Florida Deposit Account Rates and Deals

Premier American Bank, N.A. is offering several competitive CD specials. The two best include a 2.00% APY 12-month CD and a 2.15% APY 18-month CD. Minimum deposit is $10,000 ($5,000 for IRA CDs). Below is the full list of CD specials as listed at the bank's specials page as of 2/05/2010:

• 1.50% APY 6 month
• 1.75% APY 9 month
• 2.00% APY 12 month
• 2.15% APY 18 month
• 2.10% APY 24 month

There's also a competitive money market account special which has a 2.00% APY for balances over $10,000 as of 2/05/2010. Minimum initial deposit is $2,500.

It appears that a branch visit is required to open an account, and you may have to be a local resident (note to those visiting Miami for the Super Bowl). Branches are located in Miami, Surfside and Hialeah Gardens, Florida.

Didn't the Bank Fail Last Month?

One interesting thing to note about this bank is that it's a newly chartered bank that took over the failed Premier American Bank on January 22, 2010. Here's how the FDIC described this transaction:

To protect the depositors, the FDIC entered into a purchase and assumption agreement with Premier American Bank, National Association, Miami, Florida, a newly-chartered national institution, to assume all of the deposits of Premier American Bank. Premier American Bank, N.A. is a subsidiary of Bond Street Holdings, LLC, Naples, Florida.

By the look of the bank's website it appears the new owners are trying to be very quiet about this change. I can't see any news about the failure or takeover.

This is a good reminder to check the rates of any bank that has failed and has been taken over by another bank. It's common for the new bank to offer competitive deposit deals in an attempt to retain customers. Another benefit of these deals is that the new bank should be in much better shape financially.

This newly chartered bank already has an entry at the FDIC website (FDIC Certificate # 58991).

Thanks to the reader Linda who mentioned this CD special in the Open Discussion Thread.

Premier Bank is offering two competitive CD specials: a 2.01% APY 13-month CD and a 2.26% APY 18-month Bump-Up CD. Minimum deposit is $10,000. These rates are listed at the bottom of the bank's rates page as of 2/05/2010.

The bank also has a reward checking account which I first reported on in April 2007 when the account was paying 6% for up to $50K. As you might expect, the rate has fallen substantially. It's now 1.81% APY for up to $50K (see review).

It appears that a branch visit is required to open an account. Branches are located in Tallahassee and Quincy, Florida.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are a little weak: 3 stars (adequate) at BauerFinancial and 2 stars (below peer group) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 9/30/09 financial data. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1995 (FDIC Certificate # 33992).

Chartway Federal Credit Union is offering some competitive CD rates. The most competitive is its 12-month CD which has a top rate of 2.06% APY for a minimum deposit of $10,000. Other competitive ones include a 1.60% APY 6-month CD and a 2.26% APY 24-month CD. These yields require a Preferred Plus, Elite 50 Plus or Premier Checking. Without these checking accounts, the rates are 25 basis points lower. These rates are listed in the credit union's rates sheet as of 2/05/2010.

The checking account requirement does hurt this deal. All three of the qualifying checking accounts have a minimum balance requirement to avoid a monthly fee. The Preferred Plus checking and the Elite 50 Plus checking have a $10 monthly fee unless a minimum balance of $2,500 is maintained. These two would be preferable to the Premier Checking which has a $20 monthly fee unless a minimum balance of $5,000 and direct deposit are maintained.

Unfortunately, their eChecking account does not qualify for this CD. This is a reward checking account that pays up to 3.84% APY on a $20K balance (see review).

Another good deal at the credit union is the money market accounts. The top rate on the Money Market Plus and Link accounts is 2.02% APY for balances of at least $100K as of 2/05/2010. These rates don't require the above checking accounts.

