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11 month online certificate of deposit through Franklin Synergy Bank

July 3rd, 2009 No Comments   Posted in Best CD Rates

Here is a pretty sweet deal I just found in our inbox if you happen to be in the market for short-term high yield certificates of deposit…

Franklin Synergy Bank has a group of online bank products called their “e-products” which are available to customers nationwide. The only real noteworthy product of the bunch is their 11 month online CD (certificate of deposit). This CD is currently yielding an unheard of rate of 2.78% APY. To put this in perspective, the average rate for 12 month CD’s is currently hovering around 1.33% APY.

Customers can make deposits to their account at anytime from anywhere using what Franklin Synergy Bank refers to as a E-Deposits. Using a traditional flatbed scanner and a computer, customers can scan checks and transmit them to the F.S. bank. They claim this new service will reduce trips to the bank, speed up the processing time and give customers faster access to their money.

Franklin Synergy Bank is headquartered in Tennessee:

3301 Aspen Grove Drive
Suite 106
Franklin, TN 37067

phone: (615) 236-BANK (2265)

Best certificate of deposit rates in Oregon (Top 3)

July 3rd, 2009 No Comments   Posted in bank CD rates

Below are the top 3 cd rates for residents of the state of Oregon. The banking products we surveyed came in the form of 24 month CD’s, 48 month CD’s and 60 year CD’s. Many of the top rates came from either national or regional institutions, however the rates listed below are all local. Rates vary from state to state, and in some cases larger national banks can beat the rates offered by your local banks and credit unions.

If you reside in Oregon and know of a better bank rate than the ones listed below, please share by leaving a comment. Keep in mind interest rates offered by banks are time-sensitive in nature and change regularly. Please refer to the date of this article for accuracy. If you would like to compare CD rates nationwide, then you may use our CD rate tab above.

Top 3 Certificate of Deposit rates for Oregon state residents:

(clicking on the institution will take you to their rates page)

HomeStreet Bank: Portland, Oregon - 24 month CD yielding 2.85% APY with a minimum deposit of $10,000. Employee and Family-owned HomeStreet Bank claims to be one of the largest private banks in the Northwest and Hawaii. They were established in 1921 and claim to have stayed focused on what they believe is most important: building long-term relationships with their customers and providing ongoing support to their communities.

Bank of Oswego: Lake of Oswego, Oregon - 48 month certificate of deposit yielding 3.25% APY with a minimum deposit of $1,000.  Their focus is to preserve and enhance their financial soundness so that they can provide the best long-term results for customers. They claim to this with their abundance of capital resources and a complete portfolio of banking products that can be suited to individual banking needs. They claim to possess a team of professionals with many years in the industry and a vast amount of knowledge.

ShoreBank Pacific: Portland, Oregon - 60 month certificate of deposit yielding 3.32% APY with a minimum deposit amount of $500. A note from ShoreBank…  “ShoreBank Pacific is the first commercial bank in the United States with a commitment to environmentally sustainable community development. We believe that long-term community prosperity goes hand-in-hand with a healthy environment. With that vision, ShoreBank Pacific, a Washington State chartered, FDIC insured bank, was formed in 1997 as a joint project of ShoreBank Corp., Chicago (the nation’s first community development bank) and Ecotrust™, an environmental non-profit located in Portland, Oregon.”

STC Capital Bank’s 6 month certificate of deposit: 2.50% APY

July 3rd, 2009 No Comments   Posted in Best CD Rates

Thanks to BankVibe reader Sean for tipping us off on a phenomenal rate coming from a local Illinois bank. Currently STC Capital Bank has a 6 month certificate of deposit which is yielding 2.50% APY. The average yield for 6 month CD’s sits at roughly 1.30% APY. Unfortunately for most of us, this product is not available. STC Capital Bank only has two branches and both are in St. Charles, Illinois. This product is only available to customers in the area.

The six month CD offered by STC Capital Bank became available on the first of this month and they accept deposits up to $25,000. You may also start with less than $25,000 and add to your deposit throughout the life of the CD. If you aren’t one of the lucky ones who are able to take advantage of this offer great, you may want to compare 6 month CD rates nationwide.

STC Bank was founded by a group of investors with a “passion for excellence within the banking industry.” STC is an abbreviation for their core values. S stands for Service, T stands for Trust, and C stands for Commitment.

Main Office
460 South 1st Street
St Charles, IL 60174
phone: (630) 377-1555

Seacoast Commerce Bank’s Money Market Account: 2.05% APY

July 2nd, 2009 No Comments   Posted in money market accounts

Here is a decent money market rate which just came in to our inbox. This MMA comes from Seacoast Commerce Bank of San Diego, California and is yielding a very respectable 2.05% APY on balances of $25,000 or greater. If you plan on keeping less than $25k in this money market account then your yields will sit at 1.05% APY. You will also encounter a $25.00 monthly fee when/if your account drops below the $25k mark, so unless you have that type of cash on hand, I would opt for another account. Compare money market rates.

