Finally got my Wachovia $50 promotion money

Evidently the response I received in this post was wrong, because I just checked my Wachovia Checking account and the money from the promotion was deposited into my account on 10/4/07.

It shows up as 2 separate deposits, one for opening the account with $100 and the other for making a direct deposit of $100.

I haven't been that happy with Wachovia, and probably won't keep the account open, but I am going to read first and make sure that I am allowed to close the account without any fees or losing the bonus. For more on why I'm not happy with Wachovia, click here.

I guess that even though I would never use Wachovia as my primary checking account because of simply not being able to transfer money easily online, it did accomplish it's purpose of getting me $50 for free. So I should be satisfied with the results, as I now have my money.

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Big banks rip you off

I believe that big banks rip people off. I get much better features from small banks than I do big ones, but the big ones generate a ton more money for themselves. I do not own a business or take out huge loans, so I cannot speak from experience on that, but coming from investing in savings accounts, cds, money markets, checking, IRA's, etc., big banks are not the best deal.

Many times smaller banks have good deals because they are trying to take customers away from big banks like Wachovia, Suntrust, BOA, etc. I'm sure that these big banks are more useful for businesses or big loans or something, but I can say from experience they are no good for personal accounts.

These banks rip you off many ways.

1. They give you a tiny interest rate, then charge a really high one on loans. I know they have to make some money, but they are making wayyyy too much.

2. Fees. It seems like these big banks have fees for everything. Especially if you have a checking account. They tell you it is free, but you have to read the fine print. Sometimes it will say something like you have to have 10,000 dollars in your savings, your house and your car financed through them, and been customer for 25 years. On the other hand, you can go to a smaller bank or credit union and just get a free no questions asked checking account. Many will even pay interest, something a big bank would never do.

3. Lack of features. I signed up for Wachovia because of the $50 promotion, but was very disappointed when I discovered that I could not easily transfer money between my online accounts at ING and Wachovia. Is it too much to ask for a bank as big as Wachovia to institute some kind of ACH transfer system?

After having Wachovia for about 3 months, I am very disappointed and will close my account as soon as I get my money for the promotion.

I recommend getting an online account such as ING or FNBO Direct. If you like to have a local brick and mortar bank you can visit, get a credit union. I am not even sure if it's worth the hassle to get a promotion at the big banks, I guess that depends on how hard up you are.

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