With two quarter point rises in base rate during the final third of 2006, the interest rates on offer to savers now look far more attractive than they did twelve months ago.
I'm sure many of you will be making those all to familiar New Year resolutions to drink less, smoke less and generally transform yourself into a more healthy human being.
Whilst it is all well and good making such resolutions, in the majority of cases, many are broken well before we reach February. So why not make a promise to yourself to improve the state of your finances as well as your health, and seek out a better home for your savings account?
With no notice accounts from Anglo Irish Bank and Birmingham Midshires currently paying 5.30% gross and 5.25% gross respectively, it could well be time to ditch your existing provider for one that is going to provide you a with a much better return on your hard earned cash.
Don't assume that just because you signed up to an account that was a 'best buy' at the time you opened it, that it will always be the best. A recent example that highlights this is the once chart topping direct savings account from ING, which has decided not to pass on any of the latest 0.25% rise to its estimated 1.1 million customers.
There has been some additional good news for savers who look to shelter some of their money in a tax free Individual Savings Account (ISA). The Chancellor confirmed in his Pre Budget Report last week that these accounts were here to stay beyond 2010, so if you haven't got yourself an ISA, why not take a look in 2007?
It is possible to save £3,000 in cash each tax year and with the likes of the Portman Building Society and Saffron Building Society currently paying 5.80% tax free, then this is certainly an area worth investigating.
So while you're trudging round the January sales looking for a bargain, why not pop in to your existing savings provider and find out what rate of interest you are currently getting? It could be a case of new year, new bank.
