outcry.)

My pet issue with banks is unilaterally imposed binding arbitration agreements. Wells Fargo is imposing this in February, retroactively. Think about this… by being a customer, you are agreeing to give up your right to a court trial for disputes and are forced into a privatized, corporate friendly system. No class actions if they’ve screwed over all customers. No recourse if you get an arbitrator who ignores facts of the case. Schwab and sdccu don’t have arbitration clauses.

[sdrealtor]

No ATM fees anywhere as a PMA customer including wells Fargo and those pesky private ones at seven elevens. It probably saves me 20 to 30 dollars a month

[evolusd]

[quote=flu]I think it’s more they are just trying to extort as much fees as possible from customers since everyone else is doing that these days… Just look at the stunt Verizon Wireless tried to do yesterday with the $2 fees, and then them backpedaling today…

At any rate. I ended up keeping two accounts.

1. Charles Schwab Bank + Charles Schwab Brokerage. I love the convenience of using mobile deposits and accessing any ATM anywhere for free.

2. Wells Fargo Bank: I kept them only because I have my mortgage serviced by them. And as a result, I’m part of this thing called a “PMA account”…Which makes almost everything free.. I get 1000 free trades each year from the Wells Fargo Brokerage account, and I never need to pay for a bank check, plus most of the minimum balances and monthly fees are waived.

I open and close a chase account every so often… Mainly because I hate them, and want to take advantage of the $150-250 credit they give offer each time, since I hate them so much.[/quote]

I’m with flu – Schwab is the best for free checking and brokerage. I’m hoping that party doesn’t end soon.

All of the banks have tons of liquidity that is not earning interest to cover FDIC insurance and operating overhead. We are all fighting for the few good deals out there, causing margins to thin on the deals we actually fund. I think the fees you’re seeing are going to be across the board as banks try to find ways other than loan growth to increase profitability.

[CricketOnTheHearth]

UCGal: I got the same notice from Wells. It looks pretty crooked to me too.

Bearishgurl: Here is the text of the letter in question:

~ ~ ~

[Cricket’s name and addy]

Re: Your account ending in ####

We value your banking relationship and want to ensure you are aware of the changes associated with your Signature Banking account.

As included in the Notice of Change in Account Terms that you have already received, effective January 1, 2012, the minimum monthly balance required to avoid the monthly service charge on your Signature Banking account referenced above is increasing to $25,000.

Of course, this minimum balance requirement continueds to apply to your relationship balance with Union Bank. So, the fee will be waived if you maintain a minimum balance of $25,000 in any combination of Union Bank personal and business checking, savings, money market, retirement, time deposit, CD, or UnionBanc Investment Services brokerage accounts. Otherwise, the monthly service charge is $18 if you receive online statements or $20 if you receive paper statements.

Your Signature Banking account continues to offer you special discounts and savings well above the cost of the monthly service charge. Here are a few of these benefits, valued at more than $500 annually:

• Monthly service charge waiver on one MoneyMarket account
• Two rebates per month for ATM fees charged by other banks
• No Union Bank charge for using other banks’ ATMs
• Free personalized Signature Banking checks
• No annual fee for Cash Reserve
• $40 discount on a Safe Deposit Box
• Free expedited delivery of a lost ATM or debit card
• Union Bank Platinum Debit MasterCard with higher spending limits
• No fee for travelers’ checks, Union Bank cashier’s checks, and personal money orders
• Discounted Identity Theft Protection

Thank you for being one of our most valued customers. We look forward to continuing to help you meet your financial goals. If you have any questions about the changes to your account, or if you wish to change or inquire about other accounts, please visit your local Union Bank Relationship Banker or call us at 1-800-238-4486.

Sincerely,

Maha Madain
Senior Vice President
Consumer Products

~ ~ ~

FWIW the “above referenced account” is a Regular Checking. I also have a Time Deposit and a savings account with them, all of which total (just) over $25,000.

I wonder if it’s because I’m just using them as a piggy bank and don’t actually do daily-life transactions with these accounts?

[bearishgurl]

[quote=CricketOnTheHearth] . . . FWIW the “above referenced account” is a Regular Checking. I also have a Time Deposit and a savings account with them, all of which total (just) over $25,000.

I wonder if it’s because I’m just using them as a piggy bank and don’t actually do daily-life transactions with these accounts?[/quote]

COTH, your letter is a legitimate letter from UB (formerly UBOC). Make sure your checking account qualifies for “Signature” status. Make sure you keep $25K in your (combined) accts to keep your personal “Signature banker” and the benefits above.

A few times in the past, I rec’d letters to qualify for “Signature” banking. However, I never took them up on it as some of its benefits I wouldn’t use and I also wanted the freedom to “shop CD rates” periodically. In addition, I refuse to carry an ATM card which can be used without a PIN (such as the “Signature ATM/Mastercard”) to purchase items (and get “cash back”) in stores with a point-of-sale terminal. If ever stolen, this is a good way for someone to clean out your bank acct(s) before you ever discover the card missing! To my knowledge, Signature qualifying requirements have always been to maintain a $25K (combined) balance in all your accounts.

Given a consistent over $25K in combined deposits, I see no reason for UB to charge you a checking service fee if your particular checking account qualifies for “Signature” status. UB has several different types of checking accounts. Perhaps it is just a technicality that you might be in the wrong one (carried over from non-Signature status)? COTH, to solve this issue, look into this at your branch and see if your checking account number can transfer over into another UB checking-account product to qualify it for Signature status.

[CricketOnTheHearth]

Thanks, bearishgurl.

It’s not actually a problem for me– I do have Signature Banking and my combined balance is over $25K.

However, this does indeed represent a change on their part. Digging through my old literature, back in 2009 when I started banking with UBOC, the required combined balance was $10,000.

So, I’m just wondering if the jump from $10K to $25K is a sign of weakness on their part, and should I jump ship and put all of that money into my credit union. (Which I hate to do, because I want to keep my eggs in several baskets.)

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