Online Savings Account For The Win!

One of the things I’ve needed to do for a while was open a savings account. But, I’ve held off simply because:

1. The majority of interest rates/APYs are pathetic. My local bank has an APY of 1.16% on a regular savings account. Sure, it’s passive income, but it gives the same feeling you get when you spot a penny on the ground.
2. The perceived time to set one up seemed to outweigh the benefits gained from opening the account.

However, after spending a brief ten minutes opening an account with HSBC Direct, I can say neither of those should stop anybody. There are several companies out there now that will give you a 4-5 times higher APY than what you would get at many local banks.

• HSBC Direct – 5.05% APY*
• Emigrant Direct – 5.05% APY*
• ING Direct – 4.00% APY*
• …just to name a few.

*Correct as of 6/13/07 6:00pm.

Plus, as far as HSBC Direct goes, the sign-up process is extremely easy and quick. Allowing for them to verify your account with a couple of micro-payments to your existing checking account, you’ll be up and going in about 3 days.

So, I’m extremely happy to finally be able to mark that off my list. Once that is setup, I’m going to look further into opening an account with Vanguard and investing in the Vanguard 500 (YTD 11.67% return). But, that’s for a later post.

In the meantime, hone your financial smarts at The Simple Dollar. It’s one of my favorite finance sites for a common sense approach to investing your money.