Bank Deals Weekly Summary for March 20, 2010

Comments (1)
Mar 20, 2010 - 6:07 PM by Ken Tumin

Hot Deals, Quick Link for Rates, Recap of this week's posts

The Fed completed its second scheduled meeting of 2010 on Tuesday, and it continues to say the same old thing about future rates "exceptionally low levels of the federal funds rate for an extended period". I've seen some analysts predict we'll see a change in this rate commitment language in the next few meetings. Once this language changes, it'll likely take around 6 more months before the Fed finally hikes the target funds rate. Keep an eye on the economy and unemployment. The faster these improve, the sooner the Fed will move us out of this historically low interest rate environment.

Friday was especially busy for the FDIC with 7 bank failures (see review). The largest bank to fail was Advanta Bank Corp. which had $1.5 billion in deposits. The bank had long been offering CDs over the web, and I had reported on its competitive long-term CD rates back in 2008. Unfortunately, those CDs that haven't yet matured have been closed and checks are being mailed. The FDIC wasn't able to find a buyer, so the bank is being shut down and accounts are being closed.

The other six banks that failed all had buyers which assumed all deposits. One thing I've noticed in the last few weeks is that banks that have acquired much of their deposits through the web have been shut down rather than taken over by another bank. Advanta was the latest example. Other two recent examples include Centennial Bank which operated the internet bank CBDirect.com and Waterfield Bank which held deposits for several affiliate groups including UFB Direct and AARP Financial Savings Center. It appears these banks are not being seen as attractive acquisitions.

One reader suggested that I discuss other investment options rather than just bank products. This is one reason why we created the Notices section of DepositAccounts.com. In addition to posts on bank related news, I've been including short posts on bank alternatives like bonds and stocks. I don't have the time for detailed posts on these topics, but with Notices I'm able to point readers to articles at other sites that provide conservative investment options. If you come across this type of article or resource, please leave a comment or send me an email, and I'll try to write a quick Notice with a link to the article.

Savings Account Rates

The number of rate cuts was much lower this week than the previous week. I'm hoping we will soon be seeing the end of these weekly rate cuts.

I added one account to my list this week. Acacia Federal Savings Bank is offering a checking account with a 1.50% APY on balances of $5K and up. Unfortunately, 1.50% is competitive for a liquid account these days.

I reviewed this week the 5 institutions on my savings account list with rates of at least 2% APY. As I described in the review, three of these five accounts have considerable limitations. The two without these limitations are Alliant Credit Union and Ready Saver. We should find out next week if Alliant Credit Union will be keeping the 2% APY through April.

Rate Hikes:

  1. Acacia Federal Checking - 1.50% (newly listed)

Rate Cuts:

  1. Newtown Savings Bank Sweep Account - 1.40% (was 1.60%)
  2. Hudson City Savings Account - 1.15% (was 1.25%)
  3. State Farm Checking Account - 1.10% (was 1.15%)
  4. Intervest National MMA - 1.01% $2.5K (was 1.05%)

Certificate of Deposit Rates

There were actually more rate cuts on CDs this week than on savings accounts. Some of the banks that cut rates include Hudson City, BankUnited and Colorado Federal Savings Bank.

One bit of good news this week is the confirmation I received from the Ally Bank director of public relations that Ally would not increase the early withdrawal penalty on existing CDs. Ally's 60-day early withdrawal penalty on all terms takes out a lot of risk of being locked into a long-term CD when rates are shooting up.

Many readers reported receiving conflicting information from Ally CSRs. The confusion is that Ally can raise the penalty, but it's only for new CDs or CDs that have matured and are being renewed. Ally CSRs are being updated on this issue so you should be able to receive confirmation on this policy in your future communications with Ally.

Below are some of the best nationwide and local CD deals that are still active.

Best Nationwide CD Deals as of 3/20/10: Also listed are savings account promos with rate guarantee periods. The full list of nationwide CD rates is farther down.

  1. 2.25% 3-mo money market/checking promo at EverBank (account review)
  2. 2.10% 12-mo CD at Alliant CU (account review)
  3. 2.07% 12-mo CD at Melrose Credit Union (account review)
  4. 2.50% 15-mo IRA-only CD at Dime Savings Bank (account review)
  5. 2.30% 24-mo CD at Atlantic Coast Bank (account review)
  6. 3.00% 36-mo CD at Pentagon FCU (may change in March) account review)
  7. 3.00% 26/49-mo CD Package at SunTrust Bank (account review)
  8. 3.65% 60-mo CD at Melrose CU (account review)
  9. 3.60% 60-mo CD at Apple FCU (account review)
  10. 3.50% 60-mo CD at Pentagon FCU (account review
  11. 3.09% 60-mo Small-Penalty CD at Ally Bank (account review)
  12. 4.25% 84-mo IRA CD/4.00% CD at Navy FCU - Limited Membership (account review)
  13. 4.06% 84-mo CD (min $175K) at USAA Bank (account review)

Best Local CD Deals as of 3/20/10: Some of the best CD deals are from banks and credit unions that don't offer accounts nationwide. Refer to the recap section and the state index section to find all the recent local deals. Here are some of the best deals to note.

