Lively HSA offers first dollar investing

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indexfundfan
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Lively HSA offers first dollar investing

Post by indexfundfan »

EDIT 12/20/18: The $30/yr fee is eliminated from 1/1/2019. Press release https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/ ... Fee-Health

Lively, a startup, offers HSA accounts with "first dollar" investing for $2.50/month ($30/year). Investments are held at TD Ameritrade.

https://livelyme.com/individual-and-fam ... es/invest/

I certainly hope to see more competition to drive down the junk fees charged in the current HSA provider market.
Last edited by indexfundfan on Thu Dec 20, 2018 12:40 pm, edited 4 times in total.
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Soon2BXProgrammer
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by Soon2BXProgrammer »

this looks promising to shake up the providers. nothing like a start up with 8 total people to raise a bunch of money to change things.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by Kidneydoc »

What is interest rate in Lively HSA account? Never mentioned on website. Sick of HSA Bank too many fees.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by TIAX »

indexfundfan wrote: Tue Sep 26, 2017 9:00 pm Lively, a startup, offers HSA accounts with "first dollar" investing for $2.50/month ($30/year). Investments are held at TD Ameritrade.

https://livelyme.com/individual-and-fam ... es/invest/

I certainly hope to see more competition to drive down the junk fees charged in the current HSA provider market.
This is also great news for small businesses. It's free for under 10 employees and $4/employee/month for 10+.

I assume by "first dollar" you mean that we can invest 100% of the hSA funds. Is this the best HSA now for people who want to invest and not keep any HSA funds in cash? If anyone uses Lively, please post experience.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by indexfundfan »

TIAX wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 6:42 am
indexfundfan wrote: Tue Sep 26, 2017 9:00 pm Lively, a startup, offers HSA accounts with "first dollar" investing for $2.50/month ($30/year). Investments are held at TD Ameritrade.

https://livelyme.com/individual-and-fam ... es/invest/

I certainly hope to see more competition to drive down the junk fees charged in the current HSA provider market.
This is also great news for small businesses. It's free for under 10 employees and $4/employee/month for 10+.

I assume by "first dollar" you mean that we can invest 100% of the hSA funds. Is this the best HSA now for people who want to invest and not keep any HSA funds in cash? If anyone uses Lively, please post experience.
The website says "No minimum balance required. It’s up to you to decide how much of your HSA funds to invest." So I assume you can invest 100% of the funds.

For those who invest once a year, Saturna is still the best ($15 for one ETF trade). The next best alternative that supports "first dollar" investing is with HSA Authority. They offer a bunch of Vanguard mutual funds, for a fee of $36/year.

Lively is very new. I believe they announced the TD Ameritrade link-up only yesterday.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

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Kidneydoc wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 5:56 am What is interest rate in Lively HSA account? Never mentioned on website. Sick of HSA Bank too many fees.
I am not impressed with their interest rates. It is listed in the fineprint on the following page

https://livelyme.com/individuals-and-families/

Tier 1: 0.05% (APY of 0.05%) for daily balances less than or equal to $2,499.99.
Tier 2: 0.15% (APY of 0.15%) for daily balances of $2,500.00 or more, but less than or equal to $4,999.99.
Tier 3: 0.30% (APY of 0.30%) for daily balances of $5,000.00 or more, but less than or equal to $14,999.99.
Tier 4: 0.55% (APY of 0.55%) for daily balances of $15,000.00 or more.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by aristotelian »

indexfundfan wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 7:12 am I am not impressed with their interest rates. It is listed in the fineprint on the following page

https://livelyme.com/individuals-and-families/

Tier 1: 0.05% (APY of 0.05%) for daily balances less than or equal to $2,499.99.
Tier 2: 0.15% (APY of 0.15%) for daily balances of $2,500.00 or more, but less than or equal to $4,999.99.
Tier 3: 0.30% (APY of 0.30%) for daily balances of $5,000.00 or more, but less than or equal to $14,999.99.
Tier 4: 0.55% (APY of 0.55%) for daily balances of $15,000.00 or more.
That doesn't bother me. You could keep your HSA savings at another bank, or use a MM fund or 3-month CD in the investment account.
indexfundfan wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 7:09 am The website says "No minimum balance required. It’s up to you to decide how much of your HSA funds to invest." So I assume you can invest 100% of the funds.

