Money and Finance

[Deleted]

Apr 4, 2011 23:39:47 GMT -4 Xerox said:

I need some bank advice.

I have a checking account with Wachovia and I want to close it. I've already opened a new checking account with a credit union. I have about $164 in the Wachovia account. I'd like to close it without being stuck with some kind of penalty. Someone suggested that I withdraw the money or write a check to myself for the amount in the account and cash or deposit it, reducing my balance to 0 and Wachovia will close the account themselves. If I do that, will I be charged a fee or get a ding on my credit record?

You shouldn't. It's been a long time since I closed my Bank of America account, but that's what they had me do. Maybe check the website? (I'd say call customer service, but they'll just ship you over to account retention and try to keep your money. It's a pain in the ass, and not worth doing.)

[MrsCatHead]

Can you just go to the bank itself and close the account out? There's no penalty for that.

[Deleted]

Apr 5, 2011 0:47:26 GMT -4 MrsCatHead said:

Can you just go to the bank itself and close the account out? There's no penalty for that.

Yes, I closed two Wachovia checking and savings accounts not long ago by going to the bank, telling them I wanted to close the accounts, and giving them the information for my new accounts where the money could be directed to. There was no penalty. (Though there was some guilt-tripping about why I wanted to close the accounts in the first place! There are no Wachovias in midstate NY, sorry.)

[Xerox]

Thanks for all the advice!

[chonies]

Anyone have any ideas for refinancing an auto loan? When I got one a few years ago, I still had weak credit, and my apr was in the double digits. However, I recently qualified from my bank, which tends to skew conservative on such things, for an auto loan at 3% APR. Do I call the corporation that holds the loan, or do I call my bank and ask them to handle it?

Also, talk to me about doing finances together as a couple. Some background: we're renting a house, Mr Cho will make about 20% more than I do, and he also owns a house that he's trying to sell. The idea of joint banking kind of makes me hurl, and we're certainly not rushing into anything.

Another question, when it comes to savings, is it better to have a monetary goal, or is it better to stick to a percentage? HALP.

[Deleted]

As for the car loan, I am not really sure. But for the sharing finances as a couple......it depends on how anal you want to get with it. I live with an engineer so you can guess what that is like! We use Quicken and an Excel spreadsheet. We have a general monthly budget that pays for stuff like utilities, preschool tuition, etc., and he and I have our own monthly budgets. We each pay for different things- he gets dinners out, I pay for groceries, he pays for movies, I pay for the kids clothes, that sort of thing.

For the most part, it works well, but I would be lying if I said that we still did not have skirmishes. He used to be more anal about money, but I will tell you what was a wake up call for us. Last year, a friend of ours died of cancer at 43. It was one of those horrible things that made us realize that life is very short and we needed to enjoy it. We should take care of the future, take care of the bills and don't go into debt, but enjoy life because as my dad says, you can't take it with you.

That being said, I love Quicken. It makes it easier to spot wasted money and break bad habits when you see exactly what you are spending on what. And it gives you that big picture- you can keep track of investments and retirement funds in addition to checking and savings accounts.

[cruising]

Chonies, you contact your bank, and they will either get you to get a payoff quote from the original loan holder or do it themselves.

When I did it, I had the loan for three days before I switched over to my credit union. It pretty much was a painless act that I do not recall as being too crazy.

In regards to money between you and yours, I think you should always keep a stash for your own peace of mind. In this day and age, you never know.

In regards to savings, monetary goal vs. percentage, I like to focus on making my monthly percentage quota. If you are consistent, the monetary goal will happen.

[chiqui]

Here's a question out of the blue. I have a 401K with TIAA CREF with a small amount of money in it; it's a leftover from a job I had over 20 years ago. I cashed out some of to pay for the new house, but the rest is stuck there (cashed out only in small amounts over five years.) It's a bitch for me to access because it's from so long ago and had been written individually for that long ago employer. I'm only keeping it out of atrophy and because I thought I'd work for a college again someday where they would contribute.

So I'm thinking about switching it over to someplace else. I have an empty account with Merril Lynch (again, a relic of a former employer) and heard Charles Schwab is also good. Any recommendations?

[ladyboy]

I'm all about Vanguard because they have low fees and good funds.

[Babycakes]

Hey guys, I ordered my free yearly credit reports, and so far have received only one. Usually I get two, and a letter from the third requesting more information. But this year, I've only gotten the one. I like to see all three to see if they're saying the same thing. It's been about 3 weeks since I first made the request, should I contact the companies and see what the hold up is?