Playing the waiting game

I posted recently about my plan to use ING to hold "unused" cash from each paycheque, and as I implement this plan for the first time, I've noted some tweaks that need to be made:

• Planning ahead - I made my first "unused funds" transfer to ING after receiving my pay last Thursday. However, since I requested the transfer on Thursday morning, ING didn't actually process the transaction until Friday, meaning that the funds are on hold until this coming Friday. If I had scheduled the transaction in advance, then ING would have processed it on Thursday, clearing the funds a day earlier.


• Having a buffer - Since this is my first time implementing this approach, the available balance in the ING sub-account is currently $0 (the rest is on hold). This means that this money is effectively trapped at ING until Friday morning. Transfers are only delayed when ING is receiving funds; when I transfer funds from ING, my brick-and-mortar bank makes the funds available the day after ING processes the transaction. Therefore, I am planning to build up a $600 cushion in this ING account, so that there will always be adequate funds available to cover regular expenses.

By making these minor changes to my cash flow management, the system will move much more smoothly.