Top Short-Term CD Deals at Two All-Access Credit Unions

Two all-access credit unions are currently offering very competitive short-term CD deals. I reported on them earlier this month, but I wanted to highlight these deals for those who might have overlooked them. I called both credit unions this morning, and the CSRs provided no clues about when these deals may end. In today's environment, I would guess they won't last too much longer. If you get any clues from the credit union CSRs, please leave a comment.

DCU 8-Month CD Special

One short-term CD deal is at Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU). It has a special certificate with a 1.50% APY and an 8-month term. Minimum deposit is $1,000. If you are not a DCU member, you may have difficulty in depositing more than $3K using the online application. Here is what one reader described about his experience joining and opening this special CD:

Just opened the 8 month CD on line and found the entire process was quite painless, smooth and surprising quick. As the previous poster indicated the CD was opened with 2985/5/10 for the initial CD/savings account/new membership fee. Once the account is opened you can increase the CD amount. According to DCU CSR one can add monies to any CD under 12 months at any time. Funds transfer is available by several means including ACH. No picture ID was requested. There are security questions you need to answer. Overall.....great customer experience and fast

I did confirm that this special certificate does allow for add-on deposits just like the regular certificates with terms of 12 months and under. So it would be best to apply for membership and fund the accounts with an ACH transfer even though there's a low maximum.

Another reader offered this useful tip about making use of the shared branch network:

tip on depositing money : i live far from DCU , but they offer shared service with other credit unions. Took my deposit check to my local CU and deposited it immediately into DCU saving account from which i was able to open cd online.

In today's interest rate environment, it's hard just to find yields of 1.00% for CD terms under 1 year. The best deal is Ally Bank's 11-month No Penalty CD which only has a 0.95% APY.

For more details and comments on DCU, please refer to my DCU special CD review.

PenFed Short-Term CD Rate Specials

In the past, PenFed special certificates were longer-term CDs. This month, the best deals are shorter-terms CDs with maturities from 1, 2 and 3 years. The APYs are 1.26% for 1 year, 1.36% for 2 years and 1.61% for 3 years. Minimum deposit is $1,000.

PenFed's CD rates are often updated at the start of each new month. I was not able to get any clues from a PenFed CSR about December rate changes. If you receive any clues, please leave a comment. I was told that when you apply, you should get the rate that's in effect on the day of the application. So you shouldn't have to worry about the rate dropping a day or two after you apply.

These PenFed CD rates are higher than the CD rates from any of the internet banks. For example, the highest 1-year CD APY is 1.12% at ableBanking and the highest 3-year CD APY is 1.35% at Discover Bank. You can get a 1.50% APY 3-year Raise Your Rate CD at Citizens State Bank. This is a community bank in Florida that currently allows anyone to open its CDs via its online application.

For more details and comments on PenFed, please refer to my PenFed CD review.

Long-Term CDs

Credit unions and banks don't seem to want to offer any decent long-term CD rates. The only internet bank that offers a 2% APY CD is Discover Bank and that requires a 7-year term. That's about the same as what PenFed offers.

There are a few all-access credit unions that are still offering 2% APY 5-year CDs. The best deal is currently at Pen Air Federal Credit Union which has a 2.20% APY Jumbo 5-year CD. This requires a $100K minimum deposit. The yield falls to 2.00% APY for smaller deposits. I have more details about Pen Air and this Jumbo CD in my Pen Air FCU CD review.

The above rates are accurate as of 11/29/2012.