Online Savings Accounts?

[jlb727]

Marcus is great! We have a 2.25 interest rate, which is great, but the big benefit to me is their customer service. I almost dropped the phone, I was so shocked the first time I called customer service and immediately connected with a human (who spoke fluent English) instead of an automated menu.

 

[Nick6300]

Marcus is great! We have a 2.25 interest rate, which is great, but the big benefit to me is their customer service. I almost dropped the phone, I was so shocked the first time I called customer service and immediately connected with a human (who spoke fluent English) instead of an automated menu.

I was recently torn between Marcus, Synchrony, and Ally, and went with Synchrony. Wish I hadn't - they are so slow with transfers.

 

[Anthony1971]

Been using online banks for years. We presently use CIT and they always match others rates for CD's for us but we do have considerable amounts so when they are up for renew they do not want to loose the funds. For transfers there are actually 2 options one is an ACH which depending on the bank cutoff can take 2-3 business days the other is a wire transfer which you will pay for depending on the Bank usually around 25.00 but this will be same day pending the cutoff time otherwise next day. I truly have never noticed any difference as far as the ACH is concerned for any as I said it depends on the time of day you make the transfer as they have a cutoff time lets say 2PM eastern time then the transfer will initiate next day and it will appear 3 days later otherwise the standard is 2 days.... If you start the ACH on Tuesday before the cutoff you will see the finds Thursday--possible Wed. night but as pending if you miss the cutoff it will be Friday. For those who are using Money Market be aware these are not FDIC insured and are subject to the ups and downs of the stock market as far as what the actual interest rate will be.

 

[MomToOne]

For those who are using Money Market be aware these are not FDIC insured and are subject to the ups and downs of the stock market as far as what the actual interest rate will be.

Money market funds are invested in short term securities, not stock. They follow the ups and downs in the fed rate/bond yields, not the stock market. It is the same as with any savings account, although regular savings accounts do so a bit more indirectly.

And money market accounts - which most of these high yield accounts are - at banks ARE generally FDIC insured, up to the standard limit. Discover's definitely is: https://www.discover.com/online-ban...s-offer-rates-that-can-help-your-savings-grow. Vanguard isn't a bank, so it's fund isn't. But I think they are good stability wise

 

[dina444444]

I have ally and haven’t had any issues with them.

 

[rchampagne]

I've been very happy with Ally.com for years. They're currently 2.1%. I like that they reimburse ATM fees (maybe $10 / month... can't remember exact amount). I also like that they send free checks to you whenever you request them.

 

[LizzyS]

I've never had an online savings account before, but I think I'll start one as a vacation fund account and see how it goes. I'm thinking about opening one up with Marcus as I've heard good things.

 

[ICF]

I have an online savings account through Ally bank. Current rate is 2.2%

 

[dina444444]

I have an online savings account through Ally bank. Current rate is 2.2%

It just dropped down the other day to 2.1%

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I love Ally. I first had Capital One 360, from back when they were ING. CO 360 offers 1% and Ally was 2% when I first opened so the amount of earned interest doubled in a month! As pp mentioned, it's 2.1% now. Their transfers a little long at first but once you transfer $200 cumulatively, then after 60 days, they transfer next day.
I love that after work (before 7:30 pm ET) I can schedule a transfer, and when I wake up in the morning, it's done.

I did try Discover savings just to get the bonus but they were super slow for transfers and they hold new funds for a long time before making them available. That was what I found annoying about CO 360.

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/discover-savings-150200-bonus-1500020000-deposit-new-exp-103117/
Don't fear online banks. I find them very convenient. I like that I can have several savings accounts. I keep one for each different bill/expense that doesn't occur monthly. I can nickname them too. So we have Christmas, Vacation, Escrow (for property taxes & ins), Car Insurance, Sewer Bill, New Car, etc. If I want to pay for something, let's say vacation costs from my Vacation savings account, I just transfer it to Ally checking and from there schedule a payment from my cc bank website. They also have bill pay with their checking account if you prefer that. This all keeps me very organized with money. If it were all in one pot, it would be harder for me to budget.