Regular Savings Accounts: The Best Currently Available List!

flaneurs_lobster

ForumUser7 said:

flaneurs_lobster said:

refluxer said:

Pkman said:

One thing I can't found with the account above is the option of closing the account. Is it allowed? Is it included one of the penalty-free??? You could technically will have £1k stuck in there if you not allow to close your account. 

It's probably safe to say that account closure will be allowed as it doesn't have a maturity date - I'd like to think they can't keep your money forever

I would count it as one of the 5 free withdrawals to be on the safe side, though.

Having pushed an application through, none of the documents presented as part of the process override the General T&Cs that say closure is always allowed unless otherwise indicated.

Plus your point about no maturity date makes perfect sense.

Did you have to fund it straight after you applied, or is there a funding window please? And if so, what is it? Thank you

There was an opportunity to fund as (last) part of the application process - I chose to delay until online credentials are received by post. Didn't notice any funding window specified, 

grumbler

refluxer said:

Pkman said:

5.5% is the borderline whether it is 'worth it'. 

Yes, that's true. A (worst-case scenario) gain of £33 for the first year from anyone drip-feeding £1000/month from something like the Metro Instant Access @ 5.22% according to the MSE calculator

I CBA to check MSE calculator, but my own simple calculation is 12000*6.5/12*(5.5%-5.22%)=£18.20

friolento

grumbler said:

refluxer said:

Pkman said:

5.5% is the borderline whether it is 'worth it'. 

Yes, that's true. A (worst-case scenario) gain of £33 for the first year from anyone drip-feeding £1000/month from something like the Metro Instant Access @ 5.22% according to the MSE calculator

I CBA to check MSE calculator, but my own simple calculation is 12000*6.5/12*(5.5%-5.22%)=£18.20

I think it is more like £40-odd because you don't get 5.22% unless you keep the money in the feeder account for 12 months. Which clearly you wouldn't do if you are dripfeeding.

refluxer

ForumUser7 said:

refluxer said:

Here's an online regular saver I spotted recently from the Hanley Eco BS - it's fairly new and hasn't been picked up by comparison sites like MoneyFacts, yet. While the rate isn't fixed nor among the very best available, it's still higher than the current best easy access rates and some of the conditions (such as the high monthly contribution and lack of maturity date) might make it of interest to some.

Hanley Economic Building Society - Online Regular Saver @ 5.50% (variable)

• Open online and manage via online banking or the app
• Interest paid annually on 31st August
• Minimum balance : £1,000
• Maximum balance : £100,000
• Pay in between £250 and £1,000 every month (multiple payments allowed)
• Payments can be made via SO, bank transfer or debit card
• Missing paying in for 3 or more months within the anniversary year risks account closure 
• 5 penalty-free withdrawals per tax year allowed (faster payment withdrawals are subject to a £10k per day limit)

https://thehanley.co.uk/savings-accounts/

NB. I'm not sure why the 'withdrawal notice' box says 'Yes' in the table - notice isn't mentioned in the account Summary Box so it's possible this may be a mistake or they may simply be referring to the fact that withdrawals have to be requested and so aren't instant.

One thing to note about the Hanley is that they're a relatively small BS, so there are bound to be the usual, associated foibles and they won't be as dynamic as some of the bigger players. You'll probably have to wait for online banking details to be sent through the post, for example, so setting this account up as a new customer may not be immediate. Also - if this account functions like the branch saver I hold with them, faster payment deposits usually don't show up until the next working day and so the same might be true for withdrawals from this account (I don't current hold this RS but my impression is that both faster payments in and withdrawal requests for faster payments out have to be processed manually). Full details of how they operate their savings accounts can be found in their general savings accounts T&Cs document.

