I use Emigrant Direct and have had no problem with them. They just
raised their apy to 4.25%.

Elle" <honda.lioness[at]earthlink.net> wrote in message
news:MtqDf.8034$rH5.5479[at]newsread2.news.atl.earthlink.net...
- quote -

Omitted in the quote of my writing, above, was the citation I had provided:
http://personal.fidelity.com/account...t/account.html

- quote -

That would be the citation I gave. Contrary to your advice, did you not go
to the source (do as I say, not as I do)? One reason why I give citations
is that people might read things differently:

"Unless you selected a federal or state municipal money market fund on your
account application, an interest-bearing cash account is your core. ...
Your choices are:
* An interest bearing CASH ACCOUNT paying a competitive rate of taxable
interest ... [Emphasis in original, i.e. by Fidelity.]
* Fidelity Municipal Money Market Fund [FTEXX] ...
* Fidelity Tax-Free Money Market Fund [FMOXX] ...
* ..."

- quote -

That's certainly true of FTEXX, but Fidelity Cash (fully taxable) is
currently paying 2.7412% for cash in the $10K+ range (that's the range I
asked Fidelity about when I called, and when they confirmed the 2.64% for
FTEXX). I stand by my assertion that 2.74% is a pretty low interest rate
compared with interest-bearing cash accounts like EmigrantDirect, HSBC,
INGDirect, etc.

- quote -

Correct, but irrelevant, because that's not the default core account.

- quote -

Absolutely. People can find the description of SIPC insurance on the same
page already cited, under the section entitled "Account Protection". That's
another reason why I provide citations - so readers can check the veracity
of my points. Would that other posters likewise substantiate their
assertions.

--
Mark Freeland
nNeEwTs[at]sonic.net

<BreadWithSpam[at]fractious.net> wrote in message
news:yobwtgh23p8.fsf[at]panix2.panix.com...
- quote -

I know that Citibank shows when electronic payments have cleared. Not sure
about HSBC, though looking at a live account online, it seems that they may
have added this feature.

- quote -

I also want my cancelled checks, but as you just noted, Check21 is
gradually diminishing the value of this service.

- quote -

there's a Fidelity office 5 minutes drive from work for me, you mileage
(literally) may vary :-)

- quote -

We've had this discussion. I'm not as concerned as you are about this, but
I agree that separation of accounts can provide extra protection.

- quote -

I'm looking into it for someone else - whose use profile is basically: write
checks, direct deposit, and ACH to Vanguard MMF (from which account more
checks are written). So the high interest savings account will help reduce
the transfers and get more of the checks written against HSBC (which does
return cancelled checks, but unfortunately for $2/month).

This person rarely uses electronic payments, so the quality of online
services isn't a major issue. (HSBC does enable one to make annotations in
an electronic "ledger" - a nice feature if you do a lot of online banking,
and one that I think many banks offer these days.)
--
Mark Freeland
nNeEwTs[at]sonic.net

BRH wrote:
- quote -

I have been using EmigrantDirect.com for a while, which is paying
4.25%. They set it up so that you can easily do transfers either way
between EmigrantDirect and your bricks and mortar bank account. I
recently pulled out 20K from EmigrantDirect by going on their website
and ordering the transfer with a few clicks, and the money showed up in
my Bank of America account the next day. Pretty straightforward.

Andy

SD wrote:
- quote -

I just noticed that. I've asked them how to get this free check order;
no response yet. Once I have checks from UmbrellaBank.com, I'll be able
to set up ING and/or Emigrant to initiate ACH transactions, so I may
keep the account, depending on what they're paying come April 15 (when
ING's 4.75% "sale" ends).

--
================================================== ======================
Ian Pilcher i.pilcher[at]comcast.net
================================================== ======================

- quote -

The 4.4% got me to the website. They say they give you a free checkbook, so you
can use a check to get your funds out.

- quote -

BreadWithSpam[at]fractious.net wrote:
- quote -

I use Compass Bank and they do show this. In fact, I've been really
happy with their electronic banking so far (although I've just started
using this feature).

-Will

Mark Freeland <nNeEwTs[at]sonic.net> wrote:
- quote -

FTEXX is the symbol for the default core yada for a Fidelity
brokerage account.
FTEXX is called a "money market mutual fund." One can split
hairs here on what this actually means, or go to the
Fidelity site and get info from the source.
It is a /municipal/ money market fund, so of course it pays
a lower rate of interest. Right now it is paying 2.64% (tax
equivalent yield, 35% bracket = 4.05%).
Fidelity calls the distributions from this money market fund
"dividends" but of course it is interest, and is thusly
recorded on Fidelity end-of-year tax forms.

