New Jersey Deposit Account Rates and Deals

Sovereign Bank is offering a checking and money market promotion in which you can earn a bonus of $150 and receive a 1.50% APY guarantee for 3 months in the money market account. The promo is scheduled to expire 3/13/2010. Here's the promo page link.

First, here are the requirements for the $150 checking account bonus:

• Open a new Sovereign Premier Checking, Business Owner Premier Checking, Interest Checking, or Partnership Checking account by March 13, 2010, with a minimum opening deposit of $100
• Open any Sovereign savings or money market savings account with a minimum opening deposit of $100 or already have a savings or money market savings account
• Enroll in Online Banking at account opening
• Set up and receive one direct deposit within 60 days of opening your account
• Request a Sovereign Debit Card and make 5 Debit Card purchases within 60 days after you open your account

When you qualify, you will receive a credit of $150 to your new checking account within 75 days after you open your checking account.

Some important small print:

• Offer available only to residents in the following states: ME, VT, NH, CT, RI, MA, NY, NJ, PA, MV, MD, DE, and District of Columbia.
• Direct deposits you initiate from an account at another bank do not qualify
• The amount of the bonus credited to your account will be reported to the IRS as interest
• Current personal checking customers or anyone who has had a personal checking account with Sovereign Bank in the last 6 months are not eligible for this offer.
• Current savings customers are eligible

An important note regarding the Interest Checking is that direct deposit is required to avoid a $10 monthly fee. On the plus side is that they provide free checks. The Premier Checking is even worse in terms of potential fees. A $15,000 combined balance is required to avoid a $30/month fee. For the savings accounts, the Money Market Savings appears to be a good choice since it has no monthly maintenance fee and no minimum balance requirement. Note, the monthly fees and minimum balance vary considerably based on your state.

Here are the requirements to qualify for 1.50% APY for 3 months:

• Open a new Premier Checking account and open a new Premier Money Market Savings account by March 13, 2010
• Bonus rate will apply for each day your balance is $10,000 to $499,999 and is guaranteed for 3 months from the date you open your account

Some important small print:

• Same geographic restriction as mentioned above
• Anyone who has had a Sovereign savings, money market savings, or personal checking account with Sovereign in the last 6 months are not eligible for the bonus rate

Unlike the checking account promotion, this requires a Premier Money Market Savings account. Details of this account are in the promo page (click more for this account in the promo page). The Premier Money Savings is free of minimum balance requirements and has no monthly fees as long as you have a Premier Checking account (which, as I mentioned, has its own fees)

When I called Sovereign Bank in April 2008 regarding a similar promotion, I was told that there's no account closure fee if an account is closed after 90 days. Otherwise, it's $25. The CSR also said they don't perform a hard credit inquiry. They just use ChexSystem in the application.

There's an online application link in the promo page. However, the small print states that residential addresses must be located in the northeast states (see above).

Branches are located in the Northeast in the states of Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island. The bank is a FDIC member (FDIC Certificate # 29950).

Other Bank Bonuses

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

PNC Bank is offering a $150 bonus for opening a personal checking account with qualifying direct deposit at its new branch in Summit, New Jersey. The offer is scheduled to end on 1/31/2010. This was advertised last week at NJ.com. The ad is available online here. As you can see in the ad, PNC is publicizing its new Green branch at Summit, NJ. The address is at 517 Springfield Avenue. Phone number is 908-522-3440.

Some important details mentioned in the small print of the promo include:

• First direct deposit must be credited to your PNC Bank Checking Account by 3/15/10 in order to receive the $150 which will be credited to your account within 30 days of the first direct deposit transaction
• A qualifying direct deposit is defined as a direct deposit of a paycheck, pension, Social Security or other regular monthly income electronically deposited into a Free, Performance or Performance Select Checking Account. The direct deposit must be made by an employer or an outside agency.
• Offer is available to new PNC Bank Checking Account customers only and is limited to one per household
• Offer available only at the PNC Bank Summit branch

The $100 bonus for opening PNC's Virtual Wallet account appears to still be available. Refer to my September post for more details. One thing that has changed is that the small print now states that the offer is limited to residents of: DC, DE, IN, KY, MD, NJ, OH, PA, VA.

