Your HSA will be assessed based on two components: Fees taken out by the provider and investment expenses, according to Devenir, an HSA consultancy.
Those “provider fees” include account maintenance costs, which may be assessed on a monthly basis and could be waived if an account holder’s balance crosses a particular threshold, which can range from $1,000 to $5,000, Morningstar found.
These expenses can sap the account if a saver merely stashes the HSA in the provider’s checking account and uses it concurrently for medical expenses, instead of allowing it to accumulate.
“It’s fairly common to have low balances, so fees do play a role,” said Patrick Amey, a certified financial planner at KHC Wealth Management in Overland Park, Kansas.
“We’re looking for an account where the fees are reasonable and you get good value,” he said.
A saver who has contributed $2,000 for the year, spends half of that balance on qualified medical costs and pays $4.50 each month for maintenance fees will have lost more than 5 percent of his year-end balance due to these monthly fees, according to Morningstar.
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