Comments on: How we use our checking and savings accounts

By: SingleGuyMoney

SingleGuyMoney — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 22:46:18 +0000

I have one checking account and several savings accounts. I have one for my Emergency Fund, one for my Rental Property Savings and one for my short-term savings account.

The short-term savings account covers everything not budgeted for in the regular budget.

By: MrsMoney

MrsMoney — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 12:28:27 +0000

We have a main joint checking and an extra one we call our "secret" account. I put birthday money, snowflake money, etc. there until I decide what I want to do with it. We have one savings account for the same reason as you- the great interest rate! I don't know if we will divide the funds up later or not. I am kinda OCD about having too many accounts! ;)MrsMoney's last blog post..Freeze Yer Buns Challenge

By: Darren

Darren — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 18:48:25 +0000

I have a local brick-n-mortar bank for our regular, bill-paying checking account. On paydays (weekly), I pull out cash for groceries, gas, and entertainment.

Every dollar is given a name. And, for simplicity’s sake, our budget is based on four-week months. Roughly four times a year, we have an “extra” paycheck, and I assign that money (minus groceries, gas, and entertainment) to various categories in my ING Direct savings subaccounts.

Also, whenever my electricity fund (for example) gets to be too full, I transfer the excess from my local bank to my ING Direct savings fund for electricity—for when we get huge summertime bills. This way, our money is earning interest while it waits. It also helps for it to be “out of the picture” when going over our main checking account. I aim to live only on what is in our checking account, but I also want a cushion in our ING Direct accounts in case it’s needed. It’s like a back-up that takes precedence over our emergency fund when we have any huge electric bills.

ING Direct helps me keep our regular checking account lean and trim, while storing fat separately for when we need it.