faqs
FAQ - Easy Savings - EasyStreet
General questions |
Applying for an Easy Savings Account |
Managing your Easy Savings account |
General Questions |
Are there any fees on my Easy Savings account? |
| No, there are no fees on your Easy Savings account. |
Is there a minimum balance? |
| There is no minimum balance on your Easy Savings account. Interest is paid on all balances greater than $0. When you first open your Easy Savings account, you will however be required to deposit a minimum of $2.00 to pay for your Member share which is fully refundable should you decide to close the account. |
What is the maximum balance? |
| The maximum balance on your Easy Savings account is $1 million. All balances up to $1 million are 100% Government Guaranteed until at least October 2011. |
How much interest will I earn? |
| To work out exactly how much interest you will earn based on your personal savings plan, check out our Savings Simulator. Simply enter your initial investment amount, plus your ongoing deposits and the simulator will work it out for you. Current Easy Street interest rates can be found under Current Rates. |
Can I set up a regular savings plan? |
| Yes, this can be set up when you first open your Easy Savings account, or at a later stage via Internet Banking. You can choose to make a recurring deposit of an amount of your choice to your Easy Savings account, from your linked account. Regular payments can be made to occur automatically on a weekly, fortnightly or monthly basis. |
| How to set up your regular savings plan > |
| < Back to top > |
What is a 'transfer account'? |
| Your transfer account is an account you hold at another financial institution that you will nominate to make transfers to and from your Easy Savings account. You can only nominate one transfer account, and this is done when you first apply for your Easy Savings account. |
Do I need to switch banks? |
| No, your Easy Savings account is designed to be linked to another bank account. You can manage your savings on Easy Street while retaining your every day transaction account elsewhere. |
| Is my money safe? |
| Yes. All deposits up to $1 million are 100% Government guaranteed until at least October 2011. In addition, we are backed by Community First Credit Union, Sydney's largest community based credit union. We have strict prudential standards that govern Easy Street, and we source over 94% of our funds from Member deposits. We have no direct exposure to any ‘sub-prime’ markets or loans, which contributed to the global financial crisis, nor have we invested in securities based on sub-prime loans. |
| Read more> |
Applying for an Easy Savings account |
Who can apply for an Easy Savings account? |
| To apply for Easy Savings you will need to be: |
|
How do I open an Easy Savings account? |
| You can apply online to open an Easy Savings account in 4 simple steps. |
How will I know when my Easy Savings account has been established? |
| You will receive an email from us conforming your new Member number once your initial deposit has cleared. You will then be able to log on to Internet Banking using your Member number and the temporary personal access code you nominated in your application. |
| < Back to top > |
How long does it take before my money is available after completing a transfer? |
| Deposits (Transfers IN) initiated after 2.00pm (EST) will appear after 2.00pm (EST) on the next business day. If a deposit is intiated before 2.00pm (EST) on a business day it will usually appear after 2:00pm (EST) on that same business day. If a Transfer OUT is made before 2.00pm (EST) on a business day, the withdrawn funds are generally transferred to your transfer account on that same business day. If the Transfer OUT is made after 2.00pm (EST) the funds will generally be available on the next business day. |
How long does it take to set up an Easy Savings account? |
| You can complete an Easy Savings application form online in four easy steps. It should only take you a few minutes. You will then receive an email from us within 12 hours either confirming your new account details, or requesting a copy of your ID if we are unsuccessful in verifying your identity electronically. |
| What information will I need to complete my application? |
| When applying for an Easy Savings account, along with your usual personal details, you will also need to provide: |
|
| Will I need to provide ID to open my account? |
| When we receive your Easy Savings application, we will attempt to verify your identity electronically. To assist us in doing this, you should complete as much information in the application as possible. If we are unsuccessful in verifying your identity electronically, we will contact you to request some additional forms of ID. |
| < Back to top > |
| Why do I need to pay a $2 share? |
| To be eligible to apply for any products or services with Easy Street, you need to become a Member by paying $2. This $2 acts as a Member share in Easy Street and is fully refundable should you decide to close your account with us. Easy Street is powered by Community First Credit Union, and rather than using our profits to pay dividends to shareholders, we use them to deliver better rates, lower fees and a superior level of service to our Members. |
Managing your Easy Savings account |
How do I deposit money into my Easy Savings account? |
| You can deposit funds in to your Easy Savings account in the following ways: |
|
