Affinity Federal Credit Union CD Specials Follows CD Rates Trend

Early Withdrawal Penalty

As stated on the Truth-in-Savings disclosure, the Early Withdrawal Penalty (EWP) reads as follows:

The penalty will equal ninety days' dividends on your certificate account with a term of one year or less, and a penalty of up to 182 days’ dividends for certificates with a term of more than one year. The penalty is calculated as a forfeiture of part of the dividends that have been or would have been earned on the account. It applies whether or not the dividends have been earned. In other words, if the account has not yet earned enough dividends or if the dividend has already been paid, the penalty will be deducted from the principal.

The “up to 182 days’ dividends” bothered me, as “up to” implies there is an EWP that could be less than 182 days for a certificate term of more than one year. CSR struggled to provide an explanation and the CSR Supervisor wasn’t able to clarify what “up to 182 days’ dividends” actually means, other than the EWP will never be more than 182 days’ dividends.

Availability

Headquartered in Basking Ridge, New Jersey, Affinity Federal Credit Union’s field of membership (FOM) provides a way for virtually all U.S. citizens and resident aliens to qualify for membership.

Those who do not qualify for membership through a relationship with any of the more than 2,000 businesses, association, and clubs, can qualify by “making a one-time, $5 donation to the Affinity Foundation whose vision is to end the cycle of poverty in the communities we serve.”

Family and household members of a current Affinity FCU member also qualify for membership. Affinity FCU defines family as “parents, grandparents, siblings, children (adopted and step-), and grandchildren.

Account Opening

Joining Affinity FCU can be done online or at any of 17 full-service New Jersey branches located in Bedminster (2), Branchburg, Cedar Knolls, Clifton, Denville, Dover, Edison, Flemington, Hillsborough, Madison, Middletown, Morristown, New Brunswick, New Providence, Oradell, and Piscataway. There are also three New York branches located in Bardonia, Stony Point, and White Plains, and two Connecticut branches located in New Haven and Norwalk.

All members are required to maintain a $5 “share” in the credit union. These funds are
held in a Membership Eligibility Account, which we will open as part of your application.

Your initial deposit can be made with a debit or credit card, or by transferring funds from another financial institution.

Opening a Promotional CD Special can be done at any of the above-mentioned branch locations or by speaking with a Digital Banking representative (800.213.5003). In-branch appointments are available and can be scheduled online.

As stated in the FAQs at the bottom of the Certificates page,

Our certificate accounts options have $0 monthly maintenance fees if enrolled in eStatements. If not, there is a monthly fee of $2 for paper statements.

Funding and Other Details

The following information is from the Truth-in-Savings disclosure and a conversation with CSR.

Funding – Funds should be on deposit in an Affinity FCU account before opening a Promotional CD Special. ACH, wire (no fee), or check can be used to deposit funds.
CO-OP Shared Branch Participant – Yes, but Affinity members need to opt-in to take advantage of shared branches.
Ownership – Individual, joint, or trust.
Dividends – Compounded daily/credited monthly, but cannot be withdrawn without penalty.
Maturing Funds – Cashier’s check to address on file or internal transfer to an Affinity FCU savings or checking account.
Beneficiaries – Unlimited and percentages can be assigned; Social Security numbers are required for all beneficiaries.
Grace Period – 10 business days before automatic renewal (14-month as a 12-month and 8-month as a 6-month).
Credit Check – ChexSystems.

Credit Union Overview

Affinity Federal Credit Union has an overall health grade of "C" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 21.83% (above average) based on September 30, 2023 data. In the past year, Affinity FCU’s total non-brokered deposits decreased by -$45.22 million, an average annual growth rate of -1.38%. Please refer to our financial overview of Affinity Federal Credit Union (NCUA Charter # 857) for more details.

Affinity Federal Credit Union was established in 1935 as the W. E. Headquarters Federal Credit Union, with an FOM exclusive to the employees of Western Electric Company. In 1974, membership was expanded to include AT&T employees and the name was changed to GHQ Federal Credit Union. The 1990s saw a change in focus for Affinity FCU, as legislation allowed single sponsor credit unions to expand their services to include companies or organizations with a common bond. The FOM further expanded about eight years ago to include all U.S. citizens and resident aliens. Affinity Federal Credit Union is currently the largest credit union headquartered in New Jersey and the 91^st largest credit union in the nation, with nearly 235,000 members and assets in excess of $4.4 billion.

How the 14-Month Promotional CD Special

When compared to similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com that are available nationwide and have minimum deposit requirements of $50k or less, many banks and credit unions have higher rates than currently offered on Affinity Federal Credit Union 14-Month Promotional CD Special. The following table compare the 14-Month Promotional Certificate to four highest-rate similar length-of-term CDs from other banks/credit unions within the market area.

To look for the best CD rates, both nationwide and state specific, please refer to our CD Rates Table page.

The above information and rates are accurate as of 3/8/2024.