Illinois Deposit Account Rates and Deals

Citizens Bank has a checking account promotion in which you can earn $100. The details of the checking account bonus are listed at www.citizensbank.com/220. Offer ends 3/26/2010. The requirements to earn the $100 include:

• $50 for setting up direct deposit of $250 or more
• $25 for making 5 online bill payments
• $25 for making 5 signature-based debit card or credit card purchases

Some important details mentioned in the small print includes:

Requirements must be met by 4/30/2010. Bonus will be deposited into the checking account by 6/30/2010 and reported to the IRS. Checking account must remain open for at least 6 months or the amount of the banking bonus will be debited from the account at closing.

The Green Checking qualifies for this bonus, and it's a free checking account with no monthly fees. Minimum opening balance is $50.

The Green Checking also qualifies for the Green$sense program. Citizens Bank says you can get paid up to $120 per year in Green$ense. However, this would require 100 debit card purchases, online bill payments or automatic payments per month for 12 months. For each of these non-paper transactions, Citizens Bank pays you 10 cents. Since this is considerable work, I'm not including this $120 in the bonus amount.

This is very similar to the promotion the bank was running late last year. One small change is that they now require a minimum direct deposit of $250 instead of $50. In that post, a reader mentioned that there's a hard pull in the application.

There's an online application at the promotions page. However, it only accepts zip codes in their market area. Their market area includes Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont.

Citizens Bank operates under two FDIC charters: Citizens Bank of Pennsylvania (FDIC Certificate # 57282) and RBS Citizens, N.A. which has branches in several states outside of PA and NJ (FDIC Certificate # 57957).

Other Bank Bonuses

To find other bonus deals, please refer to my bank bonus page which has all of my recent bank bonus posts.

Northrop Grumman Federal Credit Union is offering special 9-month, 18-month, 30-month and 60-month CDs and IRA CDs. Unfortunately, these are not available to all members (see below). The best rates require a $40K minimum deposit. These are listed at the credit union's rates page as of 2/26/2010 and include:

• 1.92% APY 9 months
• 2.41% APY 18 months
• 2.81% APY 30 months
• 3.63% APY 60 months

Rates are about 25 basis points lower for a $2,500 minimum.

Unfortunately, unlike NGFCU's standard CDs, these specials are available to NGFCU members of record prior to 1/31/2010 and to NGC and LA Metro employees and their family members who are not current members. Note, this restriction is stated near the top of the rates page. This is the same promotion that NGFCU did last year (and the year before), so if you're not already a member, you may want to join now so you can take advantage if they offer this again next year.

For those who don't qualify for these promotions, NGFCU continues to have some competitive rates on its regular CDs. These are listed at the credit union's rates page as of 2/26/2010, and the most competitive ones include:

• 1.63% APY 6 months
• 1.87% APY 12 months
• 2.15% APY 24 months
• 3.32% APY 48 months

The above rates require a minimum deposit of $40K. Rates are about 25 basis points lower for a $2.5K minimum.

Membership Eligibility

Anyone can qualify for NGFUC membership by joining the Southern California Historical Aircraft Foundation (SCHAF). The credit union website has an online application link that takes you to the Andera service where you can join the SCHAF, join the credit union and open accounts. According to the first page of the Andera application:

Members of the Southern California Historical Aircraft Foundation (SCHAF). When you join using this method, you will receive a free one-year membership in SCHAF concurrent with your lifetime Credit Union membership.

Refer to the credit union's eligibility page for more details. For more details about membership and their certificates, please refer to my 2008 Northrop Grumman FCU review post.

NGFCU has branches in several cities of California, Illinois, Maryland, Virginia, Louisiana and Florida.

NGFCU ratings for safety and soundness are above average: 5 stars (superior) at BauerFinancial and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 9/30/09 financial data. The credit union is federally insured by the NCUA (Charter # 24292).

Murphy-Wall State Bank and Trust is offering a high-yield reward checking account called Kasasa Cash. The account has the following rates and features if certain monthly requirements are met:

• 3.50% APY on balances up $25,000
• 0.50% APY on portion of balance over $25,000
• 0.05% base rate if requirements are not met
• ATM fee refunds nationwide up to $25 per month

The monthly requirements include:

• 10 check card purchases
• 1 direct deposit or ACH auto debit
• Access Online Banking
• Receive eStatements

Other features of this account include:

• $100 minimum initial deposit
• No monthly fee
• No minimum balance
• Free Online Banking with Bill Pay

The bank also offers the Kasasa Saver account which allows you to earn a decent rate if you have balances over $25,000. It offers the following rates if you meet the above requirements for your Kasasa Cash account:

• 1.50% APY on balances up to $50,000
• 0.50% APY on portion of balances over $50,000
• 0.05% APY base rate if requirements are not met

Like the Kasasa Cash account, it has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements.