| Please note that Easy Street does not accept cash deposits or cheques. |
| < Back to top > |
How long before I start to earn interest on my Easy Savings account? |
| Providing your balance is greater than $0, you will start to earn interest immediately. Interest is calculated daily and paid at the end of each month. |
How do I withdraw money from my Easy Savings account? |
| Simply select 'Credit External' found under 'Transfers' from the top menu in Easy Street Internet Banking. Transfers out of your Easy Savings account can only be made to your linked account. This helps to make your Easy Savings account even more secure than it already is.1300 13 14 65 to authorise a transfer of funds from your Easy Savings account to your transfer account. |
How do I change my transfer (linked) account? |
| You can change your transfer account (also known as your linked account) by sending us a request via secure email. Simply log on to Internet Banking and select 'Other' followed by 'Secure Email' from the top menu. Please note that in order to change your transfer account, you will need to provide us a copy of the account statement of the new linked account so that we can verify the account holder(s). This is for security reasons and is designed to protect you. You can email your statement to askus@easystreet.com.au, fax it to 02 9735 1661, or post it to: Easy Street Financial Services PO Box 98 Lidcombe NSW 1825. |
Can I arrange for my salary to be directly credited to my Easy Savings account? |
| Yes, you can deposit all or part of your salary in to your Easy Savings account. |
| < Back to top > |
| How do I obtain a statement for my account? |
| While our Internet Banking service provides you with transaction listings, to obtain a statement for account, you will need to be registered for our E-statements service. Using our E-statements service, you can search, view and print your statements. To register, send us a secure email via Internet Banking by clicking 'Other' followed by 'Secure email' from the top menu. Alternatively, call us on 1300 13 14 65. |
| How do I find out what my current interest rate is? |
| To find out the current interest rate on your Easy Savings account, visit our Interest Rates page. |
| How do I calculate interest I have earned for this financial year? |
| To view how much interest you have earned on your account at any one time, simply click 'Other' followed by 'Interest' from the top menu when logged in to Internet Banking. Your interest earned for the financial year will be displayed in your end of financial year e-statement. You will be notified when this is available to view, download and print from our secure e-statements site. |
| < Back to top > |
| Why am I being charged withholding tax on my account? |
| If you do not provide us with your Tax File Number (TFN), we are required to deduct withholding tax from you. Withholding tax is a tax deducted from the gross amount of interest paid to you. Withholding tax is deducted at the time when interest is credited to your account. In the case of joint accounts, both account holders are required to supply a valid TFN if you do not wish for withholding tax to be deducted. If you quote your TFN, no tax will be taken out of interest paid on your account. Please note that it is not an offence if you choose not to quote your TFN. |
| How do I set up or amend a regular savings plan? |
| To set up or amend your regular savings plan, you will need to log on to Easy Street Internet Banking. Once logged in, select 'Debit External' from the top menu item titled 'Transaction'. Then, select the account you are transferring to, followed by a reference and the amount you would like to have debited on a regular basis. Click 'Pay Later' and scroll down to enter the relevant details in the 'Future Regular Payment' section that will drop down. Click 'OK' to confirm. |
| What is Easy Street's BSB? |
| Easy Street's BSB number is 802 038. |
| < Back to top > |
| What is my alternate account reference number? |
| If your linked account you nominated when you applied was an account held with Community First Credit Union, you will also be given an 'alternative account reference number' from us in your account welcome email. This reference number will simply appear as your nominated linked account number on Easy Street, rather than your Community First Member number. |
How often will I receive a statement? |
| Statements on Easy Street are delivered through our secure e-statements site which gives you easy access to your statements and helps reduce paper wastage. A new statement will be posted to our e-statements site every 4 months and you will be notified via email when it is ready. We will not send you a statement if your Account has been inactive during the period to which the statement would relate. Each statement of account will record all transactions on your Account since the last statement of account. Please tell us immediately if you find an error on your statement. If you are not receiving emails from us to let you know that your latest e-statement is available, you should contact us so that we can rectify it. Account information is also available by accessing your Account through Easy Street Internet Banking. |
| For further information on our e-statements service, visit our FAQ section. |
Still not sure? |
| We've attempted to answer a range of common questions here, but if you're still not sure, you might like to give us a call on 1300 13 14 65. |
| < Back to top > |
