How $afe i$ your bank?

[Jasperfield]

Early yesterday (Sunday) morning, I read an online article about a local bank with which I had several large ancillary accounts. The article revealed that this community sized bank had almost failed during this last (2nd Quarter).

I reviewed my accounts balance with respect to FDIC specs (via the FDIC website) and determined that should the bank fail, I would lose substantially.

Early this morning I closed all of my accounts at that bank and distributed them at other banks. I was fortunate.

Over 90% of community-sized banks in the US are either at substantial risk, or are at risk of imminent failure. The bank that YOU deal with is likely one of these.

Check your accounts, be they checking, trust, CD's, interest bearing, non-interest bearing, market-indexed CD's, etc., etc., to assure that your assets are covered by FDIC. Do not be fooled by agressive or enthusiastic bank officers.

Don't just talk with a teller. Speak with a Vice President or a branch manager.

Go to the FDIC website and read through it. You determine.

And, ...incidentally, the assets available to the FDIC are limited.

[SwampDonkey]

Last week a bank teller solicited my mother to set up a new account where, debit purchases contributed to a savings account where by the difference in change of part of a dollar was transferred to the savings and a set amount was also transferred from the debit chequing account each month. She was told the interest was 10 % per annum on this new savings account. She had it set up, as the teller said to her, "I can't believe the bank is doing this, I have it set up on my savings".  I had a look at it and that was a lie, the web site never made any mention of 10 %, just the regular savings interest which is below 2%. She called the next day to the bank and canceled the account. These tellers get browny points soliciting new business you know and they seem to resort to all kinds of false statements these days. :

[SPIKER]

this is true:  bank accounting is a joke at best but without getting ALL of the financial documentation there is no way to know if your bank is at risk.   FDIC is covering accounts up to 250K at this time as part of the bailout that went through year & half ago.   The 250K is per account type (your IRA and checking are different types I believe) but safety is to split the high amounts of cash up into different banks.

   one thing though if you have that much money you should not simply have it in the bank you should be putting it to work with the Stock market high yielding dividend payers and or bonds, though I would at this point stay away from bonds as they have been bid up and are at high end, likely to drop soon.
The year sop far i'm up nice this year 15% in the stock market managing it myself so I can feel the loss and or gain and be proud of it. (OR hide my head in tears lol)

Mark

[Warbird]

As soon as I get that kind of money saved up, I'll start worrying about it. 

[Frickman]

I'm like Warbird. I've never had enough money to worry about what the FDIC insures.

[Randy88]

I guess I wouldn't worry so much as to how safe your money is but how long it'll take to get it back from the fdic program once the bank fails, I've been told it can take months to years to get it back, just because its insured doesn't mean you go get a check and take it elsewhere to cash the same day kinda thing.    If you've got that kind of money to worry about I'd spread it out over a lot of different banks and buy some bonds and other non risky investments.   If your feeling lucky or thinking you have too much and need to cut the pile down a little then look into the stock market.   I personally have the opposite problem, I spend it first then need to go earn it to pay for what I've spent, its called borrowing money all the time, that way if the bank fails they can look me up to pay and not me trying to collect from them, so I'm kinda hoping they fail, that way it'll take longer before I have to repay the loan, see having nothing requires less worry and theres more hope involved.

[pigman]

Jasperfield, since you have several bank accounts over $250,000, I wish you would give us some advice on making money. I am still working on that first $250,000 account and I have a ways to go.:(

[SwampDonkey]

 :D :D :D

As you guys know I cut brush for income. One of the older fellas, now 65 and still cutting brush, asks me how much more brush I need to cut to make my fortune.  :D :D :D 8)  There's gold in that spruce brush didn't you know it?  That's where my money is stashed. :D

[Kansas]

I never thought I would have to worry about CD's and exceeding the FDIC limit, but apparently I was wrong. I have an elderly aunt that has turned over her financial stuff to my sister, who then asked me to find the best CD rates out there. Its kind of fun calling up banks and getting rates for 250,000 dollar jumbo CD's. Right now some of her money is earning 1/4 of 1% in money market accounts, so anything I come up with will be an improvement.