There's an online application link at the bank's Kasasa Cash page. This link takes you to the Kasasa website that provides the online application service.

The application only accepts certain zip codes. As of 2/24/10, all Illinois zip codes appear to be accepted including zip codes from Chicago. Note, it has been common for banks to change availability on these accounts. So if it doesn't accept your Illinois zip code, please leave a comment.

Branches are located in southern Illinois in the cities of Pinckneyville and Murphysboro.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are strong: 4 stars (excellent) at BauerFinancial and 4 stars (sound) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 9/30/09 financial data. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 10860).

Value of Kasasa Saver?

I've seen more banks include the Saver account with the reward checking account. The Saver account can be useful for those who have balances over the reward checking cap and don't want the hassles of maintaining multiple reward checking accounts. As in the case above, the Saver rate is very competitive compared to internet savings account rates.

Other Reward Checking Accounts

There are still nationwide reward checking accounts paying 4% (see post) and a few local reward checking accounts that are even paying over 5% (see post). However, rates under 4% are becoming more common, and anything over 3% is a decent deal for reward checking rates.

To find nationwide reward checking accounts and reward checking accounts in your local area, please refer to the reward checking section of DepositAccounts.com.

Catholic & Community Credit Union which is based in Shiloh, Illinois is offering a high-yield reward checking account called the Ultra Checking Account. It has the following rates if certain monthly requirements are met (as of 2/18/2010):

• 3.55% APY for balances up to $25,000
• 0.50% APY for portion of balance over $25,000

Monthly requirements include:

• 12 debit card purchases
• Receive e-statements

The credit union membership is open to residents of St. Clair, Monroe and Madison Counties in Illinois. The field of membership is listed on the credit union's front page. Membership requires a $25 minimum balance in a savings account and a $1 one-time membership fee.

Branches are located in Shiloh and Belleville, Illinois which are just east of St. Louis.

The credit union's ratings for safety and soundness are above average: 4 stars (excellent) at BauerFinancial and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 9/30/09 financial data. The credit union is federally insured by the NCUA (Charter # 65735).

Other High-Yield Reward Checking Accounts

Refer to the reward checking section of DepositAccounts.com to find reward checking accounts in your area or that are available around the nation.

Pacific Global Bank is offering a competitive CD promotion: 2.00% APY for terms of 9 and 12 months. Minimum deposit is $5,000, and the maximum is $250,000. New money is required. The promotion is listed in the bank's 14th anniversary flyer (pdf) as of 2/17/2010.

Another CD promotion listed in the flyer is not quite as good in my opinion. There are two step-up CDs: 2.25% APY 36-month CD and a 2.50% APY 60-month CD. You can step-up the rate one time during the term to the current yield of a one-year Treasury Bill plus 0.50%. The maximum it can be raised is 6.00% APY. Currently the one-year Treasury yield is only around 0.35%.

In addition to the CD promotions, there's also a competitive money market promotion with a 1.75% APY guaranteed until 3/31/10. The standard rate is only 0.75%, but according to the promo, if you can bring in $10K of new money after 3/31/10, the 1% bonus will continue for another quarter.

It appears that a branch visit is required to open an account. The bank has three branches located in Chicago, IL.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are above average: 4 stars (excellent) at BauerFinancial and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 9/30/09 financial data. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1995 (FDIC Certificate # 34089).

Associated Bank is offering up to a $150 bonus for opening a checking account and performing specific activities. The offer ends on April 20, 2010. Refer to the bank's promotion page for the full details. Requirements for the bonus include:

• Open a new qualifying personal checking account (excludes Free and Student) by 4/20/2010
• $50 with your first check order and completion of five debit card signature purchases
• $50 with your enrollment in Online Bill Pay and completing three bill payment transactions
• $50 with a regular direct deposit of your payroll check

Some important small print includes:

• Limited to one bonus per household
• Minimum opening deposit of at least $100 is required to obtain a bonus
• All qualifying activity must occur within 60 days of account opening to obtain applicable bonus
• The bonus will be deposited into your new checking account within 90 days of account opening
• Checking account must remain open and active with a minimum of five transactions monthly to receive bonus payment

Two important things to note about this promotion:

1. The free checking does not qualify so you'll have to watch out for fees. Monthly fees can be avoided in the Advantage Checking with direct deposit or with a $500 minimum balance.
2. The first $50 requires that you order checks which are not free

There's an online application on the promo page. However, the application states that they are only able to open checking accounts for persons residing in Wisconsin, Illinois, or Minnesota.

