Comments on: WaMu Review: Free Checking & Online Savings Account

By: mikestreb

mikestreb — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 02:40:54 +0000

WaMu WAS great for a minute. I put a few k away into their 12 month CD at 5%. By the time it matured, Chase had completed it acquisition and it would have renewed at like 1.2%. Needless to say I moved it to my 5% reward checking account.

By: Judy B. Smith

Judy B. Smith — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 18:57:12 +0000

How do I sign up for on-line banking?

By: wildhorse

wildhorse — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 02:32:37 +0000

There statement about there atm card is mis-leading. Can you use the cards anywhere?

By: Terry

Terry — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 03:31:58 +0000

Whoo hoo!

By: Jackson

Jackson — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 20:03:26 +0000

Oh…so tempting…

I want to move out of Countrywide to something better and WaMu looks great but that FDIC thing is a bit freaky…

I think I might be better off trying FBNO or HSBC Direct…

By: jim

jim — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 17:46:23 +0000

Good idea Ken, let me find twenty of my friends and try to convince them to “try it out.” hahaha

By: Ken

Ken — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 17:44:58 +0000

– “I also did it because Nickel said it might be interesting to see an FDIC takeover from the inside”

Based on my experience with IndyMac, it was pretty boring. On Friday when the FDIC took over, I wasn’t able to log into my account. Early Monday, I was able to log into the account, and it was like nothing happened.

To make it interesting, try to have over $100,000 in the account (assuming just a plain individual account). You don’t have to have much over $100k. Just enough so that you can see the claims process in action with the FDIC. I’m afraid I don’t have enough for that experiment

By: PartialExponent

PartialExponent — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 16:02:10 +0000

I really hate all the security questions also. They are so annoying to try to remember, and almost all of them are not applicable (e.g. honeymoon location if you’re not married), common knowledge or easily researched (anyone who knows anything about me probably knows my graduation year, high school name, and name of my first employer), or otherwise changing/non-memorable/lame in general.

The best strategies I’ve seen for dealing with them usually involve making up and using a set convoluted pattern for the answers regardless of the question being asked. Which just proves how poor the whole idea is, when the most secure way of dealing with the “security questions” is to more or less ignore them.

By: jim

jim — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 13:37:06 +0000

Cheapo: It looks like you’re right, I must have missed that part. Thanks!

By: Cheapo

Cheapo — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 13:24:38 +0000

Actually I was going through some of the fine print on their web site (https://www.wamu.com/personal/savings_account/online_savings_account/default.asp) and it states:

“Relationship Rates/APYs: Open an Online Savings account with a WaMu Free Checking™ account online, or link a new Online Savings to an existing active WaMu checking account, and your Online Savings will receive the Relationship Interest Rate/APY and a monthly service charge waiver.”

It also mentions that the min balance to earn interest is:

“Minimum balance to earn APY on savings account is $1.”

From this I am assuming you do not need to maintain a $300 balance to avoid a fee.

By: jim

jim — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 10:57:36 +0000

EN: Ah! I didn’t think they’d be free, I didn’t check the box so I never knew. Shoot, those might have come in handy… as for the $300, the online savings fee listing says that if you don’t keep $300 you will have a fee… at least that’s what I read.

The checking has no such requirement though.

ckstevenson: Even if they do get taken over, it’s FDIC insured.

By: EN

EN — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 03:16:02 +0000

A few things (because I recently opened them too). Checks should be free and that’s why they are checked by default. I just had them send me the generic ones just in case (the design ones do cost money). Also, I don’t think you need to keep $300 at all times. I think that’s only required if you solely open an online savings account without a linked checking. With the checking, the monthly fee should be waived even at amounts below $300. Or did I actually misread the terms?

By: ckstevenson

ckstevenson — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 03:06:03 +0000

Great review, however, be forewarned: WaMu may go belly up very soon. Be very very careful about putting more money into this bank.

http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2008/09/10/is-wamu-about-to-go-down-in-flames/ “[Washington Mutual] is the next most likely candidate to have major issues… They got into subprime lending, the got into ARMs. Their home equity book is quite large, and these losses are building and building and building… and they simply do not have the capital to absorb these easily.”

http://accruedint.blogspot.com/2008/09/fannie-maes-new-debt-look-at-size-of.html

By: fivecentnickel.com

fivecentnickel.com — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 01:18:00 +0000

Money Maus: The 3.75% is APY, which accounts for compounding.

By: Money Maus

Money Maus — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 23:35:38 +0000

I just switched everything over to WaMu and they are now my primary bank for my checking account and some savings with the Free Checking/High-Yield Savings account combo. So far, I have been pleased and have not had any issues other than the standard (lengthy) time period to do initial deposits into the account.

Also, I believe, with the savings account, the interest is not compounded monthly (unlike ING – which is why I also have a savings account there!) but I’ve only had the account open for a month so we’ll see. Overall, my experience has been positive. I also like the fact that it is a very popular B&M, which means its easy to find ATMs/branch locations if/when I need them. I’ve also been pleased with their easy online bill pay process!