ajulius said:It is easy to get addicted to Bank Of America because of their easy billpayment system which is top draw. But the thing Bank Of America doesn't show you is the BILL for all of it which is how Bank Of America makes so much money. You wind up with the bill of 4.65% on the funds you keep in there. So if its around 5000, that means your total BILL from Bank Of America was $232.50 for the year. That over a multiyear rolling basis with compounding adds up fast.

Remember, even at 5.05% APY, HSBC is making more money on your funds.
I don't keep much money there - a couple hundred for ATM withdrawls and thats it, just use it for local deposits. I pretty much bounce all my money through Citi (since they made their ACH system free now, including next day transfers, and I've only been blocked by the 1k/day limit, never the $2500/month limit so far). Was just saying that since I do my check deposits there, the ACH thing doesn't really make a diff (the money has to get ACH'd to get > 0.50% APY).

In fact, I don't even use their Bill Pay, I use MBNA's and mycheckfree.com directly.

Xeon852 said:In my area: HSBC is 5.05%, Citibank is 5%, WaMU is 5%. 3 other banks have 5%+ rates for online divisions and I dont know if they can be linked to checking or not. I had an HSBC account when they were the first local high rate bank.
No WaMU, no Citi, no HSBC anywhere close (none in the state of MA). The big banks here are Sovereign, Citizens and BOA, BOA and Citizens don't provide a high yeild linked savings account and Sovereign is too busy trying to act like a small bank to offer the features I want (aka their website stinks, you have to call or go into a branch to get rates, plus their moneymarket has like a 10k min or something), so I use BOA as my local bank. They've been holding my large deposits lately though, so I may start mailing them in to UFB (since they offer free envelopes) or just paying the postage to mail them to HSBC (who seems to get them in 1 day, 2 days max, and posts it the same day).

LOL and there are no 7-11 or Money Pass ATM machines where you live either? I search MA on Citibank web page and both are listed like crazy. For a search of whole state I was able to find 719 ATM between both of them. Just so you know ALL Money Pass ATM machines let you make deposit and Citibank is upgrading slowly all ATM machines inside of 7-11 to allow deposit also. I have seen a couple of the ATM inside of 7-11 switched to normal Citibank ATM already in Los Angeles area. So I am sure within the next year maybe all ATM inside of 7-11 will be normal Citibank ATM.

There is no fee to use Money Pass or 7-11 ATM with a Citibank account.

Xeon852 said:I clicked on every MoneyPass and 7/11 ATM that shows up on the citibank locator within 50 miles of me and it says:
ATM - Cash withdrawals only
for every single one.

I could care less about withdrawls, Citi doesn't charge me a fee anyways unless I go over 5/month (since I'm outside NYC metro area).

Oh wow some of the ones in Los Angeles let you make depsits. I guess Citibank is lagging big time in MA.

I thought this was about ING Orange Checking...

Don't understand what all the new bank branches are about. The trend is towards online and automated services. I only go to the bank for my safe deposit box.

There are no HSBC, Citi (7-11s won't take a deposit in my area and there aren't that many), WaMu, and BoA in my area.

I do have Chase (no high % savings out outside of private banking), LaSalle (no high %), Key (4.75% if I'm over $50,000), TCF (5.07% if I'm over $50,000), Ypsilanti FCU (no >4%), Michigan FCU (no >4%). Because my checking needs are modes (~$500) and I'm earning 6% on my CDs the weighted average is much greater than having it all in TCf checking/savings.

So I challenge all those putting me down for my plans to find me a local bank with 5.0%+ rates. Ann Arbor, MI 48104.

I have monthly check deposit needs and weekly cash DEPOSIT (GMAC provides me all the free atm withdraw access I want) needs. There is no way I'm mailing off cash weekly in an envelope. I can deposit locally, be instantly available and ED will be earning interest on it in 24 hours. If I mailed it Day 1 mail, day 2 transit, day 3 arrive, day 4 credit. If I'm going to lose 3 days interest I'd rather ACH it over.

Ok, now please prove me wrong and find this mythical 5.0% local account for me. Either I'm right or I'm wrong and I get a new bank account. Win-Win for me.

ANN ARBOR COMMERCE BANK MI Active
Offices CHARTER ONE BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OH Active
Offices COMERICA BANK MI Active
Offices FIFTH THIRD BANK MI Active
Offices FLAGSTAR BANK, FSB MI Active

Offices JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OH Active
Offices KEYBANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OH Active
Offices LASALLE BANK MIDWEST NATIONAL ASSOCIATION MI Active
Offices NATIONAL CITY BANK OH Active
Offices REPUBLIC BANK MI Active

Offices TCF NATIONAL BANK MN Active

Offices UNITED BANK & TRUST -WASHTENAW MI Active
Offices UNIVERSITY BANK MI Active
USM SAVINGS BANK, FSB

Banks for MI with stated zipcode.

You need to do the homework and go to the websites and find out what the rates are. All of the 5%+ accounts you need to apply for ONLINE so see if any of these have it.

I noticed you have KeyBank, if you have 25k+ those rates are very high:

Key Ultra Money Market Savings 5.20% with 25k minimum deposit. You would have to ask if you can link this with a checking account with them and use these funds from ATM as I do NOT know if this is available with them.

http://www.emoneycentral.com/cgi-bin/display.cgi?db=db9&start=1 has a listing of some of the high rate banks. Key came up in that zipcode. Also the FatWallet forum has some of them as well. Could be that Key is the only one in your area. Our local equivalent of Key would be Countrywide bank with 5.25% and 10k minimum but you cant link it to an ATM or checking with them and you would have to push the funds over each time.

