Now, HelloWallet, a developer of personal finance software, has created a tool that can help you nail down the amount that's right for you. At www.hellowallet.com/emergencysavings, you'll enter information including your take-home pay, regular monthly expenses, whether you rent or own your home, and your health insurance policy's annual deductible and out-of-pocket maximum. The tool then estimates the amount of easily accessible savings you should have in the event of a minor emergency, a major emergency or a layoff from work. Starting from the ground up? You can use each figure as an incremental goal toward building your emergency fund. To track your regular monthly expenses, use a budgeting site such as Mint.com so you can link your bank, credit card and other financial accounts. The best place to keep your emergency fund is in a savings or money market deposit account with a high yield and no monthly fee or minimum-balance requirement. (Watch out for fees for leaving the account inactive.) GE Capital Bank, My Savings Direct and Synchrony Bank offer accounts that yield 1.05 percent without minimum-balance requirements or fees (Synchrony will charge you $5 a month if your balance drops below $30). The trick to successful saving is to pay yourself first; schedule automatic transfers into savings from your checking account after each paycheck arrives.
