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There are pro's and con's of both open-end and closed-end loans.

First off let's discuss closed-end loans. A closed-end loan is a loan for a specific purpose and for a fixed amount that is established at the beginning of the transaction, to repaid in one or more regular payments over a set term. One of the pro's of this type of product is that it has a final payment date and the debt will be closed. A con of this type of product is that it is non-revolving and you have to apply for a new loan each time you need a little money. You'll read about the ease of open-end loans below.

A couple of examples of closed-end loans are an auto loan and home mortgage

An open-end loan has a specified amount of credit available for use at the customer's discretion; repayment ranges from interest only through minimum stated amounts to a percentage specified in the contract. This type of product has great flexibility when spending. Once this type of product is approved for a customer he/she can use the line when ever he/she wishes. An open-end can be paid off and then funds use the funds again without having to go to a lending to get more funds. Paying down a balance then being able to spend the money again without having to reapply is known as "Revolving". A pro of this is obviously the flexibility and ease of use. A con is a person with not much financial responsibility having a line of credit and maxing out the line and only paying minimum payments. Contrary to what most people would think banks do not like lines of credit maxed out and just minimum payments being met. Although highly profitable for the bank, the customer could have one simple financial mishaps and not be able to pay down the line of credit. A person with a line of credit needs to have great financial responsibility.

A few examples of open-end loans are:
-Credit Cards
-Home Equity Lines Of Credit (HELOC)
-Commercial revolving line of credit

The easiest way to remember if a product is open-end or closed-end is to ask yourself "Is this revolving?". If it is then it is open-end, if it isn't then it's closed-end.

Below are the Federal Reserve System's Regulations from "A to FF". If you want a description of each you can click here and go to the FRB website.

A - Extensions of Credit by Federal Reserve Banks
B - Equal Credit Opportunity
C - Home Mortgage Disclosure
D - Reserve Requirements of Depository Institutions
E - Electronic Funds Transfer
F - Limitations on Interbank Liabilities
G - Disclosure and Reporting of CRA-Related Agreements
H - Membership of State Banking Institutions
I - Issue and Cancellation of Federal Reserve Bank Capital Stock
J - Collection of Checks and Other Items by Federal Reserve Banks and Funds Transfers through Fedwire
K - International Banking Operations
L - Management Official Interlocks
M - Consumer Leasing
N - Relations with Foreign Banks and Bankers
O - Loans to Executive Officers, Directors, and Principal Shareholders and Member Banks
P - Privacy of Consumer Financial Information
Q - Prohibition Against Payment of Interest on Demand Deposits
R - (Regulation R was withdrawn in 1996
S - Reimbursement to Financial Institutions for Providing Financial Records; Recordkeeping, Requirements for Certain Financial Records
T - Credit by Brokers and Dealers
U - Credit by Banks and Persons Other than Brokers or Dealers for the Purpose of Purchasing or Carring Margin Stocks
V - Fair Credit Reporting
W - Transactions Between Member Banks and Their Affiliates
X - Borrowers of Securities Credit
Y - Bank Holding Companies and Change in Bank Control
Z - Truth in Lending
AA - Unfair or Deceptive Acts or Practices
BB - Community Reinvestment
CC - Availability of Funds and Collection of Checks
DD - Truth in Savings
EE - Netting Eligibility for Financial Institutions
FF - Obtaining and Using Medical Information in Connection with Credit

Source: The Federal Reserve Board, www.federalreserve.gov/bankinforeg/reglisting.htm

Below are some of the most important consumer lending laws to be passed.

1934 - Securities & Exchange Act, FRS Regulations T, U, X
1968 - Truth in Lending Act (TILA), FRS Regulation Z
1971 - Fair Credit Reporting Act (amended by the FACT Act, 2003)
1973 - Flood Disaster Protection Act
1974 - Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA), HUD Regulation X
Fair Credit Billing Act
Equal Credit Opportunity Act, FRS Regulation B
1975 - Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), FRS Regulation C
1976 - Consumer Leasing Act, FRS Regulation M
1977 - Fair Debt Collection Practices Act
Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), FRS Regulation BB
1978 - Financial Institutions Regulatory and Interest Rate Control Act, FRS Regulation O
1982 - Garn-St. Germain Depository Institutions Act
1985 - Credit Practices Rule, FRS Regulation AA
1988 - Fair Credit and Charge Card Disclosure Act
1990 - Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
1991 - Telephone Consumer Protection Act
1994 - Riegle Community Development and Regulatory Improvement Act
(Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act)
Telemarketing and Consumer Abuse Protection Act
1995 - OCC Rules on Lending Limits
1996 - Economic Growth and Regulatory Paperwork Reduction Act
1999 - Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA)
2001 - Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act (USA PATRIOT Act)
2003 - Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions (FACT) Act, FRS Regulation V & FF
Transactions with Affiliates, FRS Regulation W
Servicemembers Civil Relief Act
OCC Rules for Debt Cancellation and Debt Suspension Agreements
2004 - Controlling the Assault of Non-solicited Pornography and Marketing Act (CAN- SPAM Act)
2005 - Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act

There are four basic consumer financial needs that do not change. What changes are the way banks choose to meet those needs. Below are the four basic needs.

A method of exchange - Consumers want products that make it easy for them to make purchases, such as checking accounts, debit cards, and credit cards. They also want access to technologies that deliver services, such as telephone banking, secured Internet Banking and retail websites. Consumers also want alternative methods of payment available.

A means of preserving and accumulating wealth - Consumers want financial products that give them the ability to save and grow their money, such as savings accounts, CD's, money market accounts. Also mutual funds and other investment vehicles fall into this category as more and more banks start offering investments that are not FDIC insured.Since the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act in late 1999 was passed banks can now create subsidiaries to sell mutual funds, other investments, and insurance.

A way to increase their purchasing power - Consumers want credit products that enable them to make a large purchase without having to save the full amount before purchasing. They enjoy the convenience of being able to paying for the goods or services over time.

Assurance of security and safety - Consumers want peace of mind that their money is safe during economic downturn, theft, and mismanagement. They take their peace of mind when they deposit into an FDIC insured institution. The funds are insured bye the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

There are 6 main types of checking accounts. Many banks do below to make them moresome tweaking to the accounts personal to their bank, but they all fall back into one of the 6 below.

1. Basic Checking
2. Free Checking
3. Interest Checking
4. Lifeline Checking
5. Student Checking
6. Senior Checking

Here are a few questions you need to ask yourself when trying to find the checking account right for you.

1. What kind of balance will I carry throughout the month?
2. How many checks will I be writing each month?
3. What accounts are available to customers my age?
4. Do I need images of my checks with my statements?
5. Is online banking something I could use often?

Once you've answered the questions you are ready to read deeper into what the pro's and con's are of each of the accounts and which can suit you best!

Occasionally I'll be surfing the web and come across people bashing their local bank. When digging deeper the people would be complaining about bankers in general because of an isolated incident at their bank. I've also seen MANY complaints from people out of pure ignorance over fees (I'm mainly referring to overdraft fees) or the way things have to be done. I'm not going to bash those people for being ignorant as long as they are willing to listen to a bankers reason for the way things are done. Banks are VERY regulated and they can be fined millions for not following regulation.

This blog is just purely my place to explain the banks side and reason for doing what they do. I've only been in banking for about 2 years and future post shouldn't be held as a professionals opinion. This is strictly just my opinion and explanation of how things work with banks.

I do admit that some banks are Terrible while some are Superb. Please do not look at banks or bankers in a bad light, but instead try to learn more about how banking works.

Thanks,
Mr. Banker