People should check independently other information given re
insurance, given the questionable veracity (or relevance) of
other points being made in this post.

Mark Freeland <nNeEwTs[at]sonic.net> writes:

- quote -

Do any? Neither of my banks which offer online access and electronic
payments show this. Once a payment is scheduled, it's just gone
from my accounts, as far as I can tell.

One of the reasons I still like checks for some things...

- quote -

Since I have so much of my assets over at Fidelity, I don't
like doing things like writing checks off the account or
in any way allowing outside access to it (and note that
many places these days, instead of actually cashing a check,
scan it and then use ACH - most credit cards now, for example).

My regular checking account serves not just for having more
conveniences (ATMs, get back cancelled checks, able to walk
into the branch and talk to someone (very rarely used!)) but
it also serves as something of a firebreak between my
transactions and my assets.

- quote -

Sounds like it's worth looking into. I've really not been
thrilled with any bank's online checking/electronic payments.
Please let us know how it works out if you go for it.

--
Plain Bread alone for e-mail, thanks. The rest gets trashed.
No HTML in E-Mail! -- http://www.expita.com/nomime.html
Are you posting responses that are easy for others to follow?
http://www.greenend.org.uk/rjk/2000/06/14/quoting

On Mon, 30 Jan 2006 07:02:38 -0600, Mark Freeland <nNeEwTs[at]sonic.netwrote:

- quote -

I admit that in the absence of research, the list of things I don't
know is impressive <g> , so I ask the following for clarification:

1. The insurance points above refer to cash and MMFs *within* a
brokerage account. Regular stand-alone MMFs are not insured, right?

2. Other than nomenclature, there is no difference (tax-wise) between
a taxable cash fund paying interest and a taxable MMF paying
"dividends", right?


-HW "Skip" Weldon
Columbia, SC

Elle wrote:
- quote -

Whether that account is a MMF depends on the brokerage. Typically when
one has a brokerage account with a bank, the settlement account (which
may be the term you are looking for) is the bank checking account, and
not a MMF. See, e.g. WellsTrade PMA account:
https://www.wellsfargo.com/checking/pma/index.jhtml

or Citicorp Investment Services (Citibank-linked Cititrade account):
https://web.da-us.citibank.com/cgi-b...S_Id=Brokerage

Even at Fidelity, the default core account for a Fidelity brokerage
account is not a MMF, but a brokerage cash account. (This pays a
relatively low rate of interest, not dividends - you get a 1099-INT, not
a 1099-DIV; it is insured up to $100K by SIPC, not $500K as is a real
MMF.)
http://personal.fidelity.com/account...t/account.html

Fidelity, like some other brokerages, does give you other options, such
as FTEXX, for your settlement account, but brokerages often exclude
their best paying MMFs from these options (e.g. you cannot use Fidelity
Cash Reserves as your settlement account in this non-IRA account, nor
can you use their state-specific AMT-free MMFs; Schwab is beginning to
force customers into lower paying Schwab bank accounts). This leaves you
with a minor inconvenience:

- quote -

I don't use Fidelity for my checking account for a couple of reasons:

1) They will hold deposits up to the legally permitted amount of time
(many banks as a courtesy automatically make deposits available
immediately for established customers):

"The collection period for check deposits, including cashier checks and
MoneyLine purchases, is generally four business days."
http://personal.fidelity.com/account...t/account.html

2) Fidelity's BillPay does not provide any way to tell if a payment has
cleared, let alone when: "Fidelity BillPay service does not offer this
feature."
https://billpay.fidelity.com/billpay...q.html#cleared

Not to mention that they'll charge you $6.95/month for this service,
unless you have over $100K with Fidelity. (On the other hand, if you
keep $1M with them, they'll let you wire money out with no charge - I
haven't seen a bank offer that.)

None of this should affect the OP, since the subject of the post is
Online *Savings* Account. But since you brought up checkwriting, and
guessed that Fidelity had the equivalent of real banking services, some
of Fidelity's banking shortfalls should be mentioned as well.

- quote -

You've expressed a perfectly valid opinion - for the limited services
you use (more than what the OP asked about, less than what a
full-service DDA provides), Fidelity is perfectly adequate.

I would be delighted to use Fidelity as my primary "bank" if it gave me
the same level of service that I get elsewhere, but it doesn't.

