Comments on: Why Electric Orange Accounts are a Bad Idea

By: Diane

Diane — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 15:59:09 +0000

I have an excellent reason to open an ING checking account~!

I have an ING Savings account, and I’m planning to open an Orange Checking account for 1 reason – to have faster access to my money if I need it.

I will keep the majority of the money in the savings where interest is higher, but if needed I can move money directly to the Orange Checking and use the debit card to access cash or make a purchase.

This will allow me to feel more secure leaving the majority of my emergency fund in savings, knowing I can get to it if need be. It takes several days for money to move from ING savings to my basic checking account.

I had the experience in 2005 (pre-ING accounts for me) of evacuating for 2 weeks for Hurricane Katrina. My local bank did not have a branch in Dallas, Tx. I like knowing that I can access my money any place, any time I need to!

I wish ING Orange Checking accounts were still paying this rate… it’s more than the ING Savings is paying now. At this point ING Orange Checking pays .49% last I checked.

By: mrsmicah

mrsmicah — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 14:07:17 +0000

@FCN, excellent point. It’s still probably wiser to invest the money, even in a CD, unless you’re planning to use it right away. But if it was a joint account, one could go over the $100k mark without losing FDIC coverage.

By: fivecentnickel.com

fivecentnickel.com — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 03:07:23 +0000

Keep in mind that FDIC limits are higher ($200k) for joint accounts, so it’s not like you have to exceed FDIC coverage to get the $100k+ rate.

By: Personal Finance Posts I Enjoyed This Week (ending 9/6/08) | MoneyBeagle.com

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 22:51:01 +0000

[...] Micah talks about a downside to the ING Electric Orange Checking Account. ING accounts have been getting a lot of buzz, and this is a great perspective. I still [...]

By: Link roundup: Soon-to-be-drenched edition | Mighty Bargain Hunter

Link roundup: Soon-to-be-drenched edition | Mighty Bargain Hunter — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 08:14:14 +0000

[...] Micah thinks that ING Electric Orange checking accounts are a bad idea. (If you don’t agree, you may sign up here for a $25 ING bonus, though. [...]

By: mrsmicah

mrsmicah — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 18:44:46 +0000

@Frugal Vet Tech, I know…nothing wrong with the account itself.

@PK, Sorry to scare you. The title popped into my head and I had to go with it. As you say, if you’re moving large amounts of money around, it might be worth it to use EO as a holding account. For under $50,000, Orange Savings is probably the best holding place.

@Caro, those people would certainly be wise to use such a checking account. At that level, distributing savings/checking among banks is something that has to be carefully managed to get the best FDIC protection. Come to think of it, I’m not sure FDIC protection extends to corporations…

@MoneyBeagle, I’m very pleased with my Orange Savings account. And I like having the checking account connected so I can move money about easily. I also have free checking at Wachovia that earns much less interest, but that’s handier for writing actual checks. (ING EO does that too, but you have to get them mailed ahead of time.)

By: MoneyBeagle

MoneyBeagle — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:31:00 +0000

Thanks for the post. I like the insight. I’ve been looking at opening an ING account, and have been doing my homework to ensure I get the best. I’m leaning towards the Orange Savings account anyways, but this will definitely be information I’ll use to factor into the decision.

Keep up the great posts!

By: Caro

Caro — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:15:53 +0000

I have always thought these sorts of accounts are for folks who write large checks on a semi-regular basis. Say they have a business and regularly write a check for 50K. While they are waiting for the check to clear and it *has* to be in their checking account, at least they make some money!

By: PK

PK — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:50:55 +0000

You’re title scared me for a second!

I look at the higher interest tiers of the ING EO account as a bonus for those swing times when I’m moving money arround.

By: Frugal Vet Tech

Frugal Vet Tech — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:44:18 +0000

Offering a higher interest rate on high checking account balances doesn’t make the accounts bad or a bad idea. IMO, *storing* that much money in a checking account isn’t a smart idea, but the account itself is still okay. As you mentioned, there are better options for storing such high amounts of money.

Seeing you can potentially get that high of an interest rate on your checking account makes the account look more appealing though – “Wow, look, when we get more money we can be earning X amount of interest on it!”