Best CD, MM Rates & Bank Special Deals Thread 2022 - Please post updates here

[nwsteve]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FindingForward Does anyone have any advice they can share re: breaking a cd - early withdrawals? Never did this before, but stuck in a couple of very low paying CDs opened earlier this year, vs current T Bill rates. One has onerous penalties, but is still worth breaking according to a bankrate.com online calculator I found. Just not sure how it works tax-wise: am I still going to get a 1099 on interest, even though all interest (and a small part of principal) will negated by the early withdrawal penalties? Are there other things to consider before breaking a CD?

Here is a handy link to do the math to confirm if you should break the CD. You do need to know the CD terms especially your CD's early withdrawal penalty. Every bank has their own penalty model and typically vary by length of original term.
https://www.depositaccounts.com/TOOL...ALCULATOR.ASPX

[xlf11]

CIBC Agility online Saving 1.27% as of 6/14/22, no string attached.

[NomDeER]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Graybeard Ally has the 12 month CD at 1.50% but a 1 year T bill is 2.89%. Rhetorical question - why would anyone buy the CD?

Because most people know about CDs but don't know about or understand t bills? I've known about CDs since I opened my first bank account as a kid. I know nothing about t bills or how to go about getting one. I think that's true for most people. I wouldn't even be trying to understand t bills if I hadn't come across this thread.

[Graybeard]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NomDeER Because most people know about CDs but don't know about or understand t bills? I've known about CDs since I opened my first bank account as a kid. I know nothing about t bills or how to go about getting one. I think that's true for most people. I wouldn't even be trying to understand t bills if I hadn't come across this thread.

I was in the same boat as you. A couple of months ago I became interested in TLH due to losses in my taxable account's bond fund. I did some reading, I read threads here and asked some questions. TLH can be complicated but I understand it well enough now to be able to understand how to do it and not run afoul of the Wash Sale rule which I thought I understood but clearly did not. Good thing I explored it.

About 6-8 weeks ago I came to the conclusion that bond funds were not just losing money this year but with lots of Fed rate hikes coming it was going to get much worse. I started to read about T bills and followed threads here and asked questions. I bought several in my taxable and Rollover IRA about 3 weeks ago, it is actually very easy to do, Treasury Direct always made it look so complicated. So I have sold all the shares of 2 of my 3 bond funds and will be buying T bills this year. The coupon may or may not be as high as the SEC yield of the bond funds but when they mature I will get back my principal vs losing to nav decreases as rates rise.

[Drake3287]

Speaking of early withdrawal/reinvestment of CD's, has anyone ever had luck in just asking a bank/S&L to wave the penalty fee? Such as for long term customers. Just curious if that ever happens.

I have had a bank once increase their CD rate just to keep me as a customer. Seem's like some branch managers have leeway in this.

[Sue J]

Discover Bank savings is now 0.90%

[erkevin]

Marcus raised theirs to .85%

[Chuckanut]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sue J Discover Bank savings is now 0.90%

Tempting, but I recently bought a 3 mo CD for 1.6%. That was before the recent 0.75% increase from the Fed. Of course, I don't believe I will need instant access to the money in the next three months. YMMV.

Even 1.6% is still a pathetic return considering inflation. But, we hang on tight and do the best we can.

[almost there]

Looks like the CD rates are sending us a message from the future.
As to how long the rate increase will last.
Today at CH Sch. 1yr 2.900 / 18 mo. 3.050 / 2 yr 3.150, (3), (4) and (5) yr all. 3.250%
May hold off on the even amount 5 year ladder I had planned. Build a VERY small 5 yr. ladder. And put the bulk in to 5 yr CD's. When we get into the 3.5%- 4% range.
Thoughts?

[Silver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sue J Discover Bank savings is now 0.90%

I moved away from Discover when they were at .60% and Bask Bank was at 1.25% They are now at 1.5%.

[NomDeER]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Graybeard About 6-8 weeks ago I came to the conclusion that bond funds were not just losing money this year but with lots of Fed rate hikes coming it was going to get much worse. I started to read about T bills and followed threads here and asked questions. I bought several in my taxable and Rollover IRA about 3 weeks ago, it is actually very easy to do, Treasury Direct always made it look so complicated. So I have sold all the shares of 2 of my 3 bond funds and will be buying T bills this year. The coupon may or may not be as high as the SEC yield of the bond funds but when they mature I will get back my principal vs losing to nav decreases as rates rise.

That was smart. I wish I had done the same thing. I'm wondering if it's too late and whether selling my bond funds now to invest in T bills would be locking in losses. I have bond funds in my retirement accounts at both Vanguard and Fidelity. They aren't down as much as my stock funds, but they are down significantly. I suppose I could hedge my bets and leave some of my money in the bond funds but transfer some of the bond funds into an equity fund and some into treasuries. I also could use some of my cash and put it into treasuries. I have some money in my settlement fund at Vanguard.

Could you or someone else provide me (or direct me) to the clearest information about how to go about buying treasuries? I am a total newbie to this.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Silver I moved away from Discover when they were at .60% and Bask Bank was at 1.25% They are now at 1.5%.

I've never heard of Bask Bank. Why and how are they so much higher than everyone else?