Money Market Account through Seacoast Commerce Bank Terms and Conditions:

This account is available nationwide. The interest rate paid is a variable one and can change at anytime without notice. The rate is compounded daily and credited monthly.The rate is 2.05% APY while the national average for money market accounts sits at roughly 1.30% APY.

Side Note Regarding Minimum Balance:

I would strongly suggest taking another route if you believe that there may be a possibility of having less than $25,000 occupy this account at anytime. The $25.00 monthly fee they impose for short accounts will drastically eat into your earnings.

For example, say you are $1.00 short and have $24,999 in this account. The monthly interest earned would only be $22.00 (1.05% APY applied to balances less than $25k). Therefor you would actually be losing $3 every month.

24,999 x (0.0105) = $262.00 interest paid per year at 1.05% APY

$262.00/12 months in a year = $21.87 interest paid per month on a balance of $24,999. (plus $25 fee)

Best Certificate of Deposit Rates in Arizona (Top 3)

July 2nd, 2009 No Comments   Posted in Best CD Rates

Below are the top 3 certificate of deposit rates for residents of the state of Arizona. These rates come in the form of 12 month CDs, 24 month CDs and 36 month CDs. Generally the longer the maturity the higher the interest rate. If you reside in Arizona and know of a better CD rate, please share by leaving a comment below!

The local banks and credit unions in Arizona offer very decent rates when compared to the rates offered by the larger national banks. This is not always the case. For many states in the northeast you are better off banking through large national banks (IE Discover, Ally, etc) as these banks will get you better rates than the local ones. Compare CD rates.

Top 3 CD Rates from Arizona Banks:

(clicking on the institution will bring you to their rates page)

Metro Phoenix Bank: 12 month CD yielding 2.52% APY with a $5,000 minimum deposit amount. Metro Phoenix Bank strives to serve the banking needs of businesses in the Phoenix metropolitan area. They have a strong focus on business banking (rather than consumer banking) and claim to differentiate itself from its competition by intending to generally limit itself to commercial and real estate banking customers.

Gateway Commercial Bank: 24 month CD yielding 2.75% APY with a $1,000 minimum deposit amount. Gateway Commercial Bank of Mesa, Arizona also strives to serve the local businesses. The want to be considered the “hometown bank” for small businesses in Mesa and the surrounding areas. They are a locally owned and operated institution.

Trust Bank: 36 month CD yielding 3.10% APY with a $500 minimum deposit amount. Trust Bank of Tempe, Arizona is more consumer focused when compared to the previous two institutions. They pride themselves on customer service and the integration of user-friendly online banking technologies. Founded in 1912, Trust Bank was originally called Olney Trust and Banking Company.

Rewards Checking Account through Heritage Bank: 2.24% APY

July 2nd, 2009 No Comments   Posted in Rewards Checking Accounts

Heritage Bank out of Minnesota has an interesting “Rewards Checking Account” which is available to everyone nationwide. It’s only yielding an APY of 2.24%, which when compared to other interest checking accounts, isn’t that substantial. However, if you are looking at stashing a large chunk of change in an FDIC insured investment, than this may be the best account for you as there is no maximum balance. Typically these rewards checking accounts, or high interest checking accounts provide lucrative returns but only for a predefined sum of money (ie earn 3% on balances up to $25,000). Heritage Bank’s rewards checking account has no limit.

Rewards Checking Account Features from Heritage Bank:

(as seen on their website)

  • Interest paid on balances of $.01 or greater
  • Free Visa Check Card
  • The Annual Percentage Yield (APY) is in effect as of Thursday, July 02, 2009. Rates may change without notice after account is opened. Fees may reduce earnings
  • If you do not meet the requirements during a monthly statement cycle you will earn the Standard APY of 0.10% and will not receive ATM refunds for that time period
  • Available to personal accounts only
  • Variable interest rate may change daily; Interest calculation is based on average available (collected) balances and is compounded monthly
  • If you close your account before interest is credited, you will not receive the accrued interest
  • Overdrafts and NSF: $27 per item
  • $25 fee if account is closed within 90 days of opening

Requirements to earn advertised interest rate:

  • Make 10 or more check card transactions (excluding ATM transactions)
  • Have at least one direct deposit or automatic payment (ACH)
  • Receive a monthly E-Statement

Discover Bank’s New Online Savings Account

July 1st, 2009 No Comments   Posted in Savings Accounts

Just yesterday Discover Bank launched two new noteworthy products. The first was their no penalty 12 month CD and the second was their online savings account.

