Potlatch No 1 FCU (ID/WA) Hikes Rates On All Its CDs

POSTED ON SATURDAY, MARCH 5, 2016 BY Ken Tumin

Availability: Residents of 11 Idaho Panhandle counties and two eastern Washington counties.

Potlatch No 1 Federal Credit Union (P1FCU) began March by raising the rates on all its Share Certificates to their highest levels since March 2011.

While P1FCU’s Share Certificates have had tiered APYs (based on deposit levels of $500, $10k, and $100k) in the past, this week’s new rates are the same for all three deposit levels.

APY	MIN	MAX	INSTITUTION	PRODUCT
2.37^*%	$500	-	P1FCU	60 Month Share Certificate
2.37^*%	$500	-	P1FCU	60 Month IRA Certificate (Traditional, Roth)
2.17^*%	$500	-	P1FCU	48 Month Share Certificate
1.96^*%	$500	-	P1FCU	36 Month Share Certificate
1.96^*%	$500	-	P1FCU	36 Month IRA Certificate (Traditional, Roth)
1.86^*%	$500	-	P1FCU	24 Month Share Certificate
1.86^*%	$500	-	P1FCU	24 Month IRA Certificate (Traditional, Roth)
1.66^*%	$500	-	P1FCU	18 Month Share Certificate
1.66^*%	$500	-	P1FCU	18 Month IRA Certificate (Traditional, Roth)
1.61^*%	$500	-	P1FCU	12 Month Share Certificate
1.61^*%	$500	-	P1FCU	12 Month IRA Certificate (Traditional, Roth)

Accounts mentioned in this post. Rates as of September 20, 2017.

The Share Certificates are also available as IRAs (Traditional and Roth), earning the same APYs and with the same funding requirements.

As stated in P1FCU’s Disclosures brochure, the Early Withdrawal Penalty reads as follows:

For certificates under 1 year, the amount of the early withdrawal penalty is 90 days’ dividends.
For certificates 1 year or greater the amount of the early withdrawal penalty is 180 days’ dividends.

Availability

Headquartered in Lewiston, Idaho, Potlatch No 1 Federal Credit Union offers membership to individuals who live, work, attend school, worship, perform volunteer services, participate in associations, or participate in programs to alleviate poverty or distress in any of the following counties:

Idaho: Clearwater, Benewah, Bonner, Boundary, Idaho, Kootenai, Latah, Nez Perce, Shoshone and Valley

Washington: Asotin and Whitman

Individuals with an immediate family member who is currently a P1FCU member, or qualifies for membership through the above methods, is eligible for membership. The immediate family members "can be living or deceased, as long as they were eligible for membership at the time of death." P1FCU uses the NCUA’s definition of immediate family member that includes,

a spouse, child, sibling, parent, grandparent, grandchild, stepparents,
stepchildren, stepsiblings, and adoptive relationships.

Complete details about joining P1FCU can be found on the Membership page.

Joining Potlatch No 1 Federal Credit Union and/or opening a Share Certificate can be done online, or at any of the 11 Idaho branches located in Bonners Ferry, Culdesac, Grangeville, Hayden, Lewiston (2), Moscow, Orofino, Ponderay, Post Falls, and St. Maries, or the three Washington branches located in Clarkston (2) and Pullman.

Note - When I wrote about P1FCU in August, an interesting point was made by Anonymous in the Comments:

Eligibility to join Potlatch may be broader than just residency. The website notes people also qualify by Participation in 1- "associations in our field of membership" or 2- "programs to alleviate poverty or distress in our field of membership." That seems to leave open qualification via donation/membership.

Anonymous went on to speculate that contributing to an Idaho nonprofit that "alleviates poverty or distress," such as Habitat for Humanity of North Idaho, might serve as a criterion for membership eligibility. The argument seemed reasonable to me, so I called P1FCU yesterday to see exactly what the Credit Union’s definition of "participate" was. CSR wasn’t quite sure of the answer, and I was on hold for quite some time while the answer was sought.

CSR stated that "participate" meant an actual physical participation, such as helping to build a house. I stated I wasn’t physically able to do that (yes, I lied), but I could contribute money to Habitat for Humanity’s "Nuts and Bolts" donation program, which I saw as "participation." Long story short, I didn’t win the argument, but CSR did see the merit in my logic, or perhaps she was just humoring me. In any event, it was worth a phone call to get a better understanding of P1FCU’s Field of Membership.

Credit Union Overview

Potlatch No 1 Federal Credit Union has an overall health grade of "A" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas ratio of 4.38% (excellent) based on December 31, 2015 data. In the past year, P1FCU increased its total deposits by $110.7 Million, an excellent annual growth rate of 18.01%. Please refer to our financial overview of Potlatch No 1 Federal Credit Union for more details.

Potlatch No 1 Federal Credit Union (NCUA Charter # 2734) was established in 1938 by 12 employees of Potlatch Forests, Inc., a leader in sustainable forestry. While many fledgling credit unions began in less than impressive surroundings, P1FCU didn’t even have a stationary location: the first transactions were conducted out of the trunk of a car and the funds were kept secure in a cigar box. Membership grew to 353 in the first year of operation and 78 years later, P1FCU is Idaho’s 2nd largest credit union, with more than 74,000 members and assets in excess of $807 Million.

For those of you who were wondering, according to Wikipedia,

A potlatch is a gift-giving feast practiced by indigenous peoples
of the Pacific Northwest Coast of Canada and the United States.

How the CDs Compare

When compared to the similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com, requiring a similar deposit and easily available to Idaho/Washington residents, all of Potlatch No 1 Federal Credit Union's Share Certificate APYs currently rank in the top two. Below is a sampling of those CDs.

The above rates are accurate as of 3/5/2016.

To look for the best nationwide CD rates and the best CD rates in your state, please refer to our CD rates table or our new Rates Map page.