I've had checking & savings accounts at Bank of America for many years now, since BoA bought the bank I originally opened accounts at. Now I'm considering dumping a physical bank in favor of something like check-writing with Vanguard, auto-pay with (not sure, maybe Ally?), etc., partly for better interest rates. But we have a HELOC at BoA, and access to Merrill Edge if we ever want to investigate that, so I'm unsure of our best option.
Has anyone dumped their physical bank for online-only banking? If so, can you talk about the pros and cons? I'm thinking:
- better interest rates, possibly better HELOC rates at an online bank
- not supporting the weird cluster of fees, policies, and history that is BoA
- easy access to notary public
but also:
- ATM fees at home, because no local branches
- ATM fees while traveling, because no international partner banks like BoA's
- no easy access to a local bank for cashier's checks
- uncertainty about the long-term viability of a bank I've never seen in person
It would just be a big change, so I want to be aware of the possible ramifications.
Thanks.