Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Adding Fees to Accounts

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) will be adding fees to accounts in the latter part of 2011 in response to the misguided regulatory rules which slashed earnings from the banks.

This was very foreseeable, as the attempt to curry political gain by removing the ability of banks to generate revenue from fees charged in a number of areas will always result in a company seeking revenue elsewhere.

As usual with government interference, it's the consumer who ends up paying, and this will happen across all the major banks ultimately. It's a matter of the degree of the fees, not if there will be fees.

Concerning checking accounts, the fee amount will be determined by how much business a customer does with the bank. It could rise as high as $25 a month for those doing little business with the bank.

Those doing a lot of business will probably retain their free checking account status.

Bank of America is rolling out the new fee structure in Arizona, Georgia and Massachusetts first, and will take it national later in 2011.