Discover Bank’s online savings account is currently yielding a very respectable 2.00% APY. Some of the features of this account include: low opening deposit plus no minimum balance, fast and free online money transfers and the ability to set up automatic transfers from any checking or savings account.

Fee schedule for Discover Bank’s Online Savings Account:

Inbound Money Transfer: Free

Outbound Money Transfer: Free

Incoming Domestic Wire: Free

Foreign Check Conversion: At Cost

Excessive Withdrawal (per item): $15.00

Outgoing Domestic Wire:$20.00

Outgoing International Wire: $40.00

The rate associated with this account is a variable one and is subject to change without notice. Comapre online savings account rates.

Best Certificate of Deposit Rates in New Hampshire (Top 3)

July 1st, 2009 No Comments   Posted in bank CD rates

Below are the top 3 certificate of deposit rates for residents in the state of New Hampshire. The maturites on these accounts range from 24 months to 5 years. As you may already know, the highest rates typically come from the longest maturites. After researching some of the highest yielding 6 and 12 month CD’s in the greater New England area I noticed that a few of the national banks offer better rates than the local ones. Therefor I didn’t include them in the list below. Compare CD rates available nationwide to see how they stack up against your local rates.

Bank rates are time-sensitive in nature, please refer to the date of this article for accuracy.

Top 3 certificate of deposit rates for New Hampshire:

(clicking on the institution name will bring you to their rates page)

Bank of New England: 24 month CD yielding 2.50% APY with a minimum deposit amount of $500. Bank of New England is headquartered in Windham, New Hampshire and was established in the mid-90’s. They are a community bank that originally focused on local small and mid-sized businesses. They have nine branches currently serving central and southern New Hampshire, the Merrimack Valley, and the greater Boston area. They claim that many more are to come and that they are the fasted growing bank in New Hampshire.

Anheuser Busch Employees Credit Union: 60 month CD yielding 3.40% APY with a minimum deposit amount of $1,000. ABECU serves the employees and retirees of all Anheuser-Busch Companies, wholly-owned subsidiaries and distributors of Anheuser-Busch products as well as contract employees reporting to an Anheuser-Busch employee. Note: You will find better rates on 5 year CD’s from national banks. Compare 5 year CD rates.

Service Credit Union: 60 month CD yielding 3.00% APY with a minimum deposit amount of $1,000. Service Credit Union serves the people who live or work in the state of New Hampshire (except for Coos County). They were founded in 1957, originally chartered to serve the military, and civilian employees, at Pease Air Force Base in New Hampshire. Today, Service Credit Union provides financial services to over 100,000 members residing all across the U.S. and around the world. Note: You will find better rates on 5 year CD’s from national banks. 5 year CD rate comparison.

Heartland Community Bank’s Interest Checking Account: 4.02%

Here is another great interest checking account available to customers nationwide! Currently Heartland Community Bank out of Arkansas has an “interest plus checking” account which is yielding 4.02% APY on all balances up to $30,000 (1.31% APY paid on all balances above $30k). They also offer free ATM use nationwide in the form of ATM reimbursements. Typically these high interest checking accounts will reimburse a portion of your foreign ATM fees, however, Heartland Community Bank will reimburse all of them.

Benefits of Checking with Interest through Heartland Community Bank:

(as seen on their website)

  • Free ATM’s Nationwide
  • Write as many checks each month without a per-check charge.
  • Earn high-interest yields on your account
  • No minimum balance
  • No service charge
  • Overdraft privilege available
  • Free ATM or Visa check card
  • Telephone Banking
  • Free Internet Banking

Requirements to earn interest rate and free foreign ATM use:

  • Make at least 10 check card transactions
  • Receive a monthly Electronic Statement
  • One direct deposit or ACH Auto Debit
  • Access Online Banking

Discover Bank’s “Penalty Free” 12 month CD

June 30th, 2009 No Comments   Posted in bank CD rates

Just got forwarded a press release from Discover Bank regarding their “penalty free 12 month certificate of deposit.”

A note from Discover Bank:

As part of a continuous effort to respond to the needs of savings-conscious consumers who need some peace of mind during these times of economic uncertainty, Discover Bank will allow penalty-free early withdrawals from 12-month certificates of deposit for new and renewing account holders who lose their jobs.

Who is eligible?

To be eligible, account holders must open or renew a 12-month CD with a minimum $2,500 balance between July 1 and Dec. 31, 2009. If the account holder involuntarily loses his or her job during the term of the CD, they will be allowed to make a partial withdrawal of the funds or close the account with a full return of their principal and any credited interest with no penalties. The program also applies to self-employed people under certain circumstances.

Discover Bank’s 12 month CD is currently yielding an APY of 2.20%.

View Discover Bank’s No Penalty CD