$150 Cash Bonus at Madison National Bank in New York

Posted December 13, 2011

Open a new checking account at Madison National Bank (www.madisonnational.com) and sign-up for extra services to get bonuses worth up to $150.

Getting an extra service will result in obtaining an extra bonus. Signing-up for Direct Deposit will earn a $100 bonus; Bill Pay
is worth a $25 bonus; ordering checks will earn a $15 bonus; and getting a Debit Card is worth a final $10 bonus.

Checking account options at Madison National Bank include Basic checking which has a $1 minimum balance requirement to open; Advantage Checking with Interest which requires a $50 minimum opening deposit (and also comes with a free gift at account opening); and Easy Checking with Interest which also requires a $50 minimum opening deposit and comes with a free gift at account opening.

Madison National Bank has four office locations in New York, including Massapequa, Merrick, Hauppauge, and Melville. Contact the bank to ensure that you live within its service area before opening an account.

Contact Madison National Bank for full details on the bonus offer. 

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Three Sovereign Bank Bonus Options

Posted December 9, 2011

Choose between three Checking packages at Sovereign Bank and get a cash bonus. Choose either a Premier Checking package for a $100 bonus, a Preferred Checking package for a $75 bonus, or a Classic Checking package for a $50 bonus.

A package consists of both a checking account and a savings account.

To earn a cash bonus, open a Sovereign Premier, Preferred, or Classic banking package with a minimum deposit of $25 for the checking account and a minimum deposit of $10 for the savings account before December 31, 2011; (2) enroll in Online Banking; (3) request a Debit MasterCard® at account opening, and (4) make five purchases with your Debit Card by February 29, 2012.

The cash bonus will be credited to your new checking account by March 15, 2012.

Sovereign Bank has 720 branches located in nine states. Branches are located in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island. Contact the bank to ensure that you live within its service area before opening an account.

For more details on the bonus offer, visit Sovereign Bank's bonus page at www.sovereignbank.com/personal/promotions/checking/checking-account-promotions.asp

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Ally Bank No-Penalty CD

Posted December 8, 2011

With rates on bank products like savings accounts and certificates of deposit (CDs) falling almost daily, there is great incentive to lock-in a rate now to preserve future interest income. A CD account will do just that.

By depositing your money into a CD account, the bank agrees to give you a specific interest rate over the life of the CD term. In return, you, as a depositor, agree to not withdraw your principal (your deposit amount) until the CD term ends.

By getting a CD, you protect yourself from future rate cuts and the loss of income that results from it.

But what if you unexpectedly need the money before the term ends? Let's say that your car needs a new battery and you don't have enough money in your checking account to cover the cost? That money you've got locked away in the CD can come in handy right about now, but there is a catch. If you pull the principal amount out from the CD, you will incur a penalty. That penalty could be several months worth of interest.

That's one of the reasons people avoid getting a CD. It's the fear that they will need the money before the CD matures. In order to avoid the whole withdrawal penalty issue, they end up getting a savings account instead. So while they can withdraw funds without penalty, they wind up watching their interest rate diminish month after month as banks cut rates.

But Ally Bank has another option. It's a No-Penalty CD. It combines the benefits of locking-in a rate with the ability to get your money out penalty-free.

The No-Penalty CD lasts for a period of 11 months. That's 11 months of not having to worry about rate cuts and decreases in your monthly earnings. But the big benefit of this CD is that if you find that you need your money back before the CD matures, you can get your full balance back any time after the first six days of funding the account without penalty.

Another great thing about Ally Bank's No-Penalty CD is that you won't be giving up too many percentage  points by choosing this CD over a regular CD or a savings account. As of this writing, the No-Penalty CD earns 0.96% annual percentage yield (APY) (UPDATE: The No-Penalty CD earns 0.91% APY as of 12-23-11). Ally Bank's regular 1-Year CD earns 1.02% APY and the No-Penalty CD actually earns more than Ally's Online Savings account which earns 0.89% APY.

So if you are one of those people comparing rates and can't decide between the ease of making withdrawals from a savings account or the ability to lock in a rate with a CD account, consider the Ally Bank No-Penalty CD. You can lock-in a decent rate for the next 11 months and withdraw your money without penalty if you need it.

The Ally Bank No-Penalty CD has no minimum deposit requirement to open. Interest compounds daily. Visit Ally Bank for more details on the No-Penalty CD.

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$105 Checking Bonus from Co-op Services Credit Union

Posted December 7, 2011

Taking advantage of the bank card fee backlash, Co-op Services Credit Union (www.cscu.org) in Michigan is inviting angry bank customers to come over to them and shred their bank card.

Besides the cathartic effect from the shredding, people who participate will get $105 after signing up for a Co-op Services free Checking account with direct deposit, e-statements, and a debit card.

$5 in cash will be given on the spot to people who shred their bank debit card in one of Co-op Services Credit Union's offices. The remaining $100 will be deposited into the new account as soon as the direct deposit is verified by the credit union.

Co-op Services Credit Union's Free Checking account can be opened with a minimum of $50. The account features no monthly service fee and no minimum daily balance requirement.

