Bank Fees | featured news

President Obama slammed Bank of America’s $5 debit card card fee in an interview with ABCnews.com and Yahoo on Monday, calling the charge “not good business practice.”

Few seem terribly pleased with Bank of America’s decision to charge its users $5 every month they use their debit cards. BofA blames Congress for passing the Dodd-Frank Act, claiming the law’s new regulations are responsible. The law, which was implemented in June, restricts the fees that banks can charge merchants when customers use debit cards to pay, lowering them from 44 cents to 24 cents.

Another day, another new bank fee. As the uproar swelled over Bank of America Corp.'s planned $5 monthly charge for debit cards, megabank rival Citigroup Inc. was telling checking accounts holders that it would sock them with a $15 a month fee unless they maintain a balance above $6,000.

Bank of America will charge debit card customers a $5 monthly fee for using their plastic to make purchases starting next year, a move to recover recently reduced fees paid by merchants.

Countrywide Home Loans agreed to pay borrowers $108 million for charging excessive fees when they fell behind on their mortgages.

Banking consumers who try to engage in comparison shopping often simply can't because nearly one in four banks doesn't make fee schedules available before they sign up, according to a study published Tuesday by a consumer group.

Wells Fargo is ending its free checking account. Bank of America is testing out options. Others are expected to follow suit. The good news for bank customers this summer is that new federal rules should cut down on unexpected overdraft fees.

Cash advances are one of the sneakiest ways a bank can trap you into a cycle of debt. But there are a handful of other debt traps you should avoid at all costs. "You may think you can get in and get out, but it's financial quicksand. ...

Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner says Congress can recoup "outrageous" bonuses for AIG employees through a new bank fee in President Barack Obama's proposed budget.

Though details are sketchy, the fee would recover money put up to bail out the banks, a rescue that has contributed to the largest deficit since World War II.