What sort of fees could they typically charge?

Josh

USAA takes only military accounts. WAMU is in deep financial doo-doo.

Doesn’t anyone else get suspicious when a bank offers the highest rates around? I think: “Why are they so anxious for more cash? What is going on?” Then the light goes on: the largest yields are being paid by the biggest subprime lenders, World Savings and WAMu.

Lenders count unpaid interest from option ARMs as income, generating tens of millions of dollars each month. What happens if that income doesn’t materialize? Now their bank reserves are in jeopardy, and they need to get savers in the door ASAP before things go to hell in a handbasket.

Get a Weiss report before you put your money into a bank. By 2008, when your bank goes under, and you wait for the overburdened FDIC to cut you a check, you will wish you had taken .5% less and had your money in hand.

Just remember that banks pay the minimum amount of interest they can. Anytime someone pays more than market rate, something should signal you to ask Why? They either need a large sudden inflow of cash, or they can’t get depositors through the regular channels.

That said, I put money into one of those risky banks too, World Savings. I am taking it out when that CD expires in September, and moving to Treasury bills, state tax free and the safest way to hold dollars.

USAA banking is available to anyone. It is the insurance that is restricted to members.

Oops, posted this to the wrong thread originally, sorry to have to re-post: My parents told me that they just put a good chunk of money into a local bank called Premier America Credit Union. Anyone know anything about this bank? Their website shows that they do I/O loans (with a 20% down), and they have a special loan program for those with "modest incomes" even if they have only 3% to put down, and no PMI needed! Hmmmm. Maybe I will need to pull one of those bank-rating reports that Powayseller has mentioned, are those in plain English and comprehensible to an economics/finance layperson like myself?

If you can do the 6.2% savings at USAA as a non-military person you should do it. This company is solid. And I have no fears about Wamu going under anytime soon, and if they do our banking system would collapse if the FDIC didn’t make things right. Widespread panic and withdrawals.

vcguy, Bauer’s not good. They give Everbank and World Savings 4 stars! Weiss does the real digging, and Everbank is E-. Weiss doesn’t do CU.

We could have another S&L crisis in 2007 – 2009. It’s happened before when housing went bust. FDIC will return your money, eventually, you may have to wait awhile.