Joint Savings Accounts

[funkylad20]

My partner and I would like to save �100 a month (initially) between us in a joint savings account. What is the best one regarding interest etc? We would like to be able to view it online and each input �50 per month from our individual relevant current accounts. We have no desire to access it regulaly but maybe use towards a deposit for a house or to buy nice furniture or something when we get the house! Is EGG the answer?!?

[Dom Tuk]

The way i look at is that for savings of �1200 a year you will get �45 if the interest rate is 3.75% pa or �57 if it was 4.75 % pa. So a difference of about �12 at the most. In most cases the difference in interest rates is less than 1% so really the extra interest you will get is really worth the cost of a pint or 2 in one year. I would look at the ease of use of web site, does it load easily, is it user friendly, do they have telephone banking, the number of branches they have near to your house, such issues that will make life easier fro you. The difference in interest rates is relevant for larger sums of money.

[stevie21]

Moneyfacts is a useful site.  It lists the best rates for various types of accounts, including ISAs and t'internet accounts.

It also lists some accounts which give very_little access but more interest but as already posted, this might be too much of a sacrifice in your circumstances for little gain.

Both seem to pay around 5.3% AER.  ISAs will be limited in that you can currently pay in a maximum of �3000 per tax year (April - April), the latter accounts often don't allow branch access.

IF you eventually are transferring lots of money into your savings and these 2 accounts are NOT at the same bank then it'll take 3 working days to be transferred.  If this happens every month then that's the equivalent of one month's lost interest over the year.  This would only have an impact (as Dom Tuk says above) if there were larger amounts of money involved than you've outlined.

[morg_monster]

If you can save it all for a year, and have an HSBC current account then they have a brilliant 8% offer on a savings account. You have to pay between �25 - �250 by standing order once a month - no other payments are allowed in so just one of you might have to pay the full �100 and the other pay you back. You cannot make any partial withdrawals and if you take all the money out before the year is up then you revert to their standard online savings rate of 4.5%.

It isn't an ISA so you will get taxed on it - but even taknig this into account it is still a great rate of interest if you can handle the restrictions on it.