Hi All,
The wife (the one with the money in my household) is looking for a new savings account as last years one is expiring in October. They drop the interest down the 0.50% from 3.06% :crying:.
Anyone in the know about these things? I did all the general comparison web site stuff and they're all a bit crappy right now.
Requirements are Easy Access is something we generally need as we tend to be a bit disorganised. Would prefer Interest monthly rather than yearly, also paid monthly.
There's a decent on with the AA right now but given my experience with them as an insurer I'm not very enthusiatic about that one although it's the best Interest but yearly paid which is a load of nonsense.
Any ideas?
//www.moneyfacts.co.uk is what I tend to use. They are all terrible at the moment though.
moneysavingexpert.com
That's how I Choose mine.
I've just been looking around myself and Santander have an online account at 3% paid monthly if you want, and as many withdrawals as you want, it takes a few weeks to set up though plus I've read they have crap customer support, I have an account with them already and haven't had any problems..... (hexed myself there :doh:)
I think the AA one only allows three or so withdrawals a year.
Quote from: Jamin;357800I've just been looking around myself and Santander have an online account at 3% paid monthly if you want, and as many withdrawals as you want, it takes a few weeks to set up though plus I've read they have crap customer support, I have an account with them already and haven't had any problems..... (hexed myself there :doh:)
I think the AA one only allows three or so withdrawals a year.
I think i have that account its not bad :)
I got so disheartened with the rates on offer, so I bunged the (not a) lot into Premium Bonds. Its currently yielding 4% pa :D
An additional buzz is checking every month to see if I've won a million.
Quote from: Lameduck;357812I got so disheartened with the rates on offer, so I bunged the (not a) lot into Premium Bonds. Its currently yielding 4% pa :D
An additional buzz is checking every month to see if I've won a million.
You're lucky. The official return currently equates to just 1.5% pa, so you're stealing wins from 1.67 other people :P
We have Santander from the last 11.5 months and they have a loophole apparently (according to the lass at their branch). If you start another account BEFORE closing the old one you get away with it. The small print says you cannot open another account within 6 months of closing an account but technically you can use them 2 years running if you don't close the first one.
ING Direct have a 2.99% offer on right now. I agree with LameDuck, totally crappy interest rates. We need access to our money so can't put it away for 5 years for an extra %centile. I might consider it for 5% but hey the banks own our a$$.
I was advised to invest in this order ...
1. Cash Isa's to the yearly max
2. Stocks and shares Isa's to the max (sticking to FTSE 100's)
3. Premium bonds
4. Other best savings places you can find ensuring no more than £85K in one accredited bank.
Hth
I've got 3 cash ISAs on the go at the moment. Each year I start a new one for the rate which last for a year before dropping. They typically start at 3.6% and drop to 2% at the end of the year I think, though this year they're offering 3.05% which is a bit lame.
I have them with Barclays just because they're so convenient. I have an account with them, I go onto online backing and just drop it in (or pull it out if I miss manage my money).
Pulling money out sacrafices some of the months interest, so it's best avoided, and also because it's an ISA you can only put it a maximum of £5640 in a year, if you put in £5000 pulled out £3000 you'd still not be allowed to put in more than £640 in, so best avoided.
Barclays also did 3 other types of account, e-savings, weekly saver and monthly saver. All had rates in the mid 3%s a lasted for a year. Start one move on to the next etc. Looking at it now though only the monthly saver is any good (3.25%).
I only use them because it's as easy as dragging and dropping cash between accounts online. I'm sure there are better rates available elsewhere but I don't like having my money somewhere I can't just put it straight into my debit card account.
Also worth remembering to use both partners' allowance to maximise returns.
My struggle is with USD. You think interests are bad over here, try finding a decent interest dollar account Stateside. Doubly hard without a social security number. If anyone has any suggestions I'm all ears.