Pen Air Credit Union Adds Competitive 9-Month CD Special

One of the “New To Summary” CDs in yesterday’s CD Deals Summary is the 9-month CD Special offered by Florida-based Pen Air Credit Union (Pen Air). Recently added to the product line, the 9-month CD Special has a competitive 5.00% APY. It appears to have replaced the 28-month CD Special that I reviewed in March. Like all Pen Air CDs, the 9-month CD Special can be opened with minimum $500 deposit, with no stated balance cap. There is no stated end-date for this limited-time CD Special, but the fine print on the Certificate pages states that “Pen Air reserves the right to discontinue or modify offer at any time.”

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

Terms of less than 12 months – 90 days’ dividends

If the account has not yet earned enough dividends or if the dividends have already been paid, the penalty will be deducted from the principal.

Availability

Headquartered in Pensacola, Florida, Pen Air Credit Union converted from a federal charter to a state charter, effective October 1, 2022. In addition to the new name (sans “Federal”), the field of membership (FOM) has changed, but the easy membership requirement (EMR) is still in place.

EMR: U.S. citizens or resident aliens (18 years or older) with a valid Social Security number can qualify for membership by joining the Friends of NMCRS Inc., (one-time $1 donation).

Established in 1904, the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society (NMCRS) is a 501(c)3 organization, which provides financial, education, and other needed assistance to active-duty and retired Sailors and Marines.

According to Pen Air’s online application,

I understand Pen Air will make a $1 donation to the Friends of NMCRS on my behalf.

Residency: The newest way to qualify for Pen Air membership is community-based, with individuals who live, work, worship, or attend school in any of 15 Florida counties or two Alabama counties eligible to join.

• Florida counties – Bay, Calhoun, Escambia, Franklin, Gadsen, Gulf, Holmes, Jackson, Leon, Liberty, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Wakulla, Walton, and Washington.
• Alabama counties – Baldwin and Mobile.

SEGs: Employees/members of more than 1,200 Select Employer Groups (SEG) in northwest Florida and southeast Alabama are also eligible for membership. The SEGs include businesses, associations, churches, and local governments

Military Relationship: Active duty/retired/reserve members of the military (including the Coast Guard) and active/retired civil service employees qualify for membership.

Family Relationship: Immediate family members and household members of current Pen Air members are welcome to apply.

Account Opening

Joining Pen Air and/or opening a CD Special can be done online, or at any of eight Florida branches located in Gulf Breeze, Milton, Pace, and Pensacola (5). Pen Air also has three Alabama branch locations in Foley, Robertsdale, and Spanish Fort.

A minimum opening deposit and maintained balance of $25 is required.
This is your share in Pen Air and remains in your savings account.

Just an FYI – Pen Air’s Fee Schedule lists a $15 monthly Inactive Account Fee, if there is “no monetary activity for 12 months on a Savings or Checking account."

Pen Air participates in the CO-OP Shared Branch network, giving its members access to more than 5,000 shared branches and nearly 30,000 ATMs throughout the country.

This shared branching network allows credit unions to serve each other's members. As a Pen Air member you can go to another credit union who is a part of the shared branch network and do transactions on your Pen Air account.

Funding and Other Details

The following information is from a conversation with CSR.

• Funding – ACH, wire ($15 fee), internal transfer. Note: while savings/checking accounts can be initially funded by debit or credit card, CDs cannot.
• Ownership – Individual, joint, or trust.
• CO-OP Shared Branch Participant – Yes.
• Dividends – Compounded/credited monthly and can be paid out by check or transferred to a Pen Air CU liquid account.
• Maturing Funds – ACH, wire ($20), cashier’s check, or internal transfer.
• Beneficiaries – Unlimited with equal shares, Social Security number required.
• Grace Period – 7 calendar days before automatic renewal.
• Credit Check – Hard pull with Equifax when joining. No credit check for existing members when opening a CD.

Credit Union Overview

Pen Air Credit Union has an overall health grade of "B+" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 5.80% (excellent) based on December 31, 2022 data. Pen Air has a below average capitalization level (7.33%), the result of holding $2.37 billion in assets with $173.62 million in equity. Please refer to our financial overview of Pen Air Credit Union (NCUA Charter # 1303) for more details.

Founded in 1936 as the U.S. Naval Pensacola Air Station Federal Credit Union for Civil Service Employees, the original FOM did not include the military personnel stationed at NAS Pensacola. It was nearly 25 years before the military became eligible for membership, and by that time, the Pen Air Federal Credit Union name had been in place for seven years. Pen Air Credit Union is currently Florida’s 13^th largest credit union, with nearly 122,000 members and deposits in excess of $1.9 billion.

How the 9-month CD Special Compares

When compared to similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com which are available nationally and have minimum deposit requirements of $10k or less, two banks and two credit unions have higher rates than currently offered on the Pen Air Credit Union 9-month CD Special. The following table compares the 9-month CD Special to the two highest-rate CDs from other banks and the two highest-rate CDs from credit unions.

The above information and rates are accurate as of 4/27/2023.

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