Aspire Federal Credit Union is offering a high-yield reward checking account called Kasasa Cash. It has the following rates and features if certain monthly requirements are met:

• 3.51% APY on balances up to $25,000
• 1.01% APY on portion of balance over $25,000
• Reimburses up to $25 in ATM fees nationwide per month

The monthly requirements include:

• 12 debit card purchases
• 1 Automatic Payment or Direct Deposit transfer
• Receive electronic statements

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

• $50 minimum initial deposit
• No minimum balance requirement
• No monthly maintenance fee
• Free Bill Pay

This account doesn't seem to be listed at the credit union's website. However, it's listed at the Kasasa website for all zip codes. Kasasa website is run by BancVue and FIRST ROI which are the main companies behind the reward checking account. The online application link at Aspire's Kasasa page points to the Andera service which is common for online applications. From here you can join the credit union and open the Kasasa account.

As with any credit union, you have to be eligible to join. According to Aspire's eligibility page, "If you are applying online, choose the organization you are interested in joining from the drop down list and continue with your membership application." Refer to the eligibility page for the full details. Credit union membership requires a minimum balance of $5 in the share savings account.

Aspire FCU used to be FAA Eastern Region Federal Credit Union. Consequently, some of their branches are in FAA facilities that are not open to the public. Branches are located in New York, New Jersey, Virginia and New Hampshire.

The credit union's ratings for safety and soundness are above average: 4 stars (excellent) at BauerFinancial (based on 9/30/09 data) and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com (based on 6/30/09 data). The credit union is federally insured by the NCUA (Charter # 5800).

Other Reward Checking Accounts

For reward checking accounts with $25K caps, 3.50% is becoming the average. Hopefully, Aspire will be able to keep this rate for the long term.

To find reward checking accounts in other areas of the nation, please refer to the reward checking section of DepositAccounts.com. To learn more about reward checking, please refer to this reward checking overview.

Wilshire State Bank continues to offer a competitive rate on its Flex CD. I first reported on these Flex CDs in June 2009. Since then the rates have fallen, and the 18-month CD is no longer available. The current yield for the 12-month Flex CD is 1.75% APY as of 1/05/2010. You can get higher 1-year CD rates at banks like Ally, but they don't have these liquid features. Ally Bank's 9-month no-penalty CD is now only paying 1.24% APY. Below are the main Flex CD features:

• Unlimited deposits of at least $1,000, up to a maximum balance of $95,000
• Six withdrawals are allowed within the term (in any amount of $1,000 or more)

Minimum deposit is $10,000 to open the account. However, if rates go up, you can make penalty-free withdrawals (up to 6) and just keep $1,000 in the account to avoid a closing penalty. Refer to the bank's Flex CD page for the full details.

If you don't live near a branch, you may also want to open Wilshire State's free checking account. You can then use another bank's ACH service to transfer money in and out of this account. With this checking account, you should then be able to move money in and out of the Flex CD without a branch visit.

If you want Wilshire State Bank's eLink Savings Account, the free checking won't qualify. You'll need at least the Regular Checking which has a $500 minimum balance requirement to avoid a monthly service charge. The eLink Savings Account is paying 1.50% APY on all balances as of 1/05/2010.

Wilshire State Bank is one of the few banks that offers an Installment Savings Account. It's called the Rainbow Savings. Its rates have fallen since my last Wilshire post, but they remain fairly competitive: 3.05% APY for 12 months to 3.82% APY for 36 months as of 1/05/2010. To see how these compare to regular CD and savings account rates, please refer to my Installment Savings Account review.

When I contacted Wilshire State Bank last year, I was told that the accounts which have the online application can be opened by people in any state. After you submit the application online, you have to print and mail the form. They'll send you a signature card to complete.

Wilshire State Bank is Korean-American bank with branches in Southern California, New York, New Jersey and Dallas, Texas. A reader in my June post commented that "Wilshire Blvd is one of the main streets in Koreatown in Los Angeles, hence the name."

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are strong: 4 stars (excellent) at BauerFinancial (based on 9/30/09 data) and 4 stars (sound) at Bankrate.com (based on 6/30/09 data). The bank has been a FDIC member since 1980 (FDIC Certificate # 23301).

Other Competitive Certificate of Deposit Rates

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

I received info from PenFed contact yesterday concerning January CD rollovers. The good news is that those who participated in the November Certificate Reservation program will have the advertised rates honored (3.50% 3 years, 4.00% 4 years and 4.25% 7 years). Several readers in my previous PenFed post have also confirmed the same thing. However, those who missed the November Certificate Reservation program won't be getting those top rates. It appears that the interest rate environment was turning out to be worse than what they had expected. Below are the details that I received:

At the December meeting, our Board of Director approved lower Money Market & IRA Certificate rates for January 2010 than previously announced. We became aware of the change in rates on December 29. It is very rare for the Board of Directors to make a change in the rates after we project them, but in this case; other factors in the market forced us to lower our projected rates slightly.

