P1FCU (ID/WA) Raises All CD Rates Including 12-Month

P1FCU (formerly Potlatch No 1 Federal Credit Union) raised the rates on all its Share Certificates last week. While P1FCU’s Share Certificates have had tiered APYs (deposit levels of $500, $10k, and $100k) in the past, this week’s new rates are the same for all three deposit levels. Of all the Share Certificates, the 12-month (2.35% APY), 36-month (2.75% APY) and 60-month (3.15% APY) are the most competitive. These latest APYs are the highest levels since DA began tracking P1FCU’s rates in March 2011.

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 Rates and Fees Schedule, the Early Withdrawal Penalty reads as follows:

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

Excess Share Insurance

In addition to the NCUA insurance coverage on funds up to $250k, Excess Share Insurance Corporation insures funds up to an additional $250k.

Additionally, your board of directors has chosen to provide up to an additional $250,000 of savings protection to each qualifying account through ESI. ESI's Excess Share Insurance Coverage applies to any credit union account currently subject to the maximum level of $250,000 in coverage provided by NCUA.

Availability

Headquartered in Lewiston, Idaho, P1FCU’s field of membership (FOM) is residency-based, with 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 eligible to join:

Idaho: Benewah, Bonner, Boundary, Clearwater, Gem, Idaho, Kootenai, Latah, Lewis, 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.

Joining P1FCU 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.

Shrinking FOM

As I was reviewing P1FCU’s Membership page, I was surprised to see that the FOM has noticeably smaller: what happened to the three Oregon and eleven Montana counties that were included in the FOM when I last wrote about P1FCU in December? In a Live Chat, CSR stated the FOM had changed in early April. Naturally, my next question was “What happened?” CSR was kind enough to share the only explanation P1FCU employees received in a notification from the Credit Union’s VP.

Due to court order, any FOM expansions under the new guidelines of the NCUA have been vacated by the D.C. Circuit Court in the American Bankers Association v. National Credit Union Administration.

According to a March 29, 2018, article in American Banker, Federal Judge Dabney Friedrich struck down two provisions of the NCUA’s “embattled” field of membership regulation, ruling that certain parts of it were "unreasonable and manifestly contrary to statue," while upholding other provisions of the rule. The American Bankers Association had sought a complete block of the FOM rule in their 2016 lawsuit.

While this is complete conjecture on my part, I’m wondering if this ruling influenced CapEd Federal Credit Union to change their FOM from “easy membership requirement” (joining the Idaho CapEd Foundation) back to a strict affiliation with the State of Idaho’s educational industry.

Credit Union Overview

P1FCU has an overall health grade of "A" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 5.24% (excellent) based on December 31, 2017 data. In the past year, P1FCU increased its total deposits by $84.59 million, an excellent annual growth rate of 10.61%. Please refer to our financial overview of P1FCU (NCUA Charter # 2734) for more details.

Established in 1938 by 12 employees of Potlatch Forests, Inc., (a leader in sustainable forestry), P1FCU was originally known as Potlatch No 1 Federal Credit Union. 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 (pictured below) and the funds were kept secure in a cigar box.

Membership grew to 353 in the first year of operation and 80 years later, P1FCU is Idaho’s second largest credit union, with more than 85,200 members and assets in excess of $983 million.

In case you 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 Share Certificates Compare

When compared to the 247 similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com, requiring a similar deposit and available within the FOM, P1FCU's 12-month Share Certificate APY currently ranks third.

When compared to the 2411 similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com, requiring a similar deposit and available within the FOM, P1FCU's 36-month Share Certificate APY currently ranks third.

When compared to the 216 similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com, requiring a similar deposit and available within the FOM, P1FCU's 60-month Share Certificate APY currently ranks second, tied with Northwest FCU.

The above rates are accurate as of 5/28/2018.

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