The Whys of Savings Accounts

Did you hear about the woman in Tel Aviv who didn’t trust financial institutions? Her savings account was the inside of her mattress; she stuffed $1 million inside. Yep, one million dollars inside a mattress. Not only did she never earn a penny of interest, but also her daughter surprised her with a new mattress and threw the old one in the dump. Surprise! No word on if the dump diving was successful.

True story? Sounds plausible. But even if it’s nothing more than an urban legend, it still points to the importance of keeping your money safe, and that’s one of the main advantages of having a savings account. What are some other advantages?

Out of sight, out of mindless spending
If you were to have cash in, say, a mattress, the convenience for impulse spending would be much more overwhelming. “Only $300 for the automatic margarita-making machine? I could just slip my hand into the mattress and … “ See? Too easy. Having your money in a place that requires you to take action to retrieve it puts up at least a small barrier to spending.

Hands on
While it is a bit more difficult to get ahold of needed money when in an official savings account, it’s still easy enough to get to in the case of emergencies via online banking, branches, ATMs, etc.

Interesting development
O.K., so interest rates are on the paltry side these days…there, we said it. But at least you’re earning something on your money. Mason jars buried under the oak tree earn nothing but curiosity from the earthworms and moles.

Grand opening
When compared to other savings vehicles (such as CDs), savings accounts often require fewer funds to open and maintain.

Security reach
Money in a savings account is very likely protected by federal insurance, such as the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). This insurance is good for amounts up to $250,000. You’ll never have a million-dollar mattress misplaced in the local landfill with no insurance attached (although you’d have to break up that million dollars into smaller accounts of no more than $250,000 to be sure it’s all insured).

Automatic
If saving doesn’t come naturally to you, you can always set up an automatic transfer to your savings account every time your payroll check is deposited, which makes saving virtually painless. Or vice versa, you can have payments for such things as an auto loan or mortgage deducted automatically from your savings account for additional convenience.

Convenience. Security. Earnings. Yes, a savings account has its advantages. Do you need to open an account today? Perhaps an account for holiday savings? An emergency account (everyone needs one!)? A special account to save for that family trip to the Grand Canyon? Vantage has you covered. Check our savings options or visit any Vantage branch for more info!