Ally Bank was built on the foundation of GMAC Financial Services. Since relaunching their banking unit, Ally has made some changes to their accounts. Ally now offers accounts with no monthly fees, no minimum deposits, and no minimum balances. The bank offers 4 savings and CD products: Classic CD, No Penalty CD, Online Savings Account, and a Money Market Account.

As demonstrated in Ally’s television commercial, Ally Bank seeks to offer its customers a better bank that breaks away from the traditional banking process. In addition, the mission statement stresses that Ally Bank will be an “open, accountable, and honest” institution by being “straightfoward” with “no sneaky disclaimers.” Ally offers its customers around the clock access to a call center agent for customer assistance. Ally Bank accounts are FDIC insured to $250,000.

What do you think of Ally? Add your review.

I tried to logon this morning to check my account and got an SSL security warning. This raise red flags for me because I’ve never had a problem with their site before. I then went to GMACbank.com and it said “Page not found”.

I looked it up and it turns out GMACbank has now changed their name to AllyBank. It would be nice if GMACbank.com forwarded you right to allybank.com. Instead I had a panic attack.

Ally Bank

The reason for the name change is to disassociate them form GM, who is known to be hurting these days. When asked about the name change, chief marketing officer Sanjay Gupta said, “Ally conveys the sense of a trusted partner, the attributes we are trying to convey.”

Here is a WSJ article more about the Bank’s new name: GMAC Will Change the Name of Its Bank

http://www.fdic.gov/news/news/financial/2008/fil08102a.html

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Here is a quick list to compare some online savings account and their APY for Sept. 17th, 2008:

• HSBC Direct – 2.45% APY
• E*Trade – 3.01% APY
• GMAC Bank – 3.00% APY
• ING Direct – 2.40% APY

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Here is a quick list to compare some online savings account and their APY for Sept. 17th, 2008:

• HSBC Direct – 3.25% APY
• WaMu – 3.75% APY
• E*Trade – 3.30% APY
• GMAC Bank – 3.00% APY
• ING Direct – 3.00% APY

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Here is a quick list to compare some online savings account and their APY for July 24th, 2008:

• HSBC Direct – 3.5% APY
• WaMu – 3.30% APY
• E*Trade – 3.15% APY
• GMAC Bank – 3.00% APY
• ING Direct – 3.00% APY

HSBC posted an interest rate increase to 3.5% a few weeks ago. WTDirect is the second bank to post an increase for interest rates. This looks like good news, although the stock market continues to struggle.

Here is a list to compare WTDirect’s rate with other online savings accounts:

• HSBC Direct – 3.5% APY
• WaMu – 3.30% APY
• E*Trade – 3.15% APY
• GMAC Bank – 3.00% APY
• ING Direct – 3.00% APY

• A higher yield on your deposit than a traditional savings account
• Check Today’s Rates
• Easy access to your money through checks and a Check Card
• Standard Money Market restrictions of six transactions per statement cycle will apply
• A minimum opening deposit of only $50
• No monthly service fees when you maintain a $500 minimum balance
• FDIC-insured up to $100,000 per depositor
• Fees may reduce earnings
• Apply Now!

MoneyAnswerTree Review:

I have been banking with GMAC for over a year now and I love them! I have been telling everyone to sign up. Most local banks pay out low interest because they have high overhead. They have to pay for all the ATM’s and the branches you go to. Because of these extra costs they are not able to pay high interest rates. Going with a good online bank you will find much higher rates. It is a good idea to research what you want in the bank while looking for the highest interest rates. I did a lot of research on options for MMA/Savings accounts before I chose GMAC. I looked at other banks such as ING. I see those commercials on TV and everyone thinks it’s great. I compared the two banks, and GMAC ranked higher for everything I wanted. GMAC also has great customer service. There is a web form to fill out if you have any questions. Expect a fast response! I received my answer within a few hours.

Bankrate.com’s comparison chart for Savings/MMA’s

Technical Review:

GMAC Bank’s online account management system is very top notch. It’s clean and simple and has every feature you need like setting up automatic deposits and withdrawals. All your statistical data is right on your opening screen like, current interest rate, how much you made on interest YTD, how much you made last year. They also keep track of your number of limited transactions. This helps so you avoid fees. The sites security is way ahead of the rest! GMAC was the first account I have had to have strong login security using a secured key. The secured key is a pass phrase you choose along with a picture. These need to match before you can enter your password and login. You will see this same security on most banks now, like Citizens Bank. GMAC had this security a good 3-4 months before any other account I had. (Citizens Bank, American Funds, NEF, Chase, CitiBank…) You want the highest level of security when it comes to your money, and GMAC’s got that!