So, It’s not a Rumor
By Sun on Sep 30, 2006 in Banking, Personal finance
Post viewed 733 times, 1 so far today
Yesterday, I read a post from Jim, saying that EmigrantDirect is to lower its savings rate. It was kind of surprise because I also have an account with EmigrantDirect and I didn't get any notice about their rate change. Last night when I logged into my account in preparation of this month's balance sheet, the savings rate was still shown at 5.15%, the same as the past four months. However, when I checked again this morning, the rate dropped to 5.05%, matching the offer from HSBC.
Currently, a large chunk of my cash is in the savings account at EmigrantDirect. Though the rate is not attractive as it used to be, it's still one of the highest rates out there with a low minimum balance requirement. There are other banks offering higher rates, but they all require a much higher minimum balance, from $5000 to $25000, which is too high to justify the extra 20 basis points rate.
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jim | Sep 30, 2006 | Reply
Hey Sun,
I received an email from the folks handling ED’s affiliate program, they were giving us all a heads up about the rate change.
Cheers,
jim
The Sun | Sep 30, 2006 | Reply
So that’s the reason! It looks like they only notified account holders when the rate went up as I remember I did get an email of the rate change when the 5.15% was adopted.
anon | Jul 23, 2007 | Reply
I plan on dumping my Emigrant account this week too. There is too much competition for banking. I would think Emigrant would know that, in that their only draw was that they were a sliver ahead of the other banks in interest rate in exchange for less service (no Treasury ladder, no ATM).
bl | Oct 21, 2007 | Reply
while ive found this older post, im not quite seeing it being factual. the fed dropped the rates recently, ing was among the first to drop their return, to 4.3 apy, etrade just dropped from 5.05 to 4.7 a full month after ing dropped rates.
regarding emigrant direct, i was with them only a short time, i didnt like their website, but they pay nicely still.
re: everbank on your list of the best, their 6% is only for 3 months, then it drops. sounds like comcast, jack my price up