What is the best bank out there

Question

Wachovia maybe? Bank of America? Washington Mutual? Wells Fargo? USBank?

Answer 1

I don't care WHAT country you are in, there is NO SUCH THING as the best bank.  I suggest you VISIT several banks in your area.  The PEOPLE you talk to will be the ones you deal with WHEN something goes wrong.  Pick the PEOPLE you prefer to deal with.

Answer 2

The best banks are not any of the US banks at all. There are many great banks and the best are the Royal Bank of Scotland, Santander, Deutche Bank...etc.

The best, or the strongest foreign bank with the US is most likely HSBC.

Stay as far away as you can from Bank of America and Washington Mutual as they say that these may require bail out here soon. Wells Fargo having the only AAA rating of the US banks, is still very week and may encounter problems here soon as well. Wachovia is the strongest of the banks you named is fair. However, if I was you, go with HSBC and at least its a non-US bank who operates with offices in the US and you should be good with this.

Answer 3

Personally, I don't think you want to do business with any of the mega national banks.  You are much better off dealing with a smaller, local, community bank.  If you ever have a problem, you will be much better off dealing with an institution that is small enough that you can actually speak with someone who has the authority to make a decision.

All of the above banks have at one time or another had a state Attorney General or regulatory agency come down on them for deceptive advertising or unfair business practices.  You are especially likely to have problems with availability of funds you deposit, charging of overdraft fees, and anything to do with credit cards.

The best bank may not be a bank at all.  If you qualify to join a credit union, you may find that to be the best solution.  Credit unions are owned by their members, and they don't have any stock owners (share holders) to answer to or pay dividends to.  This means the cost of capital is less and those savings get passed on to the owners of the credit union - the members who do business there.  Credit unions also are usually more responsive to their members.