Kansas Deposit Account Rates and Deals

Bank of Weston is another bank offering a high-yield reward checking account called Kasasa Cash. There's also a companion savings account called Kasasa Saver. The checking account has the following rates and features if certain monthly requirements are met (as of 9/03/2010):

• 3.51% APY on balances up to $25,000
• 0.51% APY on portion of balance over $25,000
• 0.05% base rate if requirements are not met
• ATM fee refunds nationwide of up to $25 per statement cycle

Monthly requirements include:

• 10 debit card purchases
• 1 direct deposit or ACH automatic payment
• Receive eStatements

Other features of this account include:

• $100 minimum to open account
• No minimum balance
• No monthly service charge

The Kasasa Saver account has the following rates if the Kasasa Cash requirements are met (as of 9/3/2010):

• 1.51% APY on balances up to $25,000
• 0.51% APY on portion of balance over $25,000
• 0.05% base rate if requirements are not met

Kasasa Saver helps a little for those who have balances over $25K and don't want to open multiple reward checking accounts. It provides a nice alternative over using an internet savings account for your additional funds.

There's an online application link at the Kasaa Cash page. This takes you to the Kasasa.com page. If you search at Kasasa.com, this bank shows up for zip codes in Missouri, Iowa and Kansas. The bank is located in Kansas City, Missouri and in its northern suburbs of Weston, Platte City and Camden Point.

The bank has a Texas Ratio of 15.01% (excellent) and an overall health score of 4 out of 5 at DepositAccounts.com based on 6/30/10 data (see our financial overview for Bank of Weston). The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 1418).

Other High-Yield Reward Checking Accounts

To find reward checking accounts in your state or to find those available nationwide, please refer to the reward checking section of DepositAccounts.com.

With the news that Alliant Credit Union will be lowering its savings account yield from 1.50% to 1.35% in September, more people may be interested in BankOn. I first reported on BankOn in October 2009. Since then it has maintained a very competitive rate on its Money Market Savings Account. It's currently 1.60% APY as of 8/25/2010, and this rate has been maintained since April.

Unfortunately, BankOn isn't available nationwide. It's one of the rare internet accounts that is limited to only certain states: Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Wyoming.

Another downside is the requirement of opening its internet checking account. The checking requires a $100 minimum opening deposit, and it pays no interest. However, there is no minimum balance requirement after opening.

One nice perk with BankOn is a sign-up bonus of $25 when you open the savings account. There doesn't seem to be any additional requirements to receive this bonus. The rules say there's a limit of one per household, and the bonus will be paid within 10 business days of account opening.

There's also a nice refer-a-friend bonus. This is a limited time promotion that rewards both the referrer and the new customer with $25. You can make up to $250 for referring friends.

For more details about BankOn, please refer to my 2009 BankOn review. BankOn is part of Pinnacle Bank which has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 10634). Pinnacle Bank has a link to BankOn at its website so you can confirm the relationship.

RCB Bank has two good deposit deals. The first is a high-yield checking account called Go Green Rewards Checking. I first reported on this account in 2008. The rate has fallen, but it's still very competitive for reward checking accounts. As of 8/9/2010, it pays 4.10% APY on balances up to $25K. The main requirement is 12 debit card purchases a month. It does not require direct deposit, but it does require that you log into your account at least once a month. As is typical, e-statements is also required.

The other deposit deal is a competitive 5-year CD rate of 3.00% APY as of 8/9/2010. Minimum deposit is $1,000 for the regular CD and $250 for the IRA Roth CD. This rate is listed in the bank's CD rate sheet as of 8/09/2010.

One thing that has changed since my 2008 reward checking review is that they have added branches outside of their home state of Oklahoma. They now have branches in Phoenix and Scottsdale, Arizona and in the Kansas cities of Wichita, Winfield and Arkansas City. In Oklahoma, they have branches in several cities including Oklahoma City, Edmond, Broken Arrow, Owasso and Stillwater. Please refer to the bank's location page for all of the addresses.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are above average: 4 stars (excellent) at BauerFinancial, 4 stars (sound) at Bankrate.com and an overall health score of 3 out of 5 at DepositAccounts.com (see our financial overview of RCB Bank). These ratings are based on 3/31/10 financial data. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1936 (FDIC Certificate # 15399).

Searching for the Best Reward Checking Account

If you're in Arizona, there's another reward checking account that's a good deal. Sonoran Bank, N.A. continues to offer 4.26% APY on balances up to $30K (as of 8/09/2010). I have more details about this account in my 2009 reward checking review.

To find reward checking accounts in your state or to find those available nationwide, please refer to the reward checking section of DepositAccounts.com.

