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UBank USaver Rate Increased to 6.51% (with ASP Bonus)

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The interest rate of UBank's USaver has increased to 6.51%. UBank USaver Reach has also been increased.

Same terms as previously… You need to set up an Automatic Savings Plan (ASP) of at least $200 per month to get the higher interest rate, otherwise you'll get 6.01%.

Note:
- If you are a new customer, the rate of 6.51% will not apply until 1st August 2010, as ASP bonuses apply the month after you start doing them
- The bonus is not applied for balances over $200,000. Any amount over $200,000 will gain interest at the standard rate.

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  • awesome!!

  • +2

    AWESOME! Another hit blow the Rabo loyals!
    Sticking with Rabo ozpete?? You'll probably neg this one too, hey?
    Once again - it seems my "outrageous claims" are coming true.

    • +14

      Grow up this is not a personal vendetta. but guess with a footy mentality tribes go to war rather than play.

      As for bank yes now it's time to go back. But remember it's those who shifted who contributed to this better deal.

      But only for those who have amounts under 200k and who don't have SMSF. A little detail you conveniently ignore.

      And in your posting you were encouraging people to move from Rabo to ubank. Which was one of the reasons I voted negative for, as it wasn't worth the small .02% to switch back. Now at .11% its more attractive

    • +10

      Why not have both accounts and take advantage of the better deal when it arises? For a few weeks RaboDirect was paying 6.4% while UBank managed 6.26%. I don't see how this is a blow to Rabo loyals, whoever they are. Are there UBank loyals? Why be loyal to a bank? Loyalty is for spouses and football supporters.

    • What's a "hit blow"? Is that a new term you are trying to coin? I don't think it's going to catch on…

      Anyway totally agree with some other people here, have both accounts and shift your money to whichever is offering the best rate. Rabo still does have the advantage or not requring a savings plan but most people can probably deposit $200 a month.

      I have a Rabo account but am yet to sign up to UBank. Can anyone tell me if they have one of these stupid key generator things to be able to log in to your account? I never even activated my Rabo account because as soon as I saw the little device I knew I didn't want to carry it around.. Still got my dosh in a term deposit with ING (6 months at 6.25% finishing next month yay)

      • No, all you need is a mobile phone.

        And all you can transact in a day is 20k like NAB. If you want to do more, an account must be linked and you have to call them to SPEAK TO A REAL PERSON…

        • +3

          What's this "real person" you speak of?

      • UBank doesn't have a key generator, it uses SMS security.

  • +6

    Here we go again…

    Honk if you hate friggin' flagbearing fanbois.

  • Regarding the ASP, I just move money over to a different "high interest" account (ING Direct), say $1000 which will last you 5 months, and then ASP back from that. Easy.

  • This might be a dumb question, but how much money makes this really worth it? Are we talking about rich folk who have 200k just sitting in savings?!

    • Plenty of people saving for a house deposit/waiting for the bubble to burst who have money in that sort of range…

      • +1

        exactly muzzamo!

      • +2

        Hahah yeah definitely the case for me (though I'm well short of 200k!). I keep straining my ears trying to hear the "Pop" of the bubble bursting… nothing yet but I'm confident still…

      • +1

        keep waiting for that bubble to burst ;)

      • Bah! Wait all your life until regret kicks in. The only popping I hear is the popcorn I'm making.

  • Also, when transferring money from your everyday account to Ubank, how long does it take? 2-3 days? So you lose 2-3 days interest each time you transfer money? So wouldnt it be better to have a high interest account with whatever bank account you use everyday so you get interest straight away?

    • you only need to organise a minimum auto of deposit $200/mth. Have you ever calculated how much interest can you loose in the 2-3 day transit from that amount? It's almost negligible in comparison to the benefit you get from the extra 0.5% increase.

    • its generally overnight. But I guess that depends on how long you leave it in there.

    • +1

      I think losing 2 days of interest is better than not getting any at all. And if you had a high-interest account with your normal bank, the interest rate probably wouldn't be as high as UBank or RaboBank, so even though you're losing a little interest during the transfer, you're gaining more overall in the long run. 1 day of interest for $1000 at 6.51% is only $0.178 (1000 * 0.0651 / 365). :)

    • I wonder if sam2500 is saying that if you have a Rabo and a UBank account and are transferring money all the time to whichever has the higher interest rate, that you may need to think about whether it's worth it once you factor in the slight loss in interest.
      So if I had 200k in Rabo right now and transferred to UBank I'd lose a days interest at 6.4% = ~$35 and, the difference between the two being 0.11% it would take me 58 days to make up the difference. Is that correct? Probably not worth it I guess…

      • Just bear in mind that if you go over the 200K then the ubank bonus interest doesnt apply.

        • and also don't forget that for ALL new customers, you will only get 6.01% until 1-Aug. For those who want to open account with Ubank now, you'd better go and read their T&C first.

  • +1

    yes my decision to open with uBank was so correct! Was deciding rabo or uBank about 1+ month ago.
    go get them uBank. Love the goal setting function too on their website.

    And I thought they just raised it last week or so..

