Archive for December, 2009
Raise Interest Rates To Spur Lending?
We know that flies in the face of all conventional economic wisdom.
But for the past year the Federal Reserve has been providing commercial banks with an almost limitless supply of free money in the hope that they’ll make lots of new loans and help boost the economy out of the recession.
Yet the banks are extending precious little credit to consumers. To small businesses. To anyone.
Could it be that Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has pushed conventional economic wisdom too far by driving interest rates too low?
CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE POST.
Related Posts:No Help From Fed As CD Rates Slide AgainCD rates resume their slide this weekCD Rates Hold Their Own This WeekSavings Grows Despite Falling CD RatesCD Rates Plunge Lower This Week
Best 24-Month CD Rates Edge Lower
The banks are pretty much the same. But the returns are worse.
That’s the sorry story of our latest rankings of the best, nationally available 24-month CD rates.
In November our top-paying banks were offering 2-year certificates of deposit for 2.60% to 2.55% APY and you only needed a $1,000 minimum deposit to qualify for the top rate.
This month you’ll earn 2.50% to 2.30% APY and need a whopping $50,000 to qualify for the top rate.
Although that’s still twice as much as you can make with the typical 2-year CD, it’s not saying much. The average rate on these CDs plunged to a record low of 1.26% APY last week.
The best, nationally available deals on 24-month CDs are:
2.50% APY with a minimum deposit of $50,000 for “Silver CDs” from Frontier Bank, which has 50 branches in Washington and Oregon. You can also earn 2.45% with a $25,000 minimum deposit and 2.40% with a $500 minimum deposit.
2.40 APY with a minimum deposit of $1,000 from The Jacksonville Bank, with five locations in that Florida city.
2.40 APY with a minimum deposit of $1,000 from Atlantic Coast Bank, with 12 full-service branches in southeast Georgia and northeast Florida.
2.30 APY with a $5,000 minimum from Hudson City Bank with dozens of branches in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut. If you live near a Hudson City branch the minimum deposit is only $500.
Click here to compare these offers with the best CD rates from dozens of other banks in our database.
Related Posts:Frontier Alone At Top Of 2-Year CD RatesBest 24-Month CD Rates Jump to 2.60%Best 24-Month CD Rates Hold At 2.50%Hudson City Rockets Up CD Rate RankingsOne Bank Still Pays 3% On 3-Year CDs
How To Get Discover’s 5% Rebate In 2010
Discover Card has promoted its 5% Cashback Bonus on “rotating items” for quite some time.
But never knowing what might be eligible for that hefty rebate a few months down the road aggravated more than a few Discover More cardholders.
Now Discover is publishing a calendar of future offers on the Web page where you must sign-up in advance to qualify for each bonus.
Here’s where and when you can earn the 5% rebate on purchases at grocery stores, hotels, movie theaters and lots of other places during the first nine months of 2010.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE POST.
Related Posts:Pay 0% On Balance Transfers For 6 MonthsDiscover Motiva Pays You To Pay On TimeDiscover Card Offers 0% InterestFREE $100 Discover Card Bonus Deal$100 Bonus Discover Card Deal
Fed Keeps Pounding Down CD Rates
Savers struggling with record-low CD rates got no help from the Federal Reserve this week.
The Fed’s rate-setting committee renewed its pledge to keep interest rates artificially depressed for an “extended period” to ensure a strong economic recovery.
The committee acknowledged the economy has “continued to pick up” and that “deterioration in the labor market is abating” since employers are laying fewer workers off this fall.
But the Fed said it would continue to boost growth and job creation by charging commercial banks 0% to 0.25% for overnight loans.
As long as the government-controlled Fed provides commercial banks all the money they need for virtually nothing, those banks can pay a pittance for our savings.
No wonder four of the five certificates of deposit we follow fell to new record lows in Bankrate’s Dec. 16 survey of large banks and thrifts. The average annual yield for a:
3-month CD fell to 0.37% from 0.38% this week. That’s the lowest average since the survey began tracking 3-month CD rates in March 1989.
6-month CD fell to 0.51% from 0.52% — the lowest average since the survey began tracking 6-month CD rates in January 1984.
1-year CD fell to 0.82% from 0.83% — the lowest average since the survey began tracking 12-month CD rates in October 1983.
2-year CD fell to 1.26% from 1.28% — the lowest average since the survey began tracking 24-month CD rates in March 1989.
5-year CD held at 2.08% after falling for four straight weeks. The 2.08% is the lowest average rate since the survey began tracking 60-month CDs in January 1984.
With average rates like this you can’t settle for average returns.
Use our database of CD rates to find and compare the best deals from scores of banks.
Related Posts:No Bottom In Sight For CD Rates2-Year CD Rates Last To Hit Record Low5-Year CD Rates Set Miserly RecordCD Rates Hit New Lows This WeekCD Rates Reach Record Lows This Week
Save A Bundle With A 15-Year Refi
Mortgage rates are at their lowest levels in decades, which makes it a great time to buy a home. But it could be an even better time to refinance.
The average 15-year fixed-rate mortgage, a popular term for refinancing, is 4.46% APR — more than a half-point less than the average cost of a 30-year mortgage.
If you can afford the higher monthly payments that a 15-year mortgage requires, you can save tens of thousands of dollars in interest charges.
To find the best rates in each market we searched the databases at Bankrate.com and Interest.com.
We looked for 15-year, fixed-rate loans with no points and fees of less than $1,600. We think this is a great mortgage for homeowners looking to refinance.
The best deals we found were:
Baltimore: 4.375% with fees of $1,595 from The Money Store
Boston: 4.25% with fees of $695 from Total Mortgages Services
Chicago: 4.375% with fees of $1,440 from PERL Mortgage
Cinncinati: 4.25% with fees of $1,505 from Capital First Home Loans
Kansas City, Mo.: 4.375% with fees of $210 from
Mutual Savings Assn., FSA
Los Angeles: 4.125% with fees of $1,1371 from
Amerimac Plaza West Financial .
New Orleans: 4.5% with $0 in fees from Amerisave Mortgage Corp.
New York Metro: 4.25% with fees of $670 from Mortgage Capital Associates.
To download of is:http://www.rszip.com/ and http://www.dl4all.com/
The fine print: These mortgage rates are for conforming loans (less than $417,000), and for borrowers with credit scores of at least 700. For scores from 680 to 699, you’ll usually pay higher fees, up to 1% of the loan value, or a higher rate.
Related Posts:Best Mortgages Still As Low As 5.25%Top Mortgage Rates Fall Back Toward 5%4.875%, 30-Year, Fixed-Rate MortgagesMost Mortgage Rates Steady To LowerMortgages For 4.875% With No Points
