Comments on: DollarSavingsDirect Review and Account Opening Process

By: thomas

thomas — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 04:38:30 +0000

Still makes me miss the 6%+ days.

By: Arshak

Arshak — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 21:30:45 +0000

I opened one up earlier this week. You can only link 2 external checking accounts. In order to link the 2nd account you must fill out and mail in an authorization form with a voided check. Simply entering your routing and account number like you do for the linked account you used for your initial deposit will not suffice.

Also, didn’t take too long for the rate to drop to 3.5%.

By: Blaine Moore

Blaine Moore — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 20:33:24 +0000

I used to use Emigrant, but I don’t like their “new” web interface (that they put in place what, 3 or 4 years ago? 5?)

Maybe they’ve fixed those problems since then, but basically I just moved all my money back out and have just been too lazy to take back the $30 or so that’s left. I haven’t logged into the account for years.

By: Nehal

Nehal — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 15:55:51 +0000

I already have an account at HSBC and my checking account at my credit union pays 4.04% (if you meet some pretty simple requirements).

I’d like to move some of my money from checking to a savings acct, but it’s my highest-interest account. So DSD would be beneficial, and it would keep me from spending money while still earning as much interest. My concern is that if I open one with DSD, how long will it be before their interest rate coasts down to match all the others?

By: Mike J

Mike J — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 15:23:12 +0000

Nickel,

I can confirm it is 3.5% now. The CD is down to 3.25%. I just opened the savings account about 2 – 3 weeks ago. It’s still better than ING (just dropped to 2.4%) but drifting away from my 5.01% rewards checking with Provident Bank of NJ.

I want to maximize yield on my savings so I was thinking about moving it all into the checking account (yield only good up to $25,000, then 1.25% or something like that) but I’m worried I won’t be able to segregate between what is “savings” in my checking account (i.e. emergency funds vs funds available for purchasing toys and such). Any advice you can offer other than trying to keep track of it on paper separately?

-Mike J

By: Mark

Mark — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 14:38:05 +0000

At what point would you jump from one online savings bank to another? I have an account with GMAC which is currently earning 3%. I could probably earn $100 more a year if I move the funds to DSD, is something like that worth the effort?

By: nickel

nickel — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 14:29:00 +0000

RainOnMyParade: Based on what? Their site is still showing 4.00% APY. It’s the CD rate that has dipped to 3.50% APY.

By: RainOnMyParade

RainOnMyParade — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 13:37:58 +0000

Savings rate dropped to 3.50% today – Jan 23.

By: Ashley

Ashley — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 12:19:58 +0000

I’ve had a DSD account for about three months – I’m kicking myself for not opening it sooner! If your experience is like mine, you can expect an email where they ask you to call in to complete verification of your account, and when I did that, they asked me to fax or email a copy of my driver’s license. Very easy, the staff I talked to was very nice.

Then it will do two test transactions on whatever account you link it to (a small withdrawal and a small deposit) that you have to verify the amounts of.

The interest rate is so fantastic – I can’t believe how long I’d been missing out. They also haven’t cut it when others have cut theirs recently.

The fund availability does seem to take a relatively long time compared to other places – about 6 – 7 days on each deposit, not just the first one. That’s okay for me though, but if you might need super quick access to the money, DSD may not be for you. (Probably better off to go with somewhere with checkwriting & debit privileges anyway.)

One note – Mint.com currently doesn’t work with DSD (it has been posted on their forums and they always say they’ll fix it, but it has been a slow process), but Yodlee.com does sync up with it just fine. Although I like the Mint interface, Yodlee has a lot more flexibility for adding cash transactions/petty cash money, etc.