-
WaMu Drops Online Savings Account to 3.00% APY
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
Washington Mutual has dropped the interest rate on its online savings account to 3.00% APY (via Bank Deals).
WaMu had upped their OSA all the way to 4.00% APY in the past few months, so this is a pretty big drop.
It's not a huge surprise, especially with the recent news of their acquisition by JP Morgan Chase.
The drop takes them pretty far out of contention for the highest online savings accounts currently available.
If you're looking for a good place to stash your money, consider an online savings account from DollarSavingsDirect (3.75% APY), FNBO Direct (3.50% APY), WT Direct (3.26% APY) or HSBC Direct (3.25% APY).
-
Keep the Change, Way2Save Not Worth It, Says Consumer Reports
Didn't believe me that Bank of America's Keep the Change program isn't worth it? I'm not the only one saying it.
Consumer Reports, probably the best consumer-advocate publication available today, agrees. In their upcoming November issue, they basically make the same argument I made in late August.
In its latest report, the Consumer Reports Money Lab took a look at three of the more well-known spend and save programs: Bank of America's Keep the Change, Wachovia's Way2Save and American Express One. CR found all three were limited and perhaps more rewarding options exist.
"Saving money can be tough. These programs offer the hope that something good can come from spending more, but when we crunched the numbers, we found the overall savings to be limited," said Noreen Perrotta, Consumer Reports money editor.
According to Consumer Reports's number crunching, it would take 1,728 transactions (averaging $.50 each) to get the $250 total Keep the Change match the first year. In the second year, it will take 10,000.
Wachovia's Way2Save isn't much better. The program, which moves $1 from your checking to savings account with every transaction, limits additional deposits to $100/month. And while it offers a 5 percent interest rate the first year, it drops to 2 percent for the second.
If you're looking for a good place to stash your money, consider an online savings account from DollarSavingsDirect (3.75% APY), FNBO Direct (3.50% APY), WT Direct (3.26% APY) or HSBC Direct (3.25% APY).
-
Washington Mutual Ups Online Savings Account to 4.00% APY
Washington Mutual has just upped the APY on its online savings account to 4.00% APY, putting it right at the top of currently available options (via Five Cent Nickel).
While WaMu is currently having some problems — at least five companies are reportedly considering purchasing the bank — but since it is FDIC insured, you shouldn't worry about putting money into it.
APYs have been going up and down for the past few months with no obvious trend — just like the stock market.
DollarSavingsDirect (3.75% APY), FNBO Direct (3.50% APY), WT Direct (3.26% APY), and HSBC Direct (3.25% APY) are some of the top offerings.
-
E-Loan Intros Savings Plus High-Yield Online Account
E-Loan, which at one point had the highest online savings account, has introduced a new product: the Savings Plus account.
Offering a tiered APY, the Savings Plus Account requires monthly deposits of at least $100.
Accounts that do not have at least $100 deposited for more than 60 days will be converted into a standard online savings account, according to the terms of service.
Here's the breakdown on the tiered APYs:
Current users of E-Loan's online savings account can convert to a Savings Plus account.
Existing E-LOAN Savings Accounts can easily be converted to Savings Plus. Just log in, click "Transfer Funds" and set up a recurring deposit of at least $100 a month and type in Promo Code RREC08.
There are no fees with the account, but a $5,000 minimum is needed to open.
E-Loan's online savings account is currently offering a 3.01% APY.
-
HSBC Direct Drops Online Savings Account to 3.25% APY
After a summertime promotion, HSBC Direct is lowering its online savings account APY to 3.25% APY.
The account had offered a 3.50% APY, originally launched in June but extended until 9/15 about half-way through the promo.
While I'm a fan of HSBC and use it to hold our housing fund, dropping back to 3.25% puts it further out of the top-rate leaderboard, with DollarSavingsDirect (3.75% APY), FNBO Direct (3.50% APY) and WT Direct (3.26% APY) leading the way.
-
3 Steps to Determining Your Financial Goals
ING Direct has a great feature on their site about establishing your financial goals and how to get there.
Their three steps:
- Get it down on paper
- The long, medium, and short of it
- How much are my dreams likely to cost?
If you don't have access to an ING Direct account (get started with $25 free), here's the extended version of the plan.
