New student starting uni in Sept

burly

I've been thinking about finances, and from what I can gather from the excellent info on this site, this seems to be the best deal:

Accounts to open

1. Open Halifax Student Account

2. Open NatWest Student Account (nice railcard freebie aswell)

3. Open HSBC Online Saver @ 5.75%

4. Open Leek United Building Society regualar savings account @ 7.5%


Money to move

1. Get max/or close to max free overdraft of £2,750 from Halifax SA - transfer it into HSBC Online Saver

2. As per T&C of the Halifax student account I would pay in my the student loan here and use the money here to pay for my living. but keep the account in minus withdrawing some of the loan temp and keep it in HSBC online saver (as I assume loan payment is annual?)


Same idea for NatWest Student Account:

3. Get max/or close to max free overdraft of £1,000 from Natwest - transfer it into HSBC Online Saver

4. Pay in parents standing order to Natwest to satisfy T&C. Keep acount in minus and use this money here to pay for some living (so effectively I have 2 accounts used for living stuff - as to not raise suspicion - still regular use)


So I should have about £3500 of "free money" int the HSBC online saver from overdrafts
Also any temp loan money will be kept here withdrawing as I need back into the Halifax and NatWest accounts.
I will drip-feed the Leek account from here using overdraft money.


Want to maxmise money. Stupid or good idea?
Shouldnt be hard to organise with online banking.

CLAPTON

Well done on considering how to help your finances at uni at this early stage.

there are three things you need to consider when trying to make money out of financial institutions.

first read the small print
second read the small print
and third read the small print

when you have done that i'ld suggest you read the small print again.

so lets see


HSBC 5.7% online a/c... if you withdraw anything from the account no matter how small, they pay no interest on the entire savings for that month.. so if in a simple way you have 2,700 in the account and need to withdraw just 10 then there is NO interest on the whole 2,700 for that month.

then
Leek united 7.5% regular saver..great rate fixed for a year but allows no withdrawals or early closure.

Halifax says the 2,700 is not guarenteed ..only a 1,000 is guarenteed.

Not sure about Natwest but most banks want the student loan paid into their a/c.

and by the way the student loan is paid in three installments.

So dont let me put you off from maximising any benefit you have make and if you are well organised you can make a bit of money in saving the 'interest free' overdraft in a good savings a/c.
But do look at all the details and see whether they are suitable for your circumstances.

and of course make sure you fill in a R85 when you open an a/c so you dont pay any tax.

if you intend travelling during the summer or whatever, think about the benefits of the Nationwide Building Society products because they are one of the very few institutions that dont charge fees if you use their debit or credit cards abroad.

best of luck with your studies and hope you enjoy uni.

secret_squirrel_5

You are aware that you are usually only allowed to operate one student bank account? You could be asked to confirm that you do not have any others, and if you do then you could be in breach of your account agreement(s).

Best to check with each bank sooner rather than later.

aqueoushumour01

well played!!! maxing out overdraft and putting it into a high interest account - why didn't i think of that

celyn90

Good on you burly, I'd wish I'd been as sensible when I started! Best of luck for your course! celyn

merlinormartin

Accounts to open

1. Open Halifax Student Account

Most people i know got their student application rejected by Halifax .. so good luck! ...:rolleyes:

Not sure about Natwest but most banks want the student loan paid into their a/c.

When i opened my Natwest account i had to agree to put my loan into that account . but .. i arranged for my loan payments to be paid into a different bank account .. then i would transfer some of the money back into the Nawest ... i was never questioned by Natwest.

kelloggs36

I can guarantee that you won't get the full amount of overdraft with the Halifax - initially you will get 500 quid and if you ask, it will probably be increased to a grand. After a while if you pay money in and manage your account ok, you can apply for a further increase to your overdraft.

As for having more than 1 student account - I have 2. I had one with HSBC and then opened another with the Halifax - I told them both what I was doing and neither said that I couldn't do this. I have the loan paid into 1 account, and then transfer it to the other - hence money has technically gone into both accounts. Neither are anywhere near the limit on the overdrafts anyway, but I may take the money from the Halifax (a grand) and stick it into my Chelsea account which is a saver account. If they ask for it back, they can have it.

burly

Thanks for all the comments.

Never noticed that with the HSBC account. That would defintely not be suitable for me then. Will look for another savings account then.

Also with Leek, keeping it locked for a year wouldnt be a problem, as long as the banks don't ask for the overdraft back! (even then my family could bail me out)

Excellent tip with Nationwide there, I have had a NW account since my childhood so I won't be closing it anytime soon

Thanks again.

3plus1

CLAPTON wrote: »

Not sure about Natwest but most banks want the student loan paid into their a/c.

I have a student account with HSBC. I have no student loan, but my parents pay in money to my account regularly, and HSBC were satisfied with that.

Although technically, it is a loan, because I have to pay my parents back eventually...

melancholly

i'd recommend waiting until august before deciding what student accounts to open as the offers may change for the next academic year. usually you need an acceptance letter from a uni anyway, so although it's great that you're thinking about it already, hold off on a decision for a few months.

lynn51

Halifax advertise as the best student account overdraft at £2750 (depending on status)but this is very misleading as when youve actually applied and opened an account they offer you nowhere near that and will not extend it. My daughter has been a halifax customer for ages and was told once the account was up and running she could increase her overdraft...no way.. she was up against a very unhelpful advisor called Stevie at the other end of the 0845 number she had been given to ring.He would not refer her on to anyone else and actually talked about her getting credit on a credit card!!!When passing the phone to me to speak to him with her consent, he would not tell me his name or pass me on to a manager even though I and the whole family have also been Halifax customers for years and he would not tell me the reason for this decision. Unfortunately our local branch although friendly and helpful is only small and we were told we needed to ring the 0845 number to apply.