Fidelity Bank has some competitive money market and CD rates. In Oklahoma, it was adverting 1.50% APY on its Money Market XTRA account. This requires a $50K deposit and a checking account. Without the checking account, the rate is 0.25% lower. The rate for balances of $10K to $50K is 1.25% APY and 0.75% for under $10K. This money market deal was advertised in the 8/8/2010 edition of the Oklahoman paper. The ad is available online here.

The bank also has some good deals on its CD specials. The best rates include a 2.01% APY 21-month CD, a 1.51% 11-month CD and a 1.31% APY 7-month CD. Minimum deposit is $500. These rates are listed in the bank's OK rates sheet as of 8/09/2010. The same CD specials are available in Kansas, but some of the rates are lower.

Branches are located in the Oklahoma cities of Edmond and Oklahoma City and in the Kansas cities of Wichita and Derby.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are fair: 3½ stars (good) at BauerFinancial, 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com and an overall health score of 3 out of 5 at DepositAccounts.com (see our financial overview of Fidelity Bank). These ratings are based on 3/31/10 financial data. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1957 (FDIC Certificate # 30895).

Bank of the West has another $100 checking account bonus. This new bonus is scheduled to last until 8/20/2010, and like the last one it allows either direct deposit of at least $250 or 10 online bill payments. The details are listed in the bank's promotion page. Below is the promotion's small print. I've highlighted the important details:

Open any new personal checking account, and either establish one monthly recurring direct deposit of at least $250 to your new account or make 10 bill payments at Bank of the West Online Banking and receive a $100 bonus. Direct deposit must be payroll, social security, pension or other government benefit. The first recurring direct deposit must be posted to your account within 60 calendar days of account open date. The 10 bill payments must occur within 60 calendar days of account open date. Bonus will be credited to your account within 60 days after satisfaction of conditions. Offer valid for new personal checking accounts opened from 7/6/10–8/20/10 with $100 or more from a financial institution other than Bank of the West. Offer subject to change without prior notice and may be terminated or extended based on response. Offer does not apply to second or multiple checking accounts. Limit of one $100 bonus per personal household per calendar year. Offer not valid in CA, CO, UT, NV or WY. To the extent required by law, Bank of the West will report the value of the offer to the IRS on Form 1099. Any applicable taxes are the responsibility of the account holder. All accounts are subject to the Bank’s standard terms and conditions and fee schedule.

When I checked with Bank of the West in March, I was told that the online account application is limited to states which have Bank of the West branches. Also, as you can see in the small print above, the offer is not valid in CA, CO, UT, NV or WY. That leaves the following states which should be eligible for this promotion: AZ, ID, IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, NM, ND, OK, OR, SD, WA and WI.

Regarding a hard credit pull, I was told earlier this year that they don't do a hard credit inquiry in the application (only a soft pull). So you shouldn't have to worry about a ding to your credit score.

Several reader commented in my previous post that Bank of the West closed their accounts for no apparent reason. It appears that when Bank of the West started to restrict availability to their market areas, out-of-area customers who had opened the account before the change were being targeted for account closure. Some readers also reported not receiving the bonus. Most readers who were in the market area have reported success with the promotion. One reader commented:

Just got bonus posted and ACH from online bank to yourself for over the necessary amount DOES count as a DD and only needed to be done 1 time.

Bank of the West is one of the large regional banks. It has $61.18 billion in assets and $41.38 billion in deposits. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 3514).

Other Bank Bonuses

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

Some of the banks under the bank holding company Central Bancompany are offering a $100 bonus for opening their MyChoice Checking and their SaveUp Savings. Two banks offering this $100 bonus include Boone County National Bank in Missouri and ONB Bank and Trust in Oklahoma.

The links to the promotion pages are in the flash displays on the banks' home pages. Here's the promo page for Boone County National Bank, and here's the promo page for ONB Bank and Trust.

This seems to be an easy bonus with no direct deposit required. Some of the details include:

• Promotion ends 10/31/2010
• $50 minimum to open the Free Checking account
• $250 minimum to open the SaveUp Savings account
• No minimum balance required to receive incentive
• Monthly fee of $2 when SaveUp Savings account balance falls below $50
• Incentive reported to the IRS as interest
• If account is closed within the first 90 days, a fee may be imposed

One important note about the MyChoice checking is that there's a $3 monthly fee unless you have one of the following: 1) $750 average daily balance, 2) ACH direct deposit, or 3) 10 monthly debit card purchases.

The SaveUp Savings Account is probably not a savings account where you'll want to keep a large balance. The current interest rate is only 0.50% APY, and that requires monthly automatic transfers from any checking account. Otherwise, the rate is cut in half.

