separating direct debits and personal purchases in same bank/account?

mrklaw

I want to tidy up my finances and would like to separate regular bills (gas, mortgage) from disposable/personal purchases (amazon, tesco etc)

We already budget how much the regular things cost and split between myself/wife, but I need the extra step of separating those so Ideally I have a set, specific amount available to me (I can be undisciplined otherwise)

Seems I can't set up direct debits from a savings account - so is my only practical option to open a second current account with a different bank (currently with Barclays) - and then set up a standing order to transfer the disposable money across, leaving the regular bills with Barclays?

Any other suggestions? I think this also means most switch offers wouldn't be possible as they all want to close down your old account

YorkshireBoy

You could open another current account with your existing bank. However, it's a good idea to have access to funds from another institution should there be problems with your main bank. Maybe you already have savings held elsewhere covering this base?

Re switching offers, if you want to exploit those then open and (immediately) switch donor, or sacrificial, accounts purely for this purpose, after first loading them with any requisite DDs or SOs.

molerat

If you want the money truly separate then separate accounts is the only real way plus it is always good to have accessible money in more than one bank. You could do it virtually with a spreadsheet, I have a spreadsheet that manages free spending and budgeted spending using 6 credit cards and 2 savings pots all in one main bank account. I also have other accounts which I tag onto with extra columns so I can spend from those then move the money across from the relevant pot.

xylophone

For a spending money current account, why not a TSB Classic Plus?

https://www.tsb.co.uk/current-accounts/classic-plus-account/?WT.mc_id=43700040420308609&WT.srch=1&keyword=tsb%20current%20account&matchtype=e&adid=376447416459&cmp=PCA_CURRENT-ACCOUNT_B_EXACT_X&agrp=B_CURRENT-ACCOUNT_X_CORE_EXACT&eact=GOOGLE&ch=ppc&sch=brand&pf=pca&co=acq&ds_rl=1276281&ds_rl=1276281&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIwND70LTQ5AIVSrTtCh2WoAu8EAAYASACEgICUPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

mrklaw

I don't trust myself to do it virtually if there aren't walls there.. I didn't think you could have multiple current accounts but I can talk to Barclays to see what they say.

We have lots of pots and a spreadsheet for bigger items - monthly expenses, yearly expenses, long term savings, university pot for the kids etc. All that runs fairly smoothly and we update regularly as needed. Its just this 'last mile' where monthly expenses are left in my current account that I'd probably like to outsource to another account that I don't touch..

Grumpygit

You should be able to have multiple current accounts with the same bank - we do at both Lloyds and HSBC.


However, if it's for personal spends and the amount is not massively high, then have you thought of opening a Starling account for yourself?


When you make purchases/ATM withdrawals, a notification is sent straight to you, so whilst it may be a pending transaction, it's showing in your account as "spent" now.

mrklaw

Yes, I was looking at Starling/monzo. But I'm also trying out Emma and Money Dashboard which can also do analytics/notifications etc. That can help too. Eventually I want to start increasing how much I'm saving each month, and just seeing it each day will hopefully encourage me away from unnecessary spending.

First step is not wasting too much though