What current account - building socirty or bank?

kellyp

In the process of buying our first house, and me and my partner want to open a current account that we both pay into for all house related things to come out of, e.g., mortgage, bills etc.

What are the best current accounts around at the moment? Would we be better getting a building society account - are any still likely to move to being a bank, and therefore possibly get some cashback?

ANy advice and help greatly appreciated!!

KTF

Have a read of this article here:

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?newsid1109610116,88950,

Which one is 'best' really depents on what you want. I am with the Nationwide because of the free overseas cash withdrawals, others are with A&L because of the 0% overdraft for example so have a look and decide what features are important to you.

I really cant see and Building Societys converting anytime soon (and even if they did you would be unlikeley to get a windfall) so dont let that influence your decision.

cadboll

As KTF says its all down to what you want out of a current account. Of course there's nothing stopping you having the best of both worlds - opening and A&L Current Account (5% Gross/AER) and also Nationwide (unsure of rate). That way you get both benefits as listed above.

I am with A&L at the moment and very happy with them at present. My advice for what it is worth, go with the highest rate account, keep an eye on this site and when rates change, move to a better account.

Rafter

Another bit of advice is that it would be a good idea if your individual accounts and your joint account are all with the same bank. That way you won't lose 3 days interest while the money is being transferred from your account to the joint account.

I'd also add Smile and firstdirect to your consideration list. They don't have the best headline grabbing introductory interest rates but they do have very high customer service scores and have consistently offered better rates than traditional high street banks.

Good luck.

R.