Anything left out there with todays economy? Wamu use to have some good ones along with ING. I'm in need of one right now. Any help is always appreciated!
The savings accounts only provide 1-2% now. For a list, you can check out fat wallet's Best Nationally Available High APY liquid accounts. http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/finance/783099/ Keep in mind, that the rates change constantly without notice. Many banks will offer a high rate for 1-2 months to spur deposits. Then, they drop the rates to average or less. I like Ally Bank(formerly GMAC bank), because their rates are consistently in the top 20 monthly. There is no min. balance. The online savings account is 1.64% right now, that's comparable to many CD rates. It's a familiar company. I have never heard of many of these other online banks, so I am afraid to trust my money to them. If you want higher interest rates, you can get a rewards checking account. They will offer 2-4%, but they have strict requirements that have to be met, or you only get 0.25% or less. Usually, you need to make multiple ATM transactions each month and have direct deposit.
I forgot to mention that the Quick Summary post is updated regularly even though it says posted November 20, 2007. It's edited by the community.
Thanks for the information. I think I'm just going to go with AmEx's savings account. Right now its a 1.7% interest rate, and heck, I've been doing business with them for a while now. http://personalsavings.americanexpress.com/savings-product.html (I didnt even know they offered savings accounts)
If you're willing to do a direct deposit and use a debit card, there are places with 4+% checking accounts. Not sure how they pull it off, but here's one: http://www.firstlockhart.com/personal/checking/rewards-checking.html It's at 4.51% and has been that way for a while (and is Texas based).
I've been using ING for a couple of years. I have it setup to automatically pull a small amount each pay period from my checking account. Their rates are only at 1.3% right now though, so not very good.
4% is maybe significant but a couple of tenths of a percent won't make any difference in your life. You probably would do better looking at fees and charges when selecting your bank. "Not sure how they pull it off, but here's one:" Maddoff alert! Sanford scheme possible!
Toycen428, I am glad that you found somebody. It's always better to do business with a company that has been good to you, than to get an extra .1% from an unknown quantity. It provides convenience, security and peace of mind. That's priceless.
For what it's worth, a high interest savings account is just an indicator that a bank is raising capital in an effort to make themselves attractive to a buyer... as in, that bank with the high savings interest is about to be bought up and absorbed. So... I'd suggest a fixed rate annuity, if you want stability in a small interest bearing product. For example, if a CD even, at your bank, has high interest (4%), but it's only a 1 year term to maturation.. then on a $100,000 amount you get back $4000. BUT, you owe taxes on the interest when it matures. In an annuity, it is non-taxed and then second year you make 4% on the $104,000 and so on, for every year... it compounds. Anyway... nothing says "we're about to either fold, or get bought and absorbed" than a high interest savings account, or CD.
