Where do you keep your money?
You’ve got options — from a shoebox under your bed to some fancy stocks.
But chances are, it’s probably in a checking account.
At least that’s what a recent USA Today analysis found. The headline reads, “Americans are hoarding money in checking accounts.”
It’s great that Americans have money to hoard.
In fact, Mike Moebs, CEO of Moebs Services, told USA Today that the average U.S. checking account deposit is $3,600 — up significantly from the 2007 average of $1,000.
In total, checking accounts hold about $2 trillion, the report says.
But is hoarding your money in a checking account really a smart money move?
It depends. Are is your checking account earning your interest?
Because if Americans stash their money in a high-yield checking account, they could collectively be earning a whopping $20 BILLION in interest a year.
A Few Reasons Americans Love Checking Accounts
Up until this past year, I kept all my money in a generic checking account.
Apparently I wasn’t alone.
According to USA Today, many of us opt for checking accounts because we love liquidity — the ability to easily grab cash. We’re also less apt to invest these days.
Plus, interest rates for savings accounts kind of suck.
These were all my reasons for opting for a checking account, plus it proved to be easy on so many levels:
- I kept tabs on all my assets by simply checking one app.
- It’s safe; my money isn’t going to disappear at anytime.
- I didn’t have to remember to pay anything off.
- The account was free.
- It required no minimum balance.
The only thing I was missing was some interest. I had money sitting around doing nothing for me and after I wrote “make your money work for you” one too many times, I wanted to change that.
…So I Found a Checking Account With Interest
Until I started working at The Penny Hoarder, I had no idea checking accounts could rake in interest.
I assumed that was only possible with a savings account, which proved to be a hassle and a half for me in the past.
My co-worker Dana Sitar genuinely gushed about her checking account, which I’d never even heard of: Aspiration’s Summit Checking Account.
I liked the name.
As I dug into it a little more, I realized I could earn 1% interest, which might not seem like a lot, but at that time I was earning a fat goose egg of zero interest.
So this would be 100% more.
(Additionally, other checking accounts weren’t offering much, either; the national average hovers around 0.04%, according to the most recent FDIC report. Savings accounts only offer 0.06% in interest, according to the same report.)
It was all free, too, unless I wanted to add a monthly tip, but I didn’t feel pressured to do so. Plus, there was no need to keep a minimum balance.
Additionally, it was all online, which made everything convenient. If I needed cash, I could stop by nearly any ATM and be reimbursed if there were any fees.
Signing up for the card proved to be low-hassle, too. I added my name to waitlist and heard back without about three days. Then I got my card in the mail.
Perhaps the best part of all of this is when I check my bank account now, I don’t have to dread only seeing my list of monthly expenses.
Now, I get a little excited when I see how much interest I’ve earned!
Carson Kohler (@CarsonKohler) is a junior writer at The Penny Hoarder. Do you bank with Aspiration? She’d love to hear about your experience!
source The Penny Hoarder http://ift.tt/2uvJQFV
ليست هناك تعليقات:
إرسال تعليق