We have seen a decline in brick and mortar retail outlets and now we are seeing the same thing with brick and mortar banks. Why? The same reason – the internet. I have not been inside by bank for over a year and I’m not alone.
One in three people in the U.S. reports not visiting the bank for personal financial reasons in the past six months, while one in five hasn’t gone in over a year. That’s according to a new study from financial information aggregator Bankrate, which surveyed 1,003 people on their banking and finance habits earlier this month.
I can do most of my banking on the internet. My bills are paid automatically and in the rare case I receive a check I can deposit it with my smart phone. I no longer bother with a check register because transactions show up instantaneously, the only exception being the one check I write a month for rent which usually takes 24 hours.
The low percentage of regular bank goers shouldn’t be too unexpected, considering the vast number of online and mobile banking options available today. Why schlep to your local teller when you can deposit a check from a smartphone or transfer funds between accounts with a few clicks?
In equally unshocking news, the Wall Street Journal reported in January that branch closures in the U.S. reached an all-time high of 1,487 in 2013. Branches themselves have been declining steadily since 2009, with their numbers shrinking to 96,339 last year.
If I need cash I get it when I use my debit card at the grocery store. But you say we are loosing the personal touch – quite frankly I have not seen much of a personal touch at the banks for years. The last time I was in a bank it wasn’t even my bank, I had some issues with my late Mother’s estate that required me to sign some papers and have them notarized.