For those who invest once a year, Saturna is still the best ($15 for one ETF trade). The next best alternative that supports "first dollar" investing is with HSA Authority. They offer a bunch of Vanguard mutual funds, for a fee of $36/year.

Lively is very new. I believe they announced the TD Ameritrade link-up only yesterday.
HSA Authority has a limited selection of funds. Lively appears to be the cheapest full brokerage option. HSA Bank has higher fees, and Selectaccount has a $10k minimum for their Schwab option. I am very interested in this.
Last edited by aristotelian on Wed Sep 27, 2017 8:49 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by TIAX »

indexfundfan wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 7:12 am
Kidneydoc wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 5:56 am What is interest rate in Lively HSA account? Never mentioned on website. Sick of HSA Bank too many fees.
I am not impressed with their interest rates. It is listed in the fineprint on the following page

https://livelyme.com/individuals-and-families/

Tier 1: 0.05% (APY of 0.05%) for daily balances less than or equal to $2,499.99.
Tier 2: 0.15% (APY of 0.15%) for daily balances of $2,500.00 or more, but less than or equal to $4,999.99.
Tier 3: 0.30% (APY of 0.30%) for daily balances of $5,000.00 or more, but less than or equal to $14,999.99.
Tier 4: 0.55% (APY of 0.55%) for daily balances of $15,000.00 or more.
Why would anyone want to interest (especially when you can invest 100% of the fudns) in their HSA?
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by theplayer11 »


HSA Authority and Saturna both have a limited selection of funds. Lively appears to be the cheapest full brokerage option. HSA Bank has higher fees, and Selectaccount has a $10k minimum for their Schwab option. I am very interested in this.
why do you say Saturna has a limited selection of funds? Last I checked, they offered everything
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by cas »

HSA fees aggravate me as much as anyone else, so I would really be happy to see new entrants to the marketplace figure out a better way to do things. But ... something doesn't quite seem to add up here.

What is so different about Lively that venture capitalists are putting money into them while, at the same time, an established HSA administrator like Alliant Credit Union has decided HSAs are no longer a viable business for them?

Lively (apparently very new start-up):
Our basic HSA is free for individuals – no monthly fees, no minimums, no nonsense. We think you should be able to save for free.
Source: https://livelyme.com/individuals-and-families/

Alliant Credit Union (Explaining why it just exited the HSA business, where it had "35,000 to 40,000 HSAs totaling $105 million to $115 million in custodial assets"):
We recognize that HSAs are growing rapidly, and soon even more robust technology and significant dedicated resources will be needed to keep up with increasingly more stringent compliance requirements.
Source: http://www.alliantcreditunion.org/news/ ... sa-members

In addition, the convergence of "FREE!"* "Silicon Valley start-up," and "venture capitalists" always gets me wondering about how a start-up is planning on making enough profit to please the venture capitalists.
Lively is based in San Francisco, CA and is backed by top-tier VC's and strategic investors.
Source: https://livelyme.com/about-us/

They apparently aren't making money off the TD Ameritrade link (bold added by me):
TD Ameritrade Self-Directed Brokerage Account. No minimum balance required, manage entirely online, only $2.50 / month (no additional fees by Lively).
Source: https://livelyme.com/individuals-and-families/

Are they making money via the low interest rates? Lively isn't a bank ... it just partners with one.** The usual banking method of making money off of the gap between the interest paid on a deposit account and the interest earned on loans made using those deposit assets wouldn't seem to apply. So, unless they have some partnering set-up where Lively is skimming some of the interest off of the FDIC-insured bank accounts as a stealth fee, I don't see how they are making money that way. (And if there is an undisclosed stealth fee, I'm not impressed, given all the wording about transparency.)

