I have always said that I wouldn't chase rates when it came to high yield online savings accounts. I have an account with ING that I use for both my long-term savings and my day to day account, as well as bill-pay and I (luckily) opened a CD with them just before the rates dropped. I signed up thanks to the lure of the $25 bonus, and I've not been disappointed.
But ING's interest rates have dropped severely over the past few months. Most banks have dropped their rates as the Fed has dropped rates, but ING's last drop seemed fairly extreme. From 4.1% all the way down to 3.65%. As a comparison, HSBC Direct is currently at 4.25%. Thanks to Flexo over at Consumerism Commentary, you can check out the interest rates at a number of banks.
As part of my Dollar a Day savings plan, I decided to open up an HSBC Direct account, and planned to only use it for the money I'm depositing for the dollar a day plan. Now that I see the discrepancy in the accounts, I'm tempted to move my long-term savings account there instead. I love the fact that I can have sub-accounts with ING, and I wish that HSBC had the same features.
I'm still waiting on my username and password from HSBC Direct, so no final decision has been made yet. I may just use HSBC Direct for the Dollar a Day plan to begin with and then make my decision after spending some time with them first.
Showing posts with label ing direct. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ing direct. Show all posts
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Saturday, November 17, 2007
What is this site about, anyway?
A Dollar a Day is a new saving plan that I have put in place for 2008. The goal is to see just how much money I can save in a year by taking little tiny steps.
There are two components to this plan.
1. As you can probably tell from the title, the first step is to save one dollar a day. That means in 2008, I will save a minimum of $366 with this plan (2008 is a leap year).
2. The second part of the plan is a bit more complicated. I plan to save all the money that I otherwise would have spent. Well, duh, you say. Whatever you don't spend, you save. Obviously. No, here, the plan is to start making good choices. Normally when I go to the mall, for example, I get a bubble tea on my way home. So every time I go to the mall and don't get the bubble tea? The cost of that tea goes into savings. Also, any time I buy something that is cheaper than what I normally buy, I will put whatever I save into savings. To continue with the beverage example, if I go for coffee and I would normally get a large coffee, and instead I get a medium or a small, I also will save the difference between the two costs. Other rules will be added as I go along. Follow along and see!
What am I going to do with all of this money? I don't actually know. I'll see where it is at the end of the year. Maybe it will go into savings or into a vacation fund or maybe it will be part of my Roth IRA contribution for 2008. Who knows!
How will I keep track of everything? That was actually something I struggled with. I'm planning to open a separate ING Direct Savings Account for $1 a day part. For the other savings, I have not decided whether or not this will involve a physical move of money. Once a month, I will transfer the savings from that month into the savings account. I will track everything in a spreadsheet. Why not transfer on a daily basis? Primarily because most savings account have a limit on the number of times you can withdraw from your savings account per month.
So there you have it. The basic plan. Anyone want to join me in this adventure?
There are two components to this plan.
1. As you can probably tell from the title, the first step is to save one dollar a day. That means in 2008, I will save a minimum of $366 with this plan (2008 is a leap year).
2. The second part of the plan is a bit more complicated. I plan to save all the money that I otherwise would have spent. Well, duh, you say. Whatever you don't spend, you save. Obviously. No, here, the plan is to start making good choices. Normally when I go to the mall, for example, I get a bubble tea on my way home. So every time I go to the mall and don't get the bubble tea? The cost of that tea goes into savings. Also, any time I buy something that is cheaper than what I normally buy, I will put whatever I save into savings. To continue with the beverage example, if I go for coffee and I would normally get a large coffee, and instead I get a medium or a small, I also will save the difference between the two costs. Other rules will be added as I go along. Follow along and see!
What am I going to do with all of this money? I don't actually know. I'll see where it is at the end of the year. Maybe it will go into savings or into a vacation fund or maybe it will be part of my Roth IRA contribution for 2008. Who knows!
How will I keep track of everything? That was actually something I struggled with. I'm planning to open a separate ING Direct Savings Account for $1 a day part. For the other savings, I have not decided whether or not this will involve a physical move of money. Once a month, I will transfer the savings from that month into the savings account. I will track everything in a spreadsheet. Why not transfer on a daily basis? Primarily because most savings account have a limit on the number of times you can withdraw from your savings account per month.
So there you have it. The basic plan. Anyone want to join me in this adventure?
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