Non-Standard Banks

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

Looking for high yield savings accounts, I find a bunch of names I'm not familiar with. Most are local or regional banks open to anyone nationwide, but I also see some I don't really understand. They all say FDIC though. All are paying over 2% currently.

Interest Savings Account | Bask Bank

Saving more with Bask means earning more rewards — without monthly fees.

www.baskbank.com

High-Interest Rewards Savings Account - UFB Direct

The high-interest, high-yield UFB Rewards Savings account allows you to grow your wealth quickly by earning up to 2.21% APY.

www.ufbdirect.com

https://www.mybankingdirect.com/Products/CD (CDs only)

High-Yield Savings Account | Online Banking | BrioDirect

Open a high-yield BrioDirect online savings account for a market-leading interest rate, convenient mobile account access and the security of FDIC insurance.

www.briodirectbanking.com

Open a High-Yield Savings Account Online | Bread Savings

Open a Bread Savings High-Yield Savings Account to start earning interest that grows daily. Track your progress online with ease, and access your funds whenever you need them.

savings.breadfinancial.com

High Yield Savings

High Yield Savings Apply in 3 minutes or less No monthly service fees $100 minimum opening deposit Interest compounded daily FDIC insured to the maximum legal limits Get started FDIC-Insured – Backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government 0.39% APY National Average Quontic raises...

www.quontic.com

Some say they are the web based versions or divisions of bigger banks.

Anybody using any of them? Bad, Good, Middleground?

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

Then I found this one that I'm not really sure what it is. Some of the text refers to Cross River Bank.

Rewards Checking Preferred - Up to 2% Cash Back | Upgrade

Rewards Checking Preferred earns you up to 2% cash back on purchases. No monthly maintenance fees, FDIC-insured, get paid up to 2 days early with direct deposit. Open an account today!

www.upgrade.com

No fees of any kind on checking and claims to pay rewards. How?

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

If it's not FDIC insured, you have your answer.

 

[drnickriviera]

I'm using Bread. Looks like they started as a credit card company. Good enough so far and is the only online bank i've used that allows an authenticator app for 2fa

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

Taking a chance on the Upgrade one for their offer involving their Rewards Card and Rewards Checking. Not the high yield savings I was looking for, but if they'll give me $400 for a few quick tasks, I'll take it.

 

[dullard]

Bankrate has a list of higher paying savings accounts. Each bank they include has a list of negatives (Scroll down to "What to Watch For").

Best Savings Accounts Of September 2024 - Up to 5.50% | Bankrate

Compare savings accounts to find the best rates. Bankrate's experts have identified the highest savings account interest rates from top banks to help you maximize your earnings.

www.bankrate.com

A lot of the issues is lack of physical banks or ATM access. Meaning it will all work well, until it doesn't. And at that point, you are screwed. Take for example an internet disruption (at your home, at your city, or at the bank's website). You can't get your money and you have no where to go to address the problem. If that risk sounds acceptable, then go ahead.

I personally played the online banking game for a while with a bank that had physical branches but not within 500 miles of me. Then I got nailed with a massive "you didn't come into a physical bank in the last 2 years" fee and they then closed my account. In the end, it just wasn't worth it for a few extra dollars in interest.

 

[Torn Mind]

Doctor of Credit has a list that may have what you need.

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

I check those sites regularly. I have small amounts in several banks. Why? Chasing bonuses for one ... get in, stay in long enough to get the bonus .. move on. But another reason is that if one account has a problem, only so much is affected or vulnerable. They are major national banks and all have ATM/Debit card access, but no local branches. I have one CU account if I really need local for some reason.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

Bankrate has a list of higher paying savings accounts. Each bank they include has a list of negatives (Scroll down to "What to Watch For").

Best Savings Accounts Of September 2024 - Up to 5.50% | Bankrate

Compare savings accounts to find the best rates. Bankrate's experts have identified the highest savings account interest rates from top banks to help you maximize your earnings.

www.bankrate.com

A lot of the issues is lack of physical banks or ATM access. Meaning it will all work well, until it doesn't. And at that point, you are screwed. Take for example an internet disruption (at your home, at your city, or at the bank's website). You can't get your money and you have no where to go to address the problem. If that risk sounds acceptable, then go ahead.

I personally played the online banking game for a while with a bank that had physical branches but not within 500 miles of me. Then I got nailed with a massive "you didn't come into a physical bank in the last 2 years" fee and they then closed my account. In the end, it just wasn't worth it for a few extra dollars in interest.

