Newbie looking for info about joint savings accounts.

deanotrfc

Me and my girlfriend have been putting money a side every month for the past year as we are saving up for a flat. We are thinking about starting a joint savings account together and I am looking for some guidance and advice. Is it possible to have a joint bank account that can not be accessed without the other persons consent so then the money wont be touched and left to build interest?
Any help would be much appreciated.

oldvicar

Yes it is. I believe that the majority of banks offer joint accounts which require both signatures for any instructions.

However for practical reasons these tend to exclude on-line accounts, which are the ones which tend to have the best interest rates.

If you look though earlier threads on this forum over the past few weeks there will be some asking a similar question. And many responses suggesting why it may be better to save sparately, but check with eaqch other how things are going every few months. Amongst other reasons you'll soon see if one of you is a bit of a spendthrift or if you are both careful enough with money to be able to make buying a house together a (financial) success.

oldvicar

Nationwide's Save to Buy account might just interest you:

- 2.5% interest.
- Bonus of typically 2.5% to 5% when using savings as deposit for a mortgage (read the details carefully)
- No partial withdrawals (only take it all out at once), so an incentive to keep saving
- Available as joint account, as you wanted. But also available to each of you individually as a Tax free ISA.

opinions4u

Is it possible to have a joint bank account that can not be accessed without the other persons consent so then the money wont be touched and left to build interest

If one can't trust the other to leave the joint savings account alone, ask yourself if this relationship is worthwhile.

It's a genuine point. If one of you has the inclination to raid these funds without agreement then the relationship is doomed to fail or doomed to be miserable for at least one person in it.

A both to sign account will only paper over the cracks.

psychic_teabag

You'd probably get more interest from regular-saver accounts. Many don't allow any withdrawals until the anniversary. While I'm sure they are available as joint accounts, the monthly deposit tends to be limited, so you might be better off with two separate accounts. (Though nothing to stop you opening one at each of several institutions.)

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/608697

deanotrfc

Thanks a lot for your help and advice