Are they planning to make money off my eyeballs?*** (But could they really make enough that way to pay salaries, keep up with the pressures that the Alliant CEO cites, AND satisfy venture capitalists?)

Are they planning on making money off my data? There are certainly plenty of Silicon Valley start-ups that take that monetization route, but . . . exactly what kind of HSA data is legally available for them to data mine? The thought of them mining some unknown portion of my HSA data gives me the willies.

Are they planning on introducing fees once enough accounts are lured in via the "FREE!"? (also a tactic I've seen with start-ups, e.g. Coursera)

Or something else I haven't thought of?

Notes:

*Re: "free". Anyone else take Dan Ariely's MOOC or read his Predictably Irrational on "The Price of FREE!"? Now I always get suspicous when I see "FREE!"

** Re: Lively is not a bank.
WE ARE ALSO NOT A BANK OR FINANCIAL INSTITUTION, ALTHOUGH WE MAY PARTNER WITH BANKS AND FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
Source: https://livelyme.com/terms-and-conditions/

***Re: potentially making money off eyeballs?
The Site may contain links to third-party websites and services, applications and/or display advertisements for third parties . . . Such Third-Party Links, Applications & Ads are not under the control of Lively, and Lively is not responsible for any Third-Party Links, Applications & Ads. Lively provides access to these Third-Party Links, Applications & Ads only as a convenience to you, and does not review, approve, monitor, endorse, warrant, or make any representations with respect to Third-Party Links, Applications & Ads. You use all Third-Party Links, Applications & Ads at your own risk, and should apply a suitable level of caution and discretion in doing so.
Source: https://livelyme.com/terms-and-conditions/
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by aristotelian »

cas wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 8:29 am HSA fees aggravate me as much as anyone else, so I would really be happy to see new entrants to the marketplace figure out a better way to do things. But ... something doesn't quite seem to add up here.

What is so different about Lively that venture capitalists are putting money into them while, at the same time, an established HSA administrator like Alliant Credit Union has decided HSAs are no longer a viable business for them?

Are they making money via the low interest rates? Lively isn't a bank ... it just partners with one.** The usual banking method of making money off of the gap between the interest paid on a deposit account and the interest earned on loans made using those deposit assets wouldn't seem to apply. So, unless they have some partnering set-up where Lively is skimming some of the interest off of the FDIC-insured bank accounts as a stealth fee, I don't see how they are making money that way. (And if there is an undisclosed stealth fee, I'm not impressed, given all the wording about transparency.)
It's pretty clear, they are making money by charging a low monthly fee that undercuts the competition. Same thing that Vanguard did to the mutual fund industry.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by aristotelian »

theplayer11 wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 8:25 am

HSA Authority and Saturna both have a limited selection of funds. Lively appears to be the cheapest full brokerage option. HSA Bank has higher fees, and Selectaccount has a $10k minimum for their Schwab option. I am very interested in this.
why do you say Saturna has a limited selection of funds? Last I checked, they offered everything
My mistake. Edited the post.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by gasdoc »

Is anyone familiar with TDAmeritrade? Do they charge fees for Vanguard funds? Do they have reasonable inexpensive index funds?

gasdoc
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by cas »

aristotelian wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 8:51 am It's pretty clear, they are making money by charging a low monthly fee that undercuts the competition. Same thing that Vanguard did to the mutual fund industry.
Which "low monthly fee" are you talking about that Lively might be making money off of?

-the $0/month deposit account fee for individuals and tiny businesses?
-the $4/month deposit account fee for small businesses? (If that is passed on to the employee, like many businesses do, then Lively fees are very similar to a bunch of other HSA administrators.)
-the $2.50/month TD Ameritrade fee that Lively says they get no part of?

(And Vanguard proclaims that they can charge low fees in a sustainable, long-term way because they don't have to please outside investors (like venture capitalists.) (Since they have a unique structure where they are owned by their own funds and thence indirectly by the shareholders in those funds. No outside investors.) So I'm not sure I see the similarity between Lively and Vanguard.)

