# School me on paypal and banking



## FPF (Feb 11, 2013)

I have a couple questions:

1) I just opened a business checking account at the local bank. They only allow 150 transactions a month unless I hold a $15000 balance but even then i only get 300 transactions. I checked out a couple of banks. This seems to be standard around my area. How do you guys bank if you have an account that is that limited. That basically leaves me with the ability to only sell 150 shirts a month.... what do you guys do? do you have multiple accounts that you toggle between? 

2) Im going to be using paypal, at least for the initial startup. I have almost zero experience with them except for on ebay. Am I required to sign up for their business account or can I use the personal accounts? from the web site it seems that a personal account doesnt have any fees, while the business account costs 2.9% per transaction to sell. Am I reading this wrong? Also, it says you can set paypal up to take credit cards. Is this cheaper than any other systems for accepting them? What else do I need to know about paypal?


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## NoXid (Apr 4, 2011)

1) To heck with (most) banks. I have personal accounts with several credit unions, and one for my business. See what credit unions you have access to in your area. As a business, you will probably have access to most of them. Also, regional/local banks might be more interested in you as a customer and less evil than the typical bank... but a credit union is probably you best bet.

2) The seller always pays fees on PayPal, they are just structured differently for a personal account than for a business account. If you have sold stuff on ebay, you have paid PayPal fees. Yes, setup a business account. I think PayPal is a decent option for an online business since they make it pretty easy to get setup and don't have a complicated (or half hidden) system of fees. The other card servicers seem to relish in lots and lots of fine print gotchas that seem designed to unexpectedly cost you more money when the moon is full or whatever.

I have not turned on my online store, so I don't yet have first-hand experience with PayPal in that context, but to me it seems a good place to start, and is what I am going to do. One can always move on to someone else later on, as it costs nothing to get setup with PayPal.

In older threads I've seen the PayPal haters and PayPal lovers bicker over this... I'm following this thread to see how opinion shakes out "today."


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## PyramidPrintWrx (Jan 16, 2014)

When people pay with paypal, it goes into your paypal account. Then you transfer it to your bank account whenever you want. You can hold the money in paypal as long as you need to limit your transactions.

So if you sell 150 shirts, you can transfer the money over to your bank all at once. One transaction. Or two. Or ten.

Also, if you're selling direct to customers with, say, checks, would you put them in one at a time? Or would you put in several together in one deposit? If you do one deposit per day, for example, that's maybe 20-25 transactions per month, plus paypal transfers, etc.


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

Screw the bank, go get an account at a credit union. They are member owned. No fees, no real restrictions and they actually treat you like family.


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## anothershirtguy (Jan 11, 2014)

I've had a horrible experience with PayPal, and I'm not the only one. They will ALWAYS side with the buyer in every dispute, and can and do arbitrarily freeze accounts, locking you out of your funds and perhaps effectively putting you out of business.

Don't take my word for it, read this or just do a Google search on PayPal account freezes.


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## chrisf116 (Jul 26, 2007)

I use PayPal and have for years. I have heard of bad experiences, but I've never had a bad experience. They will always side with the buyer though. I use them for credit cards too. I'm a PayPal fan.


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

Let me be more specific here since I am on a real computer and not my iPhone which is a PITA. 

PayPal is not a bank and does not adhere to rules around a bank. While we take PayPal for payments, it is less than 1% of our business. 

We use a real merchant processor (they are all scum, pick your poison) and a credit union for our banking. 

Here is what you can expect with a bank. 

Monthly fees, statement fees, deposit fees, withdrawl fees, talking to them on the phone fees, talking to them in person fees, check fees, deposit fees, fees for the hell of it....are you getting the picture?

Our credit union is great, no fees and personal service. They clear any deposit up to 15K (my stipulation but I could change that if I wanted) with no questions asked. 

You need a partner in banking, not a merchant that is there to steal your money.

Banking 101 lesson over....


