Bank of Dudley

5 Questions to Ask at Your Local Bank

Not all banks are the same. While the big national and major regional banks saturate the internet, TV, and other platforms with big-budget ads and massive campaigns, the local bank remains a vital part of our communities and their economies. Without the local, highly personalized banking services your local bank offers, your community’s small businesses, growing families, and even municipal agencies lose a considerable number of advantages that local banking provides.

When it’s time for you to consider a new bank, will you consider a local option? And is that new branch opening up just around the corner actually a local bank – or just a local branch of another regional bank? Here are some questions to ask at your local bank to find out if it’s the right place for you to entrust with your financial success.

Where Do Your Decision Makers Live?

One way to determine if the bank you’re standing in is actually a local bank with a local focus is to ask them where their decision-makers live. If the people who are making the decisions that impact your life, finances, business, and future don’t live in the community with you, then you’re not dealing with a truly local bank.

There will be many times that you’ll need a decision from your bank, especially if you turn to your local bank for a mortgage, construction loan, or other lending product. Ensuring that the decision-makers are close at hand means a few distinct advantages for you:

• Local decision-makers can act fast, getting you an answer faster so that you can proceed with your special purchase or project.
• Local decision-makers have a better understanding of the community and a clearer vision of how your business or family’s success helps the whole community grow.
• Local decision-makers can get to know you individually, becoming better able to make a fully informed decision based on more than just the information in an application.

Where Do You Invest My Money?

When you put money into a bank, it doesn’t just sit there. Your money, along with the bank’s other customers’ money, goes into financing the loans the bank issues, goes into the bank’s reserves to earn additional interest, or is put to some other good use.

Where is your money being used? If the “local” bank you’re talking to isn’t investing the money it takes in back into your community, then it’s not really a local bank. One of the most significant advantages of a local bank is that the money it makes stays local. Whether it’s being used to help a new small business downtown or being donated to a charitable organization helping your community’s less fortunate, a genuinely local bank will put its resources back into the community.

Why is that important? Local banks understand the value of community and appreciate the fact that a rising tide lifts all boats. Your local bank is directly invested in the success of the families and businesses it supports – after all, if the community goes bust, the bank itself won’t have any customers. Every decision your local bank makes is designed to improve the community and, by extension, help you succeed.

What Banking Services Do You Offer?

Just because you’re choosing a local bank over regional or national bank doesn’t mean you have to choose from a limited selection of services. Most local banks offer a competitive array of banking services, including several different types of deposit accounts and investment accounts, such as certificates of deposit (CDs) and individual retirement accounts (IRAs).

Your local bank’s services aren’t stripped-down versions of the national banks’ offerings. Local banks offer the same kinds of cash-back options, reward programs, and other accountholder benefits that larger banks can offer. In fact, thanks to the close personalized relationship that accountholders have with the team at their smaller local banks, the bank can usually do a better job matching each customer to the specific products and services that will serve them best.

What Lending Services Do You Offer?

Unless you’re independently wealthy, making major purchases such as homes and vehicles means borrowing money. When you’re choosing a local bank, you want to know what types of loans they offer. If you’re looking for a personal bank, you may want to make sure your local bank offers:

• Private and government-backed mortgages, both fixed- and adjustable-rate
• Construction loans
• Automotive loans
• Personal loans, including loans for home improvement projects, recreational equipment purchases, and other significant expenditures

If you’re looking for a bank to help you finance a business expense, you need to find out if your bank offers:

• Private business loans
• SBA and other government-backed loans
• Capital improvement loans
• Business real estate loans
• Equipment loans
• Business vehicle loans

You may be surprised to learn that your local bank can offer competitive rates and a much more personalized lending experience. Instead of dealing with loan officers over the phone and trying to secure financing from a faceless entity on the other side of the country, your local bank is right there to help through the entire process, making securing financing a more pleasant experience.

What Online and Digital Services Do You Offer?

The big banks don’t have a lock on convenience, either. Local banks around the country are now offering customers the same kind of 24-hour online convenience as larger banks. The choice is no longer between a big  bank and a smaller personal bank. You can get the best of both worlds!

When you talk to a representative of your local bank, ask about their online and digital banking options. You should always make sure that the bank you choose offers the convenience features you need:

• Automatic bill pay and recurring payments
• Online account management and statements
• Transfers between accounts
• Mobile check deposit
• Stop payment functions and debit card pause or suspension
• Transaction search

Ready to Realize the Advantages of Local Banking? We Can Help!

Since 1905, the team at Bank of Dudley has remained dedicated to helping our neighbors find financial success. Our local bankers are always ready to help you navigate the complex world of personal and business banking, and we’re 100% committed to helping you find the products and services that work for you – and helping you meet your financial goals.

Call today and discover true relationship banking: 478-277-1500