But ... whatever. Lively may be a good deal for a while for people who don't mind shifting to a different HSA if Lively changes policies or goes under.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by aristotelian »

cas wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 9:03 ammaking money off of?

-the $0/month deposit account fee for individuals and tiny businesses?
-the $4/month deposit account fee for small businesses? (If that is passed on to the employee, like many businesses do, then Lively fees are very similar to a bunch of other HSA administrators.)
-the $2.50/month TD Ameritrade fee that Lively says they get no part of?
Where does it say that Lively gets no part of it? It says "no additional fees by Lively." I take that to mean that they get all or some of the $2.50 but don't charge anything else, e.g. transaction fees or expense ratios would go to TD or the funds.

Basically for $2.50/month they transfer your money to TD.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

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gasdoc wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 8:58 am Is anyone familiar with TDAmeritrade? Do they charge fees for Vanguard funds? Do they have reasonable inexpensive index funds?

gasdoc
TD Ameritrade has a lot of commission-free ETFs (including Vanguard ETFs). But low-cost mutual funds would have trading fees.

If you want to use TD Ameritrade, it is better to use ETFs.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

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gasdoc wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 8:58 am Is anyone familiar with TDAmeritrade? Do they charge fees for Vanguard funds? Do they have reasonable inexpensive index funds?

gasdoc
I had our accounts at TDAmeritrade for 20 years. I was always happy with the service. They have 101 commission-free ETFs, including a pretty good selection of Vanguard ETFs (but not all).
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by gasdoc »

Thanks! Might consider changing from Saturna at some point, but for now I'll wait and see. Saturna is nothing special, but it is an inexpensive place to invest larger HSA accounts and not been unreasonable.

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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by Soon2BXProgrammer »

looking to hear from someone that has opened a lively account... this might end up being on my todo list..
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by stockfuturist »

Just signed up. Will let folks know how it goes once I transfer and link with my employer. Happy to support a start up that is focused on using your HSA as an investment. In interviews with the guys they clearly understand this aspect. Don't really see the downside of switching, unless they go under and the hassle of moving again.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by GuineaPig »

I am going to give it a try. The money in the cash side is FDIC-insured (it appears to be at "Choice Financial," a North Dakota bank). The investment account it at TD Ameritrade. I'm imagining that if Lively were to collapse, it could be a pain in the butt, but the investments should still be mine. I hope my imagination is correct.

I actually was in the process of moving my HSA from Alliant Credit Union (mentioned above; leaving the HSA business) to another credit union. However, the paperwork involved in the process was very confusing -- the new credit union, First Tech, had me print out a bunch of confusing forms to sign, scan in, and email them. Due to the hassle, I hadn't yet gotten around to it. Lively appears very easy to sign up for.

As for the conversation above, I think one of the critiques above is wrong. In my mind, it makes perfect sense for Alliant to want to leave the HSA business: it's a lot of hassle, a relatively small part of their business, and its future is really as an investment vehicle, not as a banking service. For Lively, it makes perfect sense to enter: they see potential in a growing type of investment service which currently served pretty poorly. Two different businesses, both with reasonable points of view.

My biggest concern is about it being a small startup. And yes, that's a legit concern, but if the money is actually held in a real FDIC-insured bank and in a big brokerage, I'm okay with that risk.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by 523HRR »

We save with OptumBank HSA. No fees. Funds are invested with Vanguard VTSAX at 0.04% expense ratio. Very happy.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

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523HRR wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 4:02 pm We save with OptumBank HSA. No fees. Funds are invested with Vanguard VTSAX at 0.04% expense ratio. Very happy.
According to HSA Search, you are paying .03% portfolio fee plus a minimum of $3k or $2.75 monthly. Is that correct? If so Lively would seem to be slightly cheaper as well as having the full brokerage option.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

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stockfuturist wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 1:03 pm Just signed up. Will let folks know how it goes once I transfer and link with my employer. Happy to support a start up that is focused on using your HSA as an investment. In interviews with the guys they clearly understand this aspect. Don't really see the downside of switching, unless they go under and the hassle of moving again.
Your employer lets you choose the HSA custodian?
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