Co-op Services Credit Union seems to have a very wide membership requirement. Apparently anyone can join. It takes a $2 one-time membership fee to Cooperative Services, Inc., and $5.00 deposited into a regular share account to establish your membership in the credit union. You will be required to visit a Co-op Services Credit Union office in person to complete the membership application process.

Co-op Services Credit Union has eight offices throughout Metro Detroit, Michigan. Office locations can be found in Dearborn, Detroit, Livonia, Melvindale, Southfield, Southgate, Walled Lake, and Westland.

Visit the promo site for more details on the bonus offer at www.shredmycard.com.

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Discover Bank Online Savings Account Rate Stays on Top

Posted December 6, 2011

The Discover Bank Online Savings Account remains on top of the Savings Account Rate Chart listed at eMoneyCentral.com. The bank decided to keep the Online Savings Account rate at 1.00% annual percentage yield (APY) despite cutting the Money Market Account to 0.90% APY on December 1st.

This rate freeze at 1.00% APY gave it the top spot on the rate charts after American Express cut its High-Yield Savings Account to 0.90% APY on November 25.

The Discover Bank Online Savings Account has a minimum initial deposit amount of $500. After the initial deposit, there is no minimum balance requirement.

The American Express High-Yield Savings Account has no minimum initial or monthly deposit requirement.

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$50 Bonus with a new Checking Account In Illinois

Posted December 6, 2011

Liberty Bank for Savings in Illinois is giving local area customers a $50 bonus. All that is required to receive the $50 bonus is to open a new checking account and sign-up for a direct deposit of your payroll or government check or automatic payment of your mortgage, utility or recurring bill.

The account must be established with an initial deposit of $150 for the FREEdom Checking account, $100 for the Affinity Checking account, $500 for the 50 STAR Checking account, and $1,000 for the Jumbo Checking account.

The FREEdom Checking account is a great option since after the initial deposit, there is no monthly minimum balance or monthly fee to be concerned about. It also comes with free Online Banking and Bill Pay, free VISA Debit Card, and free first order of checks.

Liberty Bank for Savings has three offices in Chicago, and one each in Lincolnwood and Park Ridge, Illinois. Contact the bank to ensure that you live within its service area before opening an account.

For more details, visit TCF Bank's bonus page at www.libertybank.com/ContentDocumentHandler.ashx?documentId=12518.

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A Few CD Rates Up Last Week from Ally Bank and EverBank

Posted December 5, 2011

Banks were mostly quiet last week with respect to changing CD rates. That was a good sign considering that a new month can usually deliver a slew of rate changes, and those changes  are normally to the downside.

Friday brought some nice surprises – CD rate increases. I'm not talking big increases or new highs, but any size increase is appreciated at this point.

One of those banks giving us an early holiday gift was Ally Bank. This bank seems to be on the rate cutting list every week. But not last week. They were on the good bank list this time.

Ally Bank raised the rates on the 3-Month, 9-Month, 1-Year, 18-Month, and 3-Year certificates of deposit. To be honest, the increases weren't huge. For instance, the 3-Month CD rate was only raised to to 0.40% annual percentage yield (APY) from 0.39% APY. But I'll take an up-move any day of the week, no matter how small.

Here is the before and after picture for Ally Bank CD rate changes...

• 3-Month CD rate was raised to 0.40% APY from 0.39%
• 9-Month CD rate was raised to 0.84% APY from 0.75%
• 12-Month CD rate was raised to 1.02% APY from 1.01%
• 18-Month CD rate was raised to 1.09% APY from 1.03%
• 3-Year    CD rate was raised to 1.44% APY from 1.40%

Ally Bank wasn't alone raising rates on Friday. EverBank also surprised with a few rate increases of their own. The 6-month, 9-Month, and 5-Year EverBank certificates of deposit rates were increased.

EverBank's before and after rate increases are shown below...

• 6-Month CD rate was raised to 0.55% APY from 0.50%
• 9-Month CD rate was raised to 0.55% APY from 0.50%
• 5-Year CD rate was raised to 1.81% APY from 1.80%

To see how these new rates stack up against other Internet CD rates, check out the CD Rate page at eMoneyCentral.com.

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$100 New Checking Account Bonus at TCF Bank

Posted December 2, 2011

Get a $100 bonus when you open an eligible TCF Convenience Checking account at TCF Bank and complete qualifying transactions.

The account must have a total of 15 qualifying transactions posted to the account within 60 calendar days of account opening. Qualifying transactions include 1) Debit card purchases, not including ATM withdrawals or gift card purchases; 2) Withdrawals using TCF's online bill payment service; 3) ACH (automated) withdrawals; and 4) Checks you write against your account, unless the check is cashed at TCF or deposited into a TCF account.

TCF Convenience Checking has no minimum balance and no monthly maintenance fee with either 15 qualifying withdrawals in 30 days, or $10,000 in minimum combined balances. There is a minimum opening deposit of $25.

Offer ends December 31, 2011.

Accounts can be opened online or at any TCF Bank branch. TCF Bank has locations in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. Contact the bank to ensure that you live within its service area before opening an account.