Personally I'm like Spiker. I have a little money in the stock market and I make my own picks. I prefer that.  Notice the word "little".

[Larry]

Your sis needs to buy a new $250,000 sawmill.  Heck she would only have to make $2,500 in a full year to beat most cd rates today.  And think of the depreciation she could show come tax time.

Can I help her pick out the new mill? :D

[Randy88]

Its pretty sad when today money I borrow is costing me around 8-10 % and the bank pays the depositer less than 2% at best and back in the 80's when I had money[ before kids and marriage and a business] I received almost 15% on my money and the borrower was paying 16-18%, I'm thinking maybe a bank is where to make money at, almost any idiot can make a profit when they pay less than 1% and lend it out for over 8% and have only a few people involved to pay wages and of course the 1-2 million dollar building built like a castle of achient times that they all seem to be putting up nowadays.   I personally wouldn't worry much about the banks going bust expecially the small ones, its the larger ones that concern me more, the ones that have the real guiness's employeed at, with the large ceo's who get paid millions and don't have brains enough to pee holes in the snow.   

I applied to borrow some money a few years back and wanted to buy a tractor and afterwards my loan couldn't be processed until after I informed them as to what a tractor was :-\     

Maybe my grandpa was right about banks and borrowing money, his principle on borrowing money was anytime you do it you take on a partner who basically doesn't work for a living, has no real tallent in life, has no basic idea as to how to make any money in the first place, and can't get or hold a job doing anything else anywhere and you want to take them on as a parter and adivisor by borrowing money?    I used to have a elderly friend who was also a bank board member and owner of the bank, basically sole owner of the bank and his ideas on banks were as follows, don't borrow money from any bank because bankers are the dumbest people god put on earth and have no idea as to how to ever make any money and never take any advice from them ever if it invoves your operation, if you do borrow money never let them tie your operation up and only borrow the basics and get it paid off as soon as possible and always borrow from several banks at the same time that way no one bank has a total control over your operation. I never really forget that.

[Cedarman]

Randy88, now you tell me!!

[Jasperfield]

The small banks are at much greater risk of failure. The large commercial banks and the investment banks are in "better" shape.

FDIC insures most non-interest bearing accounts to any limit; i.e. checking accounts, to any dollar amount.

Interest bearing accounts are insured up to 250K per owner, per bank. Only.

Revocable trust accounts are insured ((not to the owner(s)) to the beneficiaries up to 250K per beneficiary, per bank ...only.

The key here is "per bank" and is withstanding "account type".

Take a look at FDIC's website. For a government site it's pretty straight forward and easy to understand. It gives examples of different situations and accounts.

Nevertheless, if FDIC failed just once, and the event made it's way into the press, a nationwide bank run would ensue rendering FDIC useless...and all of our money gone and the country in anarchy.

[Bill]

Seems they aren't saying - till they fail of course.

I had mostly used Wachovia till I heard they were likely to need govt help ( awhile back ).

Even though I was way below the govt guarantee ( don't matter whether it was 100K, 125K or 250K ) I figured by the time the govt got the paperwork sorted out I'd starve ( or something equally nasty ).

So being I don't have any financial advisers ( not much in it for them ) I just moved half of my little pile to smaller local bank . Figure I can't be so unlucky that both banks would fail at the same time  .

Just my  $0.01  + $0.01  someplace else   ;)

[SwampDonkey]

Seems they aren't saying - till they fail of course.

Just like a pulp mill, show up for work in the morning and the Sheriff has her locked down.  ;)

[easymoney]

i deal with a small local bank. one reaso i had rather deal with a bank that if i need a few hundred or a couple of thousand dollars i can get it on my signature. the larger banks in town would not do that. if i asked them for a thousand dollars for six months they would adviseme to go to a title loan company.