Washington Banking Rates and News

Our Community Credit Union is offering very competitive CD and IRA CD rates for terms from 6 months to 4 years. The following rates are listed in the credit union's rates page as of 1/25/2012:

• 1.04% APY 6 months CD
• 1.20% APY 1 year CD
• 1.50% APY 2 year CD
• 2.00% APY 3 year CD
• 2.15% APY 4 year CD

Minimum deposit is $1,000. Additional CD details are listed below the CD table in the credit union's rates page. Some of the notable details include:

Certificate terms of 2 years or less are eligible for a one time rate bump.

Penalty...

Union Bank has a checking account promotion in which you can earn 5% cash back from your debit card purchases for up to $250. To earn the full $250, it will require $5,000 in debit card purchases through April 30, 2012. Also, customers should be aware that Union Bank ended its free checking accounts in January. So they'll have to be careful to avoid monthly fees.

The details of this offer are listed at this Union Bank promotions page. Here's the summary that's listed on this promotions page:

• open a new personal or business checking account...

Alaska USA Credit Union held on to some very competitive rates for most of last year. Unfortunately, those rates didn't make it into 2012. However, the new CD and IRA CD rates are still fairly competitive. Below are some of the most competitive CD rates as listed in the credit union's rates page as of 1/5/2012:

• 2.35% APY 5-year CD $100K min (2.25% for $10K)
• 2.01% APY 4-year CD $100K min (1.91% for $10K)
• 1.65% APY 3-year CD $100K min (1.55% for $10K)
• 1.30% APY 2-year CD $100K min (1.20% for $10K)

According to the credit union's disclosure,...

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...

On Friday US Bank did something that's rare these days. It raised the rate of its competitive long-term CD. The rate of the 59-month CD special increased from 2.00% to 2.25% APY. The two other special CDs with shorter terms are not nearly as competitive. One is a 1.25% APY 37-month CD and the other is a 1.01% APY 19-month CD. Minimum deposit is $1,000, and the maximum is $249,999. These rates are listed in US Bank's CD page as of 10/31/2011. Rates could change at any time, but they typically change on Friday mornings.

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...

Salal Credit Union is offering a $100 bonus for opening one of its checking accounts and having at least one direct deposit within 90 days of account opening. The checking account must be opened by September 30, 2011. Details of the promotion are listed in this Salal promotions page. Only My, Emerald, Silver Horizons checking accounts qualify. The My Checking account is a free checking account with no monthly service fees.

Below is the offer's small print at the bottom of the promotions page:

Offer good on new checking accounts opened August 1...

Many readers may already be members of America's Credit Union due to their past CD specials. They currently don't have any noteworthy CD specials, but they're offering a checking account promotion in which you can earn $100. It requires direct deposit of at least $500 per month for 12 months. The promotion is listed at this credit union page as of 8/9/2011. Below is the small print:

Direct Deposit must be initiated within 30 days of opening a Choice Checking, Perk Checking or Checking Direct Account to receive the $100 bonus. The minimum direct deposit allotment to...

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...

With the new month, many banks and credit unions have changed their rates. Unfortunately, most of the changes have been rate cuts, but there are a few bright spots. One is HAPO Community Credit Union which raised its 6-month and 12-month CD rates to very competitive levels: 1.25% APY for 6 months and 1.35% APY for 12 months. The longer terms also also competitive. Some of these include a 1.60% APY 2-year CD and a 2.10% APY 3-year CD. Minimum deposit is $5,000. These rates are listed in the credit union's rates page as of 8/2/2011.

KeyBank is again offering an iPod touch as part of a checking account promotion. One thing that has changed since the last one is that you have to make twice the number of payments and/or purchases. So if you want the free iPod touch, it will require some work. Like before it's an online-only offer, but the online application only accepts certain areas which appear to be in their market area (see below).

Here's the new KeyBank promotions page. The offer is scheduled to last until July 22, 2011. The following are the requirements...

Umpqua Bank is currently offering two competitive CD rates. One is a 5-year CD with a 2.52% APY. The other is a special 8-month CD with a 1.06% APY. Minimum deposit is $1,000, and the special CD requires a checking account. The 5-year CD rate may vary by state. It's not listed on bank's website so I called on 6/22/2011, and confirmed the 5-year CD rate for California and Oregon. Rates are subject to change at anytime.

You may be able to get an additional 0.25% on the CD with the Benefit Banking Interest Checking Account. This is...