As indicated in all of our disclosure statements, our rates are always subject to change. Below, I have provided a few key points regarding the rates along with a January 2010 rate chart.

* All members who participated in the CD Rollover Subscription program will have their reservations honored, and they will receive the advertised rate from that promotion: 3 yr/3.50%, 5 yr/4:00% and 7 yr/4.25

* With the exception of CD Rollover Subscription enrollees that will receive the promised CD Rollover Subscription rates, the 0.25% APY certificate rollover bonus will be applied to all qualifying certificates rolling over between December 29, 2009 and February 1, 2010, inclusive. These certificates will receive the "Rollover " rates reflected in the chart below. Update 1/06/09: I received a clarification about the below rates. For those members with CDs maturing December 29-31, 2009 and February 1, 2010 (and did not participate in the CD Reservation program), and wish to rollover, they will receive the rate in effect for that month - plus the 0.25% bonus.

        APY for
CD      CD Subscription  APY for    APY for
Term    Participants     Rollovers  New Money
----    ---------------  ---------  ---------
6 mo    -                1.00%      1.00%
1 yr    -                1.25%      1.25%
2 yr    -                1.75%      1.75%
3 yr    3.50%            3.25%      3.00%
4 yr    -                3.50%      3.25%
5 yr    4.00%            3.75%      3.50%
7 yr    4.25%            4.00%      3.75%

For more details about PenFed CDs and membership, please refer to my previous PenFed post.

Other Competitive Certificate of Deposit Rates

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

Update 1/05/2010: I received info from my PenFed contact about the rollover CD rates. Please refer to this new post for the details.

Happy New Year! Thanks to everyone for reading, and let's hope that 2010 has some improvements for us savers.

Pentagon Federal Credit Union did increase some of its CD rates for January, but I'm afraid they're 25 basis points lower than what I was told by my PenFed contact. Perhaps they had more members agree to renew their CDs than what they had planned. Nevertheless, the new rates are competitive. They went up 50 basis points for terms of 3, 4 and 5 years. Unfortunately, the 7-year rate went down by 25 basis points. Below is the summary of PenFed long-term CD rates as listed at the PenFed Money Market Certificate page as of 1/01/2010:

• 3.00% APY 3 year
• 3.25% APY 4 year
• 3.50% APY 5 year
• 3.75% APY 7 year

I'm currently unable to confirm the renewal rates. I would think those who were early to participate in PenFed's Certificate Reservation Offer should be getting rates 50 basis points higher than the above rates. I'm hoping this will also apply to those who were late to participate since I was told of these higher rates by my PenFed contact and by two PenFed CSRs. It may just be 25 basis points higher than the above rates. I had one CD that matured today, and I had set it to renew. I logged in this morning, and it still hasn't rolled over to the new CD. When I receive renewal rate info, I'll be sure to update this post. Please leave a comment if you receive info on this.

Update 6:00pm 1/1/10:

I called PenFed today, and I have some new info based on my conversation with the PenFed CSR. However, I should note that the CSR didn't know much. I sent an email to my PenFed contact to find out what happened and who will be eligible for what rates. I don't expect a reply until Monday at the earliest.

I again logged into my PenFed account. The CD that matured today still shows the old CD rate and term. According to the CSR, the new rate and term should show up tomorrow after the holiday.

I'm assuming that those who were able to participate in the November Rollover Subscription Promotion (before it was canceled) should get the rates that PenFed listed which are 50 basis points higher than above. I'll know more when I receive the reply.

For those who missed the November Rollover Subscription Promotion but had set their CDs to rollover (like me), there is a question about what rates we'll get. According to the CSR, we'll just get 25 basis points over the listed rates which comes out to 4% 7yr, 3.75% 5yr, 3.50% 4yr and 3.25% 3yr. I told my PenFed contact that I and many of my readers were informed by PenFed reps that the rates would be 25 basis points higher. I'm hoping we'll be able to get those rates.

It appears the Board of Directors decided in December for the lower rates. The CSR didn't know much more.

