Survey of the Best Local CD Rates in Wilmington, Boston and Other Cities

Most of the CD rates on my list continued to hold up since my survey from last week. One exception was Ally Bank's 5-year CD. Its yield fell from 2.39% to 2.37% APY. I've included this nationally available CD for all terms under 4 years so you can compare the local CD deals with this 5-year CD when closed early with the 60-day early withdrawal penalty.

Another CD rate that fell this week was in the Cleveland Ohio area at PEF Federal Credit Union. Both its 5-year and 4-year CD rates fell to levels that are no longer highly competitive so I removed them from the list.

Long-term CD deals are getting harder to find. I only added one new CD to the list below, and it's only a short-term CD with a maturity of 6 to 9 months. It has a 1.35% APY which is very competitive for short-term CDs. The CD is from MidCoast Community Bank which has branches in Wilmington and Dover, Delaware.

Even though two other notable short-term CDs have been on this survey for several weeks, I thought it would be worthwhile to highlight them.

The first is Capital One's High Interest Free Checking Account promotion. I've included it as a short-term CD since Capital One is guaranteeing 1.50% APY (up to $100K) for the first 12 months of account opening. It's actually better than a CD since depositors have all the liquidity of a checking account along with the rate guarantee. Unfortunately, this promotion is only available in the Austin, Texas metro area.

The second notable short-term CDs are at Industrial Credit Union in the Boston metro area. This credit union continues to offer very competitive CD rates for terms of 6 to 24 months.

Industrial Credit Union's long-term CD rates are not quite as competitive, but they are still good deals. In addition, the early withdrawal penalty is almost as favorable as Ally's. For CDs with a maturity of more than one year, the early withdrawal penalty is 3 months interest. Due to this, I've included Industrial Credit Union on my 4-year and 5-year CD list. Membership in this credit union is open to anyone who lives in the Greater Boston area.

Best Nationwide CD Rates

So you can see how the local rates compare, I'm including the best CD rates that are available nationwide. These are often from credit unions which anyone can join via an association. I'm also including more than one CD for each category. For example, Connexus Credit Union has 3 best CD rates, but these require an active checking account. Since many don't want to worry about maintaining another checking account, I'm including another CD without any checking requirement. And I'm including Ally Bank's 5-year CD for many of the short-term CDs. As I described many times, these can be better deals than short-term CDs due to the 60-day early withdrawal penalty. I've included a link to a discussion of this strategy that describes the potential risks.

Using the Rate Tables to Find the Best Local CD Rates

As I described in my rate table overview, you can use our CD rate tables to find the best local CD rates. One thing that complicates looking for local rates is that it can be hard to know the areas served by small banks and credit unions. So in my list below, I primarily focus on banks and credit unions that serve large regions or large metro areas. My criteria is that they offer rates higher than the nationwide equivalent CD. If the rate is high enough, I'll also mention a bank or credit union even if it's not in a large populated area. These aren't hard rules. They're just general rules to keep the list manageable and useful.

Rates Accurate as of 6/10/2011

Under 1-Year CD Rates

• Ally Bank - 1.57% (2.37% 5-year CD closed after 6 months, see review & risks)
• Connexus Credit Union - 1.50% 6-month CD with active checking account
• Ally Bank - 1.14% 11-month No-Penalty CD
• Incredible Bank - 1.10% 9-month internet CD

• Noteworthy Local Deals

• Visions Federal Credit Union - 5.00% 5-month CD (max $100K) (Rochester, NY only) (good until 6/30)
• Capital One Bank - 1.50% checking with rate guaranteed for 12 months (Austin metro area)
• Industrial Credit Union - 1.40% 6-month CD (Boston metro area)
• MidCoast Community Bank - 1.35% 6-to-9 month CD (Wilmington & Dover, DE)
• Alma Bank - 1.35% 12-month Liquid CD (New York City)
• Washington Federal Bank for Savings - 1.15% 9-month CD (Chicago)

1-Year CD Rates

• Ally Bank - 1.97% (2.40% 5-year CD closed after 1 year, see review & risks)
• Connexus Credit Union - 1.75% 12-month CD with active checking account
• Melrose Credit Union - 1.41% APY 12-month CD

• Noteworthy Local Deals

• Island Federal Credit Union - 2.00% 11-month CD (Suffolk & Nassau Counties, NY)
• Industrial Credit Union - 1.60% 12-month CD (Boston metro area)
• Credit Union of Atlanta - 1.53% 12-month CD (parts of Atlanta, Georgia)
• Capital One Bank - 1.50% checking with rate guaranteed for 12 months (Austin metro area)
• State Bank of India (California) - 1.50% 15-month CD (Several cities in California & in Washington DC)
• South Florida Federal Credit Union - 1.50% 12-month CD (limited membership in Miami)
• Alma Bank - 1.35% 12-month Liquid CD (New York City)

18-month CD Rates

• Ally Bank - 2.10% (2.37% 5-year CD closed after 18 months, see review & risks)
• Alliant Credit Union - 1.55% ($25K min) 18-month CD

