The Best Savings Account in Australia 2015

An article by GenX published 

at Melbourne Victoria Australia www.melbournevicaustralia.blogspot.com

Please do not reprint or republish in part or in any form.

INTRODUCTION

Generally, we would think that term deposits (also known as fixed deposits) would pay a higher interest rate compared to savings accounts. However, this is not necessarily the case in Australia!!!

Most banks in Australia, if not all, offer online savings account that pays interest ranging from 2.25% to 2.75% (Standard Variable Rate as of January 2015). And in order to attract you to deposit your money with them, the banks will offer additional Bonus Interest Rates of more than 1% for the first 3 to 4 months only. After the promotion period (3 or 4 months), you will end up earning the lower standard variable rate for life!!! 

For example:

ANZ Bank Online Saver

ANZ Online Saver offers 2.5% Standard Variable Rate plus 1.2% Bonus Interest Rate for the first 3 months. Therefore, the ANZ Online Saver account will earn you 3.7% interest rate for 3 months and then the interest rate for the Online Saver will revert to the Standard Variable Rate of 2.5% - which means you will be stuck at a lower interest rate for life!

Also please note - in order to sign up for the ANZ Bank Online Saver Account, you need an ANZ Everyday Banking Account. The ANZ Everyday Banking Account is NOT TRULY FREE, i.e. it imposes a monthly fee of AUD5 if you do not deposit at least AUD2000 monthly into it! So you may end up paying $60 a year for nothing if you do not deposit $2000 every month.

Commonwealth Bank Netbank Saver

Just like ANZ, Commonwealth Bank also offers a similar online savings account called NetBank which pays 2.5% Variable Interest Rate plus 1.2% Bonus Interest Rate for the first 3 months. So, just like ANZ, your funds will only earn you a miserable 2.5% interest rate starting from the fourth month and for the rest of your life.

And in order to sign up for the Commonwealth Bank NetBank Saver, you also need to sign up for a Commonwealth Bank Everyday Account which is NOT TRULY FREE; because just like in ANZ’s case, you need to deposit AUD2K monthly or else you will be penalized and charged a monthly fee. 

Many people sign up for the account(s) above because ANZ Bank and Commonwealth Bank have branches and ATMs everywhere making it very convenient.

However, from both examples above, it can be concluded for long term savings, you should avoid this type of savings accounts and instead look for savings accounts that give you high interest rate starting from the very first day you sign up for the account and for the rest of your life. By doing so, it will not only earn you more money but save you time and the hassle of moving your funds from bank to bank to earn higher interest rates.

HOW TO AVOID BEING IMPOSED MONTHLY FEE ON YOUR EVERYDAY TRANSACTION ACCOUNT IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO DEPOSIT $2000 A MONTH

Now, for those of you who are unable to deposit $2000 a month into your Smart Access or Complete Access Commonwealth Bank Everyday Transaction account to avoid being penalized and imposed a fee, here is a tip for you.

Say you have the following amount in your Commonwealth Bank Accounts:

Smart or Complete Access - $33.18

NetBank - $618.00

STEP 1

Transfer $500 from Netbank to your Smart/Complete Access Account

STEP 2

You banking accounts will now show:

Smart or Complete Access - $533.18

NetBank - $118.00

Transfer $500 from your Smart/Complete Access Account back into Netbank Account.

Once the $500 is credited into your Netbank account, immediately repeat Steps 1 and 2 above another 3 times and you would have “deposited” $2000 into your Smart/Complete Access account; thus fulfilling the $2000 monthly deposit requirement into the Everyday Transaction Account to avoid being penalized and imposed the monthly fee.

Repeat the above tip/method every month and you’ll get to enjoy FREE EVERYDAY TRANSACTION account with Commonwealth Bank throughout the year :)  

NAB – TRUE FREE BANKING

Before I proceed any further, I would like to touch on National Bank Australia (NAB) banking accounts.