If CashEdge's next-day ACH became standard, high-limit, and free to everyone, ACH time would be a non-issue. (And it really isn't next-day, its same-day transfer that is scheduled for the next day, every time I have done one it has been debited by Citi on the same day it was credited by the bank I sent it to). Citi has at least made a step in the right direction by making it free (I've used it several times since that happened), now they just need to raise the limits. BOA has free incomming next-day transfers (like I would ever want to move money to their account). Note that for incomming transfers you have to have done a large transfer within the last month for it to work, outgoing's always work as long as you have transfer ammount+$500.

It seems likke this would be more logical than using Citi checking, to just do next-day ACH to ING for whatever ammount your billpay is for from e-savings. Then, in the time between when the money is withdrawn from you and the time that you started the transfer, you earn 3%, rather than 0% in Citi checking.

I don't really understand why ACH speeds vary so much (Emigrant seems to be pretty quick, ING Isn't too slow either, but CashEdge and Paypal standard transfers take 3-4 days). Perhpas there are some verification steps that the faster ones skip as long as the transaction qualifies as low-risk? Or do banks just want to screw us on the float?

If ING could impliment next-day pulls, then this would make a lot of sense with no-min bal (more so than Presidential as you only move what you need to pay bills, instead of keeping the 1k min).

bigboy1972 said:I did my HW and I listed at least 6 banks myself. None of those had were acceptable for the reason I stated. It is trivial to list a bunch of banks but you couldn't bother to read my post why those were not acceptable.

I typed in my zip code into the Key online banking rate and it came up with 4.75% for $50,000 not 5.2% for $25,000 so if you are just going to make up numbers there isn't much point to continue.

Not one of those banks listed had a 5%+ account for under $5,000 and why would I keep $50,000 in a 5.2% savings when I can get 6% in CDs with a much higher weighted average, YOU NEED TO DO YOUR HW if you are tying up $50,000+ just to get a savings rate when you could be getting much more. You keep making up numbers to fit your argument but you can't validate anything you are saying.

Thanks for telling me to do HW. YOU NEED TO LEARN READING COMPREHENSION. None of the banks offer 5% plus to be linked to local for $5,000.

I have 4 checking accounts, 5 ONLINE savings accounts, three retirment tax advantaged accounts with different brokers. I have done my HW. It is pretty easy to say someone needs to do HW when you can't come up with a response. The fact is there are no 5% accounts (linked to checking, I have 3 5%+ online savings accounts) available to fit my needs. Hence my desire for ING checking.

What was the point of listing banks like Chase and TCF when I told you they don't offer the accounts we are talking about? I know what banks are in my zip code. My point is there aren't any 5% ONLINE banks to link to B&M checking without non-rational (for the case I describe) minimums when I could earn a higher rate.

I never claimed everyone should get an ING checking account. My point is for people like me and the millions of more rural people who don't have access to 25 different banks, and the people who choose not to tie up large amounts of money in lower rate accounts, keeping your 1-2 week bill funds could be profitable versus a 0% checking account. Not to mention even with your "instant" transfers, as soon as you write the check and transfer you stop earning interst. If I sent an ING check I could earn interest much longer until it is cashed, depending on how they handle bill pay.

Quit trying to make everyone's situation fit into your niche. Different strokes for different folks. You still haven't shown any facts how I can replicate your strategy. Ann Arbor isn't a small town, there are many, many towns with fewer banks and fewer options. Quit being so urban, coastal centric.

I did NOT make up numbers for the Key Bank rate.

Key Ultra Money Market Savings 5.20% with 25k minimum deposit came up as available when I did it: http://www.keydirect.com/html/moneymarket.html



The selected branch was Ann Arbor Downtown 100 S Main St Ann Arbor MI 48104 using that website and the following came up:

Rates are correct as of 8/28/06 and are subject to change without notice.



View Account Details >>





Key Ultra Money Market Savings

Account Type


Balance to
Obtain APY


Annual Percentage Yield


Interest Rate


Minimum Initial Deposit

Money Market


$0.00 - $249,999


5.20%


5.07%


$25,000




$259,000 and over


5.21%


5.08%


$25,000


The rate is 5.20% thru that website I posted.

Xeon852 said:ajulius said:
I did NOT make up numbers for the Key Bank rate.

Key Ultra Money Market Savings 5.20% with 25k minimum deposit is available to YOU. http://www.keydirect.com/html/moneymarket.html

I did NOT make up numbers.
Not to him, only where they don't have B&M:
KeyDirect® offers great interest rates directly to consumers and businesses in 37 states and the District of Columbia but not AK, CO, ID, IN, KY, ME, MI, NY, OH, OR, UT, VT, or WA. If you currently reside in one of these 13 other states, please visit KeyBank at one of over 900 KeyCenter branches or visit www.Key.com to see what rates are available in your area. Not all accounts available in all states.

KeyDirect® offers great interest rates directly to consumers and businesses in 37 states and the District of Columbia but not AK, CO, ID, IN, KY, ME, MI, NY, OH, OR, UT, VT, or WA.

The zipcode came up with the quotes I mentioned before. Must have been a system glitch because now its blocking out that zipcode. It now says "Sorry, this account is not available in your area."

I entered in the zipcode, the branch came up and then the rates I posted came up. I cut and pasted, then I tried it again and it didn't work. I apologize if its not available.