BMO Harris Bank VS Goldwater Bank

Which bank is better for you?

  • Financial Rates: 3.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 4.0 Star Icon
No Rate Information
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Pros:

  • MMA earns competitive rates
  • Good variety of accounts available
  • Special CDs earn competitive rates
  • Many ways to open accounts

Cons:

  • High opening required amounts
  • Accounts have monthly fees
  • Most interest rates not competitive
  • Tiered interest rates on accounts
  • Financial Rates: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 4.0 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 4.0 Star Icon
No Rate Information
Advertiser Disclosure
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Pros:

  • Low required amount to earn interest
  • Business accounts offered
  • Personal and business loan options
  • Competitive interest rates on accounts

Cons:

  • CDs have high opening deposits
  • Cannot open account entirely online
  • High opening deposits on accounts
  • Accounts have tiered interest rates
BMO Harris Bank Review

The BMO Harris money market account offers competitive interest rates. These rates are competitive with other online accounts. They are much higher than typical bank rates. There are no monthly fees for this account.

BMO Harris offers a good variety of personal and business accounts. Those accounts include:

  • Checking accounts
  • Savings and money market accounts
  • CD terms from three to 60-months
  • IRA savings accounts and CDs
  • Lending options
  • Credit cards
  • Investment options

BMO Harris Bank offers specific CD terms with more competitive interest rates. Their CD terms range from three to 60-months. They offer a six-month, 12-month, and 18-month CD with more competitive interest rates. These rates are competitive with other online CD accounts. BMO Harris CDs require $1,000, $5,000, or $100,00 to open.

There is more than one way to open BMO Harris accounts. You can open bank accounts online through the website. Customers can open accounts at a branch location or by calling customer service.

Some BMO Harris accounts have high opening required amounts. The money market account requires $5,000 to open. BMO Harris Bank offers regular CDs and jumbo CDs. To get the most competitive interest rate requires $5,000. The jumbo CDs require $100,000 to open.

Most BMO Harris accounts have monthly fees. The fees for their checking accounts range from $5 to $30. The savings account has a $5 monthly fee. These fees can be waived by keeping a set amount in the accounts. Those balances range from $100 to $50,000 depending on the account. Electronic statements and being under 25 years old will also waive some account fees.

BMO Harris Bank account rates are not competitive with other online accounts. The money market account and some CD terms offer competitive interest rates. Other account rates are not competitive with online accounts.

The premier checking account has tiered interest rates. To earn the most competitive rate for this account requires a balance of $50,000. The money market account has tiered interest rates, but the tiers are not on the website.

Read the full BMO Harris Bank review.

Goldwater Bank Review

Goldwater Bank has high amounts to open their accounts. Once you open an account, the amount required to keep in the account to earn interest is low. Goldwater Bank only requires $0.01 to be in the account to earn interest.

Business accounts are available through Goldwater Bank. There is a checking account for small and large businesses. There is a money market and savings account. CDs are available. Goldwater Bank offers cash management services for business accounts. This offers online banking, remote deposit, and card services. Business credit cards are available.

Goldwater Bank not only offers personal deposit accounts but lending options. They offer loans for building, remodeling, or home loans. Personal loans for vacations, cars, boats, or college tuition are available. They offer loans for business needs as well.

The interest rates for Goldwater Bank accounts are competitive. Their rates are much higher than the rates offered at brick and mortar banks. To earn the most competitive rates does require a large account balance. However, the lower balance rates are still much higher than other bank rates. They are competitive with online accounts. The business accounts also earn competitive interest rates.

The different CD accounts all require a high opening balance of $5,000. The CD terms range from 90-day terms to a 5-year term. The only fees associated with CDs is from withdrawing the money before the CD meets the maturity date.

Goldwater Bank accounts cannot be entirely opened online. To open a checking, savings, money market account, or a Visa check card you can fill out an application online. Then you must go to a branch location to finish the application and sign paperwork. Only CDs are available for out of state customers. Not all account information is on the website. A customer service representative can answer your questions.

The different accounts have high required amounts to open the accounts. The checking account requires $500 to open. Money market and saving accounts require $1,000 to $25,000 to open the accounts. Once the account is open, you are only required to keep $0.01 in the accounts to earn interest.

Interest rates for Goldwater Bank accounts are tiered. To earn the most competitive interest rates requires large balances in the accounts. The money market account requires $100,000 to earn the most competitive rates. The checking account requires $5,000.

Read the full Goldwater Bank review.

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