Minimising amount of current/savings accounts to reduce faff.

dont_use_vistaprint

I'm on the merry go round for the first time but really not enjoying it, particularly with tax returns and estimating how much needs to be within ISA's etc its a lot of effort, snail mail, occasional visits to branch to verify ID and now I have started to have to deal with maturing, closing down, transferring etc. if I factor in loss of time plus extra accounting effort its probably not worth the extra £300 ish (net) interest p.a from cash that would all just be sat in Marcus earning 1.5%.

robotrobo

RichyRich wrote: »

I ditched anything paying 1.5% when Marcus came out which means I exited Bank of Scotland. Tesco and TSB are staying put as they pay 3% and 5% respectively but I see little point in messing about with pay-ins and direct debits when I can get the same rate in a standard savings account with no such requirements. I will, however, be renewing my FD and Nationwide regular savings accounts because why miss out on 5%?

I'm all for simplification but not at the expense of making me poorer.

We!. have done the same, i ran short of d/debits etc, we still get a few hundred pounds interest a month, the ones we got rid of we put in to premium bonds , and this month WE had 10 wins with one £50 & the rest £25.

rivergold

I'll see what happens after the "Brexit" date.

If interest rates rise, I'll ditch the current accounts. If they fall, then the 1.5% current accounts may yet be useful.

colsten

rivergold wrote: »

I'll see what happens after the "Brexit" date.

If interest rates rise, I'll ditch the current accounts. If they fall, then the 1.5% current accounts may yet be useful.

If interest rates fall, there's every chance that the 1.5% current accounts will be history, very quickly

[Deleted User]

johnhickmanuk wrote: »

Personally I love the faff and enjoy looking for more branches to add to my magic money tree

I'm with you. I love the monthly faff. It's just a good way of keeping a eye on your finances too. I like to make sure the monthly transactions have happened.

Fingerbobs

johnhickmanuk wrote: »

Personally I love the faff and enjoy looking for more branches to add to my magic money tree

Same for me. It's become a sort of a hobby for me now.
As I said in another thread recently, if you look at it objectively, the actual financial return isn't worth the faff of managing the myriad accounts, but I enjoy it! It's a fun pastime that also earns me a little bit of pocket money every year.


I don't really do a "merry-go-round" so-to-speak - my income each month flows in one direction through a few accounts and ends up either in Regular Savers or my main day-to-day current account, so nothing flows backwards (apart from 2 x TSB accounts which I bounce £500 between).

Herbalus

I’ve just run some calcs.

Take 17.4k that is working at the moment, across 5 bank accounts with rewards, 5 bank accounts paying interest, 3 more accounts required for regular savers, and 5 regular savers (calcs included half the max balance for ease of comparison). I’ve excluded some accounts that don’t earn but are required to make the merry go round work.

Gain is £330 in reg savers, £345 in interest, and £265 in rewards, totalling £940. Putting 17.4k in at 1.5% is £261.

Simplicity is worth a price, but for me it’s nearly £700.

(When you start holding balances on 0% credit cards, this is extra “faff” but in my case is £10k of the 17.4k, and means the £940 each year is earned on effectively £7.4k of my own money. Effective rate is 13%).

Gers

Since the change to the tax system (for interest) I'm getting disinclined to continue chasing interest. It's a drive to SA - not sure I want to do that unless forced.

I have regular savers with eight organisations. Leeds BS will die a natural death as they are no longer offering RS accounts after January. I think my Nationwide RS will not be 5% after this one and Lloyds Club RS is down to 3%.

It's still a toss up for me. Perhaps I'll stick the cash in NS&I - don't know.

broju

........ On the other hand, as I get older, it may all become too much. A good memory, and being very well organised with your personal finance, are the primary requirements.[/QUOTE]

At what age do you think it might 'all become too much'? I am approaching 71 and quite enjoy the 'faff'. It's a bit of a hobby for me too. I am, though, beginning to get concerned as my OH really doesn't get why I bother and thinks I've made it all too complicated should he, or our daughters, have to pick up the threads. Maybe he's right and I should start to consolidate.............?

dont_use_vistaprint

Herbalus wrote: »

I’ve just run some calcs.

Take 17.4k that is working at the moment, across 5 bank accounts with rewards, 5 bank accounts paying interest, 3 more accounts required for regular savers, and 5 regular savers (calcs included half the max balance for ease of comparison). I’ve excluded some accounts that don’t earn but are required to make the merry go round work.

Gain is £330 in reg savers, £345 in interest, and £265 in rewards, totalling £940. Putting 17.4k in at 1.5% is £261.

Simplicity is worth a price, but for me it’s nearly £700.

(When you start holding balances on 0% credit cards, this is extra “faff” but in my case is £10k of the 17.4k, and means the £940 each year is earned on effectively £7.4k of my own money. Effective rate is 13%).

That is very good going, much better than me! But inst the price actually nearly £700 minus £261 - the alternative / interest of having all in Marcus at 1.5% - and then for many minus 40% tax if we already have investments or P2P using any allowances, so net profit of £156.60 ?