Does anyone use Schwab for checking?

[PWMDMD]

I have in general been very happy with Fidelity - my current accounts there are a cash management account, brokerage account x 2, HSA, 529 x 3, and individual Roth IRAs for my wife and me. Since my 401k is not there I'm not a seven-figure client at Fidelity yet but I easily could be in the future. When I first opened my cash management account (it's just like a checking account but at a brokerage firm) it was taking 6 business days for cash to settle. I was told this is common for new accounts. Almost exactly 2 months after opening the account the time to settle reduced to 2-3 days. This was perfectly acceptable. Out of nowhere for the past month, my check deposits are again taking 6 business days to settle. I have a single-member LLC and so I do not use payroll and do not have access to direct deposit. When I asked Fidelity why I just get the standard answer that check deposits take 2-6 business days with no ability to tell me why it increased. I want to pay some bills today but my deposit made on 5/23 won't be available until 5/31 and I'm getting tired of the unpredictability.

My deposits can be anywhere between a few thousand to $20k. Does anyone use Schwab for checking? Can anyone comment on fund availability? I have no issue with 2-3 days but 6 days is excessive and I hate that it's been 2-3 days for over a year and then randomly going back to 6 days. If Schwab checking is better I'm inclined to just move everything (other than the HSA because they don't offer it) to Schwab.

 

[ruhroh]

I deposit a check via the Schwab app and it's usually posted within 1 day, although the app says withdraw might not be available immediately but usually is by the next business day. They hold it a bit longer when you first open an account with them. Their checking card also has Schwab-side fee-free ATM withdraws internationally. You will also get a Schwab brokerage account because they come together with checking. They usually have lower rates on money markets than Fidelity though. And Schwab's Treasuries auto-roll sucks. Fidelity auto-rolls Treasuries so you don't have a gap, but Schwab auto-rolls with a 1 week gap after maturity and you're not earning the higher Treasuries interest rate during that time.

 

[John105]

We seem to be creatures of habit and all of the institutions know it.....so for checking I use PenFed.

What happened as they have terrible customer service.

Well, got my wife's car loan at the time lowest rate (2011). From there, got a 5% cash rebate on gas card (no longer exists but grandfathered). I'm not too cheap to admit I will take 5% off gas because it's something we use regularly. They tried to take the 5% away and drop it to 3% along the way, UNLESS a direct deposit is setup. So I did it, send like $500/paycheck to it.

Last year I thought it was a great offer--if you setup that CC for paperless and autopay, we'l give you $150. Most dumb cos pay like $5 or $10/mo for paperless, this was $150 cash and not on a 1099. KeyBank actually paid me $600 on a 1099--maybe it was $600 aggregate, that's why? That s*****.

I have 7 figures in 2 different brokerages, including Fidelity, and take it from me, it means nothing at all. One would think we'd be routed to no wait and free massages.

I played with my buddy and said I opened a Goldman acct today. He said omg congrats! If you don't mind me asking, how much did you open it with? I said, $5. (it was what is today Marcus, not management)

 

[Vern_in_IL]

I´ve gotten some of their products, I think it depends how far away from Reno Nevada you live.
It take 6 to 10 days to post to account. Personal Checks. written to a person.
Digitally scanned checks are like near instant, not sure about the posting.
Transfers from internal accounts, like Schwab slices less than a day.
things work faster during bank hours.

 

[jstert]

is it really necessary or worthwhile to have all financial accounts at one sole, remote institution? i’m with vanguard for my retirement accounts, but have direct deposit checking accounts at usaa and nfcu (with a branch not too far away). my wife has a schwab checking account but she uses it as a pass-thru, debit-card account for atm fee-free withdrawals overseas. when she opened her schwab account i tried schwab for my investments but i found vanguard more user-friendly for me.

if had a small business in massachusetts, as does pwmdmd, i might look for a local savings bank or credit union, for my checking accounts, etc. it’s nice to walk into the branch manager’s office, and be greeted with a smile, my first name and understanding.

 

[PWMDMD]

is it really necessary or worthwhile to have all financial accounts at one sole, remote institution? i’m with vanguard for my retirement accounts, but have direct deposit checking accounts at usaa and nfcu (with a branch not too far away). my wife has a schwab checking account but she uses it as a pass-thru, debit-card account for atm fee-free withdrawals overseas. whe she opened her schwab account i tried schwab for my investments but i found vanguard more user-friendly for me.

if had a small business in massachusetts, as does pwmdmd, i might look for a local savings bank or credit union, for my checking accounts, etc. it’s nice to walk into the branch manager’s office, and be greeted with a smile, my first name and understanding.

No, but it appeals to my type-A "clean and organized" personality...lol


The parent LLC uses a few local/regional banks (M&T and Unibank) and to be honest they're pretty primitive and nothing special. While it's nice I have a local contact, and he/she wants to meet with my partner and me once per year to discuss "how it's going", there are never any special considerations or benefits.

 

[99Saturn]

@PWMDMD Curious - did you end up moving elsewhere?

 

[SC Maintenance]

I opened a Fidelity account specifically to buy T-bills, and the first thing I noticed is how long it takes for funds to clear, even EFT from a big 5 bank. There definitely floating with your money.

I would honestly look into one of the big banks for checking - if transactional time is a priority - BoA, Chase, Citi.

 

[99Saturn]

I opened a Fidelity account specifically to buy T-bills, and the first thing I noticed is how long it takes for funds to clear, even EFT from a big 5 bank. There definitely floating with your money.

I would honestly look into one of the big banks for checking - if transactional time is a priority - BoA, Chase, Citi.

It's interesting because when I ETF funds in, they are available for trading pretty much immediately or next business day but obviously not settled, have to keep an eye on it the next time I transfer in. Haven't noticed a difference between the big guys and mid-sized or smaller regionals either. Not buying t-bills or withdrawing the cash which may have to do with it.

 

[John105]

It's interesting because when I ETF funds in, they are available for trading pretty much immediately or next business day but obviously not settled, have to keep an eye on it the next time I transfer in. Haven't noticed a difference between the big guys and mid-sized or smaller regionals either. Not buying t-bills or withdrawing the cash which may have to do with it.

Interesting when my son got first communion checks, one from my cousin was held 5 days by Ally, when all the rest were next day. And there was a message to the extent “we have confidential information that this deposit may not clear.” Guess confidential info means float, because it cleared after 5 days. I was thinking does this mean my cousin has insufficient funds..

 

[PWMDMD]

@PWMDMD Curious - did you end up moving elsewhere?

I ended up changing my single-member LLC bank from M&T which charged to push ACHs and so I was pulling the ACH from Fidelity to Bluevine which has no fees and allows no-fee ACH pushes. This account is really just a passthrough account between my parent LLC and my personal account so not much happens in it but now when I push the ACH from Bluevine to Fidelity it is settled the very next day.

 

[JHZR2]

Interesting when my son got first communion checks, one from my cousin was held 5 days by Ally, when all the rest were next day. And there was a message to the extent “we have confidential information that this deposit may not clear.” Guess confidential info means float, because it cleared after 5 days. I was thinking does this mean my cousin has insufficient funds..

I got something like that when sending a check from my rental LLC BlueVine account to my personal one. I figured it was because BlueVine is an internet front for another bank that’s located in Washington state (IIRC).

Any other checks to my personal account (TD) clear in 24 hours or less, assuming they’re not big dollar value (>$15k) from a different bank.