Online Checking = Food Budget Envelope

I recently opened an account at Wamu.com. The reason was simple. 3.25% interest! Yep, that's right, while local banks and credit unions aren't even paying 1%, this national giant is paying 3.25%. How awesome is that?

It is true, that they are very customer unfriendly. Many of you may remember, my fights with them with my Wamu (Providian) Credit Card. It's also true that there isn't even a single branch in my state. In fact, the closest branches are in Texas, Colorado and Illinois. However, that can be a good thing. Because, I won't be in the bank every other day withdrawing money. On the downside though, that also means I have to wait several days for a deposit to post.

use it as a budget envelope

I decided to give this a try, in part because of my desire to earn a better rate of return on my money. However, the was another reason. Instead of trying to carry around Dave Ramsey's envelope system, (since I am a guy) which is pretty impractical. I decided, that a debit card would work better. So I opened the account, funded both the savings and checking with the minimum $1, received my free checks and my debit card. I can carry this debit card in my wallet and easily use it when I buy my groceries. When the money is gone, I can't buy anything more, until I fund it again.

the interest

However, I haven't received any interest yet. Seems, $1 doesn't earn interest, instead you must transfer $5 each month from your Wamu checking into your Wamu Savings to earn interest. Otherwise, you have to have a minimum balance of $300.

All in all, I think this is a great addition to help with my budget, but I still must be careful to not overspend or to protect my debit card/checking account numbers. The reason is no mater what, they will charge the account $34 for overdraft fees, whether or not I am at fault. But, if I am proactive and protect who I give access to my account as well as watch what I am spending, I should never be in the position to have to worry about that. Thus, I won't have to worry about their poor customer service and big bank smugness.



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