New Mexico Banking Rates and News

Washington Federal continues to offer a competitive 5-year CD rate. For a minimum deposit of $90K, it's 2.30% APY. The 3-year and 4-year CD rates are also competitive: 1.55% APY for 3 years and 1.80% APY for 4 years. The rates are 5 basis points lower for a $1K deposit. These rates are listed in the bank's rates page as of 12/07/2011.

I first reported on this deal in September. When I called the bank in September, I was told that the rates are typically not changed until Fridays. One downside to this 5-year...

Mountain America Credit Union has increased the bonus amount of its Facebook checking account promotion. In mid October a reader mentioned a $100 checking incentive. It's now $125. They want you to "like" their Facebook page before they will show you the flyer. If you don't have a Facebook account, here's the direct link to the checking promo flyer (PDF). The flyer provides the following instructions:

Bring this coupon to any branch. Open your new checking account, set up free direct deposit and free eStatements to get your $125 bonus.

There is no expiration date...

Washington Federal is offering a competitive 5-year CD rate. For a minimum deposit of $90K, it's 2.30% APY. The rate is 5 basis points lower for a $1K deposit. These rates are listed in the bank's rates page as of 9/19/2011.

When I called the bank last Thursday, I was told that the rates are typically not changed until Fridays. One downside to this 5-year CD is its early withdrawal penalty of 1 year of interest which is larger than the typical 6 months of interest.

A branch visit is required to open an...

Bank of the West has just started a new checking account promotion with a $100 bonus that's scheduled to last until 9/16/2011. Here's the link to the offer. Unlike previous Bank of the West promotions, this one requires direct deposit. There doesn't seem to be online bill pay option. Like previous promotions, only those who reside in their market area are eligible (see below for the eligible states). The bank is still advertising a free checking account with no monthly service charges or monthly fees. This is becoming rare for large banks.

Below is the...

The banks that are the subsidiaries of BOK Financial Corporation are offering competitive rates on its 7-year CD and IRA CD. The highest possible rate is 3.05% APY. This requires a minimum $100K and a checking account. The rate is 3.00% APY for a $1K minimum. Without a checking account the rates are 2.95% APY for a $100K minimum and 2.90% APY for a $1K minimum. According to the bank CSR, the early withdrawal penalty is 12 months of interest. These rates are accurate as of 4/28/2011.

All of the banks under BOK Financial are divisions...

It has been a while since I've reviewed a reward checking account. I just came across one in New Mexico that has a respectable yield. It's at BANK'34, and the reward checking account is called GrOw Green Checking. The account has the following rates and features if certain monthly requirements are met (as of 3/30/2011):

• 3.40% APY for balances of $500 to $20,000
• 0.25% APY for portion of balance over $20,000
• 0.00% APY and $5 service charge if requirements are not met

Monthly requirements include:

• 15 credit/signature-based debit card purchases
• 3 online bill pay transactions
• eStatements

This is one of the rare reward checking...

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...

Update 4/3/2011: The bonus has been extended to 4/22/2011.

Bank of the West has another $100 checking account bonus. This new bonus is scheduled to last until 3/25/2011, and like the promotion from last July it allows either direct deposit of at least $250 or 10 online bill payments. One difference is that this new one requires that each bill payment be at least $25. The direct deposit or bill payment most be completed within 60 days of account opening.

Update 2/14/11: The promotion is now listed on Bank of the West's website. Here's the promotion link.

As...

Zia Credit Union is offering a high-yield reward checking account called Perfect Sense Checking. Like many of the new rewards checking accounts, this one also has a balance cap that's a little low. I discussed this issue in a previous post. Nevertheless, it may still be a decent deal for those who can qualify. The checking account has the following rates and features if the certain monthly requirements are met (as of 10/28/2010):

• 3.04% APY on balances up to $15,000
• 1.00% APY on amount of balance over $15,000
• 0.05% base rate if requirements are not met
• Unlimited ATM fee...

Mountain America Credit Union still has a competitive 5-year CD and IRA CD rate. It's now 2.80% APY. The rate has gone down since my last post, but it remains competitive compared to what other banks and credit unions are offering. For example, the best 5-year CD from an internet bank has a yield 2.75% APY (at Sallie Mae Bank). The credit union's CD has a minimum deposit of $500. This yield is listed in the credit union's current rates page as of 10/19/2010

The credit union used to offer some competitive shorter-term CD...

Mountain America Credit Union still has a competitive 5-year CD and IRA CD rate of 3.00% APY. Minimum deposit is $500. This yield is listed in the credit union's current rates page as of 8/17/2010.

The credit union used to offer some competitive shorter-term CD rates, but these are no longer noteworthy. It also used to have a very mild early withdrawal penalty. They made changes to their website, and I could no longer find any mention of the early withdrawal penalty. So I emailed the credit union. It appears they have increased the penalty....

I see BBVA Compass is making the most out of its new alliance with SmartyPig. I just noticed Compass is advertising this $150 checking account bonus on SmartyPig's home page. Here's the direct link to the promo, and here are the requirements for the $150:

• Open a new Build to Order Checking account online
• Set up payroll Direct Deposit and earn $75
• Sign up for Online Bill Pay and earn $25 per month by paying at least 5 bills per month for 3 months

Unlike SmartyPig which is available nationwide, Compass bank products are only available where they have branches which...