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## SBM (Aug 2, 2013)

Check out local community banks in your area if there are any. My business checking account is free. No fees at all! (Not referring to credit card processing fees as I don't use them for that).


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

We use our credit union and our accounts are free


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## nuthreadz (Sep 23, 2012)

We use chase bank and have never had a fee for too many check deposits. As for PayPal we use it and have never had issue with it. Shop your bank around because there is no need for those fees.


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## StarDesigns (Aug 4, 2013)

After 20+ years in the convenience store and Subway subs business I have seen my share of credit card processors. Everyone promises to be lower than the next guy. The only thing I know for sure is that ALL standard credit card processors are SPAWNS OF SATAN! Fees, fees and fees get you every time. 

Now to the point, got into screen printing and embroidery 4 years ago, sold my subway and c-store this past December and opened up a retail space for my shirt biz. We carry jewelry, purses, etc and lost of embroidery stuff. We made the decision to go with Square in our new business. Bought the stand for the iPad and couldn't be happier. No hidden fees, no contract, no equipment to pay for, (unless you buy the iPad stand for $100), and the app for iPad is awesome and can be used as a cash register. 

If you aren't in a contract with a CC processor DONT. Check out square for a few months and see how it works for you. 

With all the different companies I was with the previous 20 years one thing remained the same. They will get 3% of your transactions in some way, shape, or form. Square is 2.75%


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## Printavo (Oct 7, 2007)

We used Paypal a ton for the first two years when we were printing. We also just used a personal account to save on fees/restrictions on our bank account with PNC. I definitely suggest doing that.

Also use Square, it's really convenient to swipe cards on the go.


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## FPF (Feb 11, 2013)

Wow thank you all! Your responses really helped. Ill be canceling my account at the bank and going to a credit union. I'm also going to look into square but might en up using PayPal at first.


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

I do agree that all merchant processors are scum. I can't say paypal/square or anyone else is better. Pick what works for you and run with it.


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## tammygraphics (Feb 10, 2014)

I have been using paypal for those that need to use a credit card. 

I have my first order from a local major business that needs to use a credit card for payment. I'm not sure if they are going to want to use paypal. With Square can you use your computer to type in the number? I guess he is supposed to "call me" with his credit card number.

I also went with my credit union for a bank account and love it so far! They, however, stated they can not process credit card payments- does this mean they can't process the Square payments?

Tammy


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## StarDesigns (Aug 4, 2013)

You can "manually" type in a card number with Square. They deposit money from your transactions directly in to your account so the credit union will work, it's just like a direct deposit. Pay Pal has a way to do that, and swipe transactions to, called Pay Pal Here (I think?). I chose not to go with them because they charge more than square and have a few fees. Square is totally different from any credit card processor including Pay Pal in that they have no fees or hidden charges. Square has two % rates, one for swiped cards and one for manual input. The manual input is a little higher than 2.75, however this is the same with all ccp's.

Try the square, I guarantee you will love it. You get your money in a day, except weekends, and you know exactly how much it's going to cost. If you later decide to use something else then, no problem because there are no monthly fees.


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## FPF (Feb 11, 2013)

with square can you build up multiple transactions in a "square" account (I guess) and then make one lump sum deposit into your bank account like someone mentioned you can do with paypal? my credit union offers 250 transactions. a little better than my bank I still don't want to go over.


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## StarDesigns (Aug 4, 2013)

I don't know the answer to that question. Mine are deposited in a daily basis and I like it that way. That's only 20 or so a month since they don't do it on weekends.


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

We use first data and they are more concerned with average ticket If it goes over a certain amount the price goes up


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## gapipkin (May 29, 2011)

I've used Square from day one for the past 3 years. Its the best CCP ever invented. Simple, easy to use, no fees, and most of all its mobile. I can use it on my phone or the iPad and it all goes to the same account. It keeps accurate records and has tons of graphs and charts full of your sales data. 2.75% is a bargain for the convenience and ease of use.


