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Online Banking is Pricey, But For Who?
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Bankrate recently announced the results of its 2008 Checking Study and found some interesting results:
The 22 checking accounts we surveyed at 18 online institutions show that they can be somewhat pricey, especially if you're intent on earning interest, but at least they pay decent interest. You may find that abiding by a couple of minor stipulations will eliminate fees.
Honestly, I'm not sure Bankrate did a great job of really looking at online banks — and it's a little confusing just exactly who they surveyed.
The text above says "online institutions" — implying online banks — but their methodology says they "surveyed one interest checking account and one noninterest checking account at each of the largest banks and thrifts in each of 25 large markets."
That seems to imply they are looking at the online versions of brick and mortar banks, but I'm not totally sure.
If you're looking to open an online checking account, the best is ING's Electric Orange.
When you open an account with at least $250, you'll get an automatic $25 deposited as a bonus.
It's got no fees, no minimums and is super-easy to use.
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Money Saving Links: 11/2/08
Wow — it's tough to believe that it's already November. It's been exactly one year since we made the move from Boston to Washington DC.
This week, we participated in the Carnival of Personal Finance #176 - Financial Armageddon Edition at Master Your Card. Fred's 1929 and 2008: Why Distribution of Wealth Matters was included.
Some of the good reads from the carnival include:
The Dangers of Online Bill Pay and Automatic Deductions - The Smarter Wallet
When our money travels along the ether, we don’t usually think about it much. But according to the Electronic Payments Assocation (or Nacha), the electronic payment network upon which our automated payments travel, the error rate for our money transactions occur at a rate of 38 for every 100,000 bill payments.
That doesn’t seem like much, but if it happens to you or to me, it’s one time too many.
Mobile Banking Review: Online Banking With Your Cell Phone - Money Smart Life
Do you need to transfer money from one account to another? Do you need to check your available balance before making a large purchase? Mobile banking is the way to go for those of you who don’t want to use the automated robot that answers the customer service number. In this article, I’ll highlight the major players in the mobile banking sector, costs associated with it, the capabilities available, and benefits/consequences of mobile banking.
Saving 10% of your money is like "paying an extra bill" - Budgets are Sexy
The point is that it's all budgeted into "bills" really. The mortgage, the credit card, the utilities, the savings, the 401k, etc.
I really like this "way" of thinking, so it's totally going into my back pocket for the next time someone asks for advice
A nice and simple concept to get your mind right. You gotta like that. -
7 Online Tools to Optimize Your Budget
The number of Web sites and online applications available for you to manage your money and improve your finances keeps growing all the time.
CNNMoney.com has put together a slideshow of 7 technologies for optimizing your budget.
These are targeted at small businesses, but are certainly applicable to many home users.
They include:
The only one of these I can highly recommend is Yodlee, which I've been using for over a year.
Have you used any of these services? What do you think of them?
Let us know in a comment.
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HSBC Direct Drops Rate to 3.00% APY
HSBC Direct, in line with many other online savings accounts, is dropping its interest rate to 3.00% APY.
The account previously had a 3.25% APY after a summertime promo of 3.50%.
FNBO Direct recently dropped its online savings account APY to 3.25%, while ING Direct and E-Loan fell to 2.75%.
Dollar Savings Direct has gone the other way, upping its rate to 4.00% APY. WT Direct is currently at a 3.31% APY.
We currently using HSBC Direct for our housing fund.
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FNBO Direct Drops Rates to 3.25% APY
FNBO Direct has dropped the rate of their online savings account to 3.25% APY (previously at 3.50%).
The bank, which is currently running a "Pay Yourself First" contest, shot on to the scene with a 6.00% APY account in May of 2007 (those were the days).
The account has no fees and requires only $1 to open.
Despite the falling rate, I'm tempted to close my E-Loan account and switch to FNBO. E-Loan has been pretty annoying to deal with — not telling anyone about their falling rates and implementing unnecessary rules.