    • +1

      Haha, they did raise it on the 24th (http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/27565), so I was quite surprised by the fact they raised it again today. A nice surprise though :)

      • Anyone know why the increase?

        • maybe they anticipate another rate increase in the next week or so?

    • Your decision to go with Ubank now is not a wise choice since you will only get 6.01%. You'd better go with Rabo now, and switch to Ubank end of this month.

  • This is ridiculous.

    Above the rate of my NAB home loan.

    • If UBank is willing to pay more for at-call cash than is received from your home loan, that probably means your home loan's interest rate will rise soon regardless of RBA decisions.

      UBank's decision to lift rates today is puzzling me a little. The 90 bank bill rate is today flat at 5% until September 2012. This suggests the cost of money is falling, not rising, as investors pull out of the sharemarket and real estate and park money in safe accounts.

      • Better delay paying you home loan and put your money into UBank.
        As soon as your loan rate is higher, it's time to withdraw fund to pay it.

        • +2

          assuming a tax rate of 30%, unless the interest on the home loan is 4.55% LOL, you are better off paying the loan…otherwise, the tax on the ubank interest will make you worse off.

          • @dansor: hang on…

            If you delay paying debt, there are two consequences,
            ==> more interest will be paid to banks == more tax deduction
            ==> mote interest will be paid to you == more income

            If income > deduction implies more tax… sound bad?
            No… Paying any rate of tax is ok as long as you get more money.

            • +1

              @SummerMan: that's true if your home loan is for an investment property. do you get any tax deduction on the interest you pay for the mortgage on your primary place of residence? i don't think so.

          • @dansor: From July 1 next year, the first $1000 of interest will attract no tax. Not very useful for betting against mortgages worth hundreds of thousands of dollars though :-)

            There is one opportunity to bet that rates will fall. RaboDirect is offering a 5 year term deposit for 7.3%, which for most people would be around 5.1% after tax. Some economists are debating whether we're going to see deflation take hold, which decreases prices and increases the burdens of debt. People who believe high deflation is coming could lend money to Rabo at 7.3%, and later get a fixed interest home loan at hopefully less than 5.1%. This is a pretty risky bet however, and relies on the Australian and global economies going pear shaped in a major way quite quickly.

      • There was a report in the papers that deposits with banks are falling, with many people paying off debt instead of saving and with the fear of a double dip recession OS cheaper Money for our banks are probably getting tighter. There is talk of a credit crunch in Europe with money being lent to Greece, and banking Deposits to capital ratios being uplifted

        • yeah but how does that related to the 90 day bank bill rate… (i have nfi!)

          • @muzzamo: Banks borrow short (deposits from you and me) and lend long (30 year home loans, etc). The 90 day rate is a good indicator of what the market expects the cost of money to be in each month over the next 5 years. Each month has a given rate which varies as the market dictates. Predictions over the next 6 months are usually pretty accurate.

  • If we set up an ASP (automatic saving plan) at the beginning of the month, do we get the bonus interest immediately or the following month? Can anyone confirm this? Thanks

    • next month. So get everything organised this month and it starts from the following month.

      • +2

        they are so smart, now is just 1/7, and you will not get bonus interest till next month, so I won't bother to move until end of July then.

        Without bonus interest, you will only get 6.01% while you get 6.4% with Rabo now. So you guys should setup ASP with Ubank in end of July, DO NOT move your money now.

        • +4

          Man, who needs a financial advisor when you have ozbargain.com.au….

          :)

          (Hit the plus button now beside my name please) :) haha

          • +2

            @Son of Matrix: even though this is good deal, but because of all those restrictions I will give neutral vote.
            - Interest is currently lower than RaboDirect (6.01% < 6.4%), the higher interest you post technically is NOT active yet until next month
            - You ONLY get bonus interest if you have < 200k with Ubank while you can earn 6.4% with RaboDirect for up to 1 million. This is not an interest for me but some people here may have more than 200k.

            Beside you said "we have ozbargain.com.au", you should know what is ozbargain. It is user contributed forum. So yes it is advice from users like me.

            • @samehada: wow you need to take it easy samehada…

              of course, ozbargain will be nothing without users like you..

              • @Son of Matrix: haha, I'm really tempted to give it neg vote because no one can get this 6.51% now. This only happens from 1-Aug.

                • @samehada: hold that thought. else, you will be flamed so bad that your partner won't recognise you :) jk

                  • +1

                    @Son of Matrix: Hmm now I'm tempted to neg it as well (too late) ;)

                    • @puckman: you can revoke your vote :) It's still a good deal from next month onward so I just give neutral vote.

                • +2

                  @samehada: I checked my account and I have 6.51% interest. So while those who don't have an automatic savings plan already in place can't get it those who do can.

                • +1

                  @samehada: What do you mean? Anyone who had an automatic savings plan set up in June would have 6.51% now (this includes me, and quite a number of other users). Only people that sign up for an account now won't get it until August. :)

                  • @Daniel15: well then it's good, I thought you only get the old rate which was 6.41 until next month. Still, it's better for new customer and existing customers who are putting their money in RaboDirect account to stay with Rabo until end of July. If you move now you will only get 6.01%.

