Illinois Banking Rates and News

Citizens Bank has a new-account promotion in which you can earn up to $225. To get the full $225 requires opening a new personal checking account and a money market account or CD. It's important to note that both the checking and money market accounts have potential monthly fees. So keep that in mind when considering the bonus.

To qualify for the promotion, complete the form at this Citizens Bank promotions page to get a coupon that you can print and take to your local branch. Accounts must be opened by 6/2/2012 to qualify for the bonuses.

For...

When I last covered The National Republic Bank of Chicago you had to visit a branch to open an account. However, that has changed. The bank now has an online application, and on its first page it states "We welcome all residents of the United States to apply." It's always nice to see another bank accepting deposits nationwide, and it's especially nice now since the bank is offering some competitive CD rates. The best is the 5-year CD with a 1.81% APY. Minimum deposit is $1,000. This rate is listed on the bank's rates page as...

North Shore Bank is offering a $150 bonus when you open a new checking account with Direct Deposit OR 10 qualifying debit card transactions. The offer is listed at bank's promotions page, and it's scheduled to end on 5/9/2012.

Below is the small print of the offer:

Limit 1 new checking bonus per household per year. Not valid with other offers. Only available until 5/9/12. Other restrictions may apply. $25 initial deposit required with direct deposit to open checking account, otherwise $50. Bonus will be paid out after 6/15/12. Debit card transactions or Social Security/payroll direct deposit must...

Alliant Credit Union reduced its savings account and High Rate Checking rates by 5 basis points. The new April yields are 0.95% for the savings account and 0.90% for the High Rate Checking. There was also a cut to the Health Savings Account rate. The yield fell from 1.75% to 1.50%.

I was hoping that Alliant would be repeating 2011 when they kept the savings and checking accounts rates steady for the whole year. At least they only cut these rates by 5 basis points this time.

It's also disappointing to see the savings account rate fall below 1.00%. In my...

Alliance Credit Union is offering a competitive 5-year CD and IRA CD rate. It has a 2.16% APY with a minimum deposit of $1,000. The shorter term CDs are not quite as competitive. Some of these include a 1.61% APY 4-year CD and a 1.41% APY 37-month CD. These rates are listed in the credit union's rates page as of 3/27/2012.

In addition to these regular CDs, the credit union has an interesting type of CDs that it calls Income Now CD. These are designed to provide a pre-determined monthly payment made up of both principal and...

Northrop Grumman Federal Credit Union used to be a rate leader for many CD and IRA CD terms. That changed a couple of years ago. I just noticed that the credit union's CD rates are becoming more competitive. In addition, it has recently added a 7-year CD that also has competitive rates. The best one is a 2.42% APY for a $40K minimum deposit (2.26% APY for a $2.5K minimum). The 5-year CD rate is also fairly competitive with a 2.05% APY for a $40K minimum. These rates are listed in the credit union's term savings...

It's rare to find a financial institution in major cities that offers top CD rates. I found one, but unfortunately, not many may be able to qualify for membership. The institution is Actors Federal Credit Union which has branches in New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago. Its best CD deal is the 5-year CD which has a 2.40% APY. Minimum deposit is $500. The IRA 5-year CD rate is even higher with a 2.55% APY. These rates are listed in the credit union's rates page as of 2/16/2012.

As I mentioned above, it doesn't...

State Bank of India is a foreign bank, but it has U.S. branches with FDIC insurance in New York and Chicago. I first reported on the New York branch in 2005. They have long offered competitive CD rates, and they can open CDs by mail for people in any state. Currently, the best deal is the 5-year CD which has a 2.02% APY. Minimum deposit is $5,000. Early withdrawal penalty is 270 days of interest. This rate and a description of the CD features are listed in the bank's CD accounts page as of 2/09/2012....

Dupaco Community Credit Union is offering two CD specials with very competitive rates: 1.91% APY for 35 months and 1.30% APY for 15 months. Minimum deposit is $5,000. The credit union also has competitive rates on its standard long-term CDs. The two best are a 2.41% APY 5-year CD and a 2.01% APY 4-year CD. These rates are listed in the credit union's certificate rates page as of 2/9/2012.

Dupaco used to have a good deal on its High-Yield Savings Account. It's still a good deal for those who already have this...

AnchorBank is offering up to $150 for opening any new personal checking account and performing certain activities. This is a nice upgrade from last year's promotion which had just a $100 bonus. This offer is listed in the bank's promotion page. It's scheduled to end on 4/15/2012.

The required activities include:

• $50 for opening a checking account
• $50 for setting up direct deposit
• $50 for making three debit card purchases

The direct deposit and debit card purchases must be completed within 60 days of account opening. Existing checking account customers are not eligible for the bonus. Another important note...

American Eagle Bank of Chicago is offering some competitive long-term CD rates. Another perk with these CDs is a mild early withdrawal penalty. Jumbo CDs have the most competitive rates. These include a 2.10% APY 5-year CD, a 1.85% APY 4-year CD and a 1.60% APY 3-year CD. Regular CDs with a $1,000 minimum deposit have rates 10 basis points lower. These regular CD rates are listed at the bank's rates pages for both its Chicago branch and South Elgin branch as of 1/10/2012.

One nice feature to note of the bank's...

I just confirmed that Alliant Credit Union will be keeping its savings and checking rates the same for December. Alliant Savings Account has a 1.15% APY on balances of $100 or more. Its High Rate Checking has a 1.10% APY on all balances. This checking rate requires monthly electronic deposits and e-statements.

With these rates holding through December, Alliant has become the only institution that has kept its savings account rate unchanged for all of 2011. It was back in December 17, 2010 that we learned that Alliant was going to cut its 1.35% APY to the...