Family Building Society launches two-year fixed savings account that tracks the base rate – here's how it works and how it compares
Family Building Society has unveiled a two-year fixed savings account that tracks the base rate. The launch comes as the market braces for further interest rate rises from the Bank of England as the central bank attempts to curb rising inflation.
Update: 4 November 2022: New savers can no longer take out the account described in this article - Family Building Society's two-year fixed savings account that tracks the base rate and offers a 0.85% bonus - as it's been removed from sale.
The account has instead been replaced with another two-year fixed-term bond, which tracks the base rate, but without a bonus. This means the new account will pay 3% from 1 December compared to 3.85% with the previous iteration. Elsewhere, you can currently earn up to 2.55% on easy-access savings and up to 5.05% for fixing. See our Top Savings guide for the best buys.
Below we explain how the new Family Building Society (BS) account works and whether it's worth it.
You can also see our Top savings accounts guide for the best buy easy-access, notice and fixed-rate accounts.
How the Family Building Society account works
The Family BS tracker account offers a rate of whatever the base rate is, plus 0.85%. It updates the rate on the first of the month after any change in base rate. So even though you have to lock your money away for two years, your interest rate will rise and fall if the market does during this period.
In 2022 alone, the Bank of England has increased base rate six times, from 0.25% at the start of the year, up to 2.25% on 22 September. This means come 1 October, the rate on the Family BS account will be 3.1%.
So if you’re looking to lock away some of your savings, this type of account could be worth considering given predictions that base rate is likely to rise further. Of course, you also need to bear in mind that the base rate could fall and you can't withdraw your cash from this account before the two years is up. So for more certainty, a standard fixed-rate account may suit you better.
How the Family Building Society's interest rate compares
The top fixed savings rates are typically higher than the base rate, but tend to rise alongside it. The highest standard two-year fixed savings rates also currently beat The Family BS's rate of 3.1% by around 1 percentage point.
The table below demonstrates how interest on top fixed rates, the base rate, and a tracker account have behaved over the past six months.
Product | Rate six months ago | Rate one month ago | Rate now |
|---|---|---|---|
1.8% | 3.3% | 4.1% | |
2.11% | 3.49% | 4.32% | |
2.2% | 3.51% | 4.3% | |
Base rate | 0.5% | 1.75% | 2.25% |
(Base rate + 0.85%) | 1.6% (1) | 2.6% (1) | 3.1% (As of 1 October) |
(1) This is based on the tracker account's current rate of 0.85% + base rate, rather than rates previously available with older iterations of this account.
Don't want to fix? You can earn up to 2.5% with an easy-access account
From what we can find, this is the only savings account that tracks the base rate in this way (though please let us know if you find any more by emailing news@moneysavingexpert.com). They used to be more common, but many providers have since discontinued the products.
If you don't want to fix, the minimumyou should earn from your savings is 2%, though up to 2.5% is available for some. Take a look at our top easy-access accounts guide. These accounts typically allow you to withdraw your money whenever you like, though they offer lower interest rates compared to fixing. Yorkshire Building Society currently offers the highest rates of 2.5% on up to £5,000 and 2% on anything above this.
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1 October 2024
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