Hawaii Banking Rates and News

• 2.50% APY 7-year CD (was 2.76%)
• 2.00% APY 5-year CD (was 2.25%)
• 1.74% APY 4-year CD (was 2.00%)
• 1.25% APY 3-year CD (was 1.50%)
• 0.99% APY 2-year CD (was 1.25%)
• 0.90% APY 1-year CD (was 1.16%)

PenFed calls their CDs...

There had been rumors that Pentagon Federal Credit Union (PenFed) was going to finally start offering 10-year certificates to all members in January. A reader reported that he was told by a CSR the yield would be 3.00%. I wasn't able to confirm this 10-year CD last week, and there isn't any mention of this new CD at PenFed's website. New January rates are posted with no mention of a 10-year CD or IRA CD.

There is some good news with PenFed's January rates. First, the 1-year CD yield has increased from 0.99% to 1.16% APY. This is...

With all the CD rate cuts over the last couple of months, I was happy to see that Pentagon Federal Credit Union kept its CD rates the same in October. These rates have held up since March 2011. At that time, these rates were not that competitive, but now PenFed's long-term CD rates are back near the top for nationally available CDs.

Below are PenFed's long-term CD yields as listed in PenFed's Money Market Certificates page as of 10/05/2011.

• 2.75% APY 7-year CD & IRA CD
• 2.25% APY 5-year CD & IRA CD
• 2.00% APY 4-year CD &...

Every now and then Doral Bank Direct offers competitive CD rates. Its latest deal is a 1-year CD with a 1.40% APY. Minimum deposit is $1,000. This is the only rate that's competitive. All the other CD rates are low. These rates are listed in the bank's CD page as of 3/29/2011.

My last report on this bank was about a year ago when they were offering a 1-year CD special. One odd thing is their requirement to close out a CD. You have to send them the original Certificate that was sent...

HomeStreet Bank is again offering a checking account promotion and it has gotten better since I reviewed it last year. The bonus amounts have gone up. Details are listed in the bank's promotion page as of 1/13/2011. I don't see any expiration date, but based on its history, the promo comes and goes. The following activities are required to receive the full $300:

• $100 for direct deposits of payroll, pension, social security or other income to your account
• $80 for using your new Visa Check card ($2 per purchase up to $80)
• $75 for using free Online...

Update: Only those who reserved CDs in September were able to qualify for these 10-year certificates. PenFed is not currently offering a promotion on new money 10-year certificates to any member.

Those who reserved CDs at PenFed in their Watch it Grow promotion should be seeing their CDs take effect (based on when they specified the start date). A reader had reported being told that those who did not qualify for these CDs may not have their CDs funded. This does not appear to be correct. Here's a comment from one reader who has verified that all CDs...

Pentagon Federal Credit Union (PenFed) cut some of its CD rates for December. Its 7-year, 4-year and 3-year CD rates were cut by about 25 basis points. The 5-year CD rate remains unchanged at 2.75% APY which is very competitive. Even with the rate cut, the 7-year CD yield of 3.25% APY also remains very competitive. As a comparison to banks with nationwide availability, the best 7-year CD rate is 3.00% APY at Dime Savings Bank as of 12/01/2010 and the best 5-year CD rate is 2.60% APY at Acacia Federal Savings Bank as of 12/01/2010. Below...

Pentagon Federal Credit Union (PenFed) is yet another rate leader to make cuts to its CD rates. Economic data of a slowing economy and falling Treasury yields last month had pointed to a deposit rate environment that would become worse. Unfortunately, that did happen as we saw last week when several CD rate leaders including Alliant Credit Union, Melrose Credit Union, Ally Bank and Discover Bank reduced their CD rates. In this new month PenFed joins this group with its own CD rate cuts. Below are the new CD yields for September 2010. I've noted the old yields in...

Pentagon Federal Credit Union came out with its August CD and IRA CD rates. Rates for most terms stayed the same. However, the 7-year CD rate increased from 3.51% APY to 3.75% APY which makes this one of the best nationwide CD rates. The 2-year CD rate also increased, but the new rate of 1.75% APY is still not a top rate. Minimum deposit is $1,000. These rates are listed in the PenFed's Money Market Certificates page as of 8/02/2010. PenFed typically maintains its CD rates through the month, but note that there's no guarantee.

Hawaii Pacific Federal Credit Union is one of the few institutions in Hawaii that's offering a reward checking account. It's called the Check Plus Account, and it pays 3.00% APY on all balances as of 7/26/2010 if 12 debit MasterCard purchases per month are made. I don't see any direct deposit requirement. There are some additional minor requirements which are typical: valid email address and online banking access. If the 12 debit card purchases are not done, no interest is earned for the month. The account has no monthly balance requirement and no monthly service charge....

HomeStreet Bank has brought back its $215 checking account promotion that I last reported on in July 2009. The bonuses amounts appear to be the same as before. The largest bonus is for direct deposit, but you can still make $135 without it. Details are listed in the bank's promotion page as of 1/21/2010. I don't see any expiration date, but based on its history, the promo comes and goes. The following activities are required to receive the full $215:

• $80 for direct deposits of payroll, pension, social security or other income to your account
• $60 for...

At the December meeting, our...