Where to Keep the EF?

[TheresaRHPS]

Okay, this might sound like a dumb question, but it popped into my head while driving to the bank this morning, lol.

I went to the library to check out a Dave Ramsey book, and had to go on the waiting list...there were NONE left, and my extent of knowledge of the Dave Ramsey plan consists of the great posts here, so please be gentle.

But...where do you KEEP your emergency fund? I have my now $500 start up in a regular Passbook savings account at my bank. I thought that was fine and dandy until this morning when I was going to the bank and realized that if I needed my money, I'd probably have to wait until either Friday evening after work (when my bank stays open until 7--I get off work at 5:30) or on Monday or Tuesday, when I have days off.

In a real emergency situation, especially if a worst-case-scenario type deal when my bank would be closed even on those days I have available, or I physically could not get out of the house or to the bank, I would have no way to access that extra money.

So...does Ramsey have a suggestion for keeping all or part of your EF out of the bank and at home? What do you do with yours? Any advice, wisdom, or suggestions welcomed!

[StanleyJohnson]

I keep mine in a money market account.
If I need money, I just transfer the funds in to checking.

[frugal is fun]

I keep my emergency fund in my credit union which I could probably get a check the same day Mon - Fri.

[TheresaRHPS]

Thanks! I can actually transfer funds from savings to checking online or over the phone, which I guess makes me feel a little better, lol.

My bank is kinda weird though...I've never had to have a waiting period before I got a debit card before. I have a box of checks, but I'll feel better when I get my debit card.

[mslolsalot]

I keep my "baby" EF in a savings account that can do a next-day transfer into my chequing. The rest is at ING which has a minimum 3 day transfer time to my bank.

I can't stand not having fast access to my funds if I need them. 3 days is too long for me!

[khaski]

We have most of it in a credit union, but it's about 45 minutes away (my husband used it before we moved here). But, in a true 'pinch', we can always transfer $ from the 'savings' account my husband uses to put away taxes for his business and then replace it with $ from the Credit union within a day or two. The business account is linked to his personal account, so it can be transferred anytime online to his personal account to write a check or use debit card. I think the important thing is to keep it aside from your checking (main) account, but have them linked so you can transfer $ from your EF to your main account day or night online....IF you know you are not the type to transfer $100 from your EF for the 'emergency' find on ebay at 11pm!

[Greebo]

We keep our EF in a Schwab online account.

[mateosbaby]

Ours is at our credit union with our checking account, and we can swap the money same day from either account to the other right online. Very easy access, but luckily disciplined enough to not touch savings (except to deposit into).

[MissSeetonFan]

We keep a portion in cash in an accessible (but not too accessible) place at home, just in case power is out or ATMs aren't working. The rest is in a savings account at the CU.

[gmarie]

Our baby emergency fund is in a savings account at our credit union. It is not our primary savings account, and although it is linked to our other accounts, it is not viewable on our accounts page. It's nice that I don't see the balance every time I log in, so I "forget" it's there, but I can transfer it back to another account in an emergency.

[mcsestretch]

Our EF is in a Money Market account at the same Credit Union where our checking and savings accounts are. We can transfer among the accounts at will.

[livefreebrewfree]

We keep ours in a savings account at ING. It takes 3 days to transfer to our checking account which keeps us from being able to use it for impulse purchases but accessible enough for any real emergency.

[mek42]

My credit union let me associate a debit card with my EF savings account (I use a different institution for my primary banking, so I do not have a checking account with them). They did warn me that some vendors might not accept it. The few times we've needed to use the EF, there have been no difficulties.

We're still snowballing, but once we start doing the fully-funded EF, we plan to keep the baby EF as is, and then put the full EF in a slightly less liquid, higher interest rate account. I figure the baby EF ought to keep us going for a few business days even including a weekend if needed.

[lparker]

Right now I have $500 in an ING account and $500 in my bank savings account. My bank debit card is not linked to my savings account. No impulse buying from either account

Lee

[forHISglory]

We keep ours in a savings fund. It is troublesome to get to, and that is exactly what we needed!