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I am fed up to my eyeballs with Bank of America


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I would like some recommendations for another bank.

I don't need a bank that deals w/expats living in Mx, I have a domicile in California, but I'm down here most of the time.

I want a bank that will give me a cashback credit card and let me maybe use an ATM here w/o charge, AND where I can look at my account online.

In other words: Decent service where I don't have to be on hold for up to an hour to talk to someone who may not know the answer and will transfer me to the end of tht hour long line again.

Thanks.

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I have an account with Well Fargo and while I can't say that I approve of their corporate track record of late I do have/use a credit card and Debit card from them. The credit card has a 'Rewards' program wherein purchases with the card earn points (I can't remember how many points per $). Making purchases at 'some' retail outlets, with whom they have relationships, earns an additional point or two or three PER $1 spent. 

These points can be used in many ways, including a gift card, travel, purchases, etc. I don't know the rate but one can also just request a refund check/transfer to one's checking account at the rate of $1/500 points... in denominations of $25. I actually did not get the card for this reason... it just came with the card... but I recently had $250 refunded to my checking account after I noticed that my point accumulation was quite high due to some medical procedures in the last year.

BTW, I don't know if one can use a credit card in a Mexico ATM... I always use my Well Fargo or another Debit card for that purpose.

 

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My husband had BOA for sometime. They use to have a deal with santander. He now uses Capital One and Capital One 360. They have a network of ATM's here. There was one across from Wal-Mart at the casino and one over the Mountain in Oxxo at membrillos. Many others you can lookup.

What he loves the most is No Foreign Transaction Fees with either account. He use to get so angry at the 3% foreign transaction fees along with the terrible rates for dollars to pesos. He says the rates gets now are somedays better than whats listed online added with the no transaction fees. He has a couple of Capital reward cards that give him cashback. They give different percentages for different things. On one I know He gets 2% for gas and groceries and 3% restaurants. I thinks its called capital one SAVOR. Anyway, he handles the U.S. banking for us and I handle the Mexican.

He has changed accounts in the past like BOA when they change rules or something else that disturbs him. He keeps up with points etc. Once a year we fly ti U.S. to see his family and  we have not had to buy the tickets in years. We also usually get a rental car for a week. We get free nights in Hotels etc.  He does a good job for us and gets all kinds of things. He us amways getting double or triple points, getting points for more than one account on one transaction, Like Hilton honors or National Car Emerald club, Camino Real. He has even found things here like 7-11 even. etc. etc. etc. So Capital has been good to us.

GOOD LUCK, I am sure that others will have suggestions.  Some bank is always doing something to get customers

 

By the way He found a neat way,  I think anyway, to check currency rates.

For example.

Go to google.com and in the search bar type 1 usd to mxn and google will show what 1 dollar is in pesos.

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The biggest problem with B of A for many people is that they do not have a large enough account, ie do not have very much money in their banks accounts. I never have more than $15 to $20 K in my Bank of America account. But then they bought out Merrill Lynch and all of a sudden I was in 7th heaven.  I am able to link my Merrill Lynch brokerage account balance to my bank account balance and all of a sudden everything is for free. Because I do not have a large retirement account I still have enough when added to my bank balance to allow me to wire funds to my Actinver account for free up to three times per year.

Most of you would have more and would get more for free.

But now that I can add my  ML balance to my B of A balance, everything is wonderful.

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Definitely, if you have served in the US military, or are the spouse or child of a military person or veteran, you may be eligible for USAA membershjip.  It has been my only bank and US insurance company for almost 60 years, now, and I have never needed another. Mail, phone, or internet is all you need from anywhere in the world.

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Charles Schwab has no ATM fees at any ATM worldwide.   I opened a Capitol 360 account when they had a network ATM at the OXXO in Ajijic, but after Cap 360 disassociated with that ATM, I closed my account with them as the one near Walmart is not convenient and certainly the one in Ixtlahuacan isn't convenient.  Why hunt and peck for a Cap 360 machine when Schwab lets you use any one you want??

Been very happy with Schwab.  Not only do they credit all ATM fees worldwide, they pay us a bit of interest.

We have 2 airline cc's that don't levy international transaction fees.  We continue to fly a lot so prefer to keep those over a cash-back card.  When we lived here 2008 thru 2012, we never used a cc in Mexico.  Now we use it often, but only at large stores (Costco, Home Depot, Walmart, some local furniture/electrical/food stores that use chip readers).  Of course we continue to use our cc's with Amazon US and Amazon MX.  

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I should add that USAA offers great service. I have had car insurance with them since 1961 and home and now condo insurance with USAA in the US since 1973. I could open a bank account or just a credit card account with them, because they are the best.

It's just that I have had a bank account with what was Seafirst and now is B of A even longer and found no need for more accounts.

But yes USAA is the greatest and if I only lived outside of the country I would have a USAA bank account.  Now I only use  them for insurance for my condo and my Ford, both located in Seattle.

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I tried to open an account online with Schwab but got stuck at the end of the enrollment when they wanted a state Drivers License for the state I was using as my address. I don't have a state drivers license anymore, only a Jalisco drivers license. I live down here full time and rarely go back to the USA.  I really liked what I saw with Schwab but alas ... 

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I can recommend Capital One with their 360 checking and Quicksilver credit card.

360 imposes no ATM fees. You will pay the ATM fee for the local bank, however. If you withdraw large amounts, this becomes negligible.

Quicksilver has no international fees, 1.5% cash back, great exchange rates, and no annual fees.

Capital One has excellent online presence, including their website and smartphone apps. All this convinced me to dump my Mexican bank account, with all it's attendant hassles. Don't miss it at all.

Just my opinion

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