Personal Finance

Need recommendations for best options

  • Last Updated:
  • Jul 20th, 2018 1:51 pm
Newbie
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Feb 18, 2010
44 posts
27 upvotes
Beaver Dam

Need recommendations for best options

So long story short, my partner has been with same bank his whole life (Scotiabank). After my disgust with the rates he gets for all his products and charges for his account considering his excellent credit and history, he's open to switching everything somewhere else. I am of the 'get the best rate possible' league. He can't be bothered spending time doing the hunting, so I'm sure his bank loves him because they can just slap on whatever new rates they want and he's never complained. He has excellent credit (mid 800s) so shouldn't have any issues getting good rates. What he's got now:
-ScotiaOne daily account (and pays about $13 month for it--grrr) He always has a few thousand in there
-RRSP account with Scotiabank (not sure what rate he gets but I would guess it's not compelling enough to stay)
-Scotia Mortgage -we've only got about 50K left on this, it's up for renewal, and the rate they are offering is 3.54 (on a 4 year adjustable--we are finishing up a 2.65 variable 4 year, they raised it in their 'offer' of renewal)
-Scotiabank value visa--ZERO benefits and he pays $29 annual fee.
-Scotia secured LOC (no balance, 30K available)--interest on this is I believe 2.3? May be the only 'good' think they are giving him.

So--if it was you, and you wanted to have everything (or at least most) switched somewhere else for simplicity--what would YOU do?
10 replies
Deal Expert
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May 8, 2009
15560 posts
14184 upvotes
Going to the Moon
Here's the roadmap to move your SO out of Scotia...
  1. Switch chq & savings to Tangerine ASAP. Get an Orange key off someone you know, and sign up for both via affiliate links on GCR. You may have to hold hands during the initial process, but afterwards once on Tangerine...still free access to Scotia ATM's, but free chq account, better interest rates on savings is a no-brainer
  2. Your partner has a HELOC and a low interest card...I'd flush that low interest card like a bad habit. For one-stop-shop, take Tangerine MC (again GCR link). Get 2% on 3 categories, 0.5% everything else. Won't be a low interest card, so if he struggles with payment deadline, then pre-auth pay full balance of card out of HELOC if possible. If he only wants one card, then Rogers MC WE is even better. Best to do a two card combo. Rogers MC and grab a G&G card (Meridian/Scotia/TD/CIBC with AF, usually FYF, CTFS ∆ WE or PC MC WE no-AF, in-house rewards pts). For a low interest card, there's a thread for that. Ok if one is to use for cash advances or balance transfers. Not all great for spending, especially if one has a uLOC or HELOC.
  3. If the RRSP is self-managed or contains stocks, it may be ok. If it's the off the shelf pkg deal, then move the RRSP funds elsewhere. Tang will be a +1 over Scotia for RRSP's I'm assuming. But there are even better options.
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Deal Fanatic
Jan 15, 2017
5749 posts
6121 upvotes
Ottawa
1. The Scotia One Daily account has $0 fees if you maintain a daily balance of $4000. If he doesn't want to keep that balance, just pick another account.
2. With a mortgage balance of $50k, it might not be worth your while to switch. Is it a STEP? If so, there may be legal fees to switch. And, over 90% of mortgage holders simply sign whatever the bank offers at renewal. Can't blame the bank then. All you need to do is go back and request a lower rate, which you did.
3. The Scotia Value Visa is for people who carry a balance. If he is not carrying a balance, just switch to a no fee visa.
Deal Fanatic
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Nov 14, 2003
6675 posts
5466 upvotes
LaLaLand
I personally think you should shop around and switch banks because you are almost guaranteed to get a better offer at another bank. Yes it's a hassle but you will save money. Isn't this what it is all about here at RFD?

The new bank should bend over backwards to entice you to move. If you have a mortgage at a bank, paying any other fees are absurd considering how much interest you pay them in a year. But they still want $29 for a pointless credit card?? :facepalm:

When you're finished paying off your mortgage, go back to Scotia and tell them you're thinking about buying another property and need another mortgage and see what they can do for you. Play them against each other. :twisted: Face With Tears Of Joy
Deal Fanatic
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Nov 14, 2003
6675 posts
5466 upvotes
LaLaLand
skeet50 wrote: 1. The Scotia One Daily account has $0 fees if you maintain a daily balance of $4000. If he doesn't want to keep that balance, just pick another account.
2. With a mortgage balance of $50k, it might not be worth your while to switch. Is it a STEP? If so, there may be legal fees to switch. And, over 90% of mortgage holders simply sign whatever the bank offers at renewal. Can't blame the bank then. All you need to do is go back and request a lower rate, which you did.
3. The Scotia Value Visa is for people who carry a balance. If he is not carrying a balance, just switch to a no fee visa.
I think the less time you have on your mortgage, the better it is because after the first mortgage folks are likey to move to secured lines of credit and/or additional mortgages which may have more value and less risk to banks. They will also cover legal fees because they will make it back on interest.

