How to Speed Up Internet Banking Transfers
Many sites have outlined the advantages and disadvantages for Internet banking. I have two accounts that I use. One is my checking account with WAMU and the other is my savings account with ING. I love the granularity I get with my WAMU automatic payments, which includes options all the way down to “weekly”. Making a scheduled weekly payment on my credit card is helping me pay them off faster than I would making my traditional “monthly” payment.
The major issue I have with using online banking is the amount of time it takes to transfer between my two accounts. In a perfect world I would only be transfering one way to my ING savings account, but from time to time an emergency comes up and I need to tap into that savings. In a real bind I could make the withdraw at an ING ATM, but for large amounts I prefer to transfer it directly to my WAMU checking account.
After reading a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, I have come across some tips that will help speed up the amount of time it takes to transfer money between internet banking accounts. By following these steps you will ensure that your money moves as fast as possible to the account you desire.
Steps the WSJ recommends you take to make the transfer process move as quick as possible:
1. Plan ahead and send transfers early in the day to have a better chance of a faster transaction.
2. Ironically, you can move your money faster with an old-fashioned paper check. See if your money-market account offers check-writing privileges, or open a small checking account at the same bank as your online account. Transfers within the same bank usually happen the same day.
3. If the transactions take longer than two business days, complain to the bank where the transfer originated. Nacha doesn’t regulate how long a bank can hold onto a deposit “pulled” from another bank to be sure the funds are there. But it does have rules, and can assess fines, if funds “pushed” from another bank aren’t credited quickly.
4. Hang on. Europe already has a much faster system, and systems to speed up the process here are under development, though they won’t be ready for at least a couple of years.
For my online banking I use the following accounts. Both are free to set up and provide me with ease of use and flexibility when managing my money.
WAMU Checking
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