As we enter the final few months of 2008, I want to thank you for your continued confidence in ING DIRECT. Over 700,000 new Savers have joined us so far this year strengthening the bank and their own financial footing through our savings, home mortgage and ShareBuilder investment accounts. Despite a challenging economic climate, our Customer base is 7 million strong and growing.
The consequences of the mortgage meltdown on financial institutions and individuals continue to erode many Americans' dreams. We will continue to stress the right way to achieve home ownership – buying only as much house as you can afford and paying off your mortgage as fast as possible. In return for good credit and prioritizing home investment, ING DIRECT mortgage Customers are rewarded with exceptional rates and a transparent, direct administration process. Rather than selling your mortgage to another bank or investor the minute you get it, we keep your mortgage and service it here. Doing so gives us flexibility to find innovative solutions to help Customers keep their homes during unexpected financial downturns.
While we don’t have an Orange crystal ball, we do expect the economy to remain fragile through 2009. The best course of action for our Customers is to be disciplined: avoid splurging; identify and cut out unnecessary expenses and save for what's essential; and hedge against those tough times. We can all benefit by developing good spending habits: confront - and cut up - credit cards; use your home as a savings vehicle - not as an ATM; and establish and contribute regularly to an IRA or 401(k).
In this difficult financial environment, we work tirelessly to safeguard your deposits, mortgages and investments. Importantly, your deposits are FDIC-insured according to its limits and your investments are SIPC-protected. Our security processes are the best in the business and are in place to protect your savings from those with bad intentions. While we are constantly vigilant, we need your help. Keep passwords to yourself. Never give personal information through an email. And always install both the latest antivirus and anti-malware software on your home computer. ING Ball
Thank you for your continued trust in ING DIRECT. We will not waver in our promise to provide you with great value, service, security and convenience.
Arkadi Kuhlmann CEO of Savings"
While I understand your concerns, and also have the same thoughts...the facts are that if the FDIC does not follow through with what they have all promised us, as consumers, this country will have a far larger problem on it's hands if we all panic and remove our funds from various institutions. I think that knowledge is power, so we all just have to self educate and be aware of the markets out there.
For right now, I am going to keep my savings where it is.
Hi! I'm not sure if this was mentioned before (forgive me if it was) but if you are concerned about the stability of the banks, what about using the money there to pay off the debt? I can't remember what kind you have (so this really will only be beneficial if you have high interest debt). Once the markets recover, you can then divert back to savings (using the extra money from the reduced minimums).
Other then that, I don't think you have to worry. From what I gather, ING is a pretty stand up company and their exposure to the subprime mess is limited!
Good Luck!
Bex
Bex -
"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift -thats why its called the present."
I do work in the industry, and all I have to say is now is probably a bad time to move your 401Ks. Seriously. Call the person in charge and talk to them, but most experts will tell you NOT to move your money. You probably did lose a lot in the market, but if you take it out now, it will be a real loss (because you won't be able to make it back). If you leave it in, when the market bounces back (and it will, even if it takes awhile) you'll make your money back. Case in point- the market bounced back today after the announcements that the Fed was bailing out AIG and the mergers announced by the large banks. So if you'd moved your money out yesterday, you'd have lost a lot, but if you moved it out today, not as much. Your best bet is to call teh person who manages your 401K- they'll be able to tell you what's the best thing for you to do. My dad, for instance, had a lot invested in AIG- today, he was down like 80K. Seriously. His broker told him to not move the money under any circumstances. It has hit bottom and gotten bailed out. By next week, it'll be up again.
As for your savings, you can call the bank and make sure they're covered. The gov will not let the FDIC-insured deposits go away. Even if there's not enough money in the FDIC fund, they'll figure it out. Like everyone has already said, the problems would be much bigger if they let the FDIC insured deposits fail.
Hey all, me again. I have been reading through your posts and everyone has great advice, it's a very knowledgable group. I love reading this board.
I just wanted to mention again, and this goes for everything in life, not just finances - knowledge is power. The more information you have about any subject, the more confident you will feel in your decision making.
I have been looking for a house for a while now. When I started the process, I knew nothing about mortgages, home buying, home inspections, all of it. As I began my journey, I read everything I could on all the above. I have to say that what little I know has saved me from a long list of painful outcomes that could have happened.
One website I frequent (besides this one) is yahoo, specifically the finance page. I read everything, all the "expert" advice too. A lot of people like this expert, and not that one. It doesn't really matter if you like the person or not, what matters is, do they have some information you can learn from? If not, no big deal, you only wasted a minute or two reading. At the very least, you may take a small part of the article with you for the future.
Many are saying this financial crisis is as worse as the Great Depression, but now we know what worked then, so we are able to implement the changes(fixes) sooner. Why wait for total devastation when you can fix things along the way? As bad as it is right now, it can get so so so much worse. But, as a group, we have to be strong, and smart, and make sound decisions. Based on what we know to be true.
I also have a savings account with ING....I recently got an email from ING, maybe about 2 weeks ago? I copied it here, see below:
"Image: Arkadi Kuhlmann, President & CEO of
ING DIRECT. ceocorner@ingdirect.com
As we enter the final few months of 2008, I want to thank you for your continued confidence in ING DIRECT. Over 700,000 new Savers have joined us so far this year strengthening the bank and their own financial footing through our savings, home mortgage and ShareBuilder investment accounts. Despite a challenging economic climate, our Customer base is 7 million strong and growing.