Step 1 — Get it down on paper
The first step in planning a trip is to know exactly where you’re going. The same is true for your financial plans. With a specific plan, you can stop drifting along and start driving.Step 2 — The long, medium, and short of it
As you make your list of goals, you need to think about when you will want to achieve them:* Short-term goals (1-3 years), such as paying off debt or renovating your house
* Medium-term goals (4-10 years), such as saving enough for a down payment on a house, or building your IRA, 529 college savings plans, and other tax-deferred accounts
* Long-term goals (10+ years), such as paying for your toddler’s college education or retiring comfortably
Remember: No goal is short-, medium-, or long-term by definition. Retirement might be a long-term goal if you’re 30, but a short-term goal if you’re 65. A college education might be a long-term goal for a toddler, but a short-term one for a teenager. The more specific your time frame, the more you’ll want to make sure you have money available when you need it.
Step 3 — How much are my dreams likely to cost?
If you don’t know what each of your goals will cost, you’ll need to do a little research. Ballpark numbers are fine. For goals that are more than a few years away, inflation is worth thinking about. Historically, inflation has averaged about 3% per year. At that rate, a home renovation that costs $30,000 today will cost about $35,000 in five years and about $40,000 in ten. Getting the best rate you can for your savings can help you keep the value of your money where it should be.Never too soon
Of all the goals you set for yourself, preparing for a comfortable and satisfying retirement should be a priority. Studies show that average US households are saving enough to replace less than 60% of their pre-retirement income during retirement. But most experts agree that you’ll need about 85% of your pre-retirement income for a comfortable retirement. Saving now (rather than putting it off till later) can make the difference between just dreaming about retirement and having the retirement of your dreams. -
The Secret Catch to Bank of America's "Keep the Change" Program
Bank of America's Keep the Change (background) program has a big, big catch to it.
The savings account where your money is likely going has a pitiful .2% APY.
Yup, for real. From the fine print:
Savings accounts eligible to receive matching funds include, but are not limited to, Regular Savings, which requires a minimum opening balance of $25 and pays a variable Annual Percentage Yield that was 0.20% as of 08/28/08.
0.2% APY means your money is not working for you. When you could open an online savings account that offers upwards of 3.75% APY (Dollar Savings Direct, WaMu), there's no reason you should be using BofA.
Still not convinced? Look at the other requirements:
- $300 minimum balance, or
- Automatic monthly transfer of $25
- $3 withdrawal fees if balance is under $2,500 and more than 3 monthly
Considering that the best online savings accounts have no minimums, no fees, and no requirements, you should not be keeping your money with Bank of America.
It's great that BofA is helping people automate their savings — it's the easiest way to start pocketing more of your own money — but customers still aren't getting a good deal.
(Yes, you do get matching funds from BofA of up to $250 in one year, but you could get the same by smartly opening certain savings accounts. And you could move the money into a money market account, but the requirements for that are even worse.)
Saving your money smartly means making it work hard for you. If you want your money to make you money, open an online savings account now.
-
DollarSavingsDirect Launches 3.75% APY Online Savings Account
There's a new online savings account competing for your money — the Dollar Savings Account from New York-based Emigrant Savings Bank — offering a 3.75% APY.
Available at DollarSavingsDirect.com, the account requires a $1,000 minimum for the 3.75% rates. All accounts under $1,000 get a 1% APY, according to CNN Money.
Emigrant Savings Bank also offers EmigrantDirect, an online savings account offering a 3% APY.
We're not quite sure what exactly the difference between the two accounts are — besides the obvious interest rate.
With a 3.75% APY, the Dollar Savings Account is the highest-yielding free online savings account, tied with WaMu.
HSBC, FNBO, and WTDirect follow behind them.
It doesn't look like the rate is temporary, so it'll be interesting to see how long it lasts.
Online Savings Blog
search
latest posts
- WaMu Drops Online Savings Account to 3.00% APY
- Keep the Change, Way2Save Not Worth It, Says Consumer Reports
- 3 Reasons the Economy Isn't Worrying Me
- Bank of America Giving Away Hybrid for Paperless Banking
- Money Saving Links: 10/3/08
- Why Taxes Force Public Assets Into Private Hands
- Money Saving Links: 9/26/08
latest comments
- WiseMoneyMatters: I agree. I've been using Save The Change for a little while now. The problem is that I also have ...
- Jaime: DollarSavingsDirect. They withhold interest on account if zero balance at end of the month! I had an external link account ...
- Raul: BofA keep the change is a fraud for those with a saving account less than $300.00! They tell people ...
- Bank CD Rates: Or Gov't policies put pressure on institutions to make sub-prime loans to help bring up the homeownership stats instead of ...
- My Dollar Plan: Thanks for the mention! ...
tags
401k apy bank of america carnival of personal finance Consumerism finances hsbc hsbc direct investing jobs links Money Online Banking online savings account Retirement saving savings spending Taxes WorkMarketplace
social
Copyright
Copyright © 2008 by Online Savings Blog. All rights reserved.Designed by Upstart Blogger.
