West Virginia Deposit Account Rates and Deals

SunTrust Bank continues to offer a special CD package with a 3.00% APY. It's a bit unusual in that it requires that you open two CDs: one with a 26-month term and the other with a 49-month term. An equal amount must be deposited in each. Minimum deposit is $2,000 per CD. A checking account is required. I was told that the free checking qualifies. You can also open these special CDs in an IRA. This CD special is listed at the SunTrust CD page as of 3/12/2010.

I first reported on this CD special in February when it was only available in the Tampa metro area. I called SunTrust today (800.279.4824), and the CSR said it could be opened by phone from any state. The CSR said he could open it by phone and use ACH debits from your bank's checking or money market account to fund the CDs and checking account. Note, it would take 3 debits to fund the accounts which could cause you to go over your 6-per-month limit on savings and money market accounts. According to the CSR, the CD rate would lock on the day you apply by phone. The CD rate is subject to change on any day. The CSR didn't know how much longer it would last. I also asked the CSR about the early withdrawal penalty, but I didn't get a simple answer. It appears to be based on how close you are to maturity. If you have more details about this, please leave a comment.

$150 Checking Account Bonus

SunTrust's $150 checking account promotion is still available. I first mentioned this in my February bonus review. According to the CSR, one could open the checking account for this promotion and then open these CD specials at the same time by phone. Or if you don't want the CDs, you could just do this checking promotion. Make sure you register your SunTrust checking account in the promotion via suntrust.com/solid by April 30, 2010. Refer to my February bonus review for more promotion detailss.

No Hard Credit Pull

According to the CSR, there's no hard credit inquiry. It's only a soft pull. This is the same info that I received in 2008 and many have confirmed there's no hard pull in this FW thread. So you shouldn't have to worry about having this ding your credit score.

Bank Overview

SunTrust is a large regional bank with $125 billion in deposits. It has branches throughout the southeast in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and Washington DC.

Dow Jones reported on SunTrust's downgrading by Standard & Poor's Ratings Services on February 1st:

SunTrust, which serves areas of the southeast U.S. hit hard by the real estate crash, including Florida, has suffered from exposure to local construction and commercial real estate, as well as effects of high unemployment. The lender posted a string of losses last year.

As you may expect, SunTrust's ratings for safety and soundness are a little weak: 3 stars (adequate) at BauerFinancial (based on 12/31/09 data) and 1 star (lowest) at Bankrate.com (based on 9/30/09 data). SunTrust is a FDIC member (FDIC Certificate # 867).

First Citizens Bank is offering a special 2.15% APY 18-month CD. Minimum deposit is $1,000, and a checking account is required. There's also a 6-month CD special, but the rate is much less competitive at 1.15% APY. These specials are not listed at the bank's website. A reader mentioned them, and I just called this morning (3/08/2010) for additional details. According to the CSR, these specials could end at any time.

First Citizens Bank has branches in several states. However, not all are operating under the name First Citizens Bank. According to the CSR, these specials may not be available at these other branches. An example are some branches in California that are operating under the name IronStone Bank. Those branches have different promotions. The best one is much less competitive (2.25% APY 36-month CD).

A branch visit is required to open an account. Make sure to contact your local branch to ensure they are offering this promotion. Branches are located throughout North Carolina. It also has branches in Florida, Arizona, Maryland, Tennessee, Washington, California, Virginia and West Virginia.

First Citizens Bank has been expanding in the last few years with much of the expansion coming from the acquisition of failed banks. The latest acquisition was on Friday when it acquired Sun American Bank in South Florida.

First Citizens Bank's ratings for safety and soundness are strong: 5 stars (superior) at BauerFinancial (based on 12/31/09 data) and 4 stars (sound) at Bankrate.com (based on 9/30/09 data). The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 11063).

Yesterday I reviewed First Citizen Bank's FreeMoney debit card reward program.

Firsts Citizens Bank has a check card reward program called FreeMoney in which you can earn close to 4% cash back on your debit card purchases with a maximum of $500 per year. Unlike other debit card and credit card cash back reward programs, this requires some work if you want to maximize the cash back reward.

First, you're required to open the First Citizens personal checking account and FreeMoney Bonus Savings Account. To earn cash back, the following debit card usage is required:

• Make 10 non-PIN check card purchases per month
• AFTER these 10 check card purchases are made, you'll earn $1 for every non-PIN check card purchase of $25 or more.
• The FreeMoney bonus is deposited into the FreeMoney Bonus Savings Account each month

According to the terms and conditions, the maximum bonus per checking account is $500 per calendar year.

As you can see, it won't be easy to get close to 4% cash back from this program. Your first 10 check card purchases would have to be small since there's no cash back associated with them. The additional check card purchases during the month would have to be $25 or just a little bit higher. Then you could get close to earning 4% cash back. Of course if it were too easy, everybody would earn the 4%, and the bank wouldn't be able to afford it.

A branch visit is required to open an account. Branches are located throughout North Carolina. It also has branches in Arizona, Maryland, Tennessee, Washington, California, Virginia and West Virginia.

You might be wondering why the branches are so scattered across the country. First Citizens Bank has been expanding in the last several months with much of the expansion coming from the acquisition of failed banks. The latest acquisition was on Friday when it acquired Sun American Bank in South Florida.

