Oklahoma Deposit Account Rates and Deals

Bank of the West has brought back its $100 checking account bonus. This new bonus is available until 2/19/2010, and like the last one it allows either direct deposit of at least $250 or 10 online bill payments. The promotion details are listed in the bank's promotion page. Some important details mentioned in the small print include:

• Open any new personal checking account
• First recurring direct deposit must be posted to your account within 60 calendar days of your account opening date
• The 10 bill payments must occur within 60 calendar days of your account opening date
• Bonus will be credited to your account within 60 days after satisfaction of conditions
• Offer valid for a new personal checking account opened from with $100 or more from a financial institution other than Bank of the West
• Offer does not apply to second or multiple checking accounts and/or existing checking customers
• Limit of one $100 bonus per household per calendar year
• Value of the offer reported to the IRS on Form 1099

I just called the bank's customer service number (800 488-2265 / option 8), and according to the CSR, you don't need to come into a branch. People in any state can apply online and qualify for the bonus. Note, in a call last year I was told a branch visit would be required for the bonus. If you hear something different, please leave a comment. Also note, I was told they don't do a hard credit inquiry in the application (only a soft pull). So it shouldn't have to worry about a ding to your credit score. It should be noted that I've often received wrong info on this issue from CSRs.

A few readers shared their experience with this bonus last year. If you participated in this promotion last year, please leave a comment about how it went. Hopefully, the bonuses were paid without problems.

Branches are located throughout the Western and Midwestern states including Oklahoma, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, Colorado, Arizona, Nevada, Wyoming, Washington, Oregon and California. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 3514).

Thanks to the reader who emailed me news of this new promotion.

Online Savings Account

Bank of the West continues to offer an online savings account with the competitive yield of 1.50% APY for balances of $10K and above as of 1/14/2010. This is the same rate when I posted on this account last August. Unfortunately, 1.50% is now competitive for online savings accounts. However, the rate is low for balances under $10K (0.50%). In August I was told by the CSR that there's a $2/month fee if the balance falls below $300. Another downside is that their ACH bank-to-bank transfer service has a transfer limit of $2,000 per day.

Other Bank Bonuses and Online Savings Accounts

To find other bonus deals, please refer to my bank bonus page which has all of my recent bank bonus posts. Refer to my weekly rate summary and the savings account section of DepositAccounts.com for the best nationwide savings account rates.

MidFirst Bank continues to offer some competitive CD rates. The rates are down since my November post, but some are still competitive including the 2.00% APY 17-month CD and the 2.25% APY 24-month CD. Minimum deposit is $5,000 for the 17-month CD and $500 for the 24-month CD. These rates are listed in the bank's CD Deposit Rates page as of 1/3/10. The 2.25% APY 24-month CD is also listed in the IRA rates page.

The bank has an online application (link at bottom of left side bar). However, on the first page of the application, it states that "you must come to a MidFirst Banking Center to finalize the account opening process."

Branches are located in Phoenix, Arizona and in several cities of Oklahoma including Yukon, Oklahoma City, Shawnee and Tulsa.

MidFirst Bank's ratings for safety and soundness are fair: 3½ stars (good) 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 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 4063).

Other Competitive Certificate of Deposit Rates

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

Communication Federal Credit Union is offering some competitive share certificate and IRA rates. The most competitive ones include a 1.70% APY 6-month CD, a 2.05% APY 12-month CD and a 2.70% APY 24-month CD. Minimum deposit is $1,000. These rates are listed at the credit union's rates page as of 12/15/09.

The credit union also offers a reward checking account that currently pays 4.25% APY on balances up to $50K (see post).

Membership is open to those who live or work in the city of Broken Arrow or in the counties of Carter and Pottawatamie. You can also be eligible via a long list of select employee groups or via family (which can include cousins). Please see their Membership page for more details. Membership requires a minimum balance of $5 in a share account.

Branches are located in the Oklahoma cities of Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Norman, Broken Arrow, Lawton, Enid, Muskogee, Ardmore, Shawnee, and in Topeka, Kansas.

The credit union's ratings for safety and soundness are 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 credit union is federally insured by the NCUA (Charter # 3454). It has $562 million in assets and 46,408 members.

Other Competitive Certificate of Deposit Rates

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

Stillwater National Bank continues to advertise a competitive CD rate of 2.00% APY for an 11-month term. Minimum deposit is $5,000. This special doesn't seem to be listed at the bank's website. It was advertised in today's (12/06/09) Oklahoma City newspaper. The ad is available online here.

It appears a branch visit is required. The ad lists branches in Oklahoma City and Edmond. The bank has many other branches in Kansas and Texas, but these special CDs may be specific to the Oklahoma branches.

My last post on this bank was on November 1st when it was offering this same special. The interest rate environment has become worse since then, so this is even a better deal today.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness continue to be fair: 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com (based on 6/30/09 data) and 3½ stars (good) at BauerFinancial (based on 9/30/09 data). The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 4201).

