Offerings Available To Fit All Tastes

Stashing it away has come a long way from pa’s national bank of the Serta Sleeper and ma’s mason jar of last resort. And simple checking accounts have gone the way of rear-wheel drive — they aren’t simple anymore.

Depending on the institution –bank, savings bank, credit union or investment firm - a smorgasbord of options are being served up to the Peninsula’s knowledgeable consumers, hungry for the latest and fastest menu of high-tech banking and investing services and strategies.

Who said checking and savings accounts have to be one size fits all? There is regular checking, interest checking, self-service checking and budget checking. Want to save for that rainy day or a sunny one in Tahiti? Your local banker or investment broker wants to help you. Should you open a savings account or would a cash investment account, premiere money-market account, CD, aggressive-growth mutual fund, blue-chip stock, regular IRA or a Roth IR A better serve your needs?

Confused by investment strategies, mortgage options, insurance offerings or trust-fund criteria?

Highly trained specialists, part of customer-service trends at a number of Peninsula banking and investment firms, are available to guide you through the financial maze toward a secure future.

An informed decision begins by taking inventory of your particular needs and goals, then decide the size of the financial institution that will best serve you, your family or your business. Large institutions such as Wachovia Bank, with many branches and such amenities as private banking for the well-to-do, may be your ticket on the steady track to financial security. Or would the ambiance of a local institution such as Old Point National or Harbor Bank with fewer locations, but the ability to bend the rules, be a better fit for you? Or maybe your employee credit union will be the venue where you have the most clout.

Read the brochures listing hours, minimum balances, extra charges, and the array of services that are offered. Visit on pay day and see how the lines move and how the customers are treated. Also, call and check out the phone wait. Are you put on extended ignore during high-volume times?

Once a decision is made, introduce yourself to the bank personnel at the most convenient site near your home or work.

Competition for newcomers is intense, so expect professional help to insure a smooth transition, changes and transfers in accounts. The Virginia Peninsula’s financial institutions bring the consumer unparalleled customer service, expanded product lines, userfriendly facilities and technology, and access to capital markets.

Banks serving the Peninsula are Bank of America, SunTrust, Centura, SouthTrust Bank, F&M, Wachovia, BB&T, First Union, Old Point National, First Virginia Bank of HamptonRoads, Consolidated Bank &Trust, and Harbor Bank.

Several large Peninsula business as well as military bases provide credit unions offering full banking, loan, and credit-card services. The three Largest credit unions on the

Peninsula are Langley Federal, Newport News Shipbuilding Employees and 1st Advantage Federal.

Investors can secure the services of firms such as Legg Ma son Wood Walker, Wheat First Butcher Singer, and Charles Schwab.

So whether you like inline, online, car lines, phone lines or standing in line, there is a financial institution on the Peninsula eager to guide you through its custom-fitted moneymanagement opportunities.

The Peninsula’s labor force has stayed steady.