I'm sooooo sorry!!! I got my online banks messed up. I just signed up for Guaranty
Bank's Airmiles checking! I thought I read somewhere about no monthly fees with direct deposit but now I can't find it....they might be getting a phone call from me....

I signed up for BankDirect a couple years ago, kept a balance of $2500+ to avoid fees, got lots of miles for direct deposit, and closed my account about 4 months later almost 8,000 AA miles richer
(I believe you pay fees for a balance under 2500 - even with direct deposit)

In looking at BankDirect's website, if you have a lot of money, it looks like you can achieve AA Gold or Platinum status in record time. Their money market checking account gives you 100 miles per month per $1000 account balance. Just deposit $10 million for one month, and you hit lifetime gold. Leave it on deposit for another month, and you have lifetime platinum. Anyone want to loan me $10 million for two months?

If you've got a spare $10mm, do you need elite status?

Someone please correct me if I"m wrong, but wouldn't you have a hard time getting thousands of dollars in cash (or a cashier's check) if you needed it quickly from an internet-only bank?

I bank with a major regional bank that has branches in plenty of grocery stores and such which are open on weekends. I've had the following kinds of occasions:

1. Recently I was looking for a used car. I found a FANTASTIC deal from a private party on a Friday, saw the car that Saturday at noon, and if I hadn't been able to rush to that grocery store branch office to get a cashier's check within the hour, the next person seeing the car an hour after me would likely have driven away with it. Now, I didn't need a cashier's check per se, but the only other option was cash, and my understanding is that ATMs typically limit you to a few hundred a day cash withdrawal, which would have meant I would have had to have been withdrawing cash for WEEKS to pay for this car. How/could I have bought this car (with so little advance notice that it would be available) had I been using an internet-only bank?

2. A couple years ago my ATM card was damaged (no longer worked with my PIN), right when I very much needed to do some transactions. Not only was I able to eventually (tho it took a couple tries at different branches before it worked) to get the ATM card reprogrammed with my PIN correctly, but I was in the meantime able to use tellers at the branches to do the transactions I absolutely had to do then. What would have happened had I had been with an internet-only bank?

Let me further point out that I've gone for many years at a time between being in situations like this. It doesn't change that when I have been in situations like this, I needed things resolved immediately, and couldn't wait necessarily even for FedEx (if that's even an option in situations like this with internet-only banks). So I don't care how rarely I have a need for a physical bank, if I EVER have a need for one (where not having one would likely cost me much more than what 4500 miles are worth), why would I want to risk it for just 4500 miles?

Of course, YMMV. But I suggest you consider rare cases, not just your everyday usage of banks, when making this decision.

I'd wire the funds to whomever needed them. Gets the $$$ in their account faster than giving them a cashiers check.

But, frankly, I'm just talking about my checking account here. (Although I could be talking about a money market as well.)

Fortunately for me, I'm not talking about every dime under the coach.

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View from the Wing: A blog about Free Miles and Free Markets

I think I've tried all of the major online banks over the past few years. Other than two that went out of business (Wingspan and Lighthouse--both were absorbed back into their bricks and mortar parent banks) the best I've found so far is First Internet Bank of Indiana. I know, it sounds a little goofy--but they are profitable and provide a really good product and excellent customer service. Fee-free for a $500 minimum balance, ATM fee reimbursement, fee bill payment, etc.

I recently opened an online account with Citibank also. I wanted a bank with more of an international presence as I travel abroad a lot. The account opening process was rather byzantine and frustrating. For example, they won't give you an account unless they can call you at home and have you answer the phone. It's not good enough for you to call them back in response to their message (never mind that I already have two credit cards with them). But in spite of that, once you get set up the product is decent. You do need to keep $1500 in the account to avoid fees, but if you live outside of their service area (mainly NYC, I assume) they will reimburse ATM fees. They also gave me $100 to open the account (found the link somewhere here on FT). I think they are offering $150 now. The links can be found in this fatwallet forum Unfortunately I have found Citi's customer service to be sub-par.

So bottom line, I didn't find the mileage offers to be worth the hassle. I didn't like the product offered by any of those banks and found you really have to pay attention to avoid fees--they're tricky! My advice: if this is going to be your primary checking account make sure you pick a bank with good customer service.

As for the concerns raised by Stefan Daystrom above, I found the service offered by any of the major banks in New England following all of the consolidation over the past few years to be simply horrible. So I'm perfectly happy to give my business to an online bank. I can't imagine any situation where I wouldn't be able to get at my money if I needed it. Maybe my needs are simpler than his.

NetBank has been good to me. Free billpay is a big time saver.

All you got to remember is to at least have one activity every three months. If you use it like me to pay most of my bills, that won't be a problem for you.

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AirmileOffers.com

[This message has been edited by milehunter (edited 07-07-2003).]

I didn't read all the posts because it's late and I'm tired. However, I did read the first post and since you live in the DC area, I recommend that you check out Acacia Bank - www.afsbonline.com. They're located in Falls Church off of Rt. 7 near Tysons/495 exit. They refund upto 10.00 in ATM fees/month and if you keep a minimum balance of 1,000 they don't charge you. You won't earn any airline miles, but it's worth it if you use cash - i've got 2 accounts with them so I can get upto 20/month refunded.