Texas Banking Rates and News

Community Trust Bank is offering a 13-month CD special with some competitive rates. If you meet all the checking account requirements, you can get a very competitive rate of 1.65% APY. That requires opening a checking account with a debit card, online banking, e-statements and direct deposit. Without direct deposit, the rate falls to 1.40% APY. Without a checking account, the rate is still quite competitive with a 1.15% APY. Minimum deposit is $5,000, and new money is required. This special is listed at the bank's promotions page as of 2/3/2012.

It appears that a...

CD rates have gone down at SPCO Credit Union since my last report of this credit union in September, but they remain very competitive. The long-term share certificate rates are the most competitive. These include a 2.77% APY for 5 years, 2.32% APY for 4 years and 1.97% APY for 3 years. These are the Jumbo CD rates which require a $50K minimum deposit. The rates are 20 to 30 basis points lower for the regular CDs which have a $1K minimum deposit. These rates are listed in the credit union's share rates page...

Air Force Federal Credit Union did something that's not common these days. It made some large rate increases on its share certificates. Its long-term CDs and IRA CDs are now competitive. The best ones include a 2.75% APY 7-year CD, 2.20% APY 5-year CD and a 1.60% APY 3-year CD. Minimum deposit is $100,000. For the 7-year and 5-year CDs, rates are 5 basis points lower for a $2,500 minimum deposit. These rates are listed in the credit union's rates page as of 1/19/2012.

The credit union's early withdrawal penalty is a little convoluted:

The early...

I first noticed Citizens State Bank and its high CD rates last week, but I was concerned the rates posted may be out-of-date. I learned from the bank that the rates were correct, but they would be falling in January. New lower rates were posted yesterday, and I'm glad to see that the CD rates continue to be very competitive. Below are the CD rates listed at the bank's CD rates page as of 1/4/2012:

• 2.11% APY 4-year CD
• 1.66% APY 3-year CD
• 1.45% APY 2-year CD
• 1.35% APY 18-month CD
• 1.17% APY 1-year CD
• 1.02% APY 6-month CD
• 0.82% APY 3-month CD

Minimum...

Triumph Savings Bank is offering a few competitive CD rates. The best one is the 18-month CD which has a 1.21% APY. Some other noteworthy ones include a 1.06% APY 1-year CD and a 1.93% APY 5-year CD. Minimum deposit is $1,000. These rates are listed on the bank's home page as of 1/3/2012.

The bank has a FAQ page with some CD details. You may be able to open a CD without a branch visit according to the first FAQ.

This bank used to have the name Equity Bank, SSB in 2010....

There had been rumors that Pentagon Federal Credit Union (PenFed) was going to finally start offering 10-year certificates to all members in January. A reader reported that he was told by a CSR the yield would be 3.00%. I wasn't able to confirm this 10-year CD last week, and there isn't any mention of this new CD at PenFed's website. New January rates are posted with no mention of a 10-year CD or IRA CD.

There is some good news with PenFed's January rates. First, the 1-year CD yield has increased from 0.99% to 1.16% APY. This is...

Yesterday I reviewed the 7 reward checking accounts that remain in the 4% club. These are reward checking accounts with yields of at least 4.00% on balances of at least $25,000. Unfortunately, readers have reported that 2 of these 7 will be cutting rates or balance caps in January. So it's becoming increasingly difficult to find a 4% club member. You may have better luck finding ones in the 3% club. These are reward checking accounts with yields of at least 3.00% on balances of at least $25,000. We still list over a hundred reward checking accounts in the...

In today's awful interest rate environment, the only deposit account where you can find yields of 4.00% is the reward checking account. Even long-term CDs don't have yields this high. However, there are not many 4.00% reward checking accounts. Rates and balance caps have been falling. As I described in my reward checking overview, reward checking accounts only offer high yields for balances up to a certain cap. For those with large savings, this cap is as important as the rate. Many consider a balance cap of $25,000 to be the minimum cap that makes the reward checking account...

Chartway Federal Credit Union is offering a 7-month CD promotion with very competitive rates. For deposits of $100K to $500K, the 7-month CD has a 1.25% APY. For deposits of $5K to under $100K, the CD has a 1.00% APY. This is a limited time promotion. These rates are listed at the bottom of Chartway's certificates rates sheet as of 12/13/2011. Thanks to the reader who emailed me news of this promotion.

Chartway used to offer a reward checking and savings account called eChecking and eSavings. Earlier this year, Chartway stopped accepting new applications for...

Finding 3 percent CDs is very difficult these days. It's even hard to find these CDs with terms of 7 and 10 years. That's why I was surprised when I noticed the new 30-month 3.00% APY CD from NavyArmy Federal Credit Union. The credit union's CDs had been limited to terms of 2 years and shorter. These shorter-term CDs are also competitive. The jumbo CD rates are 2.00% APY for 2 years, 1.60% APY for 1 year and 1.15% APY for 6 months. These have a minimum deposit of $100,000. The non-jumbo rates are 5 to...

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...