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## BigDon (May 8, 2013)

My ONLY cautions with PayPal are these:

1- They can and WILL freeze your account when THEY feel like doing so without any prior notice to you and may keep it frozen for up to six months. During that time you have NO access to the funds in your account and you can neither deposit (ie, make sales) nor withdraw funds (ie, pay bills) until they decide to thaw your account and then they may keep a portion of your money "frozen" in a rolling hold of 10%-20% of the total amount of the funds in your account or of some arbitrary amount they choose.

2- They charge what I think are exorbitant fees while they draw interest on your money as it sits in THEIR bank account.

My suggestions: Use PP for a short term solution to get your business going and then get a FDIC insured (PayPal is NOT insured, by the way...that is why they can do the things they do with your money) means of processing/transferring YOUR money into YOUR account where YOU can draw interest on it! 

Get an account at a local credit union - you will NOT regret it.


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## royster13 (Aug 14, 2007)

Paypal has about 232 million account holders and they proceesed 16 billions $s last year.....And yes there are accounts that have been frozen....But IMO the number of accounts frozen is so tiny it is not worth worrying about.....Sadly the few that have had a bad experience scream very loudly and want to convince you that it the norm...With that many account holders and that kind of volume it simply can not be true...

As far as rates....If you are a small user, you might be able to do better.....But some of those better fees also come with monthly charges that have to be considered....I do enough volume that my rate is 2.2% or 2.5%....And it can go down to 1.9% for real large volumes....

Plus if some of your clients do not want to give you their CC# may not be able to accept their credit card...With PayPal if the client chooses keep CC# private, you never need to see it...

I a longtime and very satisfied PayPal used....Having said that, I also have a Square account....Comes in handy when I am doing events......

And as a final note, Credit Union all the way for...


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## tammygraphics (Feb 10, 2014)

I have paypal and have used it for as long as I can remember thru Ebay. Since starting this business I set up a business account thru paypal and it works great. I also always pay for my supply purchasing using paypal when I can for my own safety. I will definitely try Square! Thank you for the advice .


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## jeannekay (Mar 19, 2012)

I use both paypal and square. Before phone card readers were issued I used paypal by typing in all cc #'s. Then I went w/ a regular cc processing company and I can second or third that they assign all sort of random fees and you really never knew how much they were going to be taking out. So when square came along I got that too. So now I use square when I'm at trade shows and paypal on my website. Paypal does offer a debit card that is linked to your account for business accounts. I did find that useful when a majority of my funds were going into my paypal account. I'd just use the debit card rather than having the money deposited into my bank account and then using that debit card.

In my experience square does lump sum deposts to your account. It's daily except over the weekends then it may lump all friday/sat/sun sales into one and deposit them all together. I've never really paid attention, but I know that it does multiple sales all together. So you're not getting a bunch of small transactions deposited.


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## kimgeorge (May 8, 2014)

binki said:


> Screw the bank, go get an account at a credit union. They are member owned. No fees, no real restrictions and they actually treat you like family.


Credit cards are becoming popular these days,as one can make payments easily by using it.


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## SunEmbroidery (Oct 18, 2007)

I've had a business account will PayPal for at least nine years. I've never had any problems. Their system is easy to use (I use their invoices for 99% of my transactions) and love the fact that all their fees are out in the open. They are provide you with monthly and yearly statements which make life much easier for me since I'm not a financially-minded person. I also receive good service when I call to ask a question. I believe their percentage rates are slightly higher but its worth it to me to use a system that is easy to follow and consistent from month to month. Since I do business with other businesses once in a while someone will say their business doesn't use PayPal. I that case I will accept a check.


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

SunEmbroidery said:


> I've had a business account will PayPal for at least nine years. I've never had any problems. Their system is easy to use (I use their invoices for 99% of my transactions) and love the fact that all their fees are out in the open. They are provide you with monthly and yearly statements which make life much easier for me since I'm not a financially-minded person. I also receive good service when I call to ask a question. I believe their percentage rates are slightly higher but its worth it to me to use a system that is easy to follow and consistent from month to month. Since I do business with other businesses once in a while someone will say their business doesn't use PayPal. I that case I will accept a check.


