How it Works
Prepare for tomorrow by saving and investing today
Opening an account
You can set up a STABLE account through the Palmetto ABLE Savings Program in as little as 10 minutes. We’ll ask for some information about the beneficiary, the qualifying disability, and how the account will be funded. To complete the setup, you’ll customize your account and make decisions about the money you deposit.
You’ll need to make an initial deposit of at least $25 to get started and a $1 minimum for any contribution or withdrawal after that. You can save money in a cash option and/or invest it. The choice is up to you.
Picking an investment option
There are five types of financial portfolios to pick from:
The Growth Option
The Moderate Growth Option
The Conservative Growth Option
The Income Option
The BankSafe Option
Each investment option has its own benefits and limitations. It’s up to you to decide which one is right for you.
Growth Option
The Growth Option seeks to provide capital appreciation and some current income and invests 100% of its funds in the Vanguard LifeStrategy Growth Fund.
The Growth Option endeavors to maintain an 80% investment in corporate stocks and a 20% investment in bonds. The option potentially offers higher expected investment returns, but it also offers higher expected risk.
The Growth Option may be most suitable for investors with a long-term time horizon and for investors willing and able to accept more risk.
Moderate Growth Option
The Moderate Growth Option seeks to provide capital appreciation and a low-to-moderate level of current income and invests 100% of its funds in the Vanguard LifeStrategy Moderate Growth Fund.
The Moderate Growth Option endeavors to maintain a 60% investment in corporate stocks and a 40% investment in bonds. A stock represents ownership in a corporation. This option potentially offers moderate expected investment returns, but it also offers moderate expected risk.
The Moderate Growth Option may be most suitable for investors with an intermediate-term time horizon and for investors willing and able to accept risk.
Conservative Growth Option
The Conservative Growth Option seeks to provide current income and low-to-moderate capital appreciation and invests 100% of its funds in the Vanguard LifeStrategy Conservative Growth Fund.
The Conservative Growth Option endeavors to maintain a 40% investment in corporate stocks and a 60% investment in bonds. This option typically offers lower expected investment returns, but it also offers lower expected risk.
The Conservative Growth Option may be most suitable for investors with a short-to-intermediate term time horizon and for investors willing and able to accept some risk.
Income Option
The Income Option seeks to provide current income and some capital appreciation and invests 100% of its funds in the Vanguard LifeStrategy Income Fund.
The Income Option endeavors to maintain a 20% investment in corporate stocks and an 80% investment in bonds. The Income Option typically offers low expected investment returns, but it also offers low expected risk.
The Income Option may be most suitable for investors with a short-term time horizon or for investors unwilling or unable to accept risk.
BankSafe Option
The BankSafe Option offers a conservative investment strategy and is designed to protect your principal investment and invests 100% of its funds into an account that is insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), which is essentially supported by the full faith and credit of the United States Government.
The BankSafe Option is the most conservative investment strategy and is designed to protect your investment. The BankSafe Option is fully invested in an FDIC-insured account, meaning that your investment (along with other applicable accounts you have at Fifth Third Bank) is insured up to $250,000 by the FDIC.
The BankSafe Option offers the lowest expected return and the lowest expected risk.
Please note: The investment option descriptions contained on this website are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, or other advice. Beneficiaries or their Authorized Legal Representatives are solely responsible for deciding which investment options to use.
For more detailed information on the investment options, please see the Plan Disclosure Booklet.
Adding money
With the online platform powered by Vestwell, adding money to your account is simple and intuitive. Your bank account is securely connected to the STABLE account to protect your information. You can add money whenever you want, even as little as $1 at a time, or every month with automatic transfers, to help you reach the $18,000 yearly maximum. Friends and family can also add to an account by making gift contributions.
Direct Deposits
Users can contribute to their accounts using fast, secure direct deposits from either the Social Security Administration or their paycheck.
Complete the setup process in three simple steps:
Log in to your ABLE account and click on “Direct Deposit” on the Total Balance tile. Or, once logged in, go to “Transfers > Direct Deposit.”
Enter your information and retrieve your unique direct deposit details, including your routing and account number.
Complete the process by:
a) Federal Benefit Direct Deposit: Updating your direct deposit details with the SSA. If you are receiving SSI benefits, you will need to update your direct deposit details by phone at +1 800-772-1213 (for TTY call +1 800-325-0778) or by visiting your local Social Security Administration office.
OR
b) Payroll Direct Deposit: Providing your employer with the direct deposit details, the same as you would with your own checking or savings account
Savings Boosters
If you’re looking for a fun and convenient way to save and achieve more, Savings Boosters can help you make hassle-free contributions.
You can now set up Weather Boosters in the transfers navigation dropdown of your online account to make hassle-free (and automatic) deposits when there is a 50%+ chance of precipitation predicted in your location by weather.gov. Your account balance can go up every time rain, hail, sleet, or snow are forecasted to come down.
And don’t forget, you’re in charge! You decide how much you want to contribute and save with each weather event.
We do not guarantee that contributions will be made during each forecasted weather event when Savings Boosters are enabled on your account. The feature relies on data which is provided to us by third-party services unaffiliated with Vestwell and carries some degree of variability.
Using your account
You can transfer a minimum of $5 online from your STABLE account to your bank account.
Fees
There are minimal costs associated with maintaining a STABLE account through the Palmetto ABLE Savings Program. Under the Palmetto ABLE Savings Program, South Carolina residents pay $2.25 per month (charged to the account quarterly equaling $27.00 annually) to maintain a STABLE account. There is a small asset-based fee of between 0.19% and 0.33%, depending on their chosen investment options. There could also be other administrative fees (e.g., a return check fee) depending upon your particular account activity. More information is available in our Fees FAQ.
Performance
To view current investment performance, please click here.