Comments (scroll down to add your own):

1. 3.5% is an excellent rate and I too have and HSBC Direct account. Another great promo rate right now is EverBank’s 4.76% intro. EverBank holds the #1 spot at Bankrate.com right now. Best rate in town at the moment!

   Comment by djmike805 — Jul 23rd 2008 @ 9:38 pm

2. I’ve got HSBC to (changed from that bank that advertises by color.) But does that mean that my 3.5 HSBC rate is subject to change on 15 September, or am I locked in to that rate until it changes?

   Comment by mac — Jul 24th 2008 @ 10:34 am

3. mac–you are locked into the 3.5% APY on your account until September 15. After that, the rate will adjust to the current rate that the bank sets.

   I also own an account with HSBC Direct, and would never imagine going back to a traditional savings account unless the rates skyrocketed. I believe Unfortunately, many people are still skeptical about such “online” institutions because they simply do not understand that many are divisions of long-time “traditional” institutions with histories extending back 100+ years. For anyone interested I address this issue in a post last month:

   http://letsblogmoney.com/2008/.....t-savings/

   Being an advisor I preach the benefits, but am always met with questions regarding security. I have been able to get through to some, even my parents, who are of the generation that still prefers passbook savings accounts and don’t believe the money is truly in the account unless they can have the entry printed in the passbook and hold it in their hands, so I am still hopeful!

   Comment by Eric J. Nisall — Jul 24th 2008 @ 6:40 pm

4. Right now, I’m not a fan of HSBC. I had all kinds of problems opening my account. They’re not clear about what they’ll accept as identity verification. Ended up asking for a supervisor because the rep couldn’t answer what I thought was a simple question.
   Once that was straightened out, they never e-mailed or snail mailed the temporary password I needed to get online access. So I had to make another call. …
   I’m glad they extended the rate, but that reset rate better be pretty high to keep me from closing the account as soon as I can avoid a penalty.

   Now ING .. I have nice words for them! Have dealt with them for years, and the process has always been user-friendly.

   Comment by Lin — Jul 24th 2008 @ 8:09 pm

5. I have heard from some others that there were problems with the account opening process at HSBC Direct. Personally I had no such issues and was going within a week. The non-promo rate is generally one of the better rates for an institution that requires only a $1 minimum balance.

   As far as ING Direct, I didn’t care for the fact that they stopped being as competitive with their rates, and I especially did not like how far behind the other they have become with regard to increasing their rates.

   Comment by Eric J. Nisall — Jul 24th 2008 @ 8:55 pm

6. Excellent news. More reason to move funds from my ING to HSBC bank account! Playing the rate game and loving it.

   Comment by Andys — Jul 25th 2008 @ 3:58 pm

7. Good deal I miss the days of 5% interest at several banks.

   Comment by Zombie Money — Jul 26th 2008 @ 12:38 am

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