Consumerism Commentary reader Allison wrote in to let me know about Savings Square, a high-yield savings account offering competitive rates. The account is offered by Kirkpatrick Bank, FDIC insured. I hadn’t heard of the account until today. Here’s what Allison wrote about her experience with the account so far:
When I first set up my account, there was a problem with my first transfer of cash from my regular debit account to Savings Square. I finally called their HQ, and a wonderful representative explored reasons for the stall, called back multiple times exactly when she said she would, offered alternatives for getting the money to the account while the problem was being corrected, and followed up a few days after the correction to make sure I was happy with the end results. I’ve called them a couple more times with random questions, and they’ve always offered excellent service. At this point, there’s not much that will make me move my cash.
There are other positive reviews online, though most disappointment stems from the timing of transfers. While a 10-day hold on initial deposits is normal for the industry, customers have seen spotty performance with other transfers that should be executed within three days or one day.
Savings Square’s current APY of 4.8% puts them towards the top of the pack of high-yield savings account.
Update: Washington Mutual and HSBC Direct lowered the APY offered on their savings accounts, and I expect more to follow as the Fed lowers interest rates again tomorrow.
Updated December 20, 2011 and originally published January 29, 2008. If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to the RSS feed or receive daily emails. Follow @flexo on Twitter and visit our Facebook page for more updates.
Rank: Platinum
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
from looking at their tagline on their site… “no mins, no fees, no risk, FDIC insd” I think it is bold of them to say “No risk” with a Money market account… I agree, that there is minimal risk compared to many other investments – but, would you say “no risk”?
ChristianPF: It’s probably wrong to call any investment completely risk-free, but as far as reasonable people are concerned, a savings account (aka. money market account) is as risk-free you’re going to get in a financial institution. Former customers of NetBank might disagree, but there should generally be no worries with leaving your money in a savings account (other than inflation).
I wonder about that Unity Gold E-Savings at OneUnited at the top of the list. That is 1% better than Emigrant where I am now, which translates into $500/year. Have you heard anything about it? If I understand the website correctly they only credit the account quarterly. Anyone have any dealings with it?
Quarterly crediting of interest means that you can lose significant money if you close your account at the “wrong time” (i.e., right before interested is credited). I’ve heard horror stories of customer service there… I do not have an account there, and the extra interest isn’t worth the hassle for me.
Hello! I’m the girl to wrote to Flexo about Savings Square. I have to say that I haven’t experienced any transfer problems, other than the initial set up (and that was because my personal bank and Savings Square coded some things differently). I tranfer money from my regular bank to SS at least twice a month, and most of my transfers occur within three days. I think the only time it’s been longer is when I scheduled it near a weekend, but that’s the norm with any online bank tranfer, I think. Anyway, I’m super pleased with them!
Per the usual ING has been lightning fast to change rates. APR changed from 2.47 to 2.23, with corrosponding APY changes of 2.50 down to 2.25 on checking and the savings APY went from 3.65 to 3.4.