Standard Life 50 Day Notice Account

1st_Time_Saver

Hi All!

I opened an account with Standard Life last year and ive kinda just left the money to accumulate (occasionally upping the amount i put in it, currently at £75 per month).

Im not sure whether or not this is the right account for me, this site can be very thought provoking! Ive also started an ISA with First Direct, they have an online account which seems to pay a higher rate than Standard Life.

So i guess my question is: Do i leave the money to accumulate in my Standard Life account or do i transfer it to another account, like First Direct?

Help please, im a total newbie and am desperate to save!

1st TS xx

P.S I did post this on the savings and investments board but noone responded :-(

spud30

I'm not sure how much help you will get round here, to be honest.

Most of us are working at paying our debts back, and cannot afford to save at the moment :rolleyes:

CLAPTON

all things being equal, which they never are
then
pay debt back before having savings (unless debt is interest free or APR is lower than Saving AER)

save in highest AER a/c taking into account interest after tax...so usually an ISA (free of tax) is better than a non ISA a/c

devils in the detail what are the APRs, AERs?

1st_Time_Saver

Hi Clapton

My C/C is 0% interest until July 2007, i get made redundant at the end of october so plan to clear the balance then.

Im contemplating moving my savings into my ISA but at the same time, i want an account that i can access my money fairly quickly so feel that i should keep a seperate savings account to my ISA.

Thanks for answering my post, im fairly new and this board is so busy, people don't always get chance to see all the posts i guess!

Cheers

1st TS

CLAPTON

what is the APR of the overdraft...maybe thats the best debt to clear

does the standard life a/c offer easy access?

there is no financial reason to repay debt at 0% if you can save at a higher rate.

1st_Time_Saver

I can call standard life and it would take 3 days to transfer the money if i needed it.

Im thinking about what you said now about financial gain re interest rates. Ive just gained a qualification at work and when i leave im guaranteed to get a job (already spoken to several recruitment agencies) that will pay £4,000 more than my current salary. So, maybe i should set up a standing order to clear my C/C instead of using my redundancy money? As long as i clear it before next July 2007, i'll be ok?

CLAPTON

what is the apr of your overdraft

1st_Time_Saver

My overdraft is £450, this is the info i pulled of the website:

For agreed overdraft limits of £251 and above: Free on first £250. Over £250, 0.79% per month, typical 9.9% EAR (variable).

Is that bad, i didnt even know that there was a fee, how stupid am i?! Should i reduce my overdraft to £250 then?

CLAPTON

there are people who try to maximise interest paid to them and minimise interest they pay...But to beat the banks you need to read and understand all the small print . you also need to be very well organised and keep up with their changing T&Cs.

but if you are not that person then

repay ALL debt as soon as possible.

with any surplus save it in the best savings a/c you can, that usually means use you full ISA allowance first (say B&B a/c at 5%) and then the best 'ordinary rate' you can find...if you dont want to keep changing try nationwide esaver as a good consistant a/c although never the current best buy.

1st_Time_Saver

I've got an ISA with First Direct, just been speaking to my OH, he reckons i should top my ISA up with my redundancy and pay off my credit card over the next 11 months so i think thats what im gonna do.

Thanks alot Clapton, you've been a great help, hope to speak to you again soon!:money:

1st TS