NAB Classic Banking Account is an Everyday Transaction Account which is FREE FOR LIFE, i.e. no minimum deposit and no monthly account fee whatsoever, unlike ANZ Bank Everyday Account and Commonwealth Smart/Complete Access Account where you need to deposit $2000 a month to avoid being penalized.

Once you sign up for NAB Classic Banking Account and have registered for NAB Online Banking, you can then sign up for NAB iSaver Online Savings Account.

NAB iSaver pays 2.5% standard variable rate PLUS 1% Bonus Interest for 4 months. Therefore, the funds in your NAB iSaver will earn you 3.5%. Now, this amount is less than the 3.7% interest rate offered by ANZ Bank and Commonwealth Bank shown in my earlier example. So why the heck am I telling you about NAB iSaver? Read on and you may just learn another thing or two.

Australia Best Everyday Transaction Account And Tips To Earn You More Money

An article by GenX published 

at Melbourne Victoria Australia www.melbournevicaustralia.blogspot.com

Please do not reprint or republish in part or in any form.

INTRODUCTION

Previously in my article titled FREE Visa and MasterCard Debit Cards From Australia Banks, I mentioned that I have Everyday Transaction Accounts with NAB, Commonwealth Bank, Citibank and HSBC Australia. All these said accounts come with FREE Visa or MasterCard Debit cards. However, all these accounts do not earn me a cent in interest for balances sitting in the account. Worst still, my Commonwealth Complete Access Account, an Everyday Transaction Account, charges me a monthly fee if I do not deposit AUD 2000 monthly into it. NAB, Citibank and HSBC Everyday Transaction Accounts are truly FREE FOR LIFE as there are no monthly fees forever (unless they change their policy) and you do not need to deposit a cent into it after you open the account.

Therefore, in order to earn interest from my money deposited with Citibank Australia, Commonwealth Bank, HSBC Australia and NAB, I have their Online Savings Accounts and transfer my funds into my Everyday Transactions Accounts when required. However, if you do not wish to open an Online Savings Account but want you money sitting in your Everyday Transaction Account to earn you some pocket money, I got good news for you.

EARN MORE FROM AUSTRALIA SAVINGS ACCOUNTS AND BANKWEST HERO EVERYDAY TRANSACTION ACCOUNT

Now, today I will share with you three tips on Australia Banks Savings Accounts:

1. COMMONWEALTH BANK COMPLETE ACCESS ACCOUNT - Monthly Fee waived with AUD2000 Deposit.

Like I mentioned earlier, I will be charged a monthly fee should I fail to deposit Aussie 2K into my Commonwealth Complete Access for a particular month. And I also said I have their Online Account called NetBank. So, the easiest way to avoid paying the Complete Access monthly fee without depositing any new funds into Commonwealth Bank is to transfer money between your Complete Access and NetBank accounts. For example, you have AUD100 in your Complete Access and AUD 800 in your NetBank Account. So in order to meet the AUD2K deposit requirement:

Melbourne Best Cafes and Chinese Restaurants

Melbourne is the most livable city on planet earth in 2012 according to The Economist Intelligence Unit's Livable Survey. 

Well, according to Mercer's Cost of Living rankings, Melbourne is also ranked No.15 for The World's Most Expensive Big City in 2012! But that was because the Australia dollar was stronger than the US dollar in 2012. Since 2013, the Australia dollar has been sliding South and I believe Melbourne's ranking in the World's Most Expensive Cities would drop to where it was in 2011 - No.21.

Back to the subject of Most Livable City - one reason why I agree that Melbourne is the Most Livable City on planet earth is because the food that are served in Melbourne's cafes are freaking good. You don't have to travel far to experience mouth watering delicious food as the very best restaurants are located in or near Melbourne Central Business District (CBD).

Previously, I have published three articles relating to food in Melbourne. Please click the links below to read them before proceeding to read this article any further so that you get an idea of the various types of food served around Melbourne and in restaurants mentioned in this article. 

