Can I track the interest rates on my various savings accounts?

tigtog

I would like to find an app for iPad or a website for my laptop, which I can customise with the dozen or so savings accounts I hold, so that I can keep track of the current interest rates for those particular savings accounts at any time.

I don't need anything fancy. It's just that I rarely bother to look up each individual savings account and have found, inevitably, that many are only giving me a negligible rate of interest.

If I could, with a couple of clicks, immediately see the interest rates for my accounts, I could manage them more effectively and change them for higher rates!

If anyone has any ideas, I'd be extremely grateful!

Thanks

opinions4u

You should develop such an app. First to market could make a few quid from advertising!

Stompa

You could try setting up a portfolio here:

http://www.savingschampion.co.uk/rate-tracker/1-minute-rate-check/

jimjames

Why not just setup a spreadsheet with the dates each account rate expires?

Or even if you have a smartphone put a calendar reminder in for the date you need to check that account?

innovate

Stompa wrote: »

You could try setting up a portfolio here:

http://www.savingschampion.co.uk/rate-tracker/1-minute-rate-check/

They only do some of the main accounts, don't cover all the accounts, or the Building Societies (e.g. no Lloyds Vantage, no Nottingham Building Society etc). And all they do is send you an email when a given interest rate deal expires, or your account matures.

I second the suggestion by jimjames - it's the easiest by a mile.

Also, you do get a letter or email from your savings account provider a few weeks before the interest rate expires.

Stompa

innovate wrote: »

They only do some of the main accounts, don't cover all the accounts, or the Building Societies (e.g. no Lloyds Vantage, no Nottingham Building Society etc).

True, but it's the most comprehensive such site I know of, just not comprehensive enough! FWIW it does seem to include a lot of Building Societies, e.g. Nottingham, but not the actual accounts I have at them.

innovate wrote: »

I second the suggestion by jimjames - it's the easiest by a mile.

Indeed, that's the way I do it.

buffman

I use an excel spreadsheet to keep track of when bonuses on my accounts end (and the amounts involved) or when fixed term deposits mature along with outlook 'reminders' to jog my memory. I still find Quicken the best way to mange everything on a daily basis.

jimjames

Another option is if you have different browsers installed on your PC or are happy to install a different browser.

The browser you don't normally use can have all the tabs setup for the relevant pages on the banks website for each account. Whenever you want to check the rates for all your current savings then open that browser and each tab will show you the latest details.

Froglet

buffman wrote: »

I use an excel spreadsheet to keep track of when bonuses on my accounts end (and the amounts involved) or when fixed term deposits mature along with outlook 'reminders' to jog my memory. I still find Quicken the best way to mange everything on a daily basis.

So do I, it is really simple.Page 1 is for my current account credits and debits about 6 to 8 weeks ahead,approximate until definite.

Page 2 is my credit card spend

Page 3 is for savings accounts,how much,how long the fix is and which year isas are for etc.And of course the interest rate.

tigtog

Thanks all for your very interesting replies and it's good to get a cross section of suggestions, some of which I hadn't thought of.

I'll take a look at 'Savings Champion' and I like the idea of using a different browser with set up tabs for the various building societies etc, so will give that a go too.

Will also give thought to the spreadsheet idea if the two previous ones don't work out.

So thanks again!

mgarl10024

I too use a Spreadsheet (although I keep rewriting them as I find the old one doesn't quite work how I want - I'm on my third!).

I've been toying with the idea of writing some software to track these things. So, you could enter all your account details, and then it would tell you what interest you would be paid, when you would be paid it, when bonuses end, when you should switch... You could then open this out to credit cards, utility bills, etc... There's massive scope.

The trouble is that I get all excited about it, and then get daunted by the complexity. For example, on just interest alone - some accounts have tiered interest rates, some work on calendar months others by dates, some pay interest monthly, some annually, some annually at a given date, some pay one off bonuses if certain conditions are met,..... a new account I just saw increased the rate by 0.5% for each month you had no withdrawals! Then there's rounding - some round up, some round down, some round mid-calculation, some round at the end...
I started off thinking that modelling an account would be quite simple, but by the time you have modeled all of the above (and any future ones that may come out) you either end up with bits of code for each account (as they are all subtly different) or a very extensible but complex piece of code.

One of these days I'm gonna have to give it a go! It'll be an interesting (no pun intended) project for those dark Winter nights, that's for sure. :cool: