Top 5-Year CD and IRA CD at Mountain America Credit Union in UT, NV, NM & AZ - Easy Membership

Mountain America Credit Union still has a competitive 5-year CD and IRA CD rate of 3.00% APY. Minimum deposit is $500. This yield is listed in the credit union's current rates page as of 8/17/2010.

The credit union used to offer some competitive shorter-term CD rates, but these are no longer noteworthy. It also used to have a very mild early withdrawal penalty. They made changes to their website, and I could no longer find any mention of the early withdrawal penalty. So I emailed the credit union. It appears they have increased the penalty. According to the credit union rep, the "penalty for early withdrawal on a 5 year term deposit is 180 days worth of interest."

Credit union membership is open to members of the American Consumer Council. Council membership costs $12, and is open to anyone. This council is listed in the credit union's SEG Affiliated Associations page. For more ways to qualify for membership, please refer to the credit union's Become a Member page. In my recent email to this credit union, I mentioned that I was interested in becoming a member via this council. Here's the reply I received:

We would be happy to take a membership application for you. If you have a branch near you please visit them with your picture ID. They will need $25.00 to get the account open and going. If you plan on opening a checking account that will require a minimum of $100.00.

If you are not near a branch location you can apply online or call us at 1-800-748-4302.

Branches are located throughout Utah. Also, branches are located in Mesa, Arizona; Las Vegas and Sparks, Nevada; and in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The credit union's ratings for soundness are a little weak: 3 stars (adequate) at BauerFinancial, 2 stars (below peer group) at Bankrate and an overall health score of 3 out of 5 at DepositAccounts.com (see our financial overview for Mountain America CU). These ratings are based on March 2010 data. The credit union is federally insured by the NCUA (Charter # 24692). It's a large credit union with $2.8 billion in assets.

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