  • -3

    gay tactic announcing it jul 1
    will prolly move back but meh will have to wait till end of month coz of ASP crap

    • totally agree.

    • -1

      sexism comment?

    • I agree somewhat, however they already announced a rate rise a week ago.

    • I am not quite sure what a "gay tactic" is

  • +2

    I think mod should edit this deal to cleary state that this is NOT applied for
    - ANY NEW & Existing customer moving their fund back until 1-Aug.
    - Anyone with > 200k saving.

    without this clarification, I think this deal deserve a neg vote from me. And who knows what's gonna happen next month, who knows if Rabo also decide to match this deal.

    • +4

      Good suggestion, I edited it myself. I didn't intend to mislead anyone when I posted this, just forgot to mention those points. I wasn't too sure about the first one, as I've had my UBank account for a few months now.

  • To ALL who concerns about losing interest for moving money between Rabo and Ubank. I have done testing and found a way to transfer between these 2 bank WITHOUT losing a single day of interest.

    Since this deal doesn't start until 1-Aug so if you are with Rabo and planning to move your fund back to Ubank, you should do some setup now.
    - Open Westpac Bank Account (fee-free if you have 2000 deposit per month, it can be organised easily)
    - Link your Rabo account with Westpac account
    - Link your Ubank account with Westpac account.
    - Setup $200 ASP with Ubank on 28-Jul to be sure that you are getting the bonus rate.

    Westpac is one of my favourite bank account thanks to the fast updated of balance (4 times a day). This is the ONLY bank in Australia update your account 4 times a day. ALL other bank only do it once either at 11pm or 2AM-3AM.

    So when the time comes, i.e end of July
    - Submit a one-off transfer request for Ubank to direct debit your linked Westpac account. You can add this request now in Ubank for the future date.
    - In the morning of the day of your direct debit request of Ubank (not later than 2PM), submit transfer out request from Rabo to your linked Westpac account.

    You need to do as above or else you will get charged for dishonour fee and lose 1 day interest. This can be done ALL thanks to Westpac for updating your account balance by 4pm which allow you to have fund available on the same day for direct debit request from Ubank. In the mean time, stick with Rabo and enjoy 6.4% :)

    • Other banks can also do this. Just direct debit/direct deposit on the same day. I do it with suncorp.

      • You'd better read my post carefully. You can't do this with other bank because your fund from Rabo will NOT be cleared on the same day which will trigger a dishonour for Ubank direct debit.

        You can try to transfer fund from other bank account to your Suncorp account and see when the fund is available from your Suncorp account. If it show up there before 5PM on the same day then Yes you can do like what I did with Westpac.

        • +3

          Ubank send debit instruction to X bank and Rabo send debit instruction to X bank on the same day.
          It doesn't matter which one come first if X Bank update the balance only once a day.

          Even when debit instruction comes first, X Bank will not dishonor payment until cutoff time.
          However, by that time credit instruction will come.
          Usually, in your statement, you will see credit transaction first.
          There will be no negative balance.

          • @SummerMan: sounds good. thought about doing it this way too but never tried as i thought dishonour fees were still like $50 but i just saw all those fees are way less now O_O

          • @SummerMan: It depends on bank, if direct debit instruction cut-off time is at 6PM, and your account balance doesn't get updated until 2AM-3AM the next day, then you tell me what's gonna happen? It also depends on how the bank system is setup for dishonoring direct debit request as well. They can dishonor the debit request at say cut-off time at 6PM if your fund is not available by that time.

            So what you said CAN happen, but it all depends on the bank system, and many banks doesn't have a system that favour you. If you want to risk being charged dishonor fee then you can do it. I don't want to risk with being charged dishonor fee and my fund is stuck in my bank account for 1 more day.

            In Australia, fund transfer b/w bank is processed by Australian Payments Clearing Association, and they upload batch of request to the receiving bank. I guess this is sent to receiving bank at least 4 times a day (based on my experience with Westpac account). So the receiving bank can choose to process these batch payment once a day at the end of the day. If the bank do so then your direct debit request will be rejected because cut-off time is usually at 6PM-7PM.

  • I have lost the digipass takes too long to wait to get another. Can someone let me know if ING is offering the same rate?

  • +2

    For those who missed my previous comment on how to transfer money without losing interest.

    Example:
    1) Withdrawal: In Rabo, schedule deposit transfer to linked account in commbank on 25/06/10.
    2) Deposit: In UBank, schedule ASP to withdraw money from the same linked account in commbank on 25/06/10

    The statement at commbank will show withdrawal and deposit on the same day 25/06/10. The last day of interest for the amount transferred at Rabo will be 24/06/10 and the first day of interest for the amount at Ubank will be 25/06/10. So no interest lost!

    • +2

      A good idea is to transfer a smaller amount first time to see if it works before making a commitment to all your funds

      • +1

        Yes, test it with $0.01 transfers first.

  • -1

    What is this ASP you speak of?

    • ASP = Automatic Savings Plan. Basically an amount that is automatically deposited every month.

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