PNC VS Home Savings

Which bank is better for you?

  • Financial Rates: 2.5 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 4.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 3.0 Star Icon
No Rate Information
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Pros:

  • Virtual Wallet rates are competitive
  • Relationship Rates offer higher rates
  • Student accounts offered
  • Business accounts are available

Cons:

  • Low interest rates for other accounts
  • Accounts have monthly fees
  • High required balances to avoid fees
  • Must open CDs at branch locations
  • Financial Rates: 3.0 Star Icon
  • Customer Service: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Website Experience: 5.0 Star Icon
  • Bank Fees: 5.0 Star Icon
No Rate Information
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Pros:

  • Variety of personal deposit accounts
  • Low opening requires amounts
  • Business accounts available
  • Online CDs offers competitive rates

Cons:

  • Cannot open all accounts online
  • Tiered interest rates for MMA
  • Low interest rates
  • High yield accounts have high opening sum
PNC Review

Opening PNCs Virtual Wallet accounts earn competitive interest rates. This includes three specific accounts: the Spend, Reserve, and Growth accounts. The Spend account is your checking account for everyday spending. The Reserve account is a short-term savings account. It offers overdraft protection for the Spend account. The Growth account is for longer-term goals, like a down payment, car, or vacation. Virtual Wallet accounts offer interest rates that are competitive with other online accounts. You must link these accounts together to earn competitive rates.

Some Growth savings accounts offer slightly higher rates with Relationship Rates. You must qualify to earn the Relationship Rates. To qualify, you must have a set amount directly deposited into the Spend account. Making five debit transactions also qualifies you. The amounts of direct deposits vary from $500 to $5,000 depending on the account. If you qualify, your money will earn even higher interest rates.

PNC offers accounts for college students. With proof you are enrolled in college, the monthly fee is waived. This account offers a debit card and online and mobile banking. The same features of Virtual Wallet are available for the college account. Parents can sign up to receive alert texts when balances are low or overdrawn. Some colleges offer other perks with the account. For example, one college allows you to use your student ID card as a PNC ATM card.

PNC offers small and commercial business accounts. Checking, savings, and money market accounts are available. CDs, credit cards, and online services for your business are available. Bill pay, remote check deposits, and online payroll are services offered.

PNC standard account interest rates are low. To earn the competitive rates on Virtual Wallet accounts, you must meet the set requirement. If you open a standard account or do not meet the requirements, interest rates are low. To earn the competitive rates, be sure you open the right accounts and meet the requirements.

Most PNC accounts have a monthly fee. The fees range from $5 to $25 depending on the account. There are ways to waive the fees. Having a set amount in the account or in qualifying PNC accounts will waive the fees. Direct deposits of a set amount or if you are 62 years or older will waive some fees. As of March 2019, PNC loan and investment balances are not included to waive monthly fees.

The amounts required to have in PNC accounts to waive the monthly fees are high. The money market account requires $5,000 to avoid the monthly fee. Virtual Wallet accounts require $500 to $5,000 to waive the fee or $10,000 to $25,000 across all PNC deposit accounts. After March 2019, loans and investment balances will no longer count toward the total amount to waive fees. Their standard savings account only requires $300 to waive monthly fees.

Customers must open PNC CDs at a branch location. Most PNC CDs required $1,000 to open. The CDs with terms of seven to 89 days require $5,000 to open. PNC has branch locations in 19 states and the District of Columbia.

Read the full PNC review.

Home Savings Review

Home Savings offers a variety of personal deposit accounts. They offer interest earning and free checking accounts. They offer a checking account for students and those over 50 years old. They offer a holiday savings account and savings accounts for kids and youth. Home Savings offers an online savings account and CDs. The CDs range from 28-days to five-year terms.

Most accounts have low opening requires amounts. The online savings account requires $50 to open. The holiday savings and youth savings accounts require $10 to open. Most checking accounts requires $25 to open. The interest earning checking does require $100 and must be opened in a branch location. The regular CDs require $500 to open.

Home Savings offers a variety of business accounts. They offer checking and savings accounts for small or commercial businesses. Lending options, money market accounts, and deposit services are also offered for businesses. You must visit a branch location to open business accounts.

Home Savings offers two CDs, for new investments, with competitive rates. The terms are an 18-month and 36-month CD. Money deposited in these CDs cannot be from other accounts in Home Savings accounts. The interest rates are competitive with other online CD accounts. These CDs require $500 to open and can be opened online.

Not all Home Savings accounts can open online. Some accounts require visiting a branch location, including the interest-earning checking account. Visit a branch to open the holiday savings account and savings accounts for kids.

The MMA and the Platinum savings accounts have tiered interest rates. These accounts require a $100,000 balance to earn the best rates. Balances lower than $100,000 still earn interest, just lower rates.

Most Home Savings accounts do not offer competitive interest rates. Some accounts have tiered interest rates. Other accounts have interest rates similar to typical brick and mortar bank rates. Only a few accounts offer rates competitive with online accounts.

The high yield Home Savings accounts have high required opening amounts. The Platinum savings account requires $5,000 to open. The money market account requires $10,000 to open. The money market account can be opened online. To open the Platinum Savings requires a branch location.

Read the full Home Savings review.

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