Online Banking

A friend recently asked me what I think about ING's new online checking account. I did not know much about it so I checked out Bank Deal's site and found a nice post. money

The savings rate is ok for balances under $50k. If you have more than $50K in cash, it seems silly to keep it in a checking account. They do not issue check books and you cannot use all ATMs for free. I actually have an online bank account with Citi. I signed up during the height of the dot.com foolishness because they were giving out free Palm Pilots. I still keep the account but I have very little cash in it because the interest rates are sad. I keep it because I can use any ATM with no fee from Citi and complete reimbursement of fees from any other ATM up to a monthly limit which I never go over. money

I actually use my etrade brokerage as a savings account as I have a tax free money fund (which helps since I live in Mass.). And I can transfer funds back and forth from etrade to Citi whenever I need to. I use Yodlee to keep track of all the accounts side by side and to keep track of the log-in info. money

etrade actually has ATM cards and check books for their brokerage and I know someone who was trying to use their brokerage as a checking and savings account all in one. I will try and see how it is working for them... money

If I were to open any new bank account I would choose eloan as they seem to have the highest rates on savings accounts among the better known online banks- but they do have a $5000 minimum... money

How to keep track of it all…

I work at a college which switched retirement plans but allowed me to leave my older 403(b) contributions with the previous company. I have a bank account, IRA, and a brokerage account. I also have a mortgage, gas and electric bills, various credit cards, cell phones, etc. All told I have about 20 accounts to keep track of. money

Many people advise to combine as many accounts as possible, but if you are disciplined and can keep track of it all, some accounts have different options and some credit cards offer different services, so arguments can be made for keeping various options open. If you do not want to consolidate for whatever reason, you are left with the need to get organized. money

How can one easily keep track of 20+ accounts? Check out yodlee.com Some banks offer Yodlee’s tools through their sites if you have an account with them so you may have seen this before. This service has been around and been free for a while- if you go directly to yodlee.com. money

This service allows you to enter each account and enter your account name and password . Then when you log in to your Yodlee account, Yodlee logs in to each of your other accounts using your information and pulls the details together into one page. money

To use a service like this you have to ask how much you trust Yodlee’s security processes and how valuable you find the consolidation. Personally, I love it. Once a month I log on, see my bills, add up how much I own, click on the button to log on to each credit card and the mortgage- Yodlee logs me on automatically without me needing to remember the account name for each site. I pay each bill and I can see if I have any extra money left over to move into my brokerageaccount and invest (not likely this time of year!). money

I can see my total retirement savings, my non-retirement savings, my debt, etc. You can add any additional amount- even if you have an account that is not supported by Yodlee. For example, if you own a home, you can go to zillow.com, get an estimate on your home and enter the value as an account. If you have entered your mortgage, it will display your monthly statement as well as your total debt. Looking at your home's value next to its estimated worth you can how much equity you have built in your home. money

Sure you can paste all of this into excel, or buy some financial software to help manage this, but Yodlee is free, makes paying bills and transferring funds a snap, and gives a quick snapshot of all your accounts without any maintenance. money