The consequences of the mortgage meltdown on financial institutions and individuals continue to erode many Americans' dreams. We will continue to stress the right way to achieve home ownership – buying only as much house as you can afford and paying off your mortgage as fast as possible. In return for good credit and prioritizing home investment, ING DIRECT mortgage Customers are rewarded with exceptional rates and a transparent, direct administration process. Rather than selling your mortgage to another bank or investor the minute you get it, we keep your mortgage and service it here. Doing so gives us flexibility to find innovative solutions to help Customers keep their homes during unexpected financial downturns.
While we don’t have an Orange crystal ball, we do expect the economy to remain fragile through 2009. The best course of action for our Customers is to be disciplined: avoid splurging; identify and cut out unnecessary expenses and save for what's essential; and hedge against those tough times. We can all benefit by developing good spending habits: confront - and cut up - credit cards; use your home as a savings vehicle - not as an ATM; and establish and contribute regularly to an IRA or 401(k).
In this difficult financial environment, we work tirelessly to safeguard your deposits, mortgages and investments. Importantly, your deposits are FDIC-insured according to its limits and your investments are SIPC-protected. Our security processes are the best in the business and are in place to protect your savings from those with bad intentions. While we are constantly vigilant, we need your help. Keep passwords to yourself. Never give personal information through an email. And always install both the latest antivirus and anti-malware software on your home computer.
ING Ball
Thank you for your continued trust in
ING DIRECT. We will not waver in our promise to provide you with great value, service, security and convenience.
Arkadi Kuhlmann
CEO of Savings"
While I understand your concerns, and also have the same thoughts...the facts are that if the FDIC does not follow through with what they have all promised us, as consumers, this country will have a far larger problem on it's hands if we all panic and remove our funds from various institutions. I think that knowledge is power, so we all just have to self educate and be aware of the markets out there.
For right now, I am going to keep my savings where it is.
I don't know a lot but this is what
Here's a link to what is insured and not insured through the FDIC.
http://www.fdic.gov/consumers/consumer/information/fdiciorn.html
I would say if you see that your ING savings and CDs are FDIC insured (and they should be if they are operating in the US) then you are safe.
Good information here, I was interested in the ING letter.
If things get so bad that FDIC insured accounts go south, we will all have larger problems than just our bank savings.
Thanks for those links, Kellie.
I do think it's important to be prudent, but not to panic.
Hi! I'm not sure if this was mentioned before (forgive me if it was) but if you are concerned about the stability of the banks, what about using the money there to pay off the debt? I can't remember what kind you have (so this really will only be beneficial if you have high interest debt). Once the markets recover, you can then divert back to savings (using the extra money from the reduced minimums).
Other then that, I don't think you have to worry. From what I gather, ING is a pretty stand up company and their exposure to the subprime mess is limited!
Good Luck!
Bex
Bex -
"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift -thats why its called the present."
Bex -
I do work in the industry, and all I have to say is now is probably a bad time to move your 401Ks. Seriously. Call the person in charge and talk to them, but most experts will tell you NOT to move your money. You probably did lose a lot in the market, but if you take it out now, it will be a real loss (because you won't be able to make it back). If you leave it in, when the market bounces back (and it will, even if it takes awhile) you'll make your money back. Case in point- the market bounced back today after the announcements that the Fed was bailing out AIG and the mergers announced by the large banks. So if you'd moved your money out yesterday, you'd have lost a lot, but if you moved it out today, not as much. Your best bet is to call teh person who manages your 401K- they'll be able to tell you what's the best thing for you to do. My dad, for instance, had a lot invested in AIG- today, he was down like 80K. Seriously. His broker told him to not move the money under any circumstances. It has hit bottom and gotten bailed out. By next week, it'll be up again.
As for your savings, you can call the bank and make sure they're covered. The gov will not let the FDIC-insured deposits go away. Even if there's not enough money in the FDIC fund, they'll figure it out. Like everyone has already said, the problems would be much bigger if they let the FDIC insured deposits fail.
Hey all, me again. I have been reading through your posts and everyone has great advice, it's a very knowledgable group. I love reading this board.
I just wanted to mention again, and this goes for everything in life, not just finances - knowledge is power. The more information you have about any subject, the more confident you will feel in your decision making.
I have been looking for a house for a while now. When I started the process, I knew nothing about mortgages, home buying, home inspections, all of it. As I began my journey, I read everything I could on all the above. I have to say that what little I know has saved me from a long list of painful outcomes that could have happened.
One website I frequent (besides this one) is yahoo, specifically the finance page. I read everything, all the "expert" advice too. A lot of people like this expert, and not that one. It doesn't really matter if you like the person or not, what matters is, do they have some information you can learn from? If not, no big deal, you only wasted a minute or two reading. At the very least, you may take a small part of the article with you for the future.
Many are saying this financial crisis is as worse as the Great Depression, but now we know what worked then, so we are able to implement the changes(fixes) sooner. Why wait for total devastation when you can fix things along the way? As bad as it is right now, it can get so so so much worse. But, as a group, we have to be strong, and smart, and make sound decisions. Based on what we know to be true.