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5.03% Reward Checking Account and 3.01% Savings Account at Sonoran Bank in Arizona - Local Only

Monday, December 7, 2009 - 10:27 AM CT by Ken - Bank Deals Guy

View current rates for Sonoran Bank, N.A.

Sonoran Bank, N.A. is offering a high-yield reward checking account with the following rates and features if certain monthly requirements are met:

5.03% APY on balances up to $30,000
1.25% APY on portion of balance over $30,000
0.01% base rate if requirements are not met
Refunds ATM fees nationwide

The monthly requirements include:

12 debit card purchases
1 direct deposit or automatic ACH payment
Receive e-statements

Additional features of the account regardless of the monthly requirements include:

$100 minimum initial deposit
No minimum balance requirement
No monthly service charge

The bank also has a companion high-yield savings account that has a 3.01% APY on all balances if the above checking requirements are met. Like the checking account, the savings account has a $100 minimum initial deposit, but no minimum balance requirements or monthly fees.

The bank's micro-website has a link to an online application. However, the application makes it appear that a branch visit is required to complete the application process.

It's a small bank with one office located in Phoenix, Arizona.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are fair: 3 stars (adequate) at BauerFinancial (based on 9/30/09 data) and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com (based on 6/30/09 data). The bank has been a FDIC member since 2006 (FDIC Certificate # 58252).

Other Reward Checking Accounts

With this reward checking account, residents of the Phoenix area now have four 5% reward checking accounts to choose from. The other three include Goldwater Bank, Bank 1440 and First National Bank of Scottsdale which I just reported on yesterday. Hopefully this competition will help keep the rates high.

To find reward checking accounts in other areas of the nation, please refer to the reward checking section of DepositAccounts.com. To learn more about reward checking, please refer to this reward checking overview.

Tags: rc50k, banks, Arizona, checking accounts, Sonoran Bank, savings accounts, rewards checking accounts

Post a CommentFeatured Comments

In order by popularity, then date posted.

Anonymous - #1, Monday, December 7, 2009 - 9:20 PM CT

Off-topic commercial above...

All these 5% non-local banks are amking me both jealous and angry!!

Was this comment helpful? 2

Anonymous - #2, Tuesday, December 8, 2009 - 6:48 AM CT

"Local offers only" shows how desperate the Feds have made us in search of a decent interest rate.

Banks with "local offers only" are afraid they would be inundated with deposits from around the county, receiving more funds than they could possibly put to work all at one time. Good management on their part, however.

The Feds ignore the fact that if we could make more interest income, we would also spend more, there by helping the economy to get back on track. I know I would.

Was this comment helpful? 1

ddffnn - #3, Monday, February 22, 2010 - 11:51 AM CT

I asked some questions using their online email form, here is an excerpt from their response:

Will there be a hard-pull credit check during the application process? The only check we do is through ChexSystmems and OFAC. We do not do a hard-pull credit check.

Can transfers to and from other banks be completed using online banking? Are there limits for this? At this time, our online banking only supports transfers to or from accounts within Sonoran Bank. We, in the Bank, can set up automatic transfers through the ACH system for our customers.

Was this comment helpful? 1

Yvonne - #4, Thursday, March 11, 2010 - 3:55 PM CT

It is not "local only." They will open up accounts via email and/or fax. Passing forms back and forth is a little clunky, and you have to mail in a check(s) for the initial deposit, but the interest rate should certainly be worth putting forth a little effort. And if you have questions, you can always just call the representative who contacts you via email.

Was this comment helpful? 1

5.03% Reward Checking Account and 3.01% Savings Account at Sonoran Bank in Arizona - Local Only

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