New Cha-Ching Chequing and Savvy Savings Account | Motive Financial | Discussion forum

The Savvy Savings Acct charges $5 for the 3rd transaction (deposit or withdrawal)
so the account must be aimed for very minimal transactions whether deposits or withdrawals. Guess if you put in a large deposit upfront like a GIC without adding more or withdrawing, then it can work. Otherwise each Service Charge of $5 is going to cut into the interest earned.

Peter said
* Motive Cha-Ching Chequing Account -- same as its previous no-fee chequing account, but with unlimited Interac e-Transfers?
ns* Motive Savvy Savings Account -- 2.80% interest rate (which is market leading), but only 2 free external transactio per month, then $5 per transaction  

About bloody time they offered a savings account with a decent rate. Opened one each toady! Just transferred to Hubert from EQ, so have to wait a week to move it to the new account.
Unlimited Interac e-Transfers, but not free:
Interac® e-Transfer makes it easy. Send money to anyone with a mobile phone number or email address for just $1.00. Receive money right to your Motive account for free. Also, they do pay interest on the new chequing account. .25% while regular account pays .6% No biggie one way or another.
Not sure about the 5 buck fee for deposits?? Doesn't sound right, and obviously, if internal transfers are free and unlimited, can work around by transferring from external account to chequing first.

Definitely not user friendly
For the Savvy Savings, they need to define what a "transaction" comprises (since only 2 are allowed before $5 fee cuts in). If a transaction does exclude transfers between Motive Accounts, then sure, why not deposit/withdraw via the regular Motive Savings or Chequing and then move to the Savvy Savings and vice versa.
Needs to be explained better.
Not impressed!

Loonie said
I was trying to see how you could open a joint account, but the application set-up seems to assume a single person. Anyone know how this works?  

When I was on the phone with the CSR, I did ask about setting it up as joint and she said there was a box to check on the application. Set up 3 accounts and no box that I could see. She did it over the phone and it appeared in my wife's list of accounts immediately.
Motive has some of the best CSR's I have to deal with.

Rick said
Just talked to CSR. Deposits are not considered chargeable transactions, even EFT's. She even suggested moving funds to our checking account first to avoid the fee when withdrawing to external accounts. Since these accounts are for saving anyway, (not a lot of outbound activity), extremely happy with the new accounts and rates. Now have 4 non-registered CDIC insured accounts with them between my wife and myself. Oh yeah....can also make them joint accounts.
Feel much better now that liquid cash is in one of the larger CANADIAN CDIC insured banks. Manitoba made me a bit nervous having all my eggs in their basket.  

Very interesting - I emailed Motive asking the question whether Deposits in the Savvy Acct were counted as a transaction towards the 2 free transactions per month and they answered yes - I re-asked the question to be clear and it came back the same -"there would be $5 charge for the third transaction whether deposit or withdrawal." They did not say anything about routing transactions via regular savings or chequing to the Savvy Savings. Hope the agents understand these new products. Hope some other posters phone and ask the same questions and hope Motive does more clarity on their website. e.g. define transactions as not including deposits, if that is truly the case.

Rick, I do agree with you about the Manitoba CUs - while "unlikely" to go under, deposits are definitely not covered by the Provincial Govt of Manitoba - I have made several phone calls to Manitoba contacts on this. There is "low" risk but there is a risk in the event the Manitoba economy/agriculture has a downturn. Manitoba's economy has had its problems over the years. With CDIC, there is NO risk for bank deposits up to 100K.

I called and converted my Motive Chequing account to the Motive Cha Ching Chequing account.

I can confirm that etransfers are free as I just sent one. Their website is confusing I agree.

canadian.100 said

Very interesting - I emailed Motive asking the question whether Deposits in the Savvy Acct were counted as a transaction towards the 2 free transactions per month and they answered yes - I re-asked the question to be clear and it came back the same -"there would be $5 charge for the third transaction whether deposit or withdrawal." They did not say anything about routing transactions via regular savings or chequing to the Savvy Savings. Hope the agents understand these new products. Hope some other posters phone and ask the same questions and hope Motive does more clarity on their website. e.g. define transactions as not including deposits, if that is truly the case.

Rick, I do agree with you about the Manitoba CUs - while "unlikely" to go under, deposits are definitely not covered by the Provincial Govt of Manitoba - I have made several phone calls to Manitoba contacts on this. There is "low" risk but there is a risk in the event the Manitoba economy/agriculture has a downturn. Manitoba's economy has had its problems over the years. With CDIC, there is NO risk for bank deposits up to 100K.  

I'm sure they are still getting the facts straight for a new product. I have never read a T&C opening an account anywhere that was crystal clear. I've always had questions. Motive's CSRs are usually pretty good at answering them. At least they're human and pretty easy to talk to. Right on the features page it does say "Transfers between your Motive accounts" are free, so I include deposits and withdrawals from internal accounts. I don't know of any bank that charges 5 bux to make a deposit. Certainly not an account I'd utilize.

I'm not real worried about MB CUs going under or how they're insured... but they have my retirement so just not comfortable with the all my eggs in one basket scenario. Motive is also my D2D bank, so happy it's all a little more convenient. They are long overdue for offering a saving account with a decent rate.

Too late for the majority of our RSP's, but still holding out hope they come thru and offer RIF's.

Transfers between Motive accounts is free. Just use the other accounts for free withdrawals and deposits. Can't go wrong, that way.

Regular savings account is also unlimited transactions.
So you could have the two Savings accounts, if you don't want chequing.

Transfers between Motive accounts are not Transactions.

I agree, why not just make external deposits and withdrawals, from the Savvy Savings ,unlimited and free. I'm not sure what they gain by limiting Savvy Savings external transactions. Perhaps having at least two accounts per customer makes them feel larger, somehow.