Other Competitive Certificate of Deposit Rates

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

MidFirst Bank continues to offer some competitive CD rates. Some of the rates are down since my October post, but there are a few that have remained the same including a 2.50% APY 24-month CD and a 3.00% APY 36-month CD. Minimum deposit is $500. These rates are listed in the bank's CD Deposit Rates page for Phoenix zip codes as of 11/11/09. The 24-month CD rate is 2.30% APY for Oklahoma zip codes. These CDs are also available in an IRA.

The bank has an online application (link at bottom of left side bar). However, on the first page of the application, it states that "you must come to a MidFirst Banking Center to finalize the account opening process."

Branches are located in Phoenix, Arizona and in several cities of Oklahoma including Yukon, Oklahoma City, Shawnee and Tulsa.

MidFirst Bank's ratings for safety and soundness are fair: 3½ stars (good) at BauerFinancial and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com. Both ratings are based on 6/30/09 financial data. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 4063).

Other Competitive Certificate of Deposit Rates

• My weekly list of hot nationwide and local CD deals
• My weekly list of all nationwide CD deals
• Index of state CD and bank deals

Stillwater National Bank is advertising a competitive CD rate of 2.00% APY for an 11-month term. Minimum deposit is $5,000. This special doesn't seem to be listed at the bank's website. It was advertised in today's (11/01/09) Oklahoma City newspaper. The ad is available online here.

It appears a branch visit is required. The ad lists branches in Oklahoma City and Edmond. The bank has many other branches in Kansas and Texas, but these special CDs may be specific to the Oklahoma branches.

My last post on this bank was in August when it was offering a 2.02% 5-month CD and a 2.12% 13-month CD.

The bank's ratings for safety and soundness continue to be fair: 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com and 3½ stars (good) at BauerFinancial. Both ratings are based on 6/30/09 financial data. The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 4201).

Other Competitive Certificate of Deposit Rates

• My weekly list of hot nationwide and local CD deals
• My weekly list of all nationwide CD deals
• Index of state CD and bank deals

MidFirst Bank is offering some competitive CD rates. The best ones include a 2.20% APY 14-month CD, a 2.50% APY 24-month CD and a 3.00% APY 36-month CD. Minimum deposit is $5,000 for the 14-month term and $500 for the longer terms. These rates are listed in the bank's CD Deposit Rates page for Phoenix zip codes as of 10/06/09. For Oklahoma zip codes, the 2.20% CD has a 15-month term.

The bank has an online application. However, on the first page of the application, it states that "you must come to a MidFirst Banking Center to finalize the account opening process."

Branches are located in Phoenix, Arizona and in several cities of Oklahoma including Yukon, Oklahoma City, Shawnee and Tulsa.

MidFirst Bank's ratings for safety and soundness are fair: 3½ stars (good) at BauerFinancial (based on 6/30/09 data) and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com (based on 3/31/09 data). The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 4063).

Thanks to the reader who emailed me news of these CD specials.

Other Competitive Certificate of Deposit Rates

• My weekly list of hot nationwide and local CD deals
• My weekly list of all nationwide CD deals
• Index of state CD and bank deals

Communication Federal Credit Union is offering some competitive share certificate rates. The most competitive ones include a 2.00% APY 6-month CD, a 2.20% APY 12-month CD, a 2.55% APY 24-month CD and a 3.30% APY 4-year CD. Minimum deposit is $1,000. These rates are listed at the credit union's rates page as of 9/14/09.

The credit union also offers a reward checking account that currently pays 4.25% APY on balances up to $50K (see post).

Membership is open to those who live or work in the city of Broken Arrow or in the counties of Carter and Pottawatamie. You can also be eligible via a long list of select employee groups or via family (which can include cousins). Please see their Membership page for more details. Membership requires a minimum balance of $5 in a share account.

Branches are located in the Oklahoma cities of Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Norman, Broken Arrow, Lawton, Enid, Muskogee, Ardmore, Shawnee, and in Topeka, Kansas.

The credit union's ratings for safety and soundness are 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 credit union is federally insured by the NCUA (Charter # 3454). It has $562 million in assets and 46,408 members.

Other High Certificate of Deposit Rates

• My weekly list of hot nationwide and local CD deals
• My weekly list of all nationwide CD deals
• Index of state CD and bank deals

Edit 12/15/09: Corrected charter number, link, size and ratings

The banks under the bank holding company Central Bancompany are offering a $50 bonus for opening a new free checking account, and if you open a new SaveUp Savings account at the same time, there's an additional $50 bonus. Details of the promotion appear to be listed at each of the bank's SaveUp Savings Account page. Here's the SaveUp Savings Account link for ONB Bank and Trust. This seems to be an easy bonus with no direct deposit required. Some of the details include:

• Promotion ends 10/30/2009
• $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

This 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. All seem to have this same promotion. Click on Personal Savings and then SaveUP Savings for the details

The banks have branches in Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma.

Credit for this find goes to iBankBonus.

Other Bank Bonus Deals:

• my last 40 posts on checking and savings account bonuses