High-Yield Reward Checking Account at The Farmers State Bank in Kansas - Local Only
Update 7/15/10: The top rate has fallen from 5.51% to 3.56% APY.
The Farmers State Bank is offering a high-yield reward checking account called Go Green Rewards Checking. It has the following rates and features if certain monthly requirements are met:
- 3.56% APY on balances up to $25,000
- 0.25% base rate if requirements are not met
Note, the bank's rates page only lists the rates for balances under $25,000. To qualify for the high rate, you must sign up for email statements and meet at least four of the following requirements:
- 10 Visa debit card purchases
- 1 direct deposit
- 5 direct deposits (utility bills, cell phone bills)
- 2 ATM transactions
- 1 Bill Payment through FSB Bill Pay
Additional features of the account include:
- $100 minimum opening deposit
- No monthly service charge
- No minimum balance requirement
- Not be charged the $1 ATM access fee at foreign ATMs (but don't see any mention of surcharge reimbursement)
It appears that a branch visit is required to open the account. It's a small bank with branches at Circleville and Holton, Kansas.
The bank's ratings for safety and soundness are above average: 4 stars (excellent) at BauerFinancial (based on 9/30/09 data) and 3 stars (performing) at Bankrate.com (based on 6/30/09 data). The bank has been a FDIC member since 1935 (FDIC Certificate # 15258).
Other Reward Checking Accounts
This is one of the highest rates for reward checking accounts in the nation. Unfortunately, it's a local deal in a very small region of the nation. The reward checking account with the highest rate in the nation is also in Kansas. It's at the Golden Plains Credit Union which continues to offer a 6.01% APY for balances up to $25K as of 1/04/2010 (see review).
To find reward checking accounts in other areas of the nation, please refer to the reward checking section of DepositAccounts.com. To learn more about reward checking, please refer to this reward checking overview.
Rate History:
- 07/15/10: 3.56% APY up to $25K
- 01/04/10: 5.51% APY up to $25K; 0.25% base