The Best GICs with a Low Minimum Investment
If you want a guaranteed rate of return on your money, you’ll probably want to purchase a GIC. To get a great rate, you’ll usually need to invest $1,000 or more.
But if you don’t have $1,000, you can still get a very good rate. The only problem is your options are a little more limited. As of Nov. 7, these are the best GIC rates in Ontario on non-registered one-year GICs (both redeemable and non-redeemable) with a $500 investment on Ratehub.ca:
In order to purchase at a GIC from most of the institutions listed above, you’ll need to open an account. However, there are some exceptions. For example, Laurentian Bank’s GICs can also be purchased from certain deposit brokers, discount brokerages, and investment advisors.
While the GICs offered by credit unions aren’t insured by the Canadian Deposit Insurance Corporation, the deposits are protected by provincial deposit insurance plans.
In most cases, the GIC rates most financial institutions offer are higher than their high-interest savings accounts usually because your money’s locked in for a specific period of time.
However, there are some financial institutions that offer better rates on their high-interest savings accounts than the GIC rates listed above. For example, Wealth One Bank of Canada offers a rate of 2.5% while the EQ Bank Savings Plus Account has a rate of 2.3%. The advantage? Your money’s not locked in and you don’t need a minimum investment of $500.
The bottom line
Even if you don’t have a lot of money to invest in a GIC, it doesn’t mean you’ll be stuck with a low rate. If you shop around, you can still find a good rate.