  1. 2.30% Money Market Account (min $100K) at Georgia Primary Bank in Atlanta (account review)
  2. 2.21% Checking Guaranteed to 12/31 at First National Bank of the Gulf Coast in SW FL (account review)
  3. 2.02% Money Market Account at South Florida FCU (account review)
  4. 2.00% 11-mo CD at First Citizens Bank in SoCal (account review)
  5. 2.00% 11-mo CD at Quorum FCU in NY (account review)
  6. 2.06% 12-mo CD w/chk at Chartway FCU in VA, GA, RI, NC, TX, FL & NJ (account review)
  7. 2.00% 12-mo CD at Vision Bank in Dallas (account review)
  8. 2.00% 12-mo CD at Premier American Bank, NA in Miami, FL (account review)
  9. 2.01% 13-mo CD at Prudential Savings Bank in PA (account review)
  10. 2.30% 20-mo CD at Chevron FCU in CA (account review)
  11. 3.20% 44-mo CD at Crescent Bank & Trust in Louisiana (account review)
  12. 3.25% 48-mo CD at Fidelity Bank of FL (account review)
  13. 4.00% 60-mo CD at PFFCU in Philadelphia (account review)
  14. 3.50% 60-mo CD at City National Bank in NY, NJ & PA (account review)
  15. 3.56% 72-mo CD at Broadway Federal Bank in Los Angeles (account review)
  16. 4.25% 10-year Flex-CD at First Choice CU in Florida (account review)

Reward Checking Accounts

I reported on three new reward checking accounts this week with yields ranging from 3.01% to 4.10% APY. I also did a post which compared the rewards that one gets from a reward checking account to the rewards from a cash-back credit card. Those who don't mind spending the time, can do both. They can make large purchases with their cash-back credit cards and make small purchases with their debit cards to qualify for the high yields of their reward checking accounts. However, if you don't want this extra work, the question then becomes which is better? As I showed in the post, it depends on how much you spend, the size of your liquid savings and the spread between the yields of your reward checking account and a top savings account.

To see all of the high yield reward checking accounts available throughout the nation, please refer to the reward checking section of DepositAccounts.com.

Recap for the Week - Links to This Week's Posts

Banking News

CD Deals - National

Savings/Checking Accounts - Nationwide

Checking/Savings Bonuses

Reward Checking Accounts

CD and Money Market Deals - Local

The rates listed below are based on Annual Percentage Yield (APY). No minimum balances are required unless noted. MMA next to the rates indicate a money market account. Most MMAs have check writing and ATM cards. Online savings accounts usually lack both of these. The top lists include banks and credit unions with broad availability and with minimums under $100,000. Previous weekly summaries are available at this page. Quick Links: Refer to the following links for the savings accounts and CDs that interest you: Liquid Account Rates: Savings Accounts, Reward Checking, Bank alternatives CD Rates: 3 Mo CDs, 6 Mo CDs, 9 Mo CDs, 12 Mo CDs, 18 Mo CDs, 24 Mo CDs, 36 Mo CDs, 48 Mo CDs, 60 Mo CDs, 84 Mo CDs, CDs by state Comments: read and discuss

As of March 20, 2010

Checking/Savings/Money Market Accounts:

  • Noteworthy Accounts Available Nationwide:

3-Month Certificates of Deposit:

  • Noteworthy Accounts Available Nationwide:

6-Month Certificates of Deposit:

  • Noteworthy Accounts Available Nationwide:

9-Month Certificates of Deposit:

12-Month Certificates of Deposit:

  • Noteworthy Accounts Available Nationwide:

18-Month Certificates of Deposit:

  • Noteworthy Accounts Available Nationwide:



24-Month Certificates of Deposit:

  • Noteworthy Accounts Available Nationwide:

36-Month Certificate of Deposit:

  • Noteworthy Accounts Available Nationwide:

48-Month Certificate of Deposit:

  • Noteworthy Accounts Available Nationwide:

60-Month Certificate of Deposit:

  • Noteworthy Accounts Available Nationwide:

84-Month Certificate of Deposit:

Various Deposit Account Deals



High Yield Reward Checking Accounts - Open to All



Recent CD Specials at Local Credit Unions and Banks

Bank Account Alternatives

Historical Rates from the Federal Reserve (Federal funds, Treasury bills, CD's)


Post a CommentComments
In order of date posted. - Sort by votes
Randy Mitchem

Randy Mitchem (anonymous) - #1, Sunday, March 21, 2010 - 5:13 PM

Ref Bank Account Alternatives.  If you have any good info on CD-type fixed rate annuties I wish you could  include them in the Bank Account Alternatives section.

 

Thank you,

Randy Mitchem

Daytona Beach, Florida









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