The federal government has hiked interest rates in the last two years. This has led to an increase in deposit rates. However, banks are not passing this benefit to their clients by paying high interest rates on deposits.
For instance, from 2016 when the federal government started to increase the rates, the interest an average account in a bank or a credit union earned increased from 0.18 to 0.24 percent. Below are top 4 ways to get a better rate.
Invest in money market and certificate of deposit accounts
Banks don’t increase rates on existing accounts. Instead, banks attract deposits by promoting products such as special deposit accounts and money markets. These accounts attract much higher interest rates compared to regular saving or checking accounts.
One of the drawbacks of money market accounts is that they have a promotional period. Once the promotional period is over the rates fall back to standard. This means that if the promotional period is short, investing in this type of account may not be a good idea.
Opt for high-yield reward checking accounts
Most credit unions and community banks offer high-yield reward checking accounts. These accounts offer higher rates compared to long-term CD rates. Moreover, they are not promotional rates like in money market accounts.
One of the drawbacks of high-yield reward checking accounts is the monthly activity requirement. The key requirement is debit card usage.
Save in online banks and saving accounts
Online saving accounts provide an excellent avenue for obtaining better rates in the long-term. Online banks pay higher rates because they don’t have physical branches. Online banks offer 1.33 percent interest rate compared to 0.24 percent offered in brick and mortar banks.
Opt for an online bank that offer checking
An online account with checking capacity earns even more interest compared to an online saving account without checking capacity.
References: https://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/my-money/articles/2018-11-01/4-ways-to-get-a-better-rate-at-your-bank