Right now I'm looking into HSBC; it pays 4.25%, FDIC-insured, and since
it is at a full-service, brick-and-mortar bank, one can transfer money
from savings to checking and have it immediately available - none of
this 2-4 day ACH lag. And if you transfer via ATM, there's no limit to
the number of transfers (unlike the 6 transfer-per-month limit via
online banking with savings accounts).

--
Mark Freeland
nNeEwTs[at]sonic.net

"Chris Cowles" <spam_magnet[at]remove-me-bellsouth.net> wrote
- quote -


With a brokerage account, one writes checks on the core cash
amount. (There's a name for this. I'm too lazy to look it
up.) Right now, for a non-IRA account, that core cash
account is FTEXX. I move money between FTEXX and FDRXX
according to my checking needs and stock purchase needs. I
don't recall a check transaction limit, but, sure, one can
call the toll free number and ask, or check at fidelity.com.
Just saying I have had few problems with Fidelity on this
matter or any matter over 20+ years. The few problems that
have arose were quickly and professionally remedied.

Now there are a few bad apples who don't like Fidelity, but
I get the feeling Fidelity and other brokers yada really
don't like the way these customers operate, either. All one
can do is provide what was asked and hope some usenet shark
doesn't get all uppity over someone expressing an opinion on
their experience with a broker.

BreadWithSpam[at]fractious.net writes:

- quote -

Actually, if you enter a deposit request by midnight, it will be
effective the following business day. By "effective" I mean that
it'll be credited to your account for the purposes of earning interest
the next business day. However, it will be five business days before
the deposit is available for withdrawal.

- quote -

I generally see my withdrawals hit my checking account about two
business days after the effective date of the request. So if I enter
a transaction today, it'll be effective on the next business day, and
I generally see the money two business days after that.

--
Rich Carreiro rlcarr[at]animato.arlington.ma.us

"cal lester" <cal-lester[at]comcast.net> writes:

- quote -

I've been quite pleased with ING. They're obsessive about
security, their rate is quite good and their accountholder
communications are a model in clarity.

If their model of a savings-account only is adequate (you
need to maintain an ACH-capable checking account elsewhere
to and from which money goes), the only thing I can complain
about is that it does seem to take a while for money to
get in there - several days. (I don't know how long it
takes to get it back out - I've never yet actually pulled
money out of the account...)

--
Plain Bread alone for e-mail, thanks. The rest gets trashed.
No HTML in E-Mail! -- http://www.expita.com/nomime.html
Are you posting responses that are easy for others to follow?
http://www.greenend.org.uk/rjk/2000/06/14/quoting

I have been using ING for about three years, WELL satisfied.
Cal

"BRH" <BRH[at]giganews.com> wrote in message
news:S7OdnUCi7pcYdkHeRVn-pg[at]comcast.com...
- quote -

I use CORUS Bank. It pays the best rate for savings and CD's right now.
"BRH" <BRH[at]giganews.com> wrote in message
news:S7OdnUCi7pcYdkHeRVn-pg[at]comcast.com...
- quote -

"Elle" <honda.lioness[at]earthlink.net> wrote in message
news:JC6Df.7553$rH5.5026[at]newsread2.news.atl.earthlink.net...
- quote -

IIRC, MMFs have a limit on the number of check transactions permitted?
--
Chris Cowles
Gainesville, FL

BRH wrote:
- quote -

I've got accounts at ING Direct, EmigrantDirect, and UmbrellaBank.com.
My experiences with ING and Emigrant have been pretty good. Emigrant is
currently paying 4.25% and ING currently has a "sale" that pays 4.75%
through April 15. Both of them provide quick access to your funds
through ACH transfers to your checking account.

I recently opened an account at UmbrellaBank.com, which is paying 4.4%.
Although their web site promises electronic access to your account, they
won't allow you to initiate an ACH transfer. (They claim that they will
accept ACH transfers, but other banks require a paper check to set up
the account linkage -- catch 22.) I'll probably be closing that as soon
as I can figure out how to get my initial deposit back.

Just my two cents.

--
================================================== ======================
Ian Pilcher i.pilcher[at]comcast.net
================================================== ======================

Have you an IRA? Or do you plan to do more investing in the
future?

If so, then I would strongly consider investigating Fidelity
for your needs. They have a money market fund (FDRXX) paying
just about 4% right now. You can open a brokerage account
(separate from your IRA), get free checks (up to a limit,
IIRC), and have the (equivalent of?) banking service. The
service (online and off via their toll free number) is
superb. www.fidelity.com is worth exploring to see if it
meets your needs.

Good for you for paying cash but then planning on saving
what you would have put towards the car in payments each
month.

bankrate.com is a great place to do comparison shopping for
a number of financial topics.