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aristotelian wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 4:25 pm
523HRR wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 4:02 pm We save with OptumBank HSA. No fees. Funds are invested with Vanguard VTSAX at 0.04% expense ratio. Very happy.
According to HSA Search, you are paying .03% portfolio fee plus a minimum of $3k or $2.75 monthly. Is that correct? If so Lively would seem to be slightly cheaper as well as having the full brokerage option.
It looks like there is also a $2k investment threshold (cash drag; cannot be invested) at the OptumBank HSA.

In my search for a HSA provider, I assign a "fee" value of $40 per year for each thousand that cannot be invested. $2k that cannot be invested is like a fee of $80 / year.
Last edited by indexfundfan on Wed Sep 27, 2017 4:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by Soon2BXProgrammer »

TIAX wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 4:29 pm Your employer lets you choose the HSA custodian?
For me no. my employer only supports 1 custodian for paycheck contributions.

However, i can open a second hsa anywhere i want, and do a partial (fee free) transfer from that custodian to another custodian, which i've considered doing roughly once a year.


unlike a 401k, where you are stuck, a HSA is owned by you, not by your employer, and don't have to leave your money there.

my employer pays the basic fees at health equity. They do not pay the investment fees. So i am looking for somewhere else to invest at.
Last edited by Soon2BXProgrammer on Wed Sep 27, 2017 4:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by 523HRR »

aristotelian wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 4:25 pm
523HRR wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2017 4:02 pm We save with OptumBank HSA. No fees. Funds are invested with Vanguard VTSAX at 0.04% expense ratio. Very happy.
According to HSA Search, you are paying .03% portfolio fee plus a minimum of $3k or $2.75 monthly. Is that correct? If so Lively would seem to be slightly cheaper as well as having the full brokerage option.
$3K minimum cash balance to avoid a monthly fee. After that, no 'portfolio fee' or monthly fee; just the .04% OER for the Vanguard fund. It does seem that the fee arrangement can vary depending on who your employer is/was. YMMV.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by John Laurens »

Lively is 36 bucks cheaper per year than HSAbank (my current provider) to invest 100% of HSA funds at TDA (which I do). Now to consider if it’s worth the time/money to switch.

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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by stockfuturist »

Signup process was painless. 5-minutes. Now to see about switching my payroll deduction.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

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stockfuturist wrote: Thu Sep 28, 2017 9:29 am Signup process was painless. 5-minutes. Now to see about switching my payroll deduction.
That's good to hear. The Saturna application took multiple pages and requires a snail mail to send in the paperwork.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by DriftWood »

SelectAccount charges $36 per year in fees, that's about $6 more than Lively. The available fund choices are quite limited for basic investment in SelectAccount. Most relevant ones are Vanguard large/mid/small cap index funds, while no Vanguard bond fund is available. Also you have to put $1000 minimum cash deposit earning nothing there before any access to investing.

Lively does have better investment choice (Vanguard ETF) through TD Ameritrade brokerage. No cash deposit required. Most likely, I will wait for a few years and see how Lively business will go in the future before transferring my HSA in there.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

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I'm happy that my Payflex HSA thru my employer now doesn't have any investment fee. I think the industry is moving in the right direction.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by financeidiot »

Am I reading this right that I can invest ALL of my HSA funds for $2.50 per month with no savings account minimum? My current HSA requires $1,000 in a savings account to invest. If I can make 2% on that $1,000, the $20 pays for 2/3 of the fees...
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by aristotelian »

Nate79 wrote: Fri Sep 29, 2017 10:56 am I'm happy that my Payflex HSA thru my employer now doesn't have any investment fee. I think the industry is moving in the right direction.
Just looked at Payflex. They do have a $1000 minimum and you are only allowed to invest the overage. So arguably the fee is $1000. Limited but good selection of funds, though. https://www.payflex.com/forms/HealthHub ... t_FAQs.pdf
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

