Need a bank with Pgh and LA locations
July 28, 2012 2:54 PM   Subscribe

Please help me find a bank with Pittsburgh and Los Angeles locations...

Hi all - I'm looking for a bank with ATMs/branches in both Pittsburgh (Shadyside, Oakland, Squirrel Hill) and downtown Los Angeles. Not looking for anything fancy (just a standard checking account), but online banking would be a plus.

I'm currently a Bank of America customer, but there are hardly any BofA ATMs in the Pgh area. Was considering PNC, which is fairly ubiquitous in Pgh, but alas, they don't have any LA locations. Help? Thank you, in advance!
posted by jus7brea7he to Grab Bag (7 answers total)
 
I've been very happy with an ING Electric Orange account, having switched over from BofA. Their cards work in one of those ATM networks so I just use the app to find a standalone ATM nearby. (That link is web-based searching, which is cool, but there's actually an app on my phone I use when I'm out and around.) I have no problems finding ATMs in Downtown LA, and it looks like Pittsburgh's pretty well-covered too.

I do not miss BofA.
posted by carsonb at 3:00 PM on July 28, 2012 [1 favorite]


How much cash do you plan on taking out? It's just as easy to get money back from transactions at Giant Eagle or Ralphs. You can keep BofA (yuk) and get cash at the grocery store.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 3:05 PM on July 28, 2012


I would look into a credit union. There may not be one with branches in both cities, but there is a huge network of CUs that share branches and ATMs.

I deposit my paycheck at a completely different CU from the one I have my account with all the time. Once you go CU, you never go back.
posted by drjimmy11 at 3:46 PM on July 28, 2012 [1 favorite]


PNC lets you move money between your account there and your accounts at other banks using their website or app. So if you can't find a bank with locations in both places, you could have two accounts that are connected. Plus my PNC account reimburses me for ATM fees at other banks' ATMs.
posted by amro at 3:46 PM on July 28, 2012


Seconding credit union and shared branching. I live in Philly. My credit union is in Seattle. The ONLY thing I've ever had to do via mail order is replace a lost ATM card - everything else can be handled via one of the kazillion local branches/ATMs from other "partner" credit unions.
posted by julthumbscrew at 3:50 PM on July 28, 2012


I'll second the ING Direct post. I switched from BofA in 2009.

The subaccounts and the bill pay system have made the drudgery of maintaining the household budget much less painful.

I do have a Credit Union account but I rarely use it.

No more big banks for me.
posted by dknott123 at 5:34 PM on July 28, 2012


There are a lot of online banks that reimburse ATM transactions once you get over a certain amount in your account - I use Everbank and I know that it is true for them. Perhaps check those out?

Bank of America will do you no favors in this town. I know the GetGos have surcharge-free ATMs (though perhaps your original bank will charge?). There is a GetGo on Baum (in Oakland) and on Murray (in Squirrel Hill)
posted by amicamentis at 6:34 AM on July 29, 2012


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