rmm..I just called the Customer Service number and it seems real......rmmm LOL wow...
EDIT: Did a FDIC search and that bank is not on there list. And did a FDIC on THE WICHITAS Bank. And there is not branch by them called Redneck Bank...soo I dunnoo..
Thats because they are a part of the Bank of the Wichitas or something like that. If you read the FDIC page they tell you that you wont find them under Redneck Bank. If you click on the FDIC symbol just below the horse it will tell you all you need to know.
It is an internet only bank which is why they can offer higher interest rates. They dont send you a statement, you have to get it online, print it out yourself and so on. Things like that save them money so they can offer higher interest rates. They own two other internet banks that offer the same rates.
Banks make a profit just like any other business. However, when you go into a store and purchase something, the profit is in the price and if they offer something at a better price they are either cutting the profit margin or making up for it elsewhere. With a bank, their profit is in fees and interest rates. If they give you 5.25% on checking, then you can bet your bottom dollar they are making 6, 7, 8, 9% or more in their investments, loans and so forth. They arent loosing money, trust me.
The deal with the 5.25% on the checking account is to qualify for that you have to use your debit/check card at least ten times a month. Between me and the wife, we do that with just buying gas for the vehicles. Toss in bill payments and little odds and ends here and there and you got that beat.
Most money market accounts are around 1% right now, so them offering 3.10% is a great deal. And here's the kicker; Once the United States of Obama starts paying off all the debt from these bail outs, interest rates are going to go crazy and money market accounts are tied to overall interest rates. The higher the interest rates, the higher the yields on money market accounts. So that means, if you can start dumping money into savings now, you should do well down the road.
The thing to keep in mind is that you dont want to use a bank account, whether it be savings or money market accounts for long term savings and investment. Savings and Money Market accounts should be for short term savings, generally 5 years or less. Anything over that and you need to move that money into some other type of investment like Mutual Funds.
They only thing you would keep in savings (preferrably a money market account) would be any type of emergency savings, something you would want to get to in a hurry in case of some type of major life event.
Savings accounts particularly, with what you earn off them, dont even keep up with the rate of inflation. Factor in taxes and you're actually loosing money in the sense that over time that money does not have the same purchasing power.
Some would be tempted to just dump it all into one of their checking accounts, but remember, you have to make 10 withdrawls a month using the debit/check card, so thats not a good strategy for long term savings. The only way that could be effective is if you just dumped everything in there and used it as a savings account and checking, and well that opens up a whole new can of worms particularly if you are bad at balancing and reconciling your checking account each month.