Melbourne Food is Freaking Good - This article was my first article concerning food in Melbourne where I posted many photos of the meals I had in Melbourne. The restaurants I visited then were Stalactites in CBD which serve Greek food, Hungry Jack where you can get a complete meal for AUD5, St. Ali Cafe at South Melbourne where I really liked the dish Mexican Cousin, Auction Room which won the award for the Best Cafe in Melbourne, Seven Seeds at North Melbourne, breakfast at The Hardware Societe in Melbourne CBD, Snag Stand for a quick but messy meal, fine dining at Taxi in Federation Square, Mercadante Italian restaurant at Lygon Street, Red Spice Road for some delicious fusion Thai food, Curry Vault in CBD where they have very good Indian food and Pappa Rich at QV Square for Malaysian Cuisine like mouth watering Nasi Lemak.

Melbourne Food is Freaking Good - Part II  - In this article I highlighted a place called J Cafe which specializes in Sushi Burgers at Exhibition Street. You must try their soft shell crab sushi burger. Taxi Pub and Cafe for some fish and chips (would recommend the Taxi Fine Dining restaurant located above instead where the food is really good but cost more), The Grand Tofu at Newmarket for Malaysia Chinese food where the curry fish head is the best I had in Melbourne and how to get to Richmond by tram for Vietnamese food.

Melbourne Food is Freaking Good - Part III - in this article I posted photos of the lunch meals I had at Hardware Societe which was really good, dinner at Red Hot Wok at South Yarra where the chilli crab and Teochew style steam fish were good, value for money meals at Hanaichi and Don Don in CBD. But Dim Sum at Dragon Boat on Lonsdale Street is a no no after 1pm as their selection is really pathetic and not worth the AUD18 for all you can eat. Once again I visited Red Spice Road when they opened another branch at QV where I would have the pork belly every single time I go there. I also mentioned that I dislike the char-siew at Pacific BBQ on Lonsdale Street.

I am now going to list my favorite cafes and restaurants where the food is consistently good and everything on the menu taste delicious. Of course being in the No15 World's Most Expensive City, the food is not "cheap" compared to the restaurants in South East Asia; but then again, the quality of  food served in these restaurants are top notch. 

In order for a cafe to be listed as my favorite cafe, besides the food tasting great, it has to have good coffee ( I am a coffee addict besides a chain smoker) and more importantly fast and friendly service.  I would suggest you only visit the cafes mentioned below on weekdays only. They are really busy during weekends and not the place to go if you have kids as you may need to queue and it may take some time (up to 45 minutes) before you are seated.

THE BEST CAFES IN MELBOURNE

Here is the list of my favorite cafes near CBD in alphabetical order:

Prada Handbags are Cheaper in Australia Compared to Singapore

An article by GenX published 

at Melbourne Victoria Australia www.melbournevicaustralia.blogspot.com

Please do not reprint or republish in part or in any form.

I am sure many of you ladies are well aware that you can get luxury branded handbags cheaper in Europe. No one has ever told me that handbags are cheaper in Australia compared to Singapore or Malaysia. In August my wife told me she wanted a Prada Saffiano Leather Double Zip Tote with Strap while I was in Melbourne, so we walked into a Prada Store located at Collins Street and to my surprise I found that the bag she wanted was not that costly. So early last month while I was back in Malaysia I went to the Prada Store in KLCC and noted that the price of the bag my wife wanted cost more than RM2K extra here.
 

Then I was down in Singapore, and was surprised that the Prada Saffiano Leather Double Zip Shopping Handbag with Strap was priced about the same as in Malaysia. However in Singapore, like in Australia, if you were to take purchase the handbag and then take it out of the country, you will be reimbursed the GST at the airport. However, even considering the fact that you can be reimbursed for the GST at Changi Airport, the Prada handbag in Singapore still cost more than in Australia with GST!!!

I did published an article on my wife's new Prada Cameo Saffiano Leather Twin Zip Shopping Tote with Strap and my daughter's Prada Royal Blue Saffiano Leather Wallet that comes with Metal Strap at my Money For Luxury Blog. Click link below to read it and see photos of the Prada bags:

Prada Saffiano Leather Double Zip Shopping Tote and Wallet With Gold Metal Strap

In the above said article I listed the price of both the Prada Saffiano Leather Twin Zip Shopping Tote in Australia, Singapore and Malaysia. As for Louis Vuitton handbags, in the article you will note that the LV Favorite PM cost about the same in Australia, Singapore and Malaysia.

