Help - looking for emergency savings account!

vertex

Hi,
I was buying a house and had a large part of the deposit with NS&I Guaranteed Growth Bonds. The house sale fell through and i have all that money sat in my current account earning 0%!!!! Ive just been on the phone to NS&I and becasue there are no Guaranteed Growth Bonds left so I can put that money back into my account!! Im looking for an account which offers:
- Good rate of interest, so probably a fixed rate account
- No early withdrawel penalties (I may find another house soon so may need to take it back out!)

Can anyone help? Im desperate. Ive had all the heart ache of the hosue falling through and wasted solicitors fees and now this!! I dont know how much more I can take.
ps
Ive maxed out my ISAs so thats not an option

xrjtg

How much is the deposit you're looking to save? That can affect the options available slightly.

If you're expecting to need the money soon then you want to stick with instant access, which is unlikey to be compatible with fixed rate. On the plus side, the rate you get isn't so important either, as you won't be earning it for long.

As a starter, look at the Lloyds Vantage current account. You can open three, and they pay 4% AER monthly on balances between £5000 and £7000. You need to credit £1000 a month to each account, but transfers between the three count and can be completed quickly through online banking.

vertex

thanks xrjtg. I already have 3 Lloyds Vantage current accounts - thats where all my money has been deposited!

What else is there? I see Martins Best Buy Fixed accounts, but I dont think it mentions whether there are early withdrawel penalties. I remember when I chose a 3 year NS&I Growth Bonds account, the interest rate worked out better even if withdrawn within the first year as opposed to a normal non-fixed account.

Thats why I liked it. Im looking for a similar one - ie: a fixed account (2 or 3 years maybe) that works out just as good as a normal account if I withdraw the money early. My thinking is that if I dont find a house soon then Ill just leave it in a fixed account earning OK interest. But if I do find a house then I can withdraw it and not be stung on early withdraw penalties. Does that make sense?

alanq

Fixed rate with no withdrawal penalties? Hard to find!

ING Direct Savings Account 2.75% fixed for one year. Not covered by FSCS but by a Dutch government guarantee. This should matter even less if proposed changes go through at the end of the year whereby in the event of a bank's failure the home government will pay out and reclaim from the government giving the guarantee.

Leeds BS new 6-month postal bond 2.5%
http://moneyfacts.co.uk/news/savings/leeds-bs-offers-short-term-gains/

vertex

hi alanq. Its not so much a fixed account with no widthdrawal penalties - just withdrawel penalties thet are low so that should I need to make a withdarwel, the penalties are low enough that it makes the interest comaparable to that of a normal account over the same time span. Does that make sense? Ill have a look at the Leeds BS account.