27 replies to this topic

[sundown]

If you bank with Bancomer,, you are charged 35 pesos per month to use the internet to check your account. If yo go to the window, they will not give you your balance, but refer you to the ATM.
This will cost you 6 pesos.

They have your money, and charge you for information on your money.??

HSBC is free, Banamex(Citigroup) is free, but they report your banking info to the USA- IRS

[Ajijic Ron]

I was there today opening an account. With the savings account, if you keep a 1000 peso balance there are no fees. With the checking you need to keep 3000 balance and they give you free checks / no fees. My friend is the account manager, I just shook his hand this morning on opening my zero fee checking account. Someone let me know if I'm misinformed please.

[OasisCloud]

I was there today opening an account. With the savings account, if you keep a 1000 peso balance there are no fees. With the checking you need to keep 3000 balance and they give you free checks / no fees. My friend is the account manager, I just shook his hand this morning on opening my zero fee checking account. Someone let me know if I'm misinformed please.

This has always been my experience. I've had both savings and checking accounts with Bancomer for many years, and have never been charged a service fee as long as I kep the minimum balance the the account required. I check my accounts online daily and have never received a charge for that.

[Ginger]

I get a few pesos interest if I keep enough in my checking account but really don't know how much I need to keep to get it. I've been very pleased with the service at Bancomer & have my SS check direct deposited. I even got a call from the Manager a couple months ago that I won an I-Pod. He said the big prize is a car. I gave the I-Pod to my realtor who gave it to his son. It was just random drawings, not any contest you sign up for.

[saege007]

I was there today opening an account. With the savings account, if you keep a 1000 peso balance there are no fees. With the checking you need to keep 3000 balance and they give you free checks / no fees. My friend is the account manager, I just shook his hand this morning on opening my zero fee checking account. Someone let me know if I'm misinformed please.

Same thing for me. No fees. I just keep $1000 pesos in there. Never a fee at the ATM, and never online. They'll even walk you through using the online banking if you don't understand something.

[sundown]

I was at Bancomer this am.. I also have banked with them for years, etc
You are right about no fees with minimum deposit, but you are being charged 35 pesos per month for internet access.
and if you use your card to check balance , you are charged
My original post stands correct

[phxfunguy]

I was at Bancomer this am.. I also have banked with them for years, etc
You are right about no fees with minimum deposit, but you are being charged 35 pesos per month for internet access.
and if you use your card to check balance , you are charged
My original post stands correct

Where do I look to see this $35 fee deducted? In 18 months with them I've only seen interest added as the only change in my balance that I didn't initiate myself as I track every peso in Quicken.

[saege007]

Where do I look to see this $35 fee deducted? In 18 months with them I've only seen interest added as the only change in my balance that I didn't initiate myself as I track every peso in Quicken.

same here. No fees on my statements and I also keep track in a Quicken-like program. Not a single centavo missing. I go online all the time.

[Ajijic Ron]

Sorry sundown, I have to disagree. Perhaps you have a different type of account. But, the standard checking and savings accounts have zero fees as long as you keep the min balance. If you would like Bento the account managers direct line, pm me.

[elainem]

So, if I were to open a Bancomer Savings account and keep 1000 pesos in it, I could transfer money from my Canadian account and withdraw it at the ATM without service charges? That would save me the $5 Cdn international withdrawal charge and the 20-something pesos I pay every time. Would it still be free of service charges if I withdrew money at a Bancomer ATM in another city in MX? Thanks in advance.

[Sunsetkid]

Does the Bancomer going out of Ajijic (not the one by the downtown Plaza) operate the same way as the one at the Plaza?

[saege007]

The Bancomer going out of Ajijic is simply an Accounts Service Center -- for Foreigners. All Bancomer ATMs are connected.

I get paid in a US check for some work I do. I deposit that in my Bancomer acct. It takes 7 business days to clear. Apparently Canadian checks take 20 business days to clear (that is what I have heard - any verification?)

[lakeheron]

Overall I like Bancomer (compared to Banamex) and have never had any fees for checking my balance online. My two major concerns are that the last time I checked the ATM machine on the libramiento is still not working (I believe it was damaged in a break in attempt) and a couple years later Bancomer is still not getting my statements to me, in spite of many efforts on my part. Apparently my statements are being delivered to the wrong address.

[Ajijic Ron]

So, if I were to open a Bancomer Savings account and keep 1000 pesos in it, I could transfer money from my Canadian account and withdraw it at the ATM without service charges? That would save me the $5 Cdn international withdrawal charge and the 20-something pesos I pay every time. Would it still be free of service charges if I withdrew money at a Bancomer ATM in another city in MX? Thanks in advance.

What I did was deposit a check from my Canadian account to start my account. There is no fee for that, but you do have to wait 15 days for it to clear. I believe there is a 200 peso charge for wire transfers and you will need someone to go directly to their Canadian branch and do the transfer.
I know, I was getting nailed with fees using my Canadian card, thats why I did this. Yes you can use any Bancomer ATM in Mexico for no fees. You can also use the card at point of purchase anywhere in Mexico that accepts this for no charge. Anywhere that accepts VISA will accept the debt card.
If any of you go and open a account after reading this thread, tell Bento that Ron sent you. He'll get a kick out of it!