This Central Bancompany page lists its family of banks along with the links to the banks' websites. This is a similar promo they were offering last year. However, fewer of the banks seem to be participating. Some are only offering $50.

The banks have branches in Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma.

Credit for this find goes to markber at iBankDesign.

Other Bank Bonuses

For other checking and savings account bonuses from other banks, please refer to this Bank Bonuses page.

M&I Bank has a money market promotion with a competitive rate of 1.50% APY. It's not a great deal compared to savings accounts available on the internet, but if you want a brick-and-mortar bank, this is an option. Note, there's no rate guarantee so this could be a teaser rate that may not stay competitive.

The offer is for the Premier Money Market Account which is a tiered rate account which requires a $25,000 balance to earn this top yield and to avoid a monthly fee.

The offer was advertised in today's papers (5/09/2010) in Wisconsin and Kansas City. The ads listed the following M&I Bank promo web pages:

• Wisconsin: mibank.com/premierwi
• Kansas City: mibank.com/premierkc

The offer also seems to be available for other states where M&I has branches:

• Florida (offering a higher rate of 1.75% APY) mibank.com/premierfl
• Arizona: mibank.com/premieraz
• Indiana: mibank.com/premierin
• Minnesota: mibank.com/premiermn

Checking Account Promotion

M&I Bank continues to offer a promotion on its Cash Back Checking. I first posted on that promotion in this January post.

Bank Overview

Most of the branches are located in Wisconsin which is where their headquarters is located. M&I is a large regional bank with $50.2 billion in assets. Last month the bank had its annual shareholders meeting. As reported by The Business Journal of Milwaukee:

Marshall & Ilsley Corp. executives plan to start repaying the company's TARP debt in late 2011 and will not begin rebuilding M&I's common stock dividend, now at a penny a share, until 2013.

As you might expect, the bank doesn't have the best ratings for safety and soundness: 3 stars (adequate) at BauerFinancial and 2 stars (below peer group) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 12/31/09 financial data. It has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 1020).

National Bank of Kansas City is offering a $50 Gift Card for opening a personal checking account. You have a choice of either an Amazon Gift Card or a VISA Gift Card. A $50 bonus is small, but this promotion doesn't seem to require direct deposit, and their Completely Free Checking appears to qualify. Offer expires 4/24/2010. Below is some of the important small print:

• Minimum deposit to open is $50
• Value of gift reported to IRS
• Limit two gifts per household
• Checking account must remain open for 90 days

The bank also has a generous refer-a-friend program. Refer a friend, and when they open a personal checking account you'll receive a $50 Amazon or VISA Gift Card.

This promotion is very similar to the one they offered last year. At that time the checking accounts and this promotion were only local deals. I can't find any geographic limitation in this current promotion, and it does give an online option to open accounts. However, I'm not calling it a nationwide deal unless I get confirmation.

Branches are located in Excelsior Springs, Lee's Summit, Liberty and Platte City, Missouri and in Leawood and Overland Park, Kansas. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1999 (FDIC Certificate # 35014).

Other Bank Bonuses

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

First National Bank of St. Louis is offering up to $100 for opening a checking account and a savings account. Earn $50 when you open a free checking account. Earn another $50 when you open a SaveUp Savings account at the same time. The promotion doesn't appear to be listed at the bank's website. It was advertised in today's (3/14/2010) St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The ad is available online here.

The Free Checking has a $50 minimum opening deposit, and it offers free Online Bill Pay when you choose eStatements. The SaveUp Savings Account has a $250 minimum initial deposit. A $2 monthly fee is waived when you maintain a minimum balance of $50. You can get double the interest when you set up a monthly transfer from any of our checking accounts to your SaveUp Savings Account (double interest ends 8/31/2010). I don't see the interest rates listed, so this double-interest feature may not amount to much.

It appears that a branch visit is required to open an account. Branches are located throughout the St. Louis metro area.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are strong: 5 stars (superior) at BauerFinancial (based on 12/31/09 data) and 4 stars (sound) at Bankrate.com (based on 9/30/09 data). The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 4534)

Other Bank Bonuses

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

Greater Western Bank is offering three CD specials. The most competitive one is a 2.18% APY 18-month CD. The other two are a 2.68% APY 38-month CD and a 3.08% APY 58-month CD. These rates include a 0.15% bonus for new or existing checking or savings account customers. Minimum deposit is $5,000, and new money is required. These special CD rates are listed in the bank's CD page as of 2/01/2010.

It appears that a branch visit is required. Branches are located in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa and Missouri.

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 1935 (FDIC Certificate # 15289).