Last month, the banking division of GMAC Financial rebranded under the name Ally Bank. With GM going into bankruptcy, they decided to put some distance between themselves and the name GM. That doesn’t mean they are in trouble, though. The company is no longer owned by GM – they sold a majority share of GMAC financial several years ago. But with GM the auto company surrounded by bad press, they decided to rebrand under a positive note. Thankfully, Ally Bank is well financed and its accounts are fully backed by the FDIC, which means you can rest assured knowing your money is safe.
Ally Bank Review
So what has changed at Ally Bank? Besides changing their logo, Ally Bank has been busy seeking out new customers by increasing their interest rates to among the best in the nation, offering new services, and enhancing their customer service.
Ally Bank financial products
Ally Bank offers four main products: Online Savings Account, Money Market Account, Classic CD, and No Penalty CD.
- Online Savings Account. Currently offering 1.64% interest rate (as of 11/20/09), among the highest in the nation (see additional high yield savings account rates). There are no minimum balances, no account opening minimums, and no maintenance fees.
- Money Market Account. Ally Bank Money Market Account holders have access to a check card with free ATM transactions, but there is a limit of 6 withdrawals per month (the Federal Reserve limits the number of transfers and withdrawals from a savings accounts to 6 per month).
- Classic CDs. Ally offers Certificates of Deposit (CDs) of varying lengths and interest rates. I recommend visiting the Ally Bank CD page for more information about current rates.
- No penalty CDs. One of the features that sets Ally Bank CDs apart from CDs at other banks is the no penalty CD. The no penalty CD allows you to lock in the interest rate while still having the option to withdraw your funds without any penalties. The downside is that the no penalty CD rates are slightly lower than the traditional CD rates. But they are also higher than the standard interest rates, so you have a chance to earn more interest than a savings account. This gives people flexibility in the event of an emergency or if they decide to withdraw their funds because rates rise and they can lock in a better rate.
Opening an account at Ally Bank
Opening an account at Ally Bank is a quick and relatively painless process (as painless as opening any financial account nowadays). Be prepared to have your personal information ready, and be aware that you will have to submit to a credit check when you apply. Unlike some banks, Ally Bank approves applications based on credit risk, so your credit worthiness may affect your ability to open an account. When you open your account you also have the option of simultaneously opening CDs or a Money market account, which is a nice feature.
Ally Bank customer service
I haven’t had to use Ally’s customer service yet, but their support availability is greater than most banks. Ally Bank offers online and 24 hour telephone customer service options:
- Ally Bank Telephone Number: 1-877-247-ALLY (2559) for 24/7 assistance
- Ally Bank Address: Ally Bank, P.O.Box 13625, Philadelphia, PA 19101
- Ally Bank E-mail: customercare@ally.com
Other features at Ally Bank
Ally Bank offers an easy to use user interface,
- Each Ally Bank account is FDIC insured to $250,000.
- Ally Bank supports Quicken, Quicken Online, Microsoft Money, and a host of other online money management tools.
- Ability to choose paper or electronic statements.
- Ability to create sub-accounts with different names and account numbers (great for targeted savings, or setting up a child’s account).
- High level of online security – if you try logging on from a computer that isn’t registered with Ally Bank they will send you an e-mail with a password good for one use (unless you wish to register the computer).
Conclusion
Ally Bank offers some of the highest interest rates in the nation and all accounts are FDIC insured. Add the no penalty CDs, money market account, lack of fees or minimums, high security ratings, and solid customer service, and you have the recipe for a good bank. If you are looking for a new bank or higher interest rates, Ally Bank is a worthy option.
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
Be careful here. This is still GMAC bank with a new name. While there is FDIC insurance, it could take a while to get your money if the bank is taken over by the FDIC. The surest sign in today’s market of a troubled bank is its interest rate. High rates means the bank needs capital to survive.
While Patrick’s review is extremely helpful, folks just need to be aware that this is a high risk bank even with FDIC backing, which currently only has $100 billion in reserves. This may sound like a lot, but it would cover 7 or 8 Indy Mac sized failures before the taxpayers would have to come to the rescue of FDIC.
Kirk, according to the latest Safe and Sound ratings at Bank Rate, Ally Bank shows 3 stars out of 5 (Performing), for a middle of the pack showing. Note: You need to look it up under GMAC, which was Ally Bank’s name when the ratings were last done.
I’ve never been a member of a bank that collapsed, but Ally Bank doesn’t concern me very much. In many instances of bank failures the failed banks are purchased by another bank which assumes operations before most customers even know their bank failed. Here is a good video that explains the process: How the FDIC Takes Over Banks.