And you just gave the value proposition. It is worth it to you and that is what matters.


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## Beaker (Mar 3, 2014)

Anyone using Stripe to process payments? I installed an ecommerce solution for a business recently and used Stripe, it was ridiculously easy to setup, looks great (Stripe Checkout) and costs less than most of the other options I had looked at (2.9% + 30¢). Funds are automatically deposited to your bank on a weekly basis.


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## JZLservices (Feb 25, 2014)

I used stripe for a quick experiment in a e commerce site I made, it was a few cents more then when I sold the same thing with square reader.. Worked well... I like when they are lumped together for deposits rather then a bunch of little deposits since my account allows so many transactions before I get any fees....


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## ribbityribbitz (Mar 10, 2010)

I've used Square and Paypal - loved Square, until....
Had a customer who stole a credit card - he used that card to buy goods from me (to the tune of $3,000) through Square. He got busted. Somebody put out a fraud alert. Square sent me an email, stating that I had three days to dispute or money would be withdrawn from my account. I disputed same day. Next day, 3,000 was gone from my account. GONE. Guess what - Square has no phone number, no customer service, no live person to talk to. I did a deep internet search and finally found a number. Called it and was essentially told, sorry - we're on your side - can't tell you anything else. Nothing. That was in November. Still no resolution, even thought I jumped through all the hoops, had a police report done, filled out all of their info, submitted everything on time, etc. They are still holding the $3000 - and haven't emailed me, called me, said a single word to me, despite my many attempts to call them.

Really stinks, cause I liked them a lot until then. So now, I've unlinked me bank account and am just waiting.

If you think that you ever might have someone swipe a stolen card, then I would suggest a "temporary" holding bank account - where Square deposits, and then you move the money regularly and often.


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## hayatiggs (May 8, 2014)

So Square only gets money when you run a transaction, correct? Even if, say, you only run one every three months?


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## StarDesigns (Aug 4, 2013)

hayatiggs said:


> So Square only gets money when you run a transaction, correct? Even if, say, you only run one every three months?


Correct. No monthly fee. That's the great thing about Square (and a few others). What you see is what you get. No hidden fees. 


Mitchell - Star Designs
Sent from my iPhone using TShirtForums app


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## hayatiggs (May 8, 2014)

Cool. That's what I think I'm going to go with..


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## royster13 (Aug 14, 2007)

ribbityribbitz said:


> I've used Square and Paypal - loved Square, until....
> Had a customer who stole a credit card - he used that card to buy goods from me (to the tune of $3,000) through Square. He got busted. Somebody put out a fraud alert. Square sent me an email, stating that I had three days to dispute or money would be withdrawn from my account. I disputed same day. Next day, 3,000 was gone from my account. GONE. Guess what - Square has no phone number, no customer service, no live person to talk to. I did a deep internet search and finally found a number. Called it and was essentially told, sorry - we're on your side - can't tell you anything else. Nothing. That was in November. Still no resolution, even thought I jumped through all the hoops, had a police report done, filled out all of their info, submitted everything on time, etc. They are still holding the $3000 - and haven't emailed me, called me, said a single word to me, despite my many attempts to call them.
> 
> Really stinks, cause I liked them a lot until then. So now, I've unlinked me bank account and am just waiting.
> ...


As far as I know, every credit card processor will back out charges......Some may do a better job of communicating, however. you would still be out the money....


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## StarDesigns (Aug 4, 2013)

Royster is correct. All companies will issue a charge back in the case of fraud or customer dispute. I saw this all too often in my previous life owning a convenience store. We had to store months worth of credit card receipts because charge backs were all too common. Once you could produce the signed receipt and/or validation of identity we most always got our money back. We did have a few occasions however, where we lost out. It's the price if doing business I guess but it sure does suck eggs. 


Mitchell - Star Designs
Sent from my iPhone using TShirtForums app


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