Thanks for highlighting this. Anyone know if it is £1,000 minimum opening and operating or just opening please, and therefore can be reduced later to £1 for example? Thank you

No worries. The minimum operating balance is £1000 according to the terms of the account, but how well they police that is another matter ! TBH though, if the rate was to drop and become uncompetitive then you'd probably just close it anyway.

happybagger

Not the simplest of RS accounts. Opening deposit must be £1k, which is the minimum balance. Must deposit between 250 and 1000 per month for at least 10 months out of 12, withdrawal only by FP to nominated account, and only 5 a year but the max withdrawal is £10k. So if you do end up with more than 50k in it you'd only be able to withdraw 50k, and that in 5 batches of 10k, before incurring a penalty charge.

grumbler

friolento said:

grumbler said:

refluxer said:

Pkman said:

5.5% is the borderline whether it is 'worth it'. 

Yes, that's true. A (worst-case scenario) gain of £33 for the first year from anyone drip-feeding £1000/month from something like the Metro Instant Access @ 5.22% according to the MSE calculator

I CBA to check MSE calculator, but my own simple calculation is 12000*6.5/12*(5.5%-5.22%)=£18.20

I think it is more like £40-odd because you don't get 5.22% unless you keep the money in the feeder account for 12 months. Which clearly you wouldn't do if you are dripfeeding.

Can you elaborate?

Scenario 1: You have 12K+ in 5.22% account and gradually move money to 5.5%. By doing this you make extra about £18 in interest (compared to not moving).

Scenario 2: Every month you add £1K to 5.5% instead of adding it to 5.22% account. Again, you make extra about £18.

Scenario 3: ?

Is it just me?

Bridlington1

happybagger said:

Not the simplest of RS accounts. Opening deposit must be £1k, which is the minimum balance. Must deposit between 250 and 1000 per month for at least 10 months out of 12, withdrawal only by FP to nominated account, and only 5 a year but the max withdrawal is £10k. So if you do end up with more than 50k in it you'd only be able to withdraw 50k, and that in 5 batches of 10k, before incurring a penalty charge.

I seem to recall from when they offered the branch saver earlier this year that internal transfers had no £10k limit so if you wanted to withdraw over £50k you could open an instant access account, transfer the funds to it and then make a £10k faster payment from the instant access account each day until the funds have been withdrawn. It's still a bit of a faff but it would preserve some of your withdrawals for later use.

happybagger

Yes I remember that discussion, and I went to branch and asked about it. Up to £10k by FP or over £10k by CHAPS at £25. I took a cheque which clears in Santander by end of next day anyway.
BUT the t&c's for this RS account specifically state withdrawals only to the nominated account, and it's designated as an "online" account.

AmityNeon

friolento said:

grumbler said:

refluxer said:

Pkman said:

5.5% is the borderline whether it is 'worth it'.

Yes, that's true. A (worst-case scenario) gain of £33 for the first year from anyone drip-feeding £1000/month from something like the Metro Instant Access @ 5.22% according to the MSE calculator

I CBA to check MSE calculator, but my own simple calculation is 12000*6.5/12*(5.5%-5.22%)=£18.20

I think it is more like £40-odd because you don't get 5.22% unless you keep the money in the feeder account for 12 months. Which clearly you wouldn't do if you are dripfeeding.

Whether the £12K remains in one account or is drip-fed into a regular saver, 5.22% is earned on £12K regardless, so it's irrelevant in the comparison. Only the difference needs to be calculated, which is specifically isolated to the extra 0.28% on the average annual balance of the regular saver: £1,000 * 6.5 * 0.28% = £18.20.

The rate's on the low side for a regular saver, although the account could serve a purpose as another option for making debit card deposits straight into a high-interest account, whilst making liberal use of the five withdrawals a year to feed better regular savers. That would probably be the most legitimate use of my Halifax debit card 'spending' yet.

refluxer

These were the figures from the MSE RS calculator, which I just used for ease. Looks like it isn't calculating the easy access interest correctly ?

Drip-feeding the regular saver (5.50%)

After drip-feeding the cash for 12 months, you'd have earned...

£645 in interest
£355 from the regular saver + £290 from the normal savings account

Leaving it in normal savings (5.22%}

If you'd kept the cash in normal savings without drip-feeding it, you'd have earned...
£612 in interest