Salem Five Ups Gold Star Money Market Rate
Salem Five has raised the rate on its Gold Star Money Market (GSMM) to 1.75% APY on all balances. This week’s 25 bps increase is the first rate change for the GSMM since it was introduced in January of this year.
| APY | MIN | MAX | INSTITUTION | PRODUCT | DETAILS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.20*% | $50k | - | Salem Five | Gold Star Money Market Account - New Money | |
| OTHER TIERS: 0.10% → $0 - $50k | |||||
The GSMM can be opened with a minimum deposit of $10 in-branch, or $100 online. The maximum allowed opening deposit is $1m. According to the Account Disclosure document,
Additionally, deposits will not be accepted into this account once the account balance has accumulated a balance of $1,000,000 however interest will continue to accrue as scheduled.
There are no monthly fees or minimum balance requirement associated with the GSMM, although there is a $10 Excess Debit Fee for each transaction beyond the allowed six monthly transactions. Check writing is not available, but an ATM card (not a debit card) can be issued.
Depositors Insurance Fund
Like all Massachusetts-chartered savings banks, Salem Five’s deposits are insured by the FDIC and Depositors Insurance Fund (DIF).
The combination of FDIC and DIF insurance provides customers of Salem Five with full deposit insurance on all of your deposit accounts. The FDIC insures all deposits up to $250,000 per depositor and up to $250,000 per depositor for traditional and Roth IRAs. All deposit amounts above the FDIC limits are insured in full by the Depositors Insurance Fund.
Availability
Headquartered in Salem, Massachusetts, Salem Five is now offering most of its product line nationwide to U.S. citizens and permanent resident aliens, who have valid Social Security numbers.
I was a little surprised to see that Salem Five is offering nationally available products, because I thought that was the role of Salem Five Direct, the Bank's online division. According to CSR, “most of our products are available online,” while Salem Five Direct, “houses our Online Only accounts.”
The Gold Star Money Market can be opened online, or at any of 30 full-service Massachusetts branches located in Bedford, Beverly (2), Boston, Burlington (2), Concord, Danvers (2), Lynn (2), Malden, Marblehead, Middleton, Needham, North Andover (2), Peabody (2), Reading, Salem (2), Saugus, South Hamilton, Stoneham (2), Sudbury, Swampscott, Tewksbury, and Woburn.
Bank Overview
Salem Five has an overall health grade of "A" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 3.07% (excellent) based on December 31, 2017 data. In the past year, the Bank has increased its total non-brokered deposits by $309.05 million, an excellent annual growth rate of 10%. Please refer to our financial overview of Salem Five for more details.
Established in 1855, the original Salem Five Cents Savings Bank was known as the "Nickel Bank," because the first day’s deposits ranged from five cents and up. Headquartered in Salem, Massachusetts, the Bank has always considered itself innovative, and in 2015 added the Cardless Cash ATM, which allows customers to “open the bank’s mobile app on their smartphone, put in the amount they want withdrawn, then visit an ATM, scan a QR code, and pick up their money.”
In 2017, Salem Five Bancorp (parent company of Salem Five) completed the acquisition of Georgetown Bank (MA) and Georgetown Bancorp Inc. Following the acquisition, Salem Five has become Massachusetts’ ninth largest bank, with assets in excess of $4.6 billion and more than 137,000 customer accounts.
How the Gold Star Money Market Compares
When compared to the 177 Money Market accounts tracked by DepositAccounts.com that are available nationwide, Salem Five’s Gold Star Money Market APY currently ranks third.
The above rates are accurate as of 5/18/2018.
To look for the best Money Market rates, both nationwide and state specific, please refer to our Money Market Rates Table page.
