Fed Meeting: Forecasts Point to 2022 Rate Hike - Strategies for Savers
CD Rates Summary - September 21, 2021
Federal Reserve, the Economy and CD Rate Forecast - Sep 21, 2021Andrews Federal Credit Union CD Rate Lock Details
The original focus of the blog post was Andrews Federal Credit Union’s (Andrews Federal) competitive long-term Jumbo Share Certificates. Just as I was about to hit the publish button, rates at Andrews Federal plummeted, rendering the blog post useless. While these rate cuts are definitely disappointing, it’s likely Andrews Federal will be offering competitive CD rates in the future.
I would be remiss in not warning DA readers to expect similar cuts by other banks and credit unions, and I want to emphasize why it's important to understand the CD application process and rate lock policy.
Andrews Federal’s new website has a “How To Fund Your Share Certificate” page, which describes the funding process, as well as how to move money from another financial institution or fund from an existing Andrews checking or savings account. The one thing that’s not addressed is when the rate is actually locked in. In a Forum post exchange, DA reader and self-described “newbie,” calman, described his uncertainty when opening a 84-month Share Certificate.
I applied to open one of these last week (3/4/20) when the rate was still 3.05 on website. Funded by linking to my source bank account. Funds left my source account 3/6 which is the date the rate dropped to 2.35 on the site. Do I get the 3.05 or 2.35?
calman’s story had a happy ending: he received the rate that was in effect when his application was completed. In a conversation this morning, CSR confirmed that “the rate locks in when the application completes, not when funds are received.” CSR also stated that you have ten days in which to fund a Share Certificate.
Availability
Headquartered in Suitland, Maryland, Andrews Federal Credit Union’s field of membership includes virtually all U.S. citizens and resident aliens who have a valid Social Security number.
Easy Membership Requirement - Members of the American Consumer Council (ACC) are eligible to join Andrews Federal.
Note: Andrews Federal's online application asks for your ACC membership number; in other words, you must join ACC prior to joining Andrews Federal. As stated on Andrews Federal’s Membership page,
You can join the American Consumer Council at no charge. Just use promo code "Andrews."
Residency - Individuals who live, work, worship, or attend school in Washington, D.C. qualify for membership.
Military Relationship - Civilian and military personnel of Joint Base Andrews, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, and military installations in central Germany, Belgium, and The Netherlands are also eligible to join.
Employment/Association - More than 200 groups in Maryland, New Jersey, and Virginia offer Andrews Federal membership as an employee benefit.
Family Membership - Immediate family members (spouse, child, sibling, parent, grandparent, or grandchild) of an existing member, or household members of an existing member are eligible to join.
Joining Andrews Federal and/or opening a Jumbo Share Certificate can be done online, or at any of ten U.S. branches located in Maryland (3), New Jersey (3), Virginia (2), and the District of Columbia (2). Andrews Federal also has branches associated with military bases in Germany, The Netherlands, and Belgium.
Your Andrews Federal Credit Union membership begins with a $5.00 deposit to your Base Share Savings Account.
Andrews Federal participates in the CO-OP Share Branch Network, providing its members with access to more than 5,000 branch locations and nearly 3,000 ATMs.
Through the CO-OP Shared Branch Network, you will be able to complete some of the same transactions as if you were at an Andrews Federal branch.
Credit Union Overview
Andrews Federal Credit Union has an overall health grade of "A" at DepositAccounts.com, with a Texas Ratio of 5.39% (excellent), based on September 30, 2019 data. In the past year, Andrews Federal has increased its non-brokered deposits by $208.67 million, an excellent annual growth rate of 14.47% APY. Please refer to our financial overview of Andrews Federal Credit Union (NCUA Charter # 5754) for more details.
Andrews Federal Credit Union was established in 1948, when eight individuals each deposited $5 to form a credit union that would address the personal financial needs of military and civilian personnel at Andrews Air Force Base. Seventy-two years later, Andrews Federal is Maryland’s fourth largest credit union and the 143rd largest credit union in the country, with more than 133,000 members and assets in excess of $1.9 billion.
At a different bank (not andews), I had one rep tell me rates are locked in at signup, and then you can ach funds over when signing up -- yet I later found out their online application did not allow achs from outside banks, only allowed funding by check or if funds were at the bank already. At that same bank another rep later told me rates were locked in when funded only, signup rates didn't matter. And when I finally got a real manager, they told me it was locked in at signup, funding needed to be in within 30 days. So it's kind of like nobody has a clue unless you get a bank manager type.
For Andrews', I was initially told by two bank reps that rates were only locked in when funded. So I rushed around doing the shared CU thing to lock in the 3.05% rate while I could. But it seems (based on this article) that the real policy is we have 10 days to fund. I know one fellow over in the Andrews review thread closed his acct early because a rep told him that he was too late to get the higher rate, even though he signed up for it in time to lock in the rate, just because it took longer than he expected to get his money moved... not sure if it was past 10 days or not. I think in his review he stated the rep put a note on his acct that it needed to be funded next day, or some weirdness like that.