How do you feel about banking online?

Ruth n Jersey

Ruth n Jersey

Well-known Member
Location
Northern New Jersey
When I was growing up in the 50s my mom and grandma would take a day each month to take care of any banking right in town.
Later on when my mom lived with me she was still able to pick and choose a bank nearby.
After she passed and left some savings to me I decided to do the same but as time went on the little banks had very low interests rates.
My cousin suggested that I shop around for better rates even if it meant going out of state. This was a big leap for me.
After awhile I got comfortable doing that.
Now with the low rates for CDs all over the country it seems the better rates are from online banks.
They aren't good but a little better.
I do not have stocks and couldn't handle the stress, I'm not a risk taker and would never put my savings in the hands of an accountant either.
Have any of you opened a cd or other accounts online?
Do you feel it is safe to do so?
Maybe its time for me to take another leap.
 

I would not unless it was absolutely necessary and it's not absolutely necessary. I don't want my financial information exposed to the world wide web. Sure it may be a small risk, but there is no substantial reward to it so why bother.
 
Ruth n Jersey said:
When I was growing up in the 50s my mom and grandma would take a day each month to take care of any banking right in town.
Later on when my mom lived with me she was still able to pick and choose a bank nearby.
After she passed and left some savings to me I decided to do the same but as time went on the little banks had very low interests rates.
My cousin suggested that I shop around for better rates even if it meant going out of state. This was a big leap for me.
After awhile I got comfortable doing that.
Now with the low rates for CDs all over the country it seems the better rates are from online banks.
They aren't good but a little better.
I do not have stocks and couldn't handle the stress, I'm not a risk taker and would never put my savings in the hands of an accountant either.
Have any of you opened a cd or other accounts online?
Do you feel it is safe to do so?
Maybe its time for me to take another leap.
Click to expand...
I'm old-school to the bone, Ruth, and still swear by doing most everything the old-fashioned way, and hubby feels the same way.

We still receive paper bills each month (by way of mail), and do our banking the old-fashioned manual way (walk into the bank in person).

We're committed to being the diehards that we are right to the bitter end.
 

I'm a bit concerned about the risks of online banking, and the potential for an account to be "hacked". However, we do a fair amount of online buying, so we maintain a modest and separate account for that activity. In addition, I prefer to shop online with businesses that accept Paypal, which adds a second layer of protection. We keep a regular checking account for our normal monthly expenses, and a money market account for our emergency funds...which, knock wood, we seldom use.
 
I love online banking. I can deposit checks by taking a photo of them and uploading the images, and transfer funds using the bank's website. I never use cash, so there's no reason for me to ever go to the bank.

I feel pretty safe with it. To log in, the bank texts a code to my phone a code that I use to access my account, so there's the password protection plus the code, which is pretty secure. And I never access it on a public network. That's where a lot of people get hacked.
 
I do mostly everything online.
  • Credit cards are set up when something is charged on them I get an email and text to the phone.
  • Banking also I get notifications of bills due and paid by emails and text to phone.
  • I use a Password Manager for all my accounts. The Master Password is changed every 3 months.
  • All my accounts (Banking, Stores, Companies, Government.....) are split up into 4 sections, about 20 accounts in each. Every 3 months I will change all passwords in one section and by the time the end of the year comes around all passwords have been changed. I do religiously.
  • I make sure that my email accounts have not been hacked every month. https://haveibeenpwned.com/
  • All financial accounts I use the Two Factor Authentication when signing into the account.
  • I also have a good third party security software installed on my computer.
  • I ONLY use the computer at home for financial transactions, I still don't trust the phone on this.
 
Can't remember last time I wrote a check. I don't even have checks anymore lol! E-transfers; automatic withdrawals are the way to go. Never had an issue.
I can't remember the last time I withdrew cash from a bank machine. Maybe 7-10 years ago? Credit cards are so much better because you build rewards as you spend. Costs nothing as long as you pay the monthly invoice on-line in time each month. It's a win-win!!
 
That big smile on my avatar? That's how I feel about online banking! I guess there's a chance that one of my accounts could be hacked and then I might think twice about online banking were that to happen. Then again, there's always the chance that I might one day win a substantial prize in the lottery. If and when I do, I think I'll be grateful to be able to deposit those checks for my winnings by using the camera on my phone to do so. At one time people were probably afraid to drive and ride in cars, preferring the option of transportation by horses. Times change and nothing bad has happened to me or to any of my personal acquaintances, thus far. I stop at the bank when I have cash to deposit or if I am withdrawing substantial funds for things such as travel. Banks move my money via the internet, they must feel it's safe enough too.
 
I use online banking at a conventional brick and mortar bank.

Deposits and bill paying is handled automatically.

I could be dead for several years before anyone notices.:unsure:

I’ve never used an online bank that does not have branches in my area.

I wouldn’t chase rates on certificates of deposit beyond my comfort zone. Look at what you have to lose in relation to the relatively small amount of income that you will gain.
 
Last edited:
Aunt Marg said:
I'm old-school to the bone, Ruth, and still swear by doing most everything the old-fashioned way, and hubby feels the same way.

We still receive paper bills each month (by way of mail), and do our banking the old-fashioned manual way (walk into the bank in person).

We're committed to being the diehards that we are right to the bitter end.
Click to expand...
@Aunt Marg we have to do our banking online because we only have one bank in our small town and
they charge for what they term a 'foreign' transaction
Just check if your bank charges you for your paper bills? Some do.
 
Old school banking involves the following practices:

Receiving paper bank statements each month.
Paying bills by cheque, rather than automatic drafts or online payments.
Accessing cash at the teller window, rather than from an ATM machine.
Checking your daily balance and activity either by visiting a bank branch or by calling for the information.
Receiving payments by paper check, and depositing them directly into the bank.

That's me, old school. The only reason that I have a bank account is because my pension and salary are not pain in cash. More's the pity.
 
I do most of my financial stuff online (no paper statements) but I do have the option of bank machine and teller. My pensions and other benefits are all deposited into my account automatically and most household payments are directly withdrawn from this account. I have deposits with 2 different banks - household and savings and 2 mastercards. ALL is monitored frequently and bank and credit card statements (online) are all checked for accuracy and anything I don't recognize is followed by a swift call to verify. All covered up to $250,000 by he FDIC except identity theft = hence the frequent monitoring. I can't imagine going to the bank physically for anything and as I am now helping my older brother who has dementia - I am currently getting all his bills to be withdrawn from the bank so he doesn't need to physically go to the bank. I used to use cheques to this same brother but now I don't need to. I still use cash to pay the paper girl for delivery of local newspaper.
 
We have used a National Credit Union for years however, there are NO offices in our state. I used to do all the "banking" by telephone. When we re-financed our house, last year, we had to do everything online. Since then I found that the online access is SUPER convenient to check balances, see when a check has cleared and move money from one account to another. It is a "secure" site and not really much different than using the phone. We still get paper statements and use a local ATM for cash.

We do NOT do online bill paying. We have automatic withdrawals for the mortgage, at the same credit union, but I still write checks and mail them. Its just a habit, I'm comfortable with.

We do our investing through two other firms and I write checks when I transfer money to them. I might consider CDs through our credit union (our son has) but would not buy anything from someplace I don't know.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top