I can’t say every instance occurs exactly as the video showed, but that impressed me. Word usually gets out within the industry if a major bank is troubled, and that often leads to talk about mergers and acquisitions, which we saw a lot of last summer and fall. So that could be another possibility if Ally bank were in danger.
I believe that as long as you are within the $250K FDIC limits on deposits you should be fine even if a bank fails.
If you want a bank that is completely funded by taxpayer bail out money, then by all means put your money with Ally.
Mine will be at my local community bank that offers fair rates and did not take one red penny of TARP money.
Remember: you pay for what you get and a bank that is offering rates that are much higher than the national average is cutting costs in other areas (like customer service.) Either that or they’ll be back at Barack’s door asking for another handout soon.
I have been with Ally (GMAC) for 3 years. I had no problem with GMAC before.
Recently I spend 2 months in Ally and still can not open a new account, this experience is very frustrated. The customer representatives have inconsistent answers. One day they call you with one answer, and please don’t feel surprised for the call from them in the following days with another answer; I fax the documents to them, and they can not find/locate the fax. I am tired with several rounds of this kind of inconsistence.
My question is:
If representatives can NOT provide standard guidance/answer, what’s the meaning of customer service of the bank?
Although they have 7-24 call service, it won’t help if they can NOT solve your problem. (In fact, it wastes your time!)
I am searching for another bank with relative high rates. Enough is enough.
Don’t do business with these criminals!!! My wife and I tried to open a CD account with them. After several back and forth phone calls and requests to establish our residence and mailing addresses (in addition to our original paperwork and copies of our drivers licenses they wanted utility bills and a copy of our PO Box receipt), we told them to return our money. Their customer service said they would send our original check back. They didn’t. We never had an account with them but they cashed our check. Our bank statement showed the check was paid.
When I called to ask why my check was cashed, no one could explain. They told me that they would send my complaint to an escalation team for immediate resolution and they would call me back with the results 2 days later. No one ever did. When I called them to find out the status of my check, I was told that my account was pending and that in 5 days or so, they would review the matter. After yelling at the CSR, I was put on hold and eventually told by the rep that she made a mistake, my check was already mailed. I would have it in 7-10 working days.
A few days later, Ally called me again. This time, I was told that I would have to prove that the check had been cashed in order to receive a refund. So basically, they never opened an account for me, they cashed my check, lied to me that they had already refunded my money, then called me and told me that I had to prove my check had been cashed to get a refund. This is after they acknowledged receiving the check and accidentally cashing it. They knew the check number and the amount but still no refund. Unbelievable.
In all, they’ve held my money hostage for a month. Someone either lost or stole my check and they won’t give my money back yet. Don’t give this company your business.
Thanks for review CPOTTS! I hope you get your money back. Think I’ll ty something a little safer, like ING. No money from me ALLY!!
@ cpotts88
Thanx a lot for your post. I was contempalting whether to deposit the money to their CDs but after reading your comment I am sure that I won’t.
thank you for saving me a lot of headache.
I closed my account after two months. Interest rate kept dropping. Website didn’t accurately show account info. They kept insisting on snail mail for some things
I have several accounts with them and have had no problems. I would recommend them since they have great interest rates and very few restrictions unlike other banks, with no minimums or even how many external accounts you can link. I liked the fact that they had 24×7 customer service and noticed they now have online chat help 24×7 as well!
@cpotts88 Sorry about your situation and thank you for sharing…..not a penny from me Ally!
I was frustrated with Bank of America and decided to find an alternative for my savings account and after much research tried ING and Ally. I have to say that Ally has been a much better experience and I have happily transferred my savings to Ally where they are earning a much better rate compared to Bank of America or even ING for that matter.
I am really happy with Ally. It was really easy to open an account and the money transfer is really simple. Good rates and good customer service……when was the last time you found those two come together in one bank?
I was a GMAC bank customer (had my Mortgage with GMAC too). Shortly after I paid off my Mortgage with GMAC (Oh it’s awsome to live mortgage free!!!), GMAC Bank changed to Ally Bank and my existing account was moved over. I keep 80% of my savings in Ally bank and never had a problem yet. Their responses were fast when I had questions after the name change. Their website is fast and easy and I really have no need to call. I receive my snail mail statements consisitently on time and they are accurate as would be expected. I may switch to paperless statements, but I wanted to make sure I was comfortable with how things would go. Now I am, so I’ll keep my accounts with Ally for now. It beats the risky stock market, as well as Wachovia’s .005% apr (or whatever it was or is now) savings rate…