• Noteworthy Local Deals

• Community Bank of Tri-County - 2.05% 18-month CD (Maryland)
• Alaska USA Federal Credit Union - 1.60% ($100K) 5-year CD (San Bernardino County, CA; parts of WA & AK)
• Industrial Credit Union - 1.60% 18-month CD (Boston metro area)
• Sovereign Bank (TX) - 1.51% 17-month CD special (Dallas/Fort Worth Metro) (good until 6/17)

2-Year CD Rates

• Ally Bank - 2.17% (2.37% 5-year CD closed after 2 years, see review & risks)
• Self-Help Credit Union - 1.77% 2-year CD

• Noteworthy Local Deals

• University of Iowa Community Credit Union - 2.25% ($100K) 2.10% ($1K) 25-month CD (several parts of Iowa)
• Sovereign Bank (TX) - 2.02% 27-month CD special (Dallas/Fort Worth Metro) (good until 6/17)
• Wings Financial Credit Union - 1.81% 2-year CD (Seattle & Minneapolis Metro areas)
• Industrial Credit Union - 1.75% 2-year CD (Boston metro area)
• Montauk Credit Union - 1.75% 2-year CD (New York City)
• Alaska USA Federal Credit Union - 1.75% ($100K) 5-year CD (San Bernardino County, CA; parts of WA & AK)

3-Year CD Rates

• Ally Bank - 2.24% (2.37% 5-year CD closed after 3 years, see review & risks)
• Melrose Credit Union - 2.17% 3-year CD

• Noteworthy Local Deals

• Visions Federal Credit Union - 3.50% 35-month CD (max $100K) (Rochester, NY only) (good until 6/30)
• University of Iowa Community Credit Union - 2.75% ($100K) 2.60% ($1K) 37-month (several parts of Iowa)
• Sovereign Bank (TX) - 2.53% 37-month CD special (Dallas/Fort Worth Metro) (good until 6/17)
• Credit Union of Atlanta - 2.52% 3-year CD (parts of Atlanta, Georgia)
• Security Service Federal Credit Union - 2.50% ($100K) 3-year CD (parts of Texas & Colorado)
• Atlas Bank - 2.33% 3-year CD (New York City)
• Montauk Credit Union - 2.25% 3-year CD (New York City)
• EBSB Direct - 2.25% 3-year CD (New England and New York State)

4-Year CD Rates

• Alliant Credit Union - 2.45% ($25K min) 4-year CD

• Noteworthy Local Deals

• Bayer Heritage Federal Credit Union - 3.17% 4-year CD (parts of WV, OH & SC)
• University of Iowa Community Credit Union - 3.15% ($100K) 3.00% ($1K) 49-month (several parts of Iowa)
• Montauk Credit Union - 2.75% 4-year CD (New York City)
• Industrial Credit Union - 2.50% 4-year CD (Boston metro area)
• John Marshall Bank - 2.48% 4-year CD (Washington DC Metro)

5-Year CD Rates

• Connexus Credit Union - 3.00% 5-year CD with active checking account
• Melrose Credit Union - 2.93% 5-year CD

• Noteworthy Local Deals

• Bayer Heritage Federal Credit Union - 3.43% 5-year CD (parts of WV, OH & SC)
• Vermonth Federal Credit Union - 3.10% 5-year CD, 3.20% IRA in Burlington, VT
• Bay Ridge Federal Credit Union - 3.00% ($20K) 5-year CD (limited membership in New York City)
• Montauk Credit Union - 3.00% 5-year CD (New York City)
• Security Service Federal Credit Union - 3.00% ($100K) 5-year CD (parts of Texas & Colorado)
• John Marshall Bank - 2.94% 5-year CD (Washington DC Metro)
• TruService Community Credit Union - 2.93% 5-year CD (Little Rock metro area of AR)
• Industrial Credit Union - 2.75% 5-year CD (Boston metro area)
• State Bank of India (California) - 2.75% 5-year CD (Several cities in California & in Washington DC)
• Coastline Federal Credit Union - 2.75% ($100K) 5-year CD (Jacksonville Florida)
• Alaska USA Federal Credit Union - 2.75% ($100K) 5-year CD (San Bernardino County, CA; parts of WA & AK)

Over 5-Year CD Rates

• Navy Federal Credit Union - 3.20% ($20K) 7-year CD (membership restrictions)
• Dime Savings Bank - 3.10% 7-year CD

• Noteworthy Local Deals

• First Federal - 3.75% ($100K) 8-year CD (Southeast MS)
• Security Service Federal Credit Union - 3.50% ($100K) 7-year CD (parts of Texas & Colorado)
• Montauk Credit Union - 3.25% 7-year CD (New York City)
• BOK Financial Banks - 2.80% ($100K w/chk) 2.65% ($1K w/o chk) 7-year CD (in AZ, rates vary slightly in CO, KS, MO, NM, OK & TX)

Note: All rates listed above are Annual Percentage Yields (APY) which factor in compounding.