The rate drop follows ING Direct's decision to lower its APY to 2.75%. Dollar Savings Direct, however, has recently gone the other way, upping its rate to 4.00% APY. Other options include WT Direct (3.31% APY) and HSBC Direct.
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Money Saving Links: 10/26/08
It's been a slow week here, thanks to being offline for some holidays and traveling for the day job. But we're back in the swing of things and have a great week lined up for you.
We participated in this week's Carnival of Personal Finance, #175 hosted by Budgets are Sexy. We submitted The Declaration of Financial Independence: ING Direct.
Check out some of these great stories:
10 More Money Saving Websites With Ongoing Big Fat Deals - Greener Pastures
10 time saver and money saver sites I use to get a little extra mileage out of my budget.
My criteria: I don’t lay out my credit card number unless I know the site’s legit.
How to Maintain Optimism in Tough Economic Times - Tough Money Love
But you know what? We have not given up hope. We can still see the light and are more determined than ever to finish the job we started, to reach the financial goals we set, and do it on our schedule. How is that possible after the all of the damage that has been inflicted upon our net worth? That’s a question that I am now asking myself because to be honest I am surprised at how calm I am at this point.
Saving Is In Again: Thomas Stanley on the Glutton Economy - Cash on the Barrelhead
Hemispheres, the United in-flight magazine, just published a short piece I wrote last spring about saving to become wealthy called Hey, Big Spender.
It includes a quote from Thomas Stanley, author of The Millionaire Next Door. At the time I wrote it, the idea of being frugal still seemed quite out of step with the culture, but Stanley says it’s a habit that never goes out of style for those who hold onto their wealth.
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Money Saving Links: 10/19/08
This week, we participated in the Carnival of Personal Finance #174, hosted by Greener Pastures. As you can imagine, many of the posts dealt with the up-and-down stock market and the general state of the economy.
The carnival included our own 3 Things the Presidential Candidates Can't Say About the Economy (But Should).
While there weren't many posts about online banking or using the Internet to save you money, there were a number of good stories to read.
Be Careful Where You Get Your Investment Advice - Military Finance Network
Here are some investment tips you should beware:
An “inside tip” isn’t inside information if it is published
Beware of agendas and scams
Beware of the office day trader
There are no guaranteesStop Thinking About That Year-End Bonus - Tough Money Love
Mr. ToughMoneyLove has lots of experience with year end bonuses, both as a recipient in my younger days and more recently as an employer distributing them. My message today is to encourage all of you who have reason to expect a bonus to stop thinking about it.
Pay Yourself First: How to Do It and How It Works - Money Under Thirty
What does it mean to pay yourself first? Think about how you usually manage your money every month. If you’re like most responsible people, you get your paycheck and pay your bills. Even if you don’t stick to a budget, you probably have an idea of how much your bills are and how much you have left over. After your bills are paid, you kind of spend the rest without much thought.
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E-Loan APYs Plummet, They Don't Tell Anyone
E-Loan, who burst onto the online savings scene with a 5.50% APY account, has dropped its rates dramatically — and didn't tell anyone about it.
The regular online savings account, which had been at 3.01% APY, is now down to 2.76% for balances above $10,000. Accounts with $5,000 to $9,999 will be receiving a 2.51% APY.
The worst of all? Accounts under $5,000 will be getting a 1.00% APY.
With that kind of crappy rate, you should definitely be moving your money if you're just starting out.
Why Can't They Let Us Know?
One of my biggest gripes with online banks — and especially E-Loan — is that they don't bother to tell you when the rates go down (they've done it before).
When the rates are rising, they'll certainly let you know. But when they're dropping, you need to constantly be looking out for changes.
It looks like E-Loan adjusted their rates sometime between Sept. 17 and Sept. 20. On 9/20, Interesting Money first reported the rate drop (and also expressed annoyance at E-Loan's lack of communication).
On 9/17, we blogged about E-Loan's new Savings Plus account and the online savings account was still at 3.01% APY.
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