Membership and Locations

Membership is open to those who live, work, worship or go to school in a defined geographic area served by the credit union's Virginia, Florida, Rhode Island and Texas branches. A reader noted in a previous post that the geographic areas are narrow, so please call to see if you can be eligible. You can also be eligible via schools and select employer groups. The online application has a list of eligible schools and employers. Please refer to their Membership Page for more details. Membership requires a $5 minimum deposit into the Prime Share savings account.

Branches are located in Virginia, Georgia, Rhode Island, North Carolina, Texas, Florida, Ohio and New Jersey.

The credit union has some decent financial ratings for safety and soundness: 4 stars (excellent) at BauerFinancial and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com. Both are based on 9/30/09 data. Chartway is federally insured by the NCUA (Charter # 13242).

First City Bank is offering a special 2.25% APY 15-month CD. Minimum deposit is $5,000, and the maximum is $250,000. According to the bank's promo page the special is scheduled to expire on 2/26/2010.

There's an online application, and according to the CSR, this CD is available nationwide. One caveat is that you can't select the 15-month term in the application. According to the CSR, you can select a 12 or 18-month term and mention the 15-month term in the comments. According to the bank's instructions, one can open the CD by phone using their toll-free number (888-244-5151). However, a reader reported being told by the CSR that this is not an option.

They also offer a reward checking account which currently pays 3.01% APY for balances up to $25K. You can also apply online from any state to open this reward checking account (see post).

Branches are located in the Florida Panhandle cities of Fort Walton Beach, Destin and Mary Esther.

One thing that puts some cold water on this deal is that the bank isn't in the best financial shape. Its ratings for safety and soundness are very low: 0 star (lowest) at BauerFinancial and 1 star (lowest) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 9/30/09 financial data. The bank has also been operating under a FDIC Cease and Desist Order since 10/12/09. It's interesting to note that one of the restrictions the FDIC placed on the bank is on brokered deposits. As with any bank, make sure you keep under the FDIC limits. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1948 (FDIC Certificate # 16748).

Thanks to the reader me1004 who mentioned this special in the Open Discussion Thread.

Edit 2/03/10: Updated the phone option info for opening the CD.

Gateway Bank of Southwest Florida is offering a 2.10% APY 15-month CD special. Minimum deposit is $5,000, and the maximum is $95,000. This special isn't listed at the bank's website. A reader mentioned it to me, and I just contacted the bank today (2/2/2010) for additional details. The special could end at anytime.

In addition to the CD special, the bank has a checking account promotion. Unlike the CD special, this checking account bonus is listed at the bank's website. Here are the terms as listed on the website as of 2/2/2010:

Open any new checking account at Gateway Bank and switch over your direct deposit relationship. Gateway Bank will deposit $75.00 into your new account after your first direct deposit is posted. On the one year anniversary of opening, Gateway Bank will deposit an additional $25.00 into your account.

Minimum opening deposit is $100, and the account must remain open for at least 6 months.

It appears a branch visit is required to open an account. Branches are located in Sarasota and Bradenton.

It's a new bank that was established in 2008. Thus, it's labeled as a start-up at BauerFinancial. Bankrate.com gives it 3 stars (performing) for safety and soundness based on 9/30/09 financial data. The bank has been a FDIC member since 2008 (FDIC Certificate # 58725).

First Community Bank of America has a special 13-month CD with a 2.07% APY. Minimum deposit is $5,000. There's also a competitive standard 24-month CD with a 2.40% APY. These rates don't seem to be listed at the bank's website. A reader mentioned this special, so I contacted the bank yesterday (1/28/2010). The rates are subject to change at any time.

A branch visit is required to open an account. Branches are located in several Southwest Florida cities including St. Petersburg, Port Charlotte, Apollo Beach and Dade City.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are weak: 2 stars (problematic) at BauerFinancial and 1 star (lowest) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 9/30/09 financial data. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1985 (FDIC Certificate # 32270).

Thanks to the reader who emailed me news of this CD special.

