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Here's the second of ten sections of a Smartmoney article dated March 26, 2009 entitled "10 things your bank won't tell you" posted recently at msn.com:

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Banking/
BetterBanking/10ThingsYourBankWontTellYou.aspx

"...With the economy in a slump and big losses crippling in the mortgage market, banks are looking for reliable revenue streams. Hence punitive fees -- for overdrawing your account, say, or using a competitor's ATM -- are increasing. The average ATM service charge doubled between 1998 and 2007, and overdraft fees brought in $17.5 billion in revenue in 2006, up from $10.3 billion in 2004, according to the Center for Responsible Lending.

Rubecca Hegarty, a married mother of three in Woodridge, Ill., says she often pays upward of $100 a month in overdraft fees to JPMorgan Chase because, like most banks, it changes the order of purchases so that large debts get paid first, increasing the likelihood that customers will incur fees on smaller purchases. Chase says it does this because big payments like a mortgage are more important to consumers and so get priority.

Revenue from penalties can be addictive for banks, Harvard Business School professor Gail McGovern says, but "they're going to face problems from angry customers, which leads to big call-center bills, employee dissatisfaction and turnover."

Indeed, that anger has reached the ear of federal lawmakers. Starting in July 2010, sweeping consumer protections will rein in many of the banking industry's most controversial practices...."

So...

If you haven't caught on yet, your friendly bank will be trying to "get everything they can" before the new consumer protection laws kick in next July.

The banks have become extraordinary predators.

- Ed Smith, Publisher
The EHS Letter Manual