Huntington Bank Review

Huntington Bank, also known as Huntington Bancshares, is a bank holding company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. It is the parent entity of Huntington National Bank. If you’re looking to open an account with Huntington Bank, it may be beneficial for you if you are local and have access.

Huntington Bank Review: Top Highlights

Huntington National Bank offers a full range of products and services such as:

• Banking Products
• Wealth Management
• Insurance

A Brief History

Huntington came into existence in 1866 and is currently one of the largest banks operating in the American midwest. It boasts of the most branches in Ohio and Michigan compared to any other bank and has many ATMs inside convenience stores for improved accessibility. Today it is one of the largest midwestern banks boasting one of the most extensive ATM networks in the region. No other bank has as many ATM locations in the midwest as Huntington Bank. Huntington even has a private bank for high-net-worth customers; this ensures Huntington covers all its bases from the blue-collar worker to the midwestern millionaire.

Huntington Bank’s Features

Financial Products and Services

Savings & Money Market Accounts

Interest rates throughout the banking industry currently leave a lot to be desired. However, the Huntington Bank Money Market Account actually offers very competitive rates compared to the interest rates at many other banks. There are monthly fees, but they are easy to avoid by linking your savings account with an Asterisk-Free Checking® account or keeping a $300 average daily balance.

Certificates of Deposit

Huntington offers an extensive range of CDs, including a wide variety of short-term CDs. However, you may find that you have better options for CD rates at some of the well-known online banks. The primary reason to choose Huntington for your long-term CDs is if you already have a long-standing relationship with Huntington and you don’t want to open an account with another bank.

Bank Experience

Huntington has over 1,000 branches in the Midwest, and over 1,800 ATM stations, so they are easy to find and access. They also have a 24/7 phone line and a Twitter account to answer any customer concerns. The website also features chat support and the full spectrum of online banking features.

Overdraft Fees

Huntington offers a free overdraft protection feature referred to as 24-Hour Grace. If the overdraft is less than $5, you will avoid overdraft fees. However, the overdraft fee is quite high. You can get hit with a fee of $37.50 up to four times a day.

Huntington Bank Checking Accounts

Asterisk-Free Checking® account is their top service as it requires no minimum balance to avoid fees. Of course, this has no interest, but then for most people, the need to have a maintaining balance is the barrier to entry preventing them from having a checking account. Even better, Huntington offers checking accounts which double as an ATM account. Considering they have 1,800 ATMs, this is a reliable network from which to get money. The out-of-network ATM fee is a bummer, though. At $3 per transaction, not to mention fees the other bank might charge, this means most prudent users will want to stay within the Huntington network. Huntington National Bank also offers compelling business checking account options, including Business Checking 100, Unlimited Business Checking, and Unlimited Plus Business Checking, respectively. If you’re in the market for a Business Checking account, you’d do well to look into these options.

Huntington Bank Home Loans and Personal Loans

Huntington offers several home loan and personal loan options. You can choose to get a home loan where the rate is locked in for the life of the loan. Alternatively, you can apply for a loan with low initial introductory rates, which will be repriced later on depending on market conditions.

Huntington Bank Business Banking

Huntington Bank takes small business financing very seriously. They have well-trained relationship managers who will work to make sure the needs of partner businesses are attended to. If you decide to get a loan, you can rest assured that Huntington will do everything in its power to accommodate your business.< Huntington Business Banking options:

• Business Checking 100
• Unlimited Plus Business Checking
• Unlimited Business Checking

Be sure to read the fine print for these offers to which offer is best for your small business.

Opening an Account at Huntington Bank

Opening an account is easy. Just visit any Huntington Bank branch. Make sure you have a government-issued ID and your social security number on hand. You can even apply online for maximum convenience.

Huntington Bank Customer Service

Huntington Bank has a 24/7 customer service hotline that is available any day of the week. The number is 800-480-2265. Huntington is committed to making sure that the needs of its customers are taken care of at all hours of the day. They even have an online chat option.

Huntington Bank: the Good, the Bad, the Ugly

The Good

Free checking account

There is a free checking account option available. Now you might be wary of “free” checking accounts. You’ve probably been burned once or twice by a bank that offers free checking. They may have stuck with you a ton of fees and conditions that made the “free” checking account more expensive than standard checking accounts. Huntington’s free checking is genuinely free.

24-hour grace period

There is a 24-hour grace period which allows you until midnight the next day to put money in your account if you overdraft. It can be a lifesaver as overdraft fees can stack up very quickly even if the charges are relatively small.

Daily compound interest

Compound interest is powerful. It can be devastating when it is working against you. Conversely, many have greatly profited from the wise use of compound interest.

Compound daily interest allows you to earn more over time as the interest you earn increases by the day.

The Bad

Saving account yield is low – you need the Money Market Account to earn more

The interest rate on their savings accounts is low, though it does increase as your balance increases. If you want to earn a higher interest rate on your money, you would be better off with the Huntington Bank Money Market Account or some other higher-yielding instrument.

No out-of-network ATM fee reimbursement

Some other banks offer reimbursements for the times when you have to go out of network. Huntington Bank does not provide a similar service. Huntington has the most extensive ATM network in Ohio and Michigan. Also, many of their ATMs are in convenience stores, so there is no issue in gaining access to an in-network ATM most of the time. For the times you do have to go out of network, you will have to live with paying the ATM convenience fee.

The Ugly

High overdraft fees

Overdraft fees are the fees you pay if you charge more to your checking account or savings account than what you have in it. Suppose your checking account has only $100 in it, and then you write a check for $125 — you overdraft by $25. Compared to its competitors, Huntington charges a high fee.

Pros & Cons of Huntington Bank

Advantages

• The 24-hour grace period to avoid overdraft targets people who might have limited finances.
• Wide network of ATMs and branches
• Free checking account
• Interest is compounded daily

Disadvantages

• Overdraft fees are very high
• Interest rates are lower than average for savings accounts
• No out-of-network ATM reimbursements

Is Huntington Bank for You?

Huntington Bank offers a decent banking solution for a variety of customers. You won’t earn a ton of interest. But you can also get access to free checking, and Huntington doesn’t require its members to maintain a large balance to avoid fees. Huntington Bank is ideal for a working-class family that needs a local bank and will primarily live and work in the area that is serviced by the Huntington Bank ATM network so you can avoid paying out of network fees for cash withdrawals. Visit the Huntington Bank website to learn more or to open an account.