Community Bank of Broward has a competitive 17-month CD special with a 2.35% APY. Minimum deposit is $5,000. This special doesn't seem to be listed at the bank's website. A reader mentioned it to me, and I just called this morning (1/27/2010) for additional details. According to the CSR, there are no other requirements. She wasn't sure how much longer it would last. They began offering it last Friday.

A branch visit is required to open an account. Branches are located in several cities in Broward County including Hollywood and Fort Lauderdale.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are above average: 4 stars (exellent) at BauerFinancial and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 9/30/09 data. I was happy to see these respectable ratings for a Florida bank with a high CD rate. The bank has been a FDIC member since 2002 (FDIC Certificate # 57300).

As I've been reporting, banks are trying new ways to encourage customers to use their debit cards with the credit (signature-based) option. High-yield reward checking is one way, and this mostly benefits those with larger balances ($25K or more). The larger banks have tried reward checking that rewards with cash back rather than high interest rates. M&I Bank is the latest example with their Cash Back Checking.

In addition to the cash-back features, M&I Bank is offering a $100 cash bonus for opening their Cash Back Checking Account. Offer is scheduled to last until 2/12/2010. Here's the small print of the offer:

Simply open an M&I Cash Back Checking account by February 12, 2010. To receive your $100 you must make five qualifying** purchases with your M&I Bank Check Card within the first 45 days after account opening. Your account will be reviewed 45 days after opening. The $100 cash bonus will be paid within 2 weeks of that review if the requirement above has been met. Offer applies to new accounts opened with new money not currently on deposit with M&I Bank, no exceptions. One bonus per household ever 12 months. Cannot be combined with other offers.

Note, qualifying purchases requires signature-based purchases with the debit card.

Here's the summary of the cash back features of this checking account:

• 0.25% cash back bonus based on the total amount of your net signature-based M&I Bank Check Card purchases made during the statement cycle.
• $0.25 for a deposit up to a maximum of $2 per statement cycle (8 deposits)
• $0.25 for each monthly online statement
• $0.05 for automatic payments deducted from your account (Online Bill Payment, internal M&I loan payment and ACH debit) up to a maximum of $2 per statement cycle (40 payments)

Note, high-yield reward checking accounts often require the above activity to qualify for the high yield. For those with small balances, the above cash-back features could earn you more than high interest rate.

One downside to the Cash Back Checking is the potential of a $10 monthly maintenance fee which would eliminate the benefits of the above rewards. The bank lists these three options to avoid this fee:

• making 3 transactions per statement cycle
• maintaining $1,000 minimum average daily balance in the account
• if you are under the age of 25

The offer appears to only be available where M&I Bank has branches. You need to enter your zip code if you apply online, and it'll tell you if you're not in their market area. According to their branch locator, the states where they have branches include: Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada and Wisconsin. Most of the branches are located in Wisconsin which is where their headquarters is located.

M&I is a large regional bank with $51.6 billion in assets. It has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 1020).

Credit for this find goes to FW member buyerbware who posted it on this FW thread.

Fidelity Bank of Florida did something that's rare these days. They increased their CD rates. The largest bump was in the 4-year CD rate which increased 45 basis points to 3.45% APY. The 5-year CD rate went up by 10 basis points to 3.75% APY. Minimum deposit is $10,000 ($4,000 for an IRA CD). These rates are listed at the bank's rates page as of the morning of 1/19/2010.

It appears that a branch visit is required to open an account. Branches are located in the Central Florida cities of Merritt Island, Longwood and Port Richey.

On the downside, the bank's financial ratings for safety and soundness continue to be weak: 1 star (lowest) at Bankrate.com (based on 6/30/09 data) and 2 stars (problematic) at BauerFinancial (based on 9/30/09 data). The bank has been a FDIC member since 1990 (FDIC Certificate # 33198).

• CD rates at DepositAccounts.com
• My weekly list of hot nationwide and local CD deals