Savings accounts provide a convenient method for storing readily accessible funds. You are not limited to a single account and may open multiple accounts as needed. This strategy is particularly beneficial for individuals with distinct savings goals who prefer to segregate their funds accordingly.
While there is generally no restriction on the number of savings accounts you can hold, it is advisable to limit yourself to approximately three. Managing multiple accounts accounts can complicate financial tracking and increase the burden of maintaining minimum balances across multiple accounts.
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Is it a good idea to have multiple savings accounts?
Opening multiple savings accounts is a good idea if you have specific savings goals in mind. Different accounts help prioritise goals and determine how much and how often you wish to save for a goal. With a targeted savings approach, you can decide on the savings amount for each goal and their fulfilment timeframes.
However, if managing multiple savings accounts seems challenging, simply create separate spending and saving accounts to better organise your finances. One account can be used simply for expense management, while the other can be used to build a savings corpus. This will simplify money management and make tracking easier.
Pros of having multiple savings accounts
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1. Easily monitor your savings progress
From funding your child’s education to retirement planning, most of us have multiple savings goals. Creating separate accounts for each savings goal makes it easy to monitor your savings progress. With this approach, you can avoid misspending your savings and conveniently track your savings for each goal.
2. Higher interest rates
Following the deregulation of savings account interest rates by the RBI in 2011, banks have the freedom to decide on the interest applicable to such accounts. In other words, you can earn better returns from a high-yield savings account. While average savings accounts offer an interest rate of 2%-3%, high-yield accounts offer up to 4.5% interest on the saved funds.
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3. Reduce dependency on one bank
Digital framework maintenance, server issues, and outage issues can cause hurdles when trying to make online payments. You can avoid this by having multiple bank accounts. If one account is not working, you can always switch to the next and make transactions.
Cons of having multiple savings accounts
1. Difficulty in tracking and management
Operating and managing multiple savings accounts can be a significant challenge. Multiple savings accounts mean monitoring multiple statements and going over every expense. All this can be very time consuming.
2. Maintaining minimum balance
Regular savings accounts come with a minimum balance requirement, which can range from Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 25,000 depending on the bank you're opening your account with. Opening multiple accounts means meeting the minimum balance requirement of each account. Adhering to the minimum balance clauses of multiple accounts ties up your funds, which could be better invested. Additionally, failure to meet the minimum balance requirement results in a penalty.
You can consider investing in fixed deposit as offer guaranteed returns.
3. Possibility of losing out on higher interest rates
This is one of the most overlooked disadvantages of multiple savings accounts. Savings account interest rates often vary based on the balance. In other words, you receive higher interest rates only when your balance surpasses a certain threshold. However, if you have multiple accounts with such varying interest rates, reaching this higher threshold can take a while. In short, spreading your funds across multiple accounts means you miss out on the benefits of higher interest rates.
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How much savings should I have
The amount of savings you should have depends on various factors such as your income, expenses, financial goals, and risk tolerance. A general rule of thumb is to aim for an emergency fund covering 3 to 6 months of living expenses. Additionally, you may want to save for specific goals like buying a house, funding education, or retirement. It's essential to create a budget, prioritise your goals, and regularly save and invest according to your financial plan.
Apart from keeping funds in a savings account, you can also park your contingency funds in a high-interest FD. Bajaj Finance offers one of the highest interest rate of up to 8.85% p.a. on their FD. Also, you can book Bajaj Finance FD entirely online through Bajaj Finserv website or app.
Conclusion
Opening separate savings accounts for your goals offers better visibility and helps sharpen your approach to goal-based savings. However, as a prudent depositor, you should carefully check the interest rates, minimum balance requirements, and services offered by each savings account you pick. This will help you maximise your savings benefits.