Discover Savings Interest Rates Of August 2023
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Discover is probably best known for its cash-back credit card, but the bank also offers a savings account that pays a competitive interest rate. The high interest rate plus the promise of no fees make Discover’s Online Savings Account one of the best high-yield savings accounts.
Annual percentage yields (APYs) and account details are accurate as of Aug. 1, 2023.What Is the Discover Bank Savings Rate?
The Discover Bank Online Savings Account pays 4.30% APY. This interest rate is promoted by the bank as over five times the national savings average. While you may be able to find a slightly higher rate elsewhere, Discover’s rate is competitive with the best online savings accounts and well above the current national average savings interest rate of 0.42% as of July 17, 2023.
Some banks require you to have a certain balance to get the best interest rates and some may only apply interest to a portion of your balance. The Discover savings account interest rate applies to your entire account balance, with no requirements and no tiers, so you’ll earn the same interest rate on every cent in your account.How To Open a Discover Savings Account?
If you decide to open a Discover savings account, the process is simple. Just go to the Discover High Yield Savings account landing page and select “Open an Account.” If you’re already a Discover credit card holder or savings account customer, you can log in to your account to populate some fields on the application.
Provide the required information, including your name, address and identity details. Then read the account disclosures and make your initial deposit. But don’t worry if you don’t have an initial deposit—there’s no minimum initial deposit to open a Discover savings account.
If you prefer to open your savings account over the phone, you can do that by calling Discover. The bank’s customer service phone number is 800-347-7000. Customer service representatives are available 24/7.How To Withdraw Money From Discover Savings
You can withdraw money from your Discover savings account in five ways:Online transfer to another Discover bank accountOnline transfer to an external bank accountDomestic wire transferInternational wire transferRequest an official bank check
Online transfers are likely the most common way you’ll get money from your Discover savings account, as they are free and provide an easy way to transfer funds to a domestic bank account. The downside to online transfers is they may be limited to six per month. Discover is not currently enforcing this transaction limitation but may in the future.
If you need to transfer money quickly or send money internationally, you can use a wire transfer to withdraw money from your Discover savings account. There’s no limit to the number of wire transfers you can initiate out of your account, but Discover does charge $30 for each outgoing wire transfer.
Finally, you can request an official bank check from Discover. There are no limits to the number of official bank checks you can have mailed to you.
If you’re looking to get cash from your Discover Savings account, the easiest and fastest way is to transfer money directly from your savings account into a checking account and then withdraw money from an ATM or point of purchase.Is Discover Savings Account a Good Choice?
Whether a Discover savings account is a good choice for you depends on your personal banking needs. But, for most people, Discover has a compelling savings account offering.
As mentioned above, Discover pays competitive interest rates on savings account deposits with no interest rate tiers, minimum balances or hoops to jump through. While the Discover savings account interest rates aren’t the absolute highest interest rates you can get, they are well above national averages.
Discover is also a good choice for your savings account if you’re looking to avoid fees. The bank doesn’t charge any account-related fees, so that means no minimum balance fees, no monthly maintenance fees, no transaction fees and no overdraft fees. The bank does charge a $30 outgoing wire transfer fee, but for most customers, online (non-wire) transfers will be sufficient.
One possible downside to banking with Discover is that it’s not a full-service bank with physical branch locations. While Discover does offer a checking account, a handful of credit cards, mortgage loans, personal loans and auto loans, you might not be able to fulfill all your banking needs with Discover. If you prefer to bank in person or need services like cashier’s checks or a safe deposit box, you may need to look for these at another bank.How Many Discover Savings Accounts Can I Have
There’s no limit to the number of Discover savings accounts you can hold. If you prefer to keep your money segmented into separate accounts for budgeting or other purposes, go ahead and open multiple accounts. Having more than one Discover savings account can also be useful if you frequently withdraw money from your savings accounts, as each account has its own monthly withdrawal limit.
Just remember the FDIC insurance limits of $250,000 per institution per ownership category apply, so if you exceed that amount across all of your accounts, the excess amount may not be insured.How Do I Close My Discover Savings Account?
The easiest way to close your Discover savings account is to call Discover’s 24/7 customer service line at 800-347-7000. Discover doesn’t currently offer a way to close accounts online.
Alternatively, you may submit an account closure request in writing. Discover’s mailing address is Discover Bank, PO Box 30416, Salt Lake City, UT 84130.Bottom Line
The Discover Online Savings Account is a good choice if you’re looking for a savings account that pays a high APY and you don’t need to access a physical branch bank. The Discover Bank savings rate is competitive with some of the best rates offered by national banks, and the promise of no fees ensures your interest earnings won’t be eaten up by account fees.Find The Best High-Yield Savings Accounts Of 2023
The Fed Raised Interest Rates Again. Here’s What It Means For Your Finances
KEY POINTSAfter pausing rate hikes in June, the Federal Reserve is raising interest rates by 0.25% in July.Credit card and HELOC borrowers could see the cost of their debt climb, while loan borrowers may be looking at higher interest rates in the near term.Savers, however, can benefit from interest rate hikes.
Inflation has been a persistent problem since 2021, and the Federal Reserve has been committed to bringing inflation levels down. Beginning in early 2022, it began raising its benchmark interest rate in an attempt to cool inflation. It then continued to raise interest rates in the course of its next 10 consecutive meetings before taking a break from rate hikes in June in response to cooling inflation.