[sundown]

I, like others have stated enjoyed access to my account by computer , for a long time. I always had much more than the minimum
in the account. BUT, a few weeks ago whenI tried to access my account, I was told that I needed to visit Bancomer.
At this time, I was informed that changes are being made & that I must pay the monthly 35 pesos to access my account.
I had previously asked to not have my statements mailed(the neighbors were receiving). I don't know if this caused the change.
My wife(Mexican) was also a witness to this & at the same time was told the same info.
Sounds like, after hearing from all of you that Bancomer has different "plans"

[conejorapido]

As several others have mentioned, visit with Beto (not Bento) at the Ajijic branch and you will get it straightened out. In 4 years, I have never received any charge against my account except for the normal commission for an incoming wire transfer which, with tax, seems to run around 270 pesos. I access my bank account on line reguarly, make all kinds of transfers between my own accounts and others and never a charge.

The new ATM is actually at the Libramiento location now but not yet installed. Should be up and running in the next couple of weeks.

[Intercasa]

There is a special foreign customer unit and those customers have free internet access but all pay to check balances at ATMs without the minimum balance, at least this has always been the case up to now, perhaps something erroneously was changed on your account, ask at the local branch as calling the main number they may not be hip to the perks of the foreign customer unit.

[phxfunguy]

What Spencer posted was what I was told by Roberto who deals with the foreign customers at the Chapala branch...no fees if the balance stays above $1000. I add funds to my account by depositing a fee-free US check from my hometown bank but have to plan for the funds to be held for 9 business days. It's actually 10 days as the funds don't show as available until after midnight at the end of the 9th day. But that is no problem with pretty fixed living expenses here. If there is an emergency and I need cash immediately, I have an investment account at Actinver where I can cash the same US check immediately without fees as well....as long as it's not more than I have invested with them. Then if I need to top up my Bancomer account, I can put the cash in as long as it's not over $15,000 (per month, I believe.) I can sell investments and transfer larger amounts to Bancomer or invest money from Bancomer at Actinver by interbank transfer. It's free from Actinver to Bancomer. From Bancomer to Actinver there is a small fee...to transfer $14,000 once I was charged $5.22. All amounts above are in pesos.

Bancomer's Preferred Customer Unit will handle you in English or Spanish as you wish and you get an ID card (although I've never been asked to show it) so, if you desire, you may stand in the always shorter preferred customer line. I have been very pleased with their service, lack of fees for just keeping a small balance, and their online functionality including free Bill Pay type services and autopayment for utilities. They have all the features I was used to at Wells Fargo in the US without fees. Their security for online is more complicated, but that's OK and once you're used to the Chinese security device, it's no bother. You can't add autopayment accounts online, only in person, as you have to sign a ream of papers for each one like a house closing...but we've become used to that sort of thing here.

[saege007]

What Spencer posted was what I was told by Roberto who deals with the foreign customers at the Chapala branch...no fees if the balance stays above $1000. I add funds to my account by depositing a fee-free US check from my hometown bank but have to plan for the funds to be held for 9 business days. It's actually 10 days as the funds don't show as available until after midnight at the end of the 9th day. But that is no problem with pretty fixed living expenses here. If there is an emergency and I need cash immediately, I have an investment account at Actinver where I can cash the same US check immediately without fees as well....as long as it's not more than I have invested with them. Then if I need to top up my Bancomer account, I can put the cash in as long as it's not over $15,000 (per month, I believe.) I can sell investments and transfer larger amounts to Bancomer or invest money from Bancomer at Actinver by interbank transfer. It's free from Actinver to Bancomer. From Bancomer to Actinver there is a small fee...to transfer $14,000 once I was charged $5.22. All amounts above are in pesos.

Bancomer's Preferred Customer Unit will handle you in English or Spanish as you wish and you get an ID card (although I've never been asked to show it) so, if you desire, you may stand in the always shorter preferred customer line. I have been very pleased with their service, lack of fees for just keeping a small balance, and their online functionality including free Bill Pay type services and autopayment for utilities. They have all the features I was used to at Wells Fargo in the US without fees. Their security for online is more complicated, but that's OK and once you're used to the Chinese security device, it's no bother. You can't add autopayment accounts online, only in person, as you have to sign a ream of papers for each one like a house closing...but we've become used to that sort of thing here.

My US checks only take 7 business days to clear, always available after banking hours on the 7th day. Also, what is this ID card? I have a savings there, do the minimum balance, no fees, Roberto always tells me to go to the preferred line, but I've never seen any ID card.

[bournemouth]

My US checks only take 7 business days to clear, always available after banking hours on the 7th day. Also, what is this ID card? I have a savings there, do the minimum balance, no fees, Roberto always tells me to go to the preferred line, but I've never seen any ID card.

I enquired of Beto in the Ajijic branch what was required to use the preferred customer line and his answer was "nothing" - being a foreign client gives one access to the line.