Schwab BANK is THE BEST.
Ok, first off, this review is NOT for this location. I've never been to a single location because Schwab Bank is SO AWESOME on the phone / web. But I gotta put the review somewhere.
First off, if you're with B of A, Wells Fargo, Chase or even a Credit Union..... Change banks immediately! Major banks are a rip off and my credit union is good, but very limited for online access, while traveling, etc. Although, credit unions may be better for auto loans / mortgages.
OK, why is Schwab the best?
1) CUSTOMER SERVICE. First time I called because I was having trouble opening a checking account (I'd heard they were the best bank for people who lived / traveled abroad). The guy was AWESOME. He spent about 30 minutes discussing things with me, and was unable to open the account, but explained why and even how I could work around the problem (although maybe he wasn't supposed to tell me that). Finally, he concluded the call with this, "Well, sorry we could open an account for you today, but I certainly hope you'll consider us in the future. And feel free to call us if you have any questions about banking, money while traveling, or anything at all. Even though you're not a customer, we'd love to help you in any way we can."
Seriously? You want me to call you with any money questions even though I'm not a customer? Yup, that's exactly what he was offering: I should consider them my go-to for financial questions.
Awesome, already wanted the account, now I won't consider anyone else.
2) FLEXIBLE. I wanted to buy a car while in Thailand for 6 months. No problem, to save me money / time / hassle on wire transfers, they'll just up my daily ATM withdrawal limit to $5,000 for a week. And since all ATM fees are refunded, I just paid the exchange rate.
Needed $11k in cash for another car purchase in the US - no problem, up the ATM limit again. Or overnight a cashiers check (not available at locations). Or give me a one day high limit for my debit card. Or do a wire transfer since EFT takes a few days to clear.
Basically, I call, I get a real person, and they give me OPTIONS, usually without fees.
3) NO FEES. Okay, they actually do have standard $20 charge for incoming wire transfers and $10 for the cashier's check.... But who doesn't?! The fees are minimal and often waived / worked around. ATM fees refunded. Never been charged for ANYTHING unexpectedly.
4) ABOVE AND BEYOND. I had one automatic payment that was about to set me negative by $17 because an incoming wire transfer hadn't cleared. THEY contacted me about it, saw my account had a good record, and credit my account with $17. And they never took it back. Meaning, instead of charging me for a possible over-limit withdrawal, they actually GAVE me the money to cover it. Of course, if they ever decide to take their $17 back, I have no complaints.
Seriously - they gave me (or temporarily lent) the money to cover my mistake. Any other bank would have charged $25 to lend me $17... or simply rejected the automatic withdrawal and caused another set of headaches and fees.
Conclusion
I also use a few other services (investments, etc), but am mainly reviewing the BANKING services here. The are number one, bar none. I've tried several major institutions (who charge too many fees and act like they're doing you a favor) and minor ones (who don't have the 24hr service & excellent web / mobile platforms)... Charles Schwab Bank is so far ahead of the competition that they truly are in a class of their own. I'm never leaving - Schwab for life. read more