The rate cuts enacted by the Fed last week caused almost all savings account rates to fall within the last week or so. Here are the updates:
WTDirect is still the highest paying bank, offering 3.56% APY.
ING fell to 3.00%
HSBC fell to 3.05%
Emigrant Direct fell to 2.75%
Citibank fell to 3.20%
eTrade fell to 3.45%
Zions fell to 3.20%
GMAC fell to 3.00%
You can find these and other rates at Best Savings Rates.
After the Fed cut the federal funds rate yesterday, most banks quickly dropped the yield they are offering on savings accounts. Below are some of the rate changes:
ING Direct fell to 3.65%
WTDirect fell to 4.3%
HSBC fell to 4.25%
Emigrant Direct fell to 4.55%
eTrade fell to 4.4%
Capital One Savings fell to 4.0
Zions Bank fell to 4.46%
Updates to other financial products will be coming shortly…
The Fed’s cut of the federal funds rate by one-quarter percent (to 4.5%) has caused several online banks to drop their rates.
ING dropped from 4.30% APY to 4.20% APY
Zions Bank dropped from 4.71% APY to 4.60% APY
GMAC dropped from 4.75% APY to 4.50% APY.
You can find these and other savings rates on our savings rate website. CD, money market, and checking rates will be updated shortly as well.
As I was adding accounts and rates for my certificate of deposit site, I began to notice that 3 and 6 month CDs were offering higher rates than 5 year CDs - which seems to be the opposite of what you’d expect. I decided to whip up a quick graph last night, and sure enough, the yield curve (at least from my sample data) is inverted. 6 month yields are at around 5.32% APY, whereas 5 year yields are at just over 5%. Inverted yield curves are typically a sign that the market thinks the economy will be very slow in the future, or perhaps even decline.
The other interesting thing to note is that savings account rates at a lot of banks beat most CD rates. Several savings accounts are paying over 5.00% APY. This data doesn’t make it look very attractive to put your money into a CD, when savings account rates are just as high (or higher, in some cases) and don’t lock your money up.
The last month has seen a lot of savings rates fall. Here are the updates:
Capital One - Was up from 4.80% to 5.00%
Zions Bank - Fell to 5.23% from 5.30%
Etrade - Up to 5.05% from 4.40% (note that they introduced a new savings account)
GMAC - Fell from 5.20% to 5.00%
CitiBank - Fell from 5.00% to 4.75%
Eloan - Fell from 5.38% to 5.25%
Also note that HSBC is offering a promotional rate of 6.00%.
Rate updates courtesy of Best Savings Rates, where you can always find the best online savings account rates.
I started Best Savings Rates to help people find the best online savings account rates. The site has been a success, but it only caters to people in the United States. I’m pleased to announce our coverage of other countries, starting with Canada. Canadian Savings Rates will list the best savings rates, fees and bonuses, and reviews - so that you can find the best online bank account for your needs.
I am looking to move into other countries shortly, starting with the UK and Germany next month.
Over the last few weeks, 2 accounts have seen rate increases and 2 have seen rate decreases:
ING Direct increased to 4.5% APY from 4.4% APY
Zions increased from 5.13% APY to 5.3% APY
GMAC fell to 5.2% APY from 5.25% APY
Eloan fell from 5.5% APY to 5.38% APY
More accounts and rates at Best Savings Rates.
Over the next week, we’ll be opening up a new site for money market accounts to lessen some of the confusion we currently have with listing both money market accounts and savings accounts. Stay tuned.
I came across this article the other day on CNN Money, about a couple barely getting by on $150k per year - in Nebraska. It is easy to poke fun at these people (as many have), and I have little sympathy for them, but it is actually easier than you think to get into this sort of situation. How?
1) Living at or above your means
This is a recipe for trouble for a few reasons. First, you lose the ability to save money for potential issues in the future. This family was hurt by the husband losing his job - something that isn’t too uncommon in America. This is very difficult, even moreso if you don’t have ample savings. Additionally, their lifestyle was likely dependent upon two incomes - take away one, and you are in the red. In two-income households, it is wise to plan on one person losing their job and have contingencies in place in the event that it does happen.
2) Bad Investing
It looks like some loser properties were invested in, in this case. The first problem is that you shouldn’t usually stretch your finances to invest in things like real estate and stocks - it leads you to making poor decisions on your investments down the road.
It doesn’t seem fun to have a household income several times the national average and still be worrying about money. Don’t let it happen to you:)
CNN Money is featuring an article showing just how bad Americans are at saving - according to the article, we actually save -$0.60 per hundred dollars we make. Yes, the minus sign is correct.
A negative savings rate is bad for the economy, but it is also bad if you are one of those helping keep the average down. A negative savings rate means you are likely to get poorer over time, have difficulty paying for big things (like houses, education, retirement, etc), and makes you far more likely to get burned by what should be a short-term emergency. Even setting aside a few percent of your income every month can help you build up a reserve of cash to use for emergencies or to invest.
Some online savings accounts have tools that can help you save more of your money a little easier. ING Direct, for example, has automatic savings plans that pull a certain amount of money out of your regular bank account at regular intervals. Also, most online accounts allow you to use direct deposit, so you can have your employer send a certain percentage of your salary to an online account immediately. I have 10% of my salary sent to ING every pay period, which helps me save a little more - the money is never in my checking account to spend 
Compare features, rates, and fees at Best Savings Rates.
The last little while has been pretty slow in savings account rates, but there have been a few changes:
- Emigrant Direct dropped from 5.15% APY to 5.05% APY
- Zions Bank rose from 5.13% APY to 5.24% APY
- GMAC Bank rose from 5.05% APY to 5.25% APY
We’ve also listed the E-Loan savings account on our site now. It has a hefty $5,000 minimum balance requirement, but it also has no fees and a nice 5.50% APY rate.
View these and other rates at our savings account comparison site, Best-Savings-Rates.com.