In my experience, if you have at least one property without debt, they will give you as much credit as you want and at the best rate. Banks like lending money with little or no risk involved.
Member
Jan 4, 2017
366 posts
277 upvotes
Scotia is fine for using the LOC as actual LOC, the rates are good, and depending on your gas & grocery spending habits, their visa infinite cc may be a clear winner as well.

If he's paying the monthly fee for checking account, he's better off going with other free offerings for checking like Tangerine or Simplii. However, my personal preference is to use a line of credit as free unlimited checking account, which Scotia unfortunately doesn't do - TD and CIBC do though. My payroll deposit goes in there, always maintaining a credit balance so no interest ever due. In the event that I do go below zero and actually borrow from the line, there are never any fees and only the accrued interest is billed, so much better than an actual checking account with overdraft fees in that regard. It acts the same in all other ways, is linked to my debit card as 'checking', have actual checks to draw on it, etc.

RRSPs can be held in savings accounts, GICs, mutual funds, self-directed brokerage accounts, etc. So without knowing the actual type of account, can't really say there. But if it's more than a couple thousand bucks, it's probably safe to say there is some room for improvement if it's in a basic account.
Deal Fanatic
Jan 15, 2017
5749 posts
6121 upvotes
Ottawa
batcave wrote: I think the less time you have on your mortgage, the better it is because after the first mortgage folks are likey to move to secured lines of credit and/or additional mortgages which may have more value and less risk to banks. They will also cover legal fees because they will make it back on interest.

In my experience, if you have at least one property without debt, they will give you as much credit as you want and at the best rate.
I don't think that the OP is looking for more credit, just wants to eliminate some of the fees. Some of those products, like the Value Visa, have a fee because of the lower interest rate. That is actually a sign that the partner may be carrying a balance each month.

It's easy to get frustrated at a bank (and I know I have many times). Yet we all need to do a review every once in a while to make sure that the products that we use and buy still meet our needs. The OP can easily switch to accounts that better meet their needs.
Deal Fanatic
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Nov 14, 2003
6675 posts
5466 upvotes
LaLaLand
skeet50 wrote: I don't think that the OP is looking for more credit, just wants to eliminate some of the fees. Some of those products, like the Value Visa, have a fee because of the lower interest rate. That is actually a sign that the partner may be carrying a balance each month.

It's easy to get frustrated at a bank (and I know I have many times). Yet we all need to do a review every once in a while to make sure that the products that we use and buy still meet our needs. The OP can easily switch to accounts that better meet their needs.
Yes I know. If they move banks, they should be able to eliminate all or their fees except for mortgage interest. Many Canadian banks rely on complacency for their income. Real savings comes from moving banks.

After mortgages are paid off, folks want easy access to credit because of different financial goals; second house, etc. Most people that aren't mortgage free don't understand this concept.
Newbie
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Feb 18, 2010
44 posts
27 upvotes
Beaver Dam
Thanks all this is great advice. He never carries a balance on his CC. He uses it maybe 4x a year to order performance car parts typically when the bug strikes Face With Tears Of Joy Then pays the balance off immediately online. The only reason he has it is because they (Scotia) offered it years ago and he accepted (again...he's not the 'take time to shop around' type lol). Hence my legwork here. He typically aims to keep 2-3K in his bank account and then throws anything over that into his RRSPs. I don't believe he's going to have an issue getting whatever products he wants anywhere, which is why it's even more infuriating to think about how much he's p*ssed away with them over the years. I'm going to look into the options you guys have mentioned. I have the rogers MC WE and LOVE it...so may start there with him, along with Tangerine for his daily banking.
Sr. Member
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Oct 19, 2016
650 posts
208 upvotes
Toronto
Sounds like an average bank customer. Nothing wrong with that though.

If customers dont want the fee, its simple, just switch your account to a lower or no fee product or bank.

The banks are there to make money. They are not a charity or non profit organization.

lissdawn wrote: So long story short, my partner has been with same bank his whole life (Scotiabank). After my disgust with the rates he gets for all his products and charges for his account considering his excellent credit and history, he's open to switching everything somewhere else. I am of the 'get the best rate possible' league. He can't be bothered spending time doing the hunting, so I'm sure his bank loves him because they can just slap on whatever new rates they want and he's never complained. He has excellent credit (mid 800s) so shouldn't have any issues getting good rates.
Deal Addict
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Dec 3, 2017
3175 posts
3128 upvotes
Toronto
Are you open to credit unions, because depending on your location most credit unions offer accounts cheaper than the big 5 (sometimes even free accounts :D) and many more offer much better mortgage rates, credit cards, and LOC rates, plus their ATM network is fairly big (search exchange network). I can offer some recommendations based off of your location (if you don’t mind disclosing what city you live in :p)

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