In the article I mentioned that I initially bought the Louis Vuitton Favorite PM for my eldest daughter as a birthday gift, and then after that walked into the Prada Store where I saw the Prada Wallet with Strap which looks nicer. So I went and return the LV Favorite, hahaha.

There are 3 Prada stores in Melbourne and they are located at Collins Street in Mebourne CBD, Crown Casino and Chadstone Shopping Mall. And if you are a tourist or leaving Australia in a month's time, make sure you get the Tax Invoice when you purchase stuff costing more than AUD300 in a single receipt so that you can claim back the GST at Melbourne Airport after Immigration. For example, if you are at Myers, you can go to the Customer Service counter and request that all your shopping at Myers on the same day be combined into a single receipt.

An Article by GenX
GenX Profile and Definitions of Words Used.

Click here to see photos of my wife's Prada Saffiano Leather Shopping Tote with Strap and my daughter's Prada Saffiano Wallet with Gold Metal Strap. In this article I also listed the price of the Prada Double Zip Shopping Tote in Australia, Singapore and Malaysia. I also mentioned the price of Louis Vuitton Favorite PM in these said countries.

Click here to read my article titled The Best Spirit Prices (Whisky and Cognac) in Melbourne Australia

Click here to read my article The Best Savings Accounts in Australia

Click here to read my article The Best Transactions Accounts in Australia

Click here to read my article The Best Cafes and Chinese Restaurants in Melbourne

Melbourne Food Is Freaking Good Part III

An article by GenX published 

at Melbourne Victoria Australia www.melbournevicaustralia.blogspot.com

Please do not reprint or republish in part or in any form.

I was in Melbourne once again in early December 2012 for more than a week and I have more restaurants to recommend to you :)

I did drop by once again at Mercadante, Lygon Street for pasta (and then for dessert we crossed the road to Freddo for some ice-cream) and Hardware Societe for lunch. Both these restaurants were mentioned in my very first article on Melbourne's Food Outlets titled Melbourne Food and Coffee Is Freaking Good - click here to read it.

In my previous trips to Melbourne, I had dropped by Hardware Societe for Breakfast. However, this time around, my wife and I would sleep till pass 9am since this trip we did not have any specific programs for our trip down-under and was more like free and easy holiday. And if you want to have breakfast at Hardware Societe, you better be there before 10am or else most of the breakfast delicacies would be sold out and you are only left with pies to choose from.

Space Hotel Melbourne Queen Ensuite Room Review

An article by GenX published 

at Melbourne Victoria Australia www.melbournevicaustralia.blogspot.com

Please do not reprint or republish in part or in any form.

I revisited Melbourne in early December 2012 and once again stayed at Space Hotel, Russell Street, Melbourne. I took a cab from the airport to Space Hotel and it cost me AUD54 for the ride. It was after 1am when I reached Space Hotel and my room key card was given to me upon me presenting my Agoda voucher. The guy on duty did ask for my credit card and charged AUD1 to confirm that my card was valid.

The last time I stayed at Space Hotel was back in May 2012 where I shared a twin room with my son for a couple of nights and then moved to a single room by myself after he flew back to USA to start his summer internship job. That time we had to use the shared common bathroom. This time around, I went with my wife and therefore I booked the Queen Ensuite Bedroom.

Previously I booked my rooms directly via Space Hotel website because I found their weekly rates to be lower than Agoda.com rate per night; but this time around, I only stayed 2 nights at Space Hotel and found that Agoda daily rate was better than Space Hotel website rates. Click here to read my article on Agoda versus HotelClub for Online Room Reservations.

Without further ado, here are some photos taken of the Queen Ensuite Room I stayed in at Space Hotel. Fresh towels were provided daily and toiletries included bath gel, shampoo and conditioner.