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Nate79 wrote: Fri Sep 29, 2017 10:56 am I'm happy that my Payflex HSA thru my employer now doesn't have any investment fee. I think the industry is moving in the right direction.
Your employer is probably covering the fee.
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financeidiot wrote: Fri Sep 29, 2017 11:06 am Am I reading this right that I can invest ALL of my HSA funds for $2.50 per month with no savings account minimum? My current HSA requires $1,000 in a savings account to invest. If I can make 2% on that $1,000, the $20 pays for 2/3 of the fees...
Yes, this is my understanding as well. Invest from the first dollar you put into the HSA for a $2.50/month fee.
Some have already applied. We can wait for their feedback.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by Nate79 »

indexfundfan wrote: Fri Sep 29, 2017 1:28 pm
Nate79 wrote: Fri Sep 29, 2017 10:56 am I'm happy that my Payflex HSA thru my employer now doesn't have any investment fee. I think the industry is moving in the right direction.
Your employer is probably covering the fee.
Here was my thread on the subject. I seriously doubt my employer would cover the fee. Same as another poster.

viewtopic.php?t=226774

Considering the excellent investment options including Vanguard Lifestrategy funds it is a very good option.
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jhfenton
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by jhfenton »

I opened up an account on Lively's portal yesterday, and I'm still waiting for final approval. I called and spoke to a (the?) support person to see if I could stop the debit card from being sent, but she checked and it is automated. She said I could just not activate and destroy it.

Has anyone submitted a transfer request through Lively yet? I don't have access to that function until my account is activated.

I also spoke to my existing HSA provider (5th-3rd bank) yesterday, and both the front-line support rep and her supervisor assured me that they do not charge the $25 "Account Transfer/Closure" Fee unless an account is both transferred and inactive for 6 months. That is how the fee disclosure language reads, but it was awkwardly worded, and I wanted to double-check. My employer will continue to send my biweekly contributions there. If it goes smoothly, I will probably try to do one transfer every 3-4 months. (If they charge a transfer fee, I'll opt for one rollover per calendar year through my bank account.)

At $30 per year fixed, I will end up saving $80 per year (and growing). I currently pay $2/month to invest, 20 bp/year (5 bp/quarter) on the investments, and I have to keep $2,000 in cash. With quarterly or even semi-annual transfers, my average cash balance will be lower under the new two-account arrangement too. I also have more (if not cheaper) investment options through TD Ameritrade.
stockfuturist
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by stockfuturist »

Setup with Lively was fine, but unfortunately they confirmed that they are not setup with my employer to do payroll contributions... Their suggestion was to transfer my existing balance with Select Account and consider post-tax contributions. I reminded them that post-tax contributions would miss the FICA/SS benefits, so unfortunately I will probably not use Lively at this point. Perhaps to transfer annual from Select Account, but is it really worth it?? meh.

Going to suggest to our controller to look into them. Anyone have any experience getting an employer to add a provider?
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jhfenton
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by jhfenton »

stockfuturist wrote: Tue Oct 03, 2017 1:54 pm Going to suggest to our controller to look into them. Anyone have any experience getting an employer to add a provider?
I am going to broach the subject with our VP of finance and maybe our VP of HR after I get a sense of how well Lively works.

But it's going to be a hard (impossible) sell for a few reasons: (1) Our current HSA is with a prominent local bank. (2) Lively is new. (3) The investment options are "too complicated."

#3 is going to be the deal killer. They very much adhere to the philosophy that too many choices lead to decision paralysis. They won't even consider adding a brokerage window to our 401(k).

I'm resigned to making transfers from my employer-sponsored HSA, somewhere between quarterly and annually, depending on how this first one goes.

P.S. I'm still waiting for Lively to finalize my account. :annoyed
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Thrifty Femme
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by Thrifty Femme »

jhfenton wrote: Tue Oct 03, 2017 7:47 pm I am going to broach the subject with our VP of finance and maybe our VP of HR after I get a sense of how well Lively works.

