I had to look up "freedom account" to make sure I knew what you were talking about - this is what I found:
"Debt-Proof Living (formerly The Cheapskate Monthly), urges that each household create and manage what she refers to as a "Freedom Account." Many people, she writes, get themselves into credit trouble not by splurging on spur-of-the-moment fun purchases, but by finding themselves unable to pay for those big-ticket, necessary expenditures which Life drops on them from time to time.
Included in this category might be items such as car repairs (usually expensive; almost always unexpected), vacations (very expensive, but also very plannable), medical bills (always expensive; almost always unexpected), six- or twelve-month insurance premiums, insurance deductibles, work clothes, Christmas gifts, and other items like these. You know all these expenses are going to show up sooner or later; with many of them, you just don't know when. But just because an expense isn't in front of you right now doesn't mean it's optional."
I do think an account like this should be separate because I believe in keeping the emergency fund sacrosanct. If you get in the habit of dipping in there for vacations, clothes, and insurance premiums you're just asking for trouble.
Myself personally, I have three savings accounts. 1) EF, 2) House account for yearly taxes, insurance, and estimated repairs, and 3) Splurge fund for vacations and fun stuff.
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