United States Senate Fed Credit Union Ups 60-Month CD
In March, the eye-catching product at United States Senate Federal Credit Union (USSFCU) was its 60-month Smart Share Certificate, which joined the 3 for 5 Club with a 3.01% APY on balances of $60k+. While the 3 for 5 Club is rather “meh” at this point, the 60-month Share Certificate’s new top tier rate – 3.53% APY – is definitely not. In the past year, 113 bps have been added to the 60-month Share Certificate APY in seven rate changes. (FYI, USSFCU has dropped the “Smart” moniker, simply calling the product, “Share Certificate.”)
The 60-month Share Certificate is also available as an IRA (Traditional, Roth, SEP), earning the same tiered APYs with the same funding requirements.
All of USSFCU Share Certificates have tiered APYs based on deposit levels of $1k, $20k, and $60k. USSFCU’s Share Certificates page lists the 3.53% APY for deposits of "$60,000 - $99,999 plus Jumbo." According to CSR, "Jumbo" refers to deposits of more than $99,999, not to a separate Jumbo Share Certificate. In other words, there is no stated balance cap for the top tier APY.
As stated on the Fees and Charges page, the Early Withdrawal Penalty reads as follows:
360 days of dividends paid and accrued on the withdrawal for terms of greater than 3 years.
Bump Rate Certificates
USSFCU also offers three long-term Personal Bump Rate Share Certificates, which permit a “one–time option to bump it up to an even better rate during the term of your certificate.” Like the Share Certificates, the Bump Rates have tiered APYs, based on deposit levels of $60k+, $20k+, and $1k+, but these APYs are 10-21 bps lower than those of the Share Certificates.
| APY | MIN | MAX | INSTITUTION | PRODUCT | DETAILS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.32*% | $60k | - | United States Senate Federal Credit Union | 60 Month Personal Bump Certificate | |
| OTHER TIERS: 3.20% → $1k - $20k | 3.26% → $20k - $60k | |||||
The question you always need to ask yourself is, is the lower rate worth the bump option? While there is no definitive answer to that question, DA guest contribution, Charles Rechlin, has written an article that may help you decide for yourself. Here’s a teaser quote from Personal CD Investing: Step-Up and Step-Rate CDs:
Because I view a bump-up right as being of dubious value, my practice is to pass on
step-up CDs unless the initial rate offered is at, above, or at least reasonably competitive with the best rate available nationally for a CD of the same maturity with no step-up right.
Availability
Headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, United States Senate Federal Credit Union offers membership “via sponsorship or contribution.”
Easy Membership Requirement - Membership in the American Consumer Council, Virginia Chapter (VACC) has been added to the field of membership (FOM). For a limited time, using the Promo Code “USSFCU” waives the $8 VACC Membership Fee.
Members of the United States Capitol Historical Society (USCHS) are also eligible to join USSFCU (minimum contribution of $50). Joining either organization must be done prior to completely the USSFCU application. More details are available on USSFCU’s website.
Employment Sponsorship - Current employees and retirees of more than 140 SEGs, including The United States Senate, The United States Supreme Court, The Government Accountability Office, Democratic National Committee, qualify for membership.
Family Sponsorship - Immediate family members (spouse, child, sibling, parent, grandparent, or grandchild, including step and adoptive relationships) of an existing USSFCU member or current employee of an SEG are eligible to join, as are household members of the same.
Joining USSFCU and/or opening a Share Certificate can be done online or at either of two District of Columbia branches or the Alexandria, Virginia branch. An application can also be requested by calling 800.374.2758 or sending an email to services@ussfcu.org.
Credit Union Overview
United States Senate Federal Credit Union has an overall health grade of "A+" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas ratio of 2.15% (excellent), based on March 31, 2018 data. In the past year, USSFCU increased its total non-brokered deposits by $73.11 million, an excellent annual growth rate of 13.08%. Please refer to our financial overview of United States Senate Federal Credit Union (NCUA Charter # 624) for more details.
United States Senate Federal Credit Union was established in 1935, when seven individuals pooled their resources and obtained a charter for the United States Senate Employees Federal Credit Union. The original FOM was exclusive to U.S. Senate employees, but was expanded through mergers with the General Accountability Office Federal Credit Union, the DC Unemployment Federal Credit Union, and the American Trucking Association Federal Credit Union. The Credit Union was renamed in 1990 to better reflect the changing membership. USSFCU is currently the 15th largest credit union in Virginia, with more than 35,700 members and assets in excess of $717 million.
How the Share Certificate Compares
When compared to the other similar length-of-term CDs tracked by DepositAccounts.com that are nationally available, all of United States Senate Federal Credit Union's 60-month Share Certificate APY tiers currently rank in the top three, regardless of minimum deposits.
The above rates are accurate as of 8/3/2018.
To look for the best CD rates, both nationwide and state specific, please refer to our CD Rates Table page.