PenFed Certificate Details

For more details about PenFed's CDs and joining PenFed, please refer to this PenFed review post. Details of the CDs are available in the second page of PenFed's account application. A few important details to note:

• Early withdrawal penalty for the terms of 3 to 5 years is 180 days of dividends (all dividends if redeemed before 180 days from issue date)
• IRA CDs available with the same rates
• IRA CD holders over 59½ can avoid most of the early withdrawal penalty (see see post)

Note, there's no grace period. However, the early withdrawal penalty for the first 180 days is not 180 days of interest but just the interest earned from the issue date. So if you change your mind about renewal a couple of days after the CD matures, you should be able to do an early closure and lose only those couple of days of interest. Many banks don't pay interest during the grace period if you don't renew. So this PenFed feature is no worse.

Membership

PenFed makes it easy for anyone to join and open accounts online. If you don't qualify based on military, employer or family, you can become eligible by joining the National Military Family Association (NMFA). Please refer to How to Join Overview Page for details. Joining NMFA and Penfed can be done at the same time all online. The yearly membership for NMFA is $20, but your membership in the association does not need to be maintained to continue as a Penfed member. You can also be eligible to become a member of PenFed if you are an employee or volunteer of the American Red Cross (refer to this PenFed page).

Branch Locations

Accounts can be opened online, but for those who prefer branches, PenFed has branches in several parts of the country including Washington DC, Maryland, Virginia, New Jersey, New York, Colorado, North Carolina, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Missouri and Texas.

Financial/NCUA Info

PenFed's ratings for safety and soundness are no longer the best, but they remain respectable: 4 stars (excellent) at BauerFinancial (based on 9/30/09 data) and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com (based on 6/30/09 data).

PenFed is one of the largest credit unions in the US with $13.4 billion in assets and 889,874 members. It's federally insured by the NCUA (Charter # 227).

City National Bank is offering competitive long-term CD rates. The following rates are listed at the bank's rates page as of 12/23/09:

• 3.50% APY 5 years and over
• 3.00% APY 4 years to under 5 years
• 2.50% APY 3 years to under 4 years
• 2.25% APY 2 years to under 3 years

Minimum deposit is $500. It appears these rates also apply to IRA CDs.

A branch visit appears to be required to open an account. Branches are located in the New Jersey cities of Newark, Hackensack and Paterson; in the New York cities of New York City, Hempstead and Roosevelt; and in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are fair: 3 stars (adequate) at BauerFinancial (based on 9/30/09 data) and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com (based on 6/30/09 data). The bank has been a FDIC member since 1973 (FDIC Certificate # 21111).

Other Competitive Certificate of Deposit Rates

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

Hudson City Savings Bank continues to offer competitive rates on its long-term internet CDs. The rates are down a bit since October but they remain competitive. The following are the rates as listed on its internet accounts page as of 12/09/09:

• 2.30% APY 24 month
• 2.80% APY 36 month
• 3.15% APY 48 month
• 3.40% APY 60 month

To see all of the rates, you have to go into the online application, and click on the rates link in the product selection page. Minimum deposit is $5,000.

I have many of the CD details in my October post. I called the bank again this morning, and there haven't been any changes to what I posted in October. Note, rates are typically changed on Fridays. Also, the CD rate locks at the time you apply online.

I asked about one feature that a reader mentioned in a comment. It's when you close an account. Interest on CDs is posted at the end of the month. If you close the account early, not only will you lose 6 months of interest (for terms over 1 year) but you will also lose the interest accrued during the month. The CSR advised that you close accounts near the start of the month.

To reach a CSR responsible for these internet accounts, I used the number 201-967-1900, Ext. 1887. After I called I noticed a toll-free number in the disclosure (866-881-4272).

Another issue that a commenter noted is the early withdrawal penalty. Like the disclosures of many banks, it gives them the right to refuse an early withdrawal request: "withdrawal prior to maturity may be permitted only with the consent of the Bank." In addition, "the bank reserves the right to impose a penalty greater than the minimum." If they comply with the stated early withdrawal penalties listed in the disclosure, it's not too bad compared to other banks: 3 months of interest for terms one year and under, 6 months of interest for terms over one year.

To see the early withdrawal penalties and other CD details, refer to the Truth in Savings document which is available in the online application.

In addition to CDs, they also offer an internet money market savings account with a 1.40% APY as of 12/09/09 on balances of at least $2,500. The rate for balances of $10 to $2,500 is 0.75% APY. A $2 monthly fee applies to balances below $100.

