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National Online Bank Day - Do Branches Lower Savings Account Rates?Free Checking Accounts Requiring More Work at the Mega Banks
Readers have been reporting that they have been seeing new fees on their checking accounts from the mega banks. I've reviewed the new checking account options at some of the mega banks. It is harder to stay free of monthly fees. In the past a common way to have monthly fees waived was to maintain a certain balance or direct deposit. A new way that is growing in popularity is performing certain account activities. Two examples of the checking activity requirement to avoid a monthly fee are from Citibank and Chase.
Citibank has discontinued their EZ Checking account. The checking account that's now the easiest to avoid a monthly fee is the Citibank Basic Checking. To avoid a $8 monthly fee requires performing 5 qualifying transactions each month. These include direct deposit, debit card purchases, certain bill payments, ACH payments, checks paid and ATM cash withdrawals.
Chase Bank has a checking account with similar ways to avoid a monthly fee. Chase Checking requires either 5 debit card purchases or a direct deposit of at least $500 to avoid a monthly fee of $6.
Easy Free Checking Accounts
This activity requirement to avoid a monthly fee reminds me a little of high-yield reward checking accounts. However, with reward checking accounts, you're not hit with monthly service fees if you fail to meet the monthly requirements. You just won't receive the high interest rate and the ATM fee reimbursements. There are hundreds of community banks and credit unions around the nation offering free reward checking accounts. You can find these in our reward checking account tables.
If you don't want to worry about monthly account activity requirements, an internet checking account can be a good choice. Two popular ones are the checking accounts at Ally Bank and ING Direct. I compared these two in this post.
If you feel you need a local brick-and-mortar office, you might want to consider having two banks. One is an internet bank and the other is a local bank or credit union. I described this approach in my post on choosing a new bank. You can find regular checking accounts at both internet banks and from brick-and-mortar banks in our checking account tables.
Anonymous 3 Seriously, I think you should look into a membership in Alliant Credit Union. Unless there's some compelling reason to stay with your present local credit union, I think you would be a lot better off with Alliant. The way your credit union is jerking your around sounds like the treatment a megabank would subject you to.
Monthly Service Fee
None when you have 5 or more debit card purchases (withdrawals from the ATM or cash advance transactions do not qualify) or a direct deposit post to your account during each statement period. The direct deposit qualifier changes to at least one direct deposit of $500 or more and takes effect with the statement periods beginning February 8, 2011. Two or more direct deposits that add up to $500 or more but do not individually equal or exceed $500, do not qualify; otherwise $6 per month.
Instant bank to bank transfers within the bank to the 1.43% 1.10% accounts along with checking.
While most other banks stopped free checking accounts like Citibank, firms like Capital One seem to be intensely competitive in the marketplace.
Even this posting here seemed to indicate banks were pulling back on the marketplace, yet Capital One has been intensely competitive.
TDBank is also intensely competitive.
HSBC was intensely competitive but pulled back its Online Payment account for new customers unfortunately.
Local community banks still offer free checking. Also larger banks like TDBank and Capital One have no fee or low min balance accounts.
Anyways, back then checking accounts weren't cheap either. It's back to the same-old same-old, in point of fact. Monthly maintenance fee whether the account was dormant, active, hyperactive, and the like. You paid a fee regardless. There were none of the fees like those we're being inundated with ad nauseum today. So, that said, I don't consider it anything "new,"unfortunately.
I bank with USAA and seriously doubt they'll ever charge a fee for their checking accounts. And since that part of their bank is open to all, now's a good time to think about switching if you're not happy with your current bank.
Example: HSBC Online Payment Account, still exists for existing customers. No minimums.
Capital One Rewards checking still totally free for all customers.
TDBank first year free, $100 min thereafter.
New York Community Bank has free checking.
Sovereign has a $500 min balance requirement on its lowest cost checking account.
Wow, I'm lucky! My Chase fee is changing to only $10 if requirments not met since I live in CA. (Sarcasm!)
In researching who's left with "free checking" account programs, I found US Bank has a Silver Package checking account where they open a checking ($50 to open) and savings ($25 to open) together. This checking account has no minimum balance, no monthly maintenance fee, and statement/checks back options, overdraft protection plans (have options but not included with free checking), limit 6 transfers/withdrawals from savings to checking, debit/ATM card takes 3-5 business days, lots of locations including grocery store branches, no free checks (a box runs $17), no free money orders/cashiers checks or travelers checks. HOWEVER, some grocery store branches (ONLY) are running Free Checking $75 Promotions now (November). Best to call one and ask what the promotion details are.
Also, Kinecta Federal Credit Union has free checking. No minimum amount to open. So that means open with $1 or $5, no monthly fee, no minimum balance, free online bill payment, limit 6 transfers/withdrawals from savings to checking, limited locations, no free checks (a box runs $15.55), no overdraft protection, no free money orders/cashiers checks or travelers checks.
To get cheaper checks printed, best to use those that you find in Sunday coupons where you can get a box for $4 or some nominal amount.
Sad that JPMorgan Chase is turning into like all the other banks. I don't think their personal service will make a dent in difference. They will lose a lot a customers come February 8, including me, for one. I was a loyal Washington Mutual Bank customer but JPMorgan Chase is nixing all WAMU standards. We'll see how big they'll still be after February 8. There's a lot of unemployed, customers meeting hardships right now. Cutting this free checking to "meet with Federal bank guidelines" isn't going to make them popular. Why now anyway? JPMorgan Chase or WAMU never met with Federal bank guidelines since either one existed?