Branches are located in several cities in Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota including Madison, Green Bay, Milwaukee, Chicago, Peoria, Minneapolis, Saint Paul and Rochester.

Associated Bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 5296).

Credit for this find goes to Fatwallet member sideout who mentioned it in this FW thread.

Other Bank Bonuses

Refer to the Bank Bonus page for other bonuses at banks and credit unions around the nation.

Cornerstone Bank & Trust is offering a high-yield reward checking account called eVantage Checking. It offers the following rates and features if certain monthly requirements are met:

• 3.56% APY on the portion of your balance $30,000
• 1.26% APY on the portion of your balance above $30,000
• 0.35% APY base rate if requirements are not met
• Refundable ATM Fees up to $12.00 per cycle

Monthly requirements include:

• 10 debit card purchases
• 1 Direct Deposit or ACH Transaction or active online bill pay
• Access Online Banking
• Receive Electronic Statements (when available)
• Maintain a valid email address

Additional features of this account include:

• $200 minimum initial deposit
• No monthly service fee
• No minimum balance
• Free online Bill Pay

It appears that a branch visit is required to open an account. Branches are located in the west Illinois cities of Alton, Carrollton and Jerseyville.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are average: 3 stars (adequate) at BauerFinancial and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 9/30/09 financial data. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 15317).

Other High-Yield Reward Checking Accounts

The Cornerstone reward checking rate may not be the best, but the larger-than-average balance cap of $30K helps offset this.

Refer to the reward checking section of DepositAccounts.com to find reward checking accounts in your area or that are available around the nation.

American Eagle Bank of Chicago continues to offer a competitive 29-month CD special with a 2.50% APY. It had been 2.75% last year. Minimum deposit is $1,000. The bank also has a promotion for its Platinum NOW Checking account with a 1.75% APY guaranteed for 3 months. Direct deposit is required. Minimum balance is $500 to obtain APY and to avoid a $10 fee. These rates are listed in the bank's Chicago promotions page as of 2/2/2010.

One nice feature to note of the bank's CDs is a mild early withdrawal penalty. According to the small print at the bottom of the bank's rate table, it's 90 days of interest for terms over 12 months.

Accounts can only be open by residents of the Chicago metro area and current customers.

This promotion appears to only be available in Chicago. The bank's other branch in South Elgin doesn't list these promotions.

American Eagle Bank of Chicago's ratings for safety and soundness remain the same as I reported last year: 3½ stars (good) 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 2007 (FDIC Certificate # 58514).

Suburban Bank & Trust is offering a high-yield reward checking account called SBT Rewards Checking. The account has the following rates and features if certain monthly requirements are met:

• 4.02% APY on balances up to $25,000
• 1.00% APY on portion of balance over $25,000
• 0.05% base rate if requirements are not met
• ATM fee refunds up to $20 per month

The monthly requirements include:

• 10 debit card purchases
• One direct deposit or auto debit
• Receive e-statements

Additional features of the account regardless of the monthly requirements include:

• $100 minimum initial deposit
• No monthly fees
• No minimum balance requirements
• Free online bill pay

There's an online application link at the bank's website and at its microwebsite. The application at the microwebsite states that you must visit a branch to complete the application process.

Branches are located throughout the Chicago metro area.

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 1971 (FDIC Certificate # 20443).

Cornerstone Bank & Trust is offering a very competitive 12-month CD with a 2.22% APY. This is listed at the bottom of the bank's rates page as of 1/24/2010.

The bank also offers a reward checking account with a current rate of 3.56% APY on balances up to $30K (DepositAccount's Rates and Review page).

It appears that a branch visit is required to open an account. Branches are located in the west Illinois cities of Alton, Carrollton and Jerseyville.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are average: 3 stars (adequate) at BauerFinancial and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 9/30/09 financial data. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 15317).