First Citizens Bank's ratings for safety and soundness are strong: 5 stars (superior) at BauerFinancial (based on 12/31/09 data) and 4 stars (sound) at Bankrate.com (based on 9/30/09 data). The bank has been a FDIC member since 1934 (FDIC Certificate # 11063)

Other debit card and credit card reward programs

As I've mentioned in previous posts, banks make sizable profits from non-PIN debit card usage. This is one new type of program that encourages debit card use. PerkStreet Financial is one that's available nationwide which offers 1% cash back without any hoops to jump through. It also has a special 2% cash back promo (see review). For those with large savings, you'll probably do better with high-yield reward checking accounts (refer to the reward checking section of DepositAccounts.com).

If you prefer using credit cards, some of the best cash back programs are from PenFed, Charles Schwab and Fidelity.

• Open a Premier or Interest Checking Account along with a minimum $100 deposit by 10/31/2009
• Open any Sovereign savings or money market savings account with a minimum $100 deposit (or already have a savings account)
• Request a Sovereign CheckCard and make 2 check card purchases within 60 days of opening your account
• Enroll in Online Banking at account opening
• Whey you qualify, you will receive a $100 credit to your new checking account within 75 days after you open your checking account

• Residential address must be located in the following states: ME, VT, NH, CT, RI, MA, NY, NJ, PA, WV, MD, DE, District of Columbia.
• Bonus will be reported to the IRS as interest
• Current personal checking customers or anyone who has had a personal checking account with Sovereign Bank or any of its divisions in the last 6 months are not eligible for this offer

I signed up for the very similar January promo. I live out-of-state (Southwest); online application worked flawlessly, no hard pull. I made six online purchases with the debit card and got my $100 bonus about a week before the due date. ACH push (e*trade) counts as direct deposit for me -- no monthly fee.

Update 1/18/2010: BB&T has extended this offer to 3/31/2010. The promotion code is now AFJAP.

BB&T is offering a $100 cash bonus for opening its free checking account and for either setting up direct deposit OR making 3 online bill payments. The promotion page is at www.bbt.com/cashoffer. Offer expires on 10/31/2009. Some important small print of the promotion includes:

• Must be a new client (no BB&T checking in last 6 months)
• Direct Deposit or 3 online bill payments must be completed within 60 days of account opening
• $100 bonus will be deposited directly into your account within 4 weeks of meeting requirements
• Bonus reported to IRS

You are required to either apply online or by phone. The promotion code is AFAAP. The online application allows ACH funding up to $1,500. You can also mail in a check or make a deposit at a branch. There's no credit card option.

The free checking account has a minimum opening deposit of $50. There are no minimum balance requirements or monthly fees. Online Bill Payment is free. I used the bank's online chat system to ask if they do a hard credit inquiry in the application. According to the CSR, they do not (CSRs are often wrong about this).

I was also told that this promotion is only for states with BB&T branches (not including Colonial Bank branches). BB&T branches are located in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland and Washington DC.

BB&T is a member FDIC (FDIC Certificate # 9846).

Thanks to reader Atlanta Wolf who mentioned this promo in the blog hub post.

Other Bank Bonuses

To find other bonus deals, please refer to my bank bonus page which has all of my recent bank bonus posts.

• 4.01% APY on balances up to $25,000
• 0.51% APY on the portion of the balance over $25,000
• 0.25% base rate if qualifications are not met
• ATM fee refunds nationwide of up to $50 per cycle

• 10 Visa check card purchases
• 1 direct deposit or automatic payment
• Receive e-Statements

• $50 minimum opening deposit
• No minimum balance requirement
• No monthly service charge
• Multiple accounts can be opened, but requirements must be met for each

• 4.05% APY on balances up to $25,000
• 1.01% APY on portion of balance over $25,000
• 0.20% base rate if monthly requirements are not met
• Refunds ATM fees nationwide of up to $50 per month

• 10 Visa check card purchases
• 1 automatic payment or direct deposit
• Receive e-statements

• $50 minimum initial deposit
• No minimum balance requirement
• No monthly service charge
• Mulitple accounts can be opened but requirements must be met for each to receive the top rate

• Earn $50 for opening a new checking account with a debit card
• Minimum initial deposit required for bonus is $50 (must not come from a WesBanco account)
• Current WesBanco checking account customers are not eligible
• $50 bonus will be credited to account 28 days after account is opened.
• Second $50 bonus requires that you make 10 debit card purchases within 90 days of account opening

• Depositors must claim residency in MD, VA, PA, DE, WV or DC and not be a current or past SECU checking account customer
• $50 cash bonus for opening a new SECU checking account with Direct Deposit of at least $300 initiated by 6/15/09 (Payroll deduction, PayPal deposits and direct deposit of tax refunds do not qualify)
• $50 cash bonus for making 3 signature based purchases with your check card by 6/15/09
• $50 cash bonus for activating Online Banking Bill Pay and making 3 electronic Bill Pay transactions by 6/15/09
• $25 minimum opening deposit
• Cash bonus will be deposited in the checking account on 6/18/09
• Bonuses will be reported to the IRS on form 1099