But on July 26, the Fed announced it would be raising interest rates once again, this time by a quarter of a point. And while that’s not a particularly drastic rate hike on its own, it could be enough to wreak havoc on consumers.Why is the Fed continuing to raise interest rates?
The Federal Reserve feels strongly that 2% inflation is an ideal level to target, since it lends most naturally to long-term economic stability. In June, annual inflation was measured at 3%, per that month’s Consumer Price Index (CPI). So clearly, we’re headed in the right direction. But the Fed isn’t satisfied with 3% inflation, which explains why its rate hike pause was just a temporary one.How will the latest rate hike impact consumers?
When we talk about the Fed raising interest rates, we’re referring to the federal funds rate, which is what banks charge each other for short-term borrowing purposes. However, when the cost of borrowing rises among banks, it tends to trickle down to consumer products, like auto and personal loans. So those looking to borrow in the near term could see higher interest rates attached to their loans as a result of the Fed’s latest move.
Meanwhile, credit card and HELOC borrowers could see the interest rate on their debt rise in the near term, since these products commonly come with variable interest that changes with market conditions. That could cause already struggling borrowers to fall behind on their payments.
That said, the Fed’s latest rate hike isn’t all doom and gloom for consumers. The one silver lining is that rate hikes on the part of the Fed tend to lead to higher savings account and CD rates. So consumers with money in the bank are in a good position to capitalize on higher interest rates. Will the Fed continue to raise interest rates beyond this point?
It’s likely that we’re in for at least one more interest rate hike before 2023 comes to a close. That said, we may get a pleasant surprise out of July’s CPI, which is scheduled to be released in August. If that report shows a further cooling of inflation, then the Fed may decide to let things be and not raise rates again.
All told, the latest interest rate hike could make borrowing more expensive, so if you’re able to hold off on signing a loan for now, that might work in your favor. And if you’re carrying a credit card or HELOC balance that’s becoming more and more unmanageable by the week, you may want to look at consolidating that debt via a personal loan with a fixed interest rate so you can at least benefit from predictable monthly payments.Alert: highest cash back card we’ve seen now has 0% intro APR until nearly 2025
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Student Loan Refinance Interest Rates Spike For 10-year Loans
Our goal here at Credible Operations, Inc., NMLS Number 1681276, referred to as “Credible” below, is to give you the tools and confidence you need to improve your finances. Although we do promote products from our partner lenders who compensate us for our services, all opinions are our own.
The latest trends in interest rates for student loan refinancing from the Credible marketplace, updated weekly. (d4zaiStock)
Rates for well-qualified borrowers using the Credible marketplace to refinance student loans decreased this week for 5-year variable-rate loans and increased for 10-year fixed-rate loans.
For borrowers with credit scores of 720 or higher who used the Credible marketplace to select a lender the week of July 31, 2023:Rates on 10-year fixed-rate refinance loans averaged 7.04%, up from 5.63% the week before and up from 5.43% a year ago. Rates for this term hit their lowest point of 2022 during the week of Jan. 10, when they were at 3.44%.Rates on 5-year variable-rate refinance loans averaged 6.48%, down from 6.99% the week before and up from 3.58% a year ago. Rates for this term hit their lowest point of 2022 during the week of July 4, when they were at 2.51%.Student loan refinancing weekly rate trends
If you’re curious about what kind of student loan refinance rates you may qualify for, you can use an online tool like Credible to compare options from different private lenders. Current student loan refinancing rates by FICO score
To provide relief from the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, interest and payments on federal student loans have been suspended since March 2020. However, interest will begin accruing again on Sept. 1, 2023, with payments resuming in October. But many borrowers with private student loans are taking advantage of the low interest rate environment to refinance their education debt at lower rates.
If you qualify to refinance your student loans, the interest rate you may be offered can depend on factors like your FICO score, the type of loan you’re seeking (fixed or variable rate) and the loan repayment term.
The chart above shows that good credit can help you get a lower rate and that rates tend to be higher on loans with fixed interest rates and longer repayment terms. Because each lender has its own method of evaluating borrowers, it’s a good idea to request rates from multiple lenders so you can compare your options. A student loan refinancing calculator can help you estimate how much you might save.
If you want to refinance with bad credit, you may need to apply with a cosigner. Or, you can work on improving your credit before applying. Many lenders will allow children to refinance parent PLUS loans in their own name after graduation.
You can use Credible to compare rates from multiple private lenders at once without affecting your credit score.How rates for student loan refinancing are determined
The rates private lenders charge to refinance student loans depend in part on the economy and interest rate environment, but also the loan term, the type of loan (fixed- or variable-rate), the borrower’s creditworthiness and the lender’s operating costs and profit margin.About Credible
Credible is a multi-lender marketplace that empowers consumers to discover financial products that are the best fit for their unique circumstances. Credible’s integrations with leading lenders and credit bureaus allow consumers to quickly compare accurate, personalized loan options – without putting their personal information at risk or affecting their credit score. The Credible marketplace provides an unrivaled customer experience, as reflected by over 5,000+ positive Trustpilot reviews and a TrustScore of 4.7/5.