I'm planning to move my rainy-day fund into an online savings or money market account in the near future. For a couple of months, I've been keeping an eye on rates and recommended accounts at sites like bankrate.com, depositaccounts.com, and getrichslowly.org. I can see two clear patterns.
- Interest rates are still falling everywhere
- Last month's best buy just dropped their rate by (fill-in-the-blank)%
I want to get a better rate than the 0.60% 0.54% 0.45% that my brick-and-mortar bank is currently paying me, but I don't want to be constantly moving my money around in pursuit of a higher rate.
I found this: EverBank's Yield Pledge Savings Account. They promise to "keep the yield on your account in the top 5% of competitive accounts as ... surveyed by Bankrate.com." This seems like the closest thing to a guaranteed rate that I could get, but their rate (currently 0.76%) is still lower than many competitors: Ally, American Express, and many others are paying 1%; others more. I expect EverBank are probably consistently scraping the low end of that 5% group. Still, 1% vs. 0.76% interest is only a $24 a year difference on a $10000 deposit. I can give up one dinner out and make up the difference.
I guess I have several questions. If I choose the EverBank account, is the loss of interest in exchange for that guarantee a good deal (would you take it, and why)? Do most people who save in online accounts (with the aim of getting a good rate) move their money around a lot? Is there any such thing as an account with high liquidity and a guaranteed, reasonable rate, even if it's not the highest on the market?