But it's going to be a hard (impossible) sell for a few reasons: (1) Our current HSA is with a prominent local bank. (2) Lively is new. (3) The investment options are "too complicated."

#3 is going to be the deal killer. They very much adhere to the philosophy that too many choices lead to decision paralysis. They won't even consider adding a brokerage window to our 401(k).

I'm resigned to making transfers from my employer-sponsored HSA, somewhere between quarterly and annually, depending on how this first one goes.

P.S. I'm still waiting for Lively to finalize my account. :annoyed
I think you are limited to one direct rollover per year, although I suppose you could simply withdraw as if you had a qualified expense and send that money to another HSA.
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jhfenton
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by jhfenton »

Thrifty Femme wrote: Tue Oct 03, 2017 8:40 pm
jhfenton wrote: Tue Oct 03, 2017 7:47 pm I am going to broach the subject with our VP of finance and maybe our VP of HR after I get a sense of how well Lively works.

But it's going to be a hard (impossible) sell for a few reasons: (1) Our current HSA is with a prominent local bank. (2) Lively is new. (3) The investment options are "too complicated."

#3 is going to be the deal killer. They very much adhere to the philosophy that too many choices lead to decision paralysis. They won't even consider adding a brokerage window to our 401(k).

I'm resigned to making transfers from my employer-sponsored HSA, somewhere between quarterly and annually, depending on how this first one goes.

P.S. I'm still waiting for Lively to finalize my account. :annoyed
I think you are limited to one direct rollover per year, although I suppose you could simply withdraw as if you had a qualified expense and send that money to another HSA.
I believe it's the other way around. You're limited to one indirect rollover per year. Custodian-to-custodian transfers aren't limited.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by aristotelian »

stockfuturist wrote: Tue Oct 03, 2017 1:54 pm Going to suggest to our controller to look into them. Anyone have any experience getting an employer to add a provider?
I doubt you are going to get anywhere unless you have a bunch of people wanting to switch. Selectaccount already has pretty good investment options and low fees. I would consider myself happy if my employer gave us that option!
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jhfenton
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by jhfenton »

One additional tidbit with Lively: they take the $2.50/month investment fee from your linked bank account not your HSA cash account or your TD Ameritrade investment account.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by indexfundfan »

jhfenton wrote: Wed Oct 04, 2017 11:53 am One additional tidbit with Lively: they take the $2.50/month investment fee from your linked bank account not your HSA cash account or your TD Ameritrade investment account.
That's good! Clearly they have thought through how to maximize for investments in the HSA. :-)
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by ofckrupke »

indexfundfan wrote: Wed Oct 04, 2017 12:27 pm
jhfenton wrote: Wed Oct 04, 2017 11:53 am One additional tidbit with Lively: they take the $2.50/month investment fee from your linked bank account not your HSA cash account or your TD Ameritrade investment account.
That's good! Clearly they have thought through how to maximize for investments in the HSA. :-)
It's also particularly attractive for residents of income-taxing states that don't recognize HSAs as tax-sheltered accounts [for which every monthly liquidation of fractional investment shares to pay such fee would constitute another sale of a small tax lot to be logged in asset record(s) kept potentially for many years by the account holder].
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by Raabe34 »

Didn't read all the replies but in regards to the no transaction cost Vanguard etf's @ TDA, I've got it from a pretty good source that sometime in the 4th qtr that list will change dramatically. The person wouldn't confirm or deny whether Vanguard was going to be leaving but dropped hints that it was.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by cas »

This is a general question, and not in any way implying anything about Lively. They are probably a perfectly good company. They might even end up shaking up the HSA world and improving things for everyone. But, the idea of a brand new start-up non-bank HSA administrator got a question niggling around in the back of my mind:

In the early days of HSAs, two (non-bank) HSA administrators went bankrupt due to embezzlement of $millions: 1 Point Solutions and Canopy Financial.*

Were there ever any safeguards put in place to limit the likelihood that this might happen again or to protect investors using non-bank HSA administrators?