[Another Reader]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NomDeER That was smart. I wish I had done the same thing. I'm wondering if it's too late and whether selling my bond funds now to invest in T bills would be locking in losses. I have bond funds in my retirement accounts at both Vanguard and Fidelity. They aren't down as much as my stock funds, but they are down significantly. I suppose I could hedge my bets and leave some of my money in the bond funds but transfer some of the bond funds into an equity fund and some into treasuries. I also could use some of my cash and put it into treasuries. I have some money in my settlement fund at Vanguard. Could you or someone else provide me (or direct me) to the clearest information about how to go about buying treasuries? I am a total newbie to this. I've never heard of Bask Bank. Why and how are they so much higher than everyone else?

You can read about them at depositaccounts.com. They are small but have been around for awhile. I deposited a small amount to try them out. So far so good...

[jmmec]

Quote:

Originally Posted by almost there Looks like the CD rates are sending us a message from the future. As to how long the rate increase will last. Today at CH Sch. 1yr 2.900 / 18 mo. 3.050 / 2 yr 3.150, (3), (4) and (5) yr all. 3.250% May hold off on the even amount 5 year ladder I had planned. Build a VERY small 5 yr. ladder. And put the bulk in to 5 yr CD's. When we get into the 3.5%- 4% range. Thoughts?

What about a 5-year or 7-year Treasury Note? There is an auction for both next week. The 7-year hit 3.583% yesterday but is down to 3.375% at the moment.


I'm thinking about dumping in $1M to generate around $30k a year for the next 7 years. Foolish? Wait for CD rates to increase, if they will? I don't know.

[Chuckanut]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmmec What about a 5-year or 7-year Treasury Note? There is an auction for both next week. The 7-year hit 3.583% yesterday but is down to 3.375% at the moment. I'm thinking about dumping in $1M to generate around $30k a year for the next 7 years. Foolish? Wait for CD rates to increase, if they will? I don't know.

I don't know. But, the idea of locking in a rate under 4% for five to seven years does not sit well with me when the current inflation rate is over double that interest rate. OTOH, my crystal ball is cracked, I can't read minds, and my time machine is still broken. So I doubt if I know more than most.

Personally, I am going to ladder my 'bank' money in 3-6-9-12-15-18 month maturities and see what happens. The exception would be if I see things like 10 year T-Bonds going for double digit rates. Then I might buy a few of those just for the fun of it.

[Sue J]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Silver I moved away from Discover when they were at .60% and Bask Bank was at 1.25% They are now at 1.5%.

Thanks for posting. I never heard of Bask Bank. I checked it out and read the FAQs. Like T Mobile Money they do not have joint accounts but they do have a way to add a beneficiary.

I’m not going to move anything yet, but will keep them in mind for when rates are done climbing.

Are crystal balls on sale yet? Maybe the next upcoming Amazon Prime Day.

[Silver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NomDeER I've never heard of Bask Bank. Why and how are they so much higher than everyone else?

Bask has been an online bank since 1999 through Texas Capital Bank. They started their online savings with offering travel miles with American Airlines, and later offered accounts earning interest. They are FDIC insured up to $250,000.

I do not know how they are able to offer a higher interest right now, but I'm happy to have it.

[erkevin]

Re: Bask Bank. In reading their financial health reports, they have had a net depositor loss over the past year (losses in both customers and total deposits). My guess is that this is their gamble to attract new customers. Their other financial health indicators are strong.

[Al18]

Fidelity had 3.60% 5 year CD earlier today, though sold out. My guess is you’ll see 4.00% 5 year CD’s in the next 2-3 weeks.

[Gotadimple]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Silver Bask has been an online bank since 1999 through Texas Capital Bank. They started their online savings with offering travel miles with American Airlines, and later offered accounts earning interest. They are FDIC insured up to $250,000. I do not know how they are able to offer a higher interest right now, but I'm happy to have it.

I suspect it's a way to generate deposits. I did notice this footnote on their FAQ page:
Bask Bank and BankDirect are divisions of Texas Capital Bank. Member FDIC. The sum of your total deposits with (i) Bask Bank; (ii) BankDirect; and (iii) Texas Capital Bank are insured up to $250,000. Additional coverage may be available depending on how your assets are held.
https://www.baskbank.com/faq#2254641303-2555903753-5

[Graybeard]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NomDeER That was smart. I wish I had done the same thing. I'm wondering if it's too late and whether selling my bond funds now to invest in T bills would be locking in losses. I have bond funds in my retirement accounts at both Vanguard and Fidelity. They aren't down as much as my stock funds, but they are down significantly. I suppose I could hedge my bets and leave some of my money in the bond funds but transfer some of the bond funds into an equity fund and some into treasuries. I also could use some of my cash and put it into treasuries. I have some money in my settlement fund at Vanguard. Could you or someone else provide me (or direct me) to the clearest information about how to go about buying treasuries? I am a total newbie to this.

I lost a lot to nav depreciation but decided enough was enough. I locked in the loss to prevent future losses and with the Fed on a rate rising jihad you can be pretty much assured the losses you have today will only get worse as this year and maybe next progresses.

I buy the T bills at Vanguard, no idea how to do it at Fido. If you read this link it explains how to do it at Vanguard. It really is easy, BTW I buy at Auction not the secondary market. 13 week T bills are auctioned every week, I think the 26 week are also every week. You need to have the money in your settlement fund to purchase, when the bills are ready to be bought you'll see Buy on the line for the bill. I buy them in both my taxable account and RO IRA. BTW, if you buy them in a tax deferred account you have to "SELL" the shares of the investment you are using for the purchase. If you "EXCHANGE" the money goes into the mutual fund equivalent not the settlement fund! I learned that the hard way.
https://thefinancebuff.com/treasury-...ey-market.html


ETA - I just realized the link also tells how to buy at Fido.