Bank accounts, credit cards and insurances

[Michele]

Starting over is fun! Right?

I have a USAA account, but they don't offer car or renters insurance in Florida. So I'm not sure what benefits I get having that account.

I have an account with my mom, but I want my OWN account. Should I go with a local bank? Or should I just get my own in Wells Fargo (where my other accounts are).

Credit cards: I'm not sure if I'll qualify for one. I figured I'd start through USAA? If not, I at least can use the debit card from the WF acct. I'm going to miss my Starwood Amex though.

Insurance: I am able to get health insurance, and I'll try to just renew the renters insurance (if they don't drop me because of the dog)...but where should I look for car insurance? Is Amica still good? I think we have Progressive right now.

Any other thoughts or tips?

[diggitydot]

You'll usually find better rates and customer service with a local credit union.

[Thirteen]

Do you have AAA?
They do renters, and auto for a nice price.


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[poky]

DO NOT just go with WF. Even if you can't get insurance with them, USAA is definitely a good place to start for other banking stuff, and there are definite benefits over regular banks. Call them and let them know your situation and what you want, and they'll set you up. Keep the USAA membership no matter what. If you want a completely separate account, do like dd said and look for a local credit union you can join.

[SoonerTexan]

We just shopped for insurance as Liberty Mutual came in way way ahead of everyone

[medpedspouse]

FWIW - USAA has always been our main savings/checking and ccard bank. They have been awesome at taking care of any issue. We still have a local bank but only use it 1 or 2 times a year at most. I actually was without a local bank for 8 months because USAA took care of all my fin. needs.

My fav USAA experience was when the bank that our mortgage was through said we did not pay one month...a USAA rep took it on themselves to prove to them we had paid AND made sure that bank sent us a letter stating that we were never late. I have not had too many issues but when I do, their reps will get us in the three-way call and advocate for me.

[Deebs]

I would go local anyway for banking. I think it's easier to completely separate with no errors of things going to the wrong account if you're at another banking institution. Call Amex - you may qualify because you've been a previous customer and you do currently have a job. I have my own card through a business I incorporated that makes no money. I don't know about insurance. We're with Liberty Mutual right now and have been very happy with them. Everything has been over the phone and I was able to set up when kids were playing in the background. I don't envy you at all for having to do all of this.

[Thirteen]

We closed our accounts with Citi and BoA. Ugh, gross!

We have a household acct with Charles Schwab bank, and love it. We have another secondary/holding account (read: DH's account for gas/fun money, so it doesn't cause an issue in our household balance) with a (now) out of state credit union, and we love them too.




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[Michele]

I called USAA and asked about an Amex. She hooked me up, I'm approved and the only user/account holder! Woo hoo! I feel like a grown up now! She even made a mistake and rush shipped it and credited the cost.

So I have a USAA Amex!

I'll look into the local credit union. I think my receptionist uses them and can take pics of her paycheck from her iPhone to automatically deposit them. That is a cool feature!!

Re: USAA It seems like you can use the ATMs at CVS/Walgreens for USAA. That seems pretty easy.

I do have AAA. I'll call them for quotes.

[poky]

I'll look into the local credit union. I think my receptionist uses them and can take pics of her paycheck from her iPhone to automatically deposit them. That is a cool feature!!

Did you ask USAA about that? They also have that feature; I use it all the time. Love it! I think you have to have a loan or cc with them, but it sounds like you do, now...call back and ask!

[diggitydot]

As for insurance, we've had great luck with Shelter. Our local dude completely rocks. I've even had him answer emails promptly that were sent at 10pm on a Saturday of a holiday weekend. We also get a giant discount for having both our cars and homeowners coverage with the same insurer.

[Michele]

I think I qualify. That's pretty friggin' sweet!

[MsSassyBaskets]

I have to admit, I've had the opposite experience to most people on the thread so far. I loved Wells Fargo when I banked with them. I liked having branches everywhere so I could bank near my work, home, out running errands, when visiting FH's family or my family... I always had free checking and savings, and the rates were comparable to most places. Plus there's the benefit of being able to instantly electronically transfer between your other account there. I used to use a credit union but was turned off by the inconvenience of only having one or two locations to go to. It's been a while though, and my old credit union didn't even have online banking yet.

WF is also pretty good about credit cards -- even as a broke student & new grad I was able to have a low-limit credit card through them with a reasonable rate. No rewards though... if you want rewards, try Chase.

As for insurance, I would drop Progressive ASAP. They're better than some of the giants like Allstate, but they're still in the middle of the pack in terms of price. When I switched from Progressive to Geico I was able to add FH and his car to my policy and pay the same price I'd been paying for just me at Progressive.

Anyway, those are my experiences. Good luck!

[MsSassyBaskets]

Oh, and I get my renter's through Geico too and it has been very reasonable.

[medpedspouse]

I called USAA and asked about an Amex. She hooked me up, I'm approved and the only user/account holder! Woo hoo! I feel like a grown up now! She even made a mistake and rush shipped it and credited the cost.

So I have a USAA Amex!

I'll look into the local credit union. I think my receptionist uses them and can take pics of her paycheck from her iPhone to automatically deposit them. That is a cool feature!!

Re: USAA It seems like you can use the ATMs at CVS/Walgreens for USAA. That seems pretty easy.

I do have AAA. I'll call them for quotes.

You should be able to use your USAA debit card at ANY ATM anywhere in the world. They will always refund the fee. I do not know how much you withdraw cash per month - I know there is a limit but I have never gone over it.

ETA - I know I sound like a commercial for USAA but if you have them, use them because they are the best bank I have found. The only times I have used a local bank is to cash checks of people I do not trust to have the funds. Hence, the reason why they only get used one or twice a year. All the other deposits are made through my USAA iPhone App and the funds are immediately available.
I know many banks are now offering similar electronic services but USAA has been doing it for years because they have no branches and their members are all over the world. Therefore, if any ew feature comes available, I am sure USAA will be one of the first to adopt. I could go on and on. LUUUUUV them.