Online Savings Accounts
One of the best and easiest ways to earn money on any outstanding cash balances you may have is to open an online savings account. One of the biggest advantages of these types of accounts is how simple and hassle free they are to open and maintain. Because most of the these online savings institutions don’t have any brick and mortar stores they are able to eliminate fees and offer higher interest rates on your cash.
Personally, I have found these accounts as a perfect place to store my six month emergency fund along with my monthly savings. Because most of these institutions don’t have physical stores the accounts are designed to link to an existing checking account. This makes the transfer of money from one account to another very easy.
While the following list is not an exhaustive list of all the different accounts available, they are some of the more popular ones with no fees and no minimum balances. If there is one you think I should be including just leave a comment and let me know.
Rates effective as of July 6, 2009.
HSBC Direct
1.55% APY $1 to open an account. No Minimum balance requirement. No monthly fees. You can connect HSBC Direct to as many checking accounts as you want, regardless of what bank they’re at.
More Information:
» HSBC Direct Info Page
FNBO Direct
1.50% APY No monthly fees or minimum balance requirements and you can open an account with as little as a $1. They allow you to link to 3 external bank accounts.
More Information:
» FNBO Direct Info Page
Washington Mutual
0.75% APY In order to open the online savings account WAMU requires it to be linked to a WAMU checking account. Only $1 to open. No monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. Must open online to get high rate.
More Information:
» WAMU Info Page
E-Trade Financial
0.95% APY No monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. It only takes $1 to open an account.
Free, one-click money transfers to and from any institution.
More Information:
» E-Trade Info Page
ING Direct
1.40% APY No monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. No penalties. No hidden costs. No service charges. They were one of the first to enter in the online savings arena. Great customer support and referral program.
More Information:
» ING Direct Info Page
» $25 Account Bonus
EmigrantDirect
1.55% APY No monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. No penalties. No hidden costs. No service charges. They allow you to link to 3 external bank accounts. Good customer support.
More Information:
» EmigrantDirect Info Page
Comments
Leave a Reply
