Ally Bank Review – Competitive Rates And Products – Info Money Manage

We all have to store our money somewhere—so why not someplace your money will grow rather than just sit there collecting dust?

That’s where high-yield savings accounts come in. And one of my personal favorites is Ally Bank’s online savings account.

Ally offers a 1.45 percent yield (APY)—a much higher rate than the pennies you’ll find in traditional savings accounts.

Let’s take a look at all the other great features Ally Bank has to offer.

Ally Bank’s Online savings account

Like I said above, Ally offers a savings account with a 1.45 percent yield. But that’s not even the best part! Most banks require a high minimum balance to offer the best APY, but Ally offers the 1.45 APY for all savings account holders.

In addition, there are no monthly maintenance fees on the account. Plus, depositing checks is made easy by Ally eCheck Deposit℠.

Ally Bank ensures that your funds are insured by the FDIC up to the maximum amount allotted by law.

If you’re looking for consistently competitive rates, 24/7 customer car, and no fees—the Ally Bank Online Savings account is for you!

Ally Bank’s CDs

In addition to savings accounts, Ally offers many other banking features, including Certificates of Deposit (CDs). CDs are a great vehicle for saving for a house down payment, or other long- or short-term savings goals.

Ally offer high-yield CDs, no-penalty CDs, and raise your rate CDs—Below, I’ll go into more detail about each.

High-yield CD’s

Ally’s high-yield CDs come in a variety of terms, starting at three months (with a less $5,000 opening deposit) with a one percent APY. The terms range through five years—the APY goes up as the terms go up in length.

No penalty CD’s

As the name says, there are no penalties associated with these CDs. These CDs offer a 11-month term, with a 1.15 percent APY if you put down less than $5,000 as an opening deposit, 1.25 percent APY with $5,000 minimum opening deposit, or 1.50 percent APY with a $25,000 minimum opening deposit.

Raise your rate CD’s

These CDs start with a two percent APY for a two- or four-year term. But, you’ll have the opportunity to increase your rate once over the two-year term or twice over the four-year term—hence the name of the CD category.

Money Market Account

A money market account (MMA) typically has a higher interest rate than a traditional checking or savings account. While Ally’s MMA account doesn’t have as high a rate as their savings account, it does come with a few more features.

You’ll earn a 0.90 percent APY with a daily balance between $5,000 and $24,999. Any balance above $25,000 earns a one percent APY.

But the account also comes with a debit card that has EMV chip technology. Plus, you can easily deposit a check with Ally eCheck Deposit℠.

Ally Investing Service

Ally also took over TradeKing and now offers a host of investing products. If you’re a hands-on investor, you can get help with stocks, ETFs, Bonds, Mutual Funds, and more.

Stock and ETF trades are only $4.95—a very low price compared to other investing platforms.

If you’re more into automated investments, Ally has a service for that too—all you need is a $2,500 minimum investment.

Ally also offers a low advisory fee of 0.30 percent. You can estimate your monthly fee based on your portfolio right on Ally’s website.

Ally Loans Services

Finally, Ally has a loan service. You can get an auto loan, a mortgage, or refinance an already existing mortgage.

For auto loans, Ally offers a wide variety of payment options, so you can choose a monthly payment that really works for you. You can set up monthly payments through your savings or checking account and manage them through the Ally Auto Mobile app.

For home loans, you’ll have the Ally Home Team at your service. They’re a team of loan experts that help you through the entire home loan experience. They also have Fannie Mae’s HomeReady mortgage program to help first-time buyers and anyone who has limited down payment funds.

Ally offers loan terms for 10-30 years. And, as with all of Ally’s rates, home mortgage rates are competitive.

How does Ally compare to other banks?

Discover Online Savings account

Discover is one of the only banks that offers a higher APY than Ally—at 1.75 percent APY. They also have no minimum balance to open and no monthly fees.

However, unlike Ally, Discover doesn’t offer investing services. So it all comes down to whether or not you want your investing, loan, and banking all easily accessibly in one place.

Start saving today: Open a Discover Online Savings account now

Capital One 360 Savings

Capital One is the other bank that offers a higher APY than Ally—again at 1.5 percent APY. But the catch is, this APY only applies to balances $10,000 and over. The APY on accounts under $10,000 is just 0.85 percent.

So, in the end Ally may be a better option for most.

HSBC

HSBC offers three checking accounts. For those who want a basic checking account, HSBC’s Choice Checking account is perfect. It has no monthly fees if you set up a direct deposit with your employer or keep an average balance of $1,500.

For those who want a little more, the HSBC Advanced Checking account offers everything the Choice account comes with, plus free checks, four free refunds for non-HSBC ATMs, and the Advance Relationship that gives you access to exclusive benefits.

Finally, HSBC’s the top-tier checking account, Premier Checking offers all the perks of the other two accounts plus, a Dedicated Relationship Manager, a Premier Savings Account, and international features.

To get the best banking: Open an HSBC Checking account

Chime Bank

Chime Bank is ideal for those who want a great mobile banking experience. It also offers no fees, automatic savings, and the ability to get paid two days early when you enroll in direct deposit.

To start saving, open a Chime Bank account today

Summary

Ally Bank offers a competitive online savings account. But that’s not all they offer—they have an investing service, loan services, CDs, checking accounts, and Money Market accounts.

All their services offer competitive rates, 24/7 support, and funds are secured by Ally’s FDIC partnership.

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