SmartyPig Review
SmartyPig is a brilliant idea that helps you save and let’s others contribute to those savings as well.
SmartyPig is an online website that helps you save toward a financial goal such as a wedding, vacation or some other purchase. Think of it as an online piggy bank that you deposit funds into for some specific goal that will cost a specific sum, and which you will need to save by a certain date.
Why do this savings online? Because SmartyPig lets you share your savings goal with friends, colleagues and family members. Once they know your goal and account, they can make contributions to your goal to help you reach it if they want. Or, you can make your savings goal entirely private.
To help you with your savings goal, SmartyPig gives you a high interest rate (currently 2.15% APY), made possible because it’s an internet bank. Thus it usually pays more than money market accounts or CDs.
What are the SmartyPig account details?
You can set a SmartyPig savings goal for anywhere from $250 to $250,000 but there is a minimum deposit of $25 to start your savings account. Each month after starting you must contribute a minimum of $10 as well as your earned savings interest. Most people usually set up a monthly recurring contribution into he account.
If you want to put extra money into the account then you can add that as a deposit and you can thereby reduce your monthly contributions to a new minimum amount that would still allow you to reach your financial goal on time. Any maximum amount to how much you can put in? You’re allowed up to a maximum deposit of $50,000 in a 24-hour period.
What if you don’t want to continue saving because you need the money?
SmartyPig goals may be closed at any time without penalty, so you can stop your goal before it is reached. Unfortunately SmartyPig does not offer partial withdrawals so if you want to redeem your money, you can do that at any time but you will have to close the entire goal. In this way you treat SmartyPig not as a regular in-and-out bank savings account but as an event-driven savings account, and you’re likely to keep the funds in there longer. That’s why your interest rate tends to be high, too.
If you continue saving towards your goal until it’s reached, once you finally reach your savings goal then your monthly contributions stop. SmartyPig lets you withdraw the money in several different ways. It can be transferred to your bank account or put on a SmartyPig MasterCard debit card. It can also be converted into a retail gift such as an Amazon.com, Best Buy, or Macy’s card where you get an extra discount from these vendors.
Opening a FREE online savings account with SmartyPig takes just a few mouse clicks on the internet. Opening an account is 100% FREE. Opening, funding and redeeming a goal with SmartyPig are all absolutely FREE. However, there is a flat 2.9% fee to make a contribution using a credit card or to buy a SmartyPig gift card using a credit card. So there are no SmartyPig monthly fees, load fees or ATM fees. Fees only apply when a credit card makes a deposit, when a SmartyPig card needs to be replaced, or if certain banks charge a SmartyPig customer for using their ATM machines.
SmartyPig’s banking partner is BBVA Compass, the 15th largest bank in the United States, and your money is FDIC insured up to $250,000.
Seems like a very unique way that forces you to save, and let’s others help out. If you have a goal and willing sponsors, you can send them all an email for contributions. For young family members, or smarter adults who like to create forced savings plans, this is a smart idea.