Hudson City Savings Bank is a large bank with over $58 billion in assets and with 121 offices in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness continue to be strong: 5 stars (superior) at BauerFinancial (based on 9/30/09 data) and 4 stars (sound) at Bankrate.com (based on 6/30/09 data). The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 13074).

Other Competitive Certificate of Deposit Rates

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

There was disappointment and confusion when PenFed canceled its CD Rollover Subscription Promotion last week. According to my PenFed contact, the canceling was due to an IT issue rather than high demand. Consequently, they have a new rollover certificate promotion that's just as good as before. Unfortunately, if you don't have PenFed CDs that mature in January, you won't be able to participate. However, there's good news regarding the regular January CD rates. Here are the details that I received of the new rollover promotion:

• The current Rollover Certificate promotion is for existing PenFed Money Market and IRA certificates that are due to mature in January 2010 AND the member elects to rollover.
• The former Certificate Reservation program only included 3, 5 and 7 year certificates. The new promotion includes 3, 4, 5 and 7 year certificates.
• With the former Reservation program, members secured the following yields: 3 yr/3.50%, 5 yr/4:00% and 7 yr/4.25%. **The new Rollover Certificate promotion will yield the following (which includes the 0.25% bonus): 3yr yields 3.50%, 4 yr yields 3.75%, 5 yr yields 4.00% and 7 yr yields 4.25%.
• All members who participated in the Certificate Reservation program will have their reservations honored and they will receive the advertised rate.
• If a member has a PenFed Money Market or IRA certificates that is due to mature in January and wishes to call PenFed and confirm the rates for the Rollover promotion, they may do so as our representatives have been provided with the January's 2010 certificate rates.
• A member with a maturing certificate in January may participate in the promotion by accessing their accounts via PenFed Online. On PenFed Online, the member can locate their certificate(s) and elect to have the certificate "rollover" at maturity. They may also contact a member service representative to assist them with the rollover election.

I also called member services (800-247-5626), and the rep was aware of the above rollover rates for January.

One thing to note is that these rollover rates include a 0.25% bonus. Thus, there should be a nice bump-up in the non-rollover rates for the 3-, 4- and 5-year CDs. The regular January CD rates should be the following:

• 3.25% APY 3 year
• 3.50% APY 4 year
• 3.75% APY 5 year
• 4.00% APY 7 year

The 7-year remains at 4%, but the 3-, 4- and 5-year CD rates are 0.75% higher than what they are now. These are very competitive compared to long-term CDs at other institutions.

For more details about PenFed's CDs and joining PenFed, please refer to this PenFed review post. Details of the CDs are available in the second page of PenFed's account application.

Membership

PenFed makes it easy for anyone to join and open accounts online. If you don't qualify based on military, employer or family, you can become eligible by joining the National Military Family Association (NMFA). Please refer to How to Join Overview Page for details. Joining NMFA and Penfed can be done at the same time all online. The yearly membership for NMFA is $20, but your membership in the association does not need to be maintained to continue as a Penfed member. You can also be eligible to become a member of PenFed if you are an employee or volunteer of the American Red Cross (refer to this PenFed page).

Branch Locations

Accounts can be opened online, but for those who prefer branches, PenFed has branches in several parts of the country including Washington DC, Maryland, Virginia, New Jersey, New York, Colorado, North Carolina, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Missouri and Texas.

Financial/NCUA Info

PenFed's ratings for safety and soundness are no longer the best, but they remain respectable: 4 stars (excellent) at BauerFinancial and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 6/30/09 financial data.

PenFed is one of the largest credit unions in the US with $13.4 billion in assets and 889,874 members. It's federally insured by the NCUA (Charter # 227).

Parke Bank continues to have a competitive 15-month CD special. The rate is down a bit since August, but it remains competitive at 2.00% APY. It's also available in an IRA. Minimum deposit is $500. The bank also continues to offer a special rate on its Preferred Savings Account for balances of at least $2,500. The current rate is 1.75% APY which is down from 2% in August. These specials are listed at the bank's deposit rates page as of 12/02/09.

It appears that a branch visit is required to open an account. Branches are located in the New Jersey cities of Sewell and Northfield and in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness continue to be strong: 4 stars (excellent) at BauerFinancial and 4 stars (sound) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 6/30/09 financial data. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1999 (FDIC Certificate # 34888).

Other Competitive Certificate of Deposit Rates

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