I'd note that this isn't something that should be a real problem. I've used USAA for like 20 years now and had nary an issue, despite never having been to a physical building associated with the organization. Same with Penfed. Crappy banks are just crap.

 

[JM Aggie08]

We use Ally.

 

[allisolm]

For those of you who use online banks, how do you withdraw money from a savings account?

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

If you have checking and savings at the same bank, transfers between accounts are easy. Then write yourself a check.

Most web based savings accounts come with ATM or Debit cards though, so you can get cash that way.

 

[allisolm]

And if you want $40,000 for a car?

 

[IronWing]

And if you want $40,000 for a car?

Mine can mail cashier's checks and offers wire transfers.

 

[Charmonium]

You'll get much better rates with junk bond fund but there are also greater risks since junk bonds tend to track a company's stock price.

 

[drnickriviera]

For those of you who use online banks, how do you withdraw money from a savings account?

ACH transfer to my local bank. Takes a couple days. Think savings are limited to 6 transfers a month

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

I would never pay that for a car.

But I'd open a car loan and use the bill paying feature some savings accounts come with to transfer money and pay the loan off early.

 

[allisolm]

Thanks for the information guys.

 

[pete6032]

For those of you who use online banks, how do you withdraw money from a savings account?

Typically through wire transfer. If your bank account supports Zelle you can usually transfer for free to another bank account. I have my savings account with Ally and checking with a local bank. Transfer funds between each using Zelle or ACH.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

If you have checking and savings at the same bank, transfers between accounts are easy. Then write yourself a check.

Most web based savings accounts come with ATM or Debit cards though, so you can get cash that way.

Even if it's not the same bank, most banks (or at least the ones I've used) let you add external accounts and just zip money back and forth if you want.

You can generally just have the bank send a check to a business/person. Not sure if directly from savings, but transfers from savings to checking are instant afaik so /shrug.

 

[Brainonska511]

For those of you who use online banks, how do you withdraw money from a savings account?

My savings and checking are both online through Capital One (the online-only variant). For rare times I need to take out cash, I have ATM access at any Allpoint ATM and some full-service ATMs at nearby Targets if I ever need to deposit cash. And Capital One's online savings has generally been paying a good rate - maybe not always the absolute highest, but still competitive given the convenience of having everything in one spot.

The only time I ever really had an issue with the online-only approach was when someone gave me a check drawn in GBP, but I managed to deposit that through a branch when I was on a business trip to NJ.

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

Got into Bask and Salem Five, both paying 3.5% and will probably go up as they're adjustable.

 

[Muse]

If it's not FDIC insured, you have your answer.

And if it is, then it's OK I figure. AFAIK, nobody has ever not been successfully insured for their funds in an FDIC insured account. They have limits, however, currently often 250k although my Premium Savings account at ETrade is up to 500k, don't know exactly why. Their info is not always clear, but when I checked with my account manager it was 500k some months ago. Their APR is pretty good too, last I checked 2.75%.

 

[Muse]

I check those sites regularly. I have small amounts in several banks. Why? Chasing bonuses for one ... get in, stay in long enough to get the bonus .. move on. But another reason is that if one account has a problem, only so much is affected or vulnerable. They are major national banks and all have ATM/Debit card access, but no local branches. I have one CU account if I really need local for some reason.

I get letters almost every day from banks offering bonuses of various kinds. I used to go for some but figure it's just more trouble than worth in a lot of cases. You have to read the fine print and comply with this and that, you wind up with more to do, another company you're dealing with, more mail, more email, you might get approached by other affiliated companies, or unaffiliated ones that they just have deals with. I have plenty of stuff to deal with already. All just to make a few hundred bucks here, another few hundred there. I got many credit cards because of offers. After the perk expired I didn't use them. They pile up. What you do with them affects your credit score. Like Chuck Berry said, "too much monkey business for me to be involved in."

I have 2 checking accounts at local banks with B&M (and ATM) access, don't pay monthly for either. At one I have a savings deposit box, the charge for that is pretty minimal at $15/year. One is free because I have SS deposits going in monthly. The other is free because I have $500/month automatically deposited from one of my online savings accounts. If I need to have $$ in any account I setup a one time free ACH transfer, from my PC. If my internet goes down? Hadn't thought of that. It could in an emergency, an earthquake being the likely one. Don't know that would be a big problem, though. I almost never hit an ATM, I rarely use or need cash. Several credit cards and all my bills are auto-pay. The flies in my ointment are inflation and the falling stock market.

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

Rates are climbing. Two of the banks I use are now at or just over 4% APY.