Is there some place that one should check to make sure an entity that is claiming to administer HSAs is legitimate? (Or at least improve one's chances that they are legitimate?)

If an HSA Administrator is a bank, one can check the FDIC or NCUA websites to make sure the bank is legit and get all kinds of regulatory information.

If an HSA Administrator is a RIA (Registered Investment Advisor), one can check the SEC database to see if they really are registered and if any complaints have been made against them.

And then there is some other class of non-bank HSA administrators that choose to?/have to? register as "nonbank trustee/custodians" with the IRS and get put on an official list. ( https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/ap ... custodians ). I don't know what kind of regulatory teeth or safeguards this provides. HealthEquity, SelectAccounts, Payflex, and ConnectYourCare are all HSA administrators that are on this list. Lively is not on this list.

Is there some other place I should be looking?


*The early HSA administrators that went bankrupt due to embezzlement by employees:

1 Point Solutions - 2007: https://benefitslink.com/cgi-bin/pr/ind ... e&id=40680
Stokes allegedly caused 1 Point Solutions employees to create and maintain a website through which plan participants could access their individual accounts on a daily basis to check on performance and balances. Both of these participant resources falsely represented that the plan assets had been invested as instructed when, in fact, the funds had been misappropriated by Stokes.


Canopy Financial - 2010: https://archives.fbi.gov/archives/chica ... -customers
Blackburn admitted that he created phony bank statements during 2009 to conceal the transfer of more than $18 million from special health care accounts in which Canopy held funds as custodian for the benefit of more than 1,600 clients and customers to make payments to medical providers. The funds were transferred to Canopy’s own operating accounts, as well as to benefit Blackburn and Banas personally.
Soon2BXProgrammer
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by Soon2BXProgrammer »

I assume i was chatting with Shobin Uralil:

https://www.crunchbase.com/person/shobin-uralil#/entity

for those not faimily with crunchbase its a neat place to look at info about startups:

https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/lively-2

I asked in chat about why not on the IRS list/RIA, etc.
Soon2BXProgrammer wrote:i was reading about lively, and peoples experiences about it on viewtopic.php?f=2&t=228522 there is some questiosn about why is it not on the IRS list of non bank HSA providers
Shobin wrote:We are not a non-bank custodian. That is why we are not on the IRS list. We work with a banking partner our of North Dakota called Choice Financial.
Soon2BXProgrammer wrote:thanks. i'll post that back into the thread. i guess the question is how does someone validate that your legit, and the funds are actually in a persons name, and not a ponzi scheme, etc. if your not registered in any way
Shobin wrote:Thank you for the link. We are also not an RIA. That is why we have partnered with TD Ameritrade to offer a Self Directed Brokerage option for our users.
I can ensure you that we are not a ponzi scheme :). We take security, compliance, and other aspects of our business very seriously.
We are both HIPAA compliant and have worked closely with our banking partner to ensure we are in compliance with all necessarily laws, etc. All accounts are also FDIC-insured and interest bearing.
We went through an extensive diligence process with our bank provider (Choice Financial) before we would ever launch the HSA program as well.
We do our best to provide the best service and product that we can, but we also know that we aren't perfect for everyone or that some people just won't be comfortable until we are larger and more established. Sorry for the multiple notes, but wanted to be thorough in my response. Hope this is helpful.
Soon2BXProgrammer wrote:Thanks. its appreciated.
Shobin wrote:You bet. Also - one last note. I also noticed the links about Canopy Financial on that thread. That was a terrible situation where a lot of people lost their money. It was also the worst story of founder fraud that we have heard of. We certainly are not Canopy Financial and while we can only use our words, our hope is that over time, our actions will prove that!
Have a great day and please let us know if there is anything that we can do to help.
Earned 43 (and counting) credit hours of financial planning related education from a regionally accredited university, but I am not your advisor.
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Re: New HSA provider Lively offers investments for $30/yr fee

Post by grabiner »

I added Lively to the Wiki's list of HSA providers: Health Savings Accounts: Lively
Wiki David Grabiner
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