For more details, visit TCF Bank's bonus page at www.tcfbank.com/PersonalBanking/pb_checking_Q2_100_free_cash.jsp.

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$300 in Bonus Opportunities at HomeStreet Bank in Washington, Oregon, and Hawaii

Posted December 1, 2011

Looking for an easy $300? HomeStreet Bank may just have the opportunity for you. Open a HomeStreet Bank checking account, use selected services, and earn bonuses of up to $300.

Here is what you have to do to get the bonuses:

• Set-up direct deposit of payroll, pension, Social Security or other income into your HomeStreet checking account to get a bonus of $100.
• Use your Visa® Check Card to get a bonus of $80.
• Give HomeStreet Bank your old checks and debit card from your old bank and get $15 for your check card and $2 per check pad up to $10.
• Use free Online Bill Payment to get a bonus of $75.
• Sign-up to receive e-statements and get a bonus of $20.

The minimum opening deposit on the Free and Deluxe Checking accounts is $100. The Premier Checking account requires a minimum opening deposit of $2,500. The Bank On checking account requires a $50 opening deposit.

To get started, accounts must be opened at a HomeStreet Bank branch location. HomeStreet Bank has 15 locations in Washington, 2 locations in Oregon, and 3 in Hawaii.

For more details about the bonus offer, visit the HomeStreet Bank bonus offer at www.homestreet.com/personal/directdepositpromo/index.aspx

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$400 in Gift Cards with a Citibank Checking Relationship

Posted October 1, 2011

Open an eligible Citibank checking account and you can get up to $400 in gift cards. Actually, you'll get up to 40,000 ThankYou points which can be redeemed for the gift cards.

To participate, 1) open a new Citibank checking account in the Citigold or Citibank Account Package by 10/31/2011, 2) enroll the new checking account in Citi ThankYou Rewards, 3) within 45 days after account opening, initiate one direct deposit and complete one electronic bill payment for two consecutive months.

The amount of points you receive from this promotion depends on which checking account package you choose. The Citigold Account rewards 40,000 ThankYou Points, redeemable for $400 in gift cards, while the Citibank Account rewards 20,000 ThankYou Points, redeemable for $200 in gift cards.

The bonus ThankYou Points will be credited to your ThankYou Member Account within 90 days from the end of the statement period in which you satisfy all offer requirements.

The ThankYou Points is Citibank's reward program. Points can be earned each month by using qualifying services such as ATM/Debit Card, Certificate of Deposit, Checking Account, Direct Deposit, and Online Bill Payment from Checking.

ThankYou points can be redeemed for rewards like books, music, DVDs, cash, electronics, gift cards, Jewelry, sporting goods and more.

The offer is for new checking customers only, 18 years or older, and may be modified or withdrawn at any time without notice.

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$25 Bonus from Betterment

Posted September 20, 2011

Open a new account at Betterment and get a $25 bonus.

To qualify for the bonus, you must make an initial deposit of $250 within 60 days of signup and not withdraw that initial deposit for 60 days.

Offer available to U.S. Residents only.

Betterment offers an easy way for people to invest in stocks and bonds. The company blends the simplicity of an online bank account with the higher long-term returns associated with investing in stocks and bonds.

Betterment works by investing your money in either higher-return investments, made up of stock ETFs, and less risky investments, made up of Treasury bond ETFs.

You can easily choose how to divide your money between the two types of investments by using Betterment's online allocation slider. Want more exposure to stocks? Slide the allocation button up and Betterment invests more of your money into stocks. Do the reverse for more exposure to bonds.

Betterment charges a low annual management fee of 0.3% to 0.9% of your average balance depending on how much money you have in your account.

After making the initial deposit, there are no minimum balance requirements. Funds transfers and trades are free of charge to make.  

Get a $25 Account Bonus when you sign up for Betterment.

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ING DIRECT $50 Bonus with Checking Account

Posted March 22, 2011

You may have heard about the ING DIRECT Orange Savings Account which brought online saving to the mainstream. You may not know that ING DIRECT also offers a checking account. It's called the Electric Orange Checking account.

ING DIRECT is rewarding customers with a $50 bonus after opening a new Electric Orange Checking account.

All the customer has to do is open the Electric Orange Checking account from the bonus page, then make a total of 3 Card purchases or Person2Person Payments (or any combo of the two) within 45 days of account opening.

The bonus will automatically be deposited into the account on day 50.

The Electric Orange Checking comes with high rates, but the payout is based on a tiered structure where higher balances get higher rates. Balances under $50,000 earn 0.25% apy. Balances between $50,000 and $100,000 earn a savings account rate of 1.10% apy. Balances over $100,000 earn 1.15% apy.

Unlike many checking accounts, ING DIRECT doesn't charge a monthly service fee and doesn't have a minimum balance requirement.

The account comes with a free MasterCard® Debit Card for all purchases and free Online Bill Pay. But it may perplex people that this checking account does not actually come with checks. It is a “paperless” account that expects customers to conduct business using the online banking system. However, a paper check can be sent out using the online banking system if needed.

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