Update 5/3/24: They now released a 4.70% 18-month special
The Offer
- Navy Federal Credit Union is offering a 15-month CD with an interest rate of 5.00% APY.
The Fine Print
- Open with as little as $50. You can keep adding money up to $250,000.
- Limit one Special 15-Month Certificate (Share Only) per member.
- This offer, including the stated Annual Percentage Yield (APY), is effective as of January 9, 2023. Navy Federal reserves the right to end or modify this offer at any time.
- Excludes IRA and ESA certificates.
- The Special 15-Month Certificate (Share Only) has a $50 minimum balance and a $250,000 maximum balance. Additional deposits are allowed at any time, subject to the maximum balance. Dividends earned are not included in the maximum balance allowed.
- Once the promotional rate is applied to a purchased certificate, it will remain in effect for the length of the product term. Penalties apply for early withdrawals from certificate accounts. Other restrictions may apply.
Our Verdict
This is a decent/good CD rate for military families. Readers note that this is an “add-on” CD which means you can open it now with a $50 placeholder amount, and then choose to add on to the balance throughout the term, as you find fit. Nice!
Update History:
- Update 3/4/23: They changed the end-date on this offer to tomorrow, March 5th.
This is an ADD-ON certificate. $50 minimum, $250,000 maximum. Also, they are not allowing IRAs for this certificate.
I really don’t have any plans of making use of this, but opened one for $50 as a “placeholder” in case my plans change in the next 15 months.
It also has one penalty-free withdrawal.
that and not sure anyone with higher interest rate still any other does share secured loan. with NFCU you can pledge CD to access money.
Anyone know until when this rate is good for?
Was thinking to open multiple 18 month certificates and treat them as no-penalty CD(s).
Interactive Brokers sweep interest rate is 4.83 percent. No lockup period. Other brokers might similar rates via non-sweep MMFs. Hope this helps.
.4.7% APY for 18 months. Not bad. Looks like it’s a Add-on CD. Will open one just in case there’s a sharp rate drop. Thanks DoC!
I did the math on this because as a NFCU member I’d been using their CDs but wasn’t particularly thrilled by the 4.7% APY. However, the difference between this and a 5% offering elsewhere was so minimal that it was just easier to keep with NFCU. Plus the flexibility to add more in over time makes saving at higher rates much easier.
At this rate, how many others have the convenience of this CD ($50 minimum, ability to add anytime after opening, one-time withdrawal, walk-in locations, and the integrity of NFCU) makes this a great CD for anyone eligible regardless of military affiliation.
Alliant is offering 5.15% APY on 12-17 months CD. (It’s listed in the rates table as 12 months but you can choose up to 17 months).
proceed to speculate, I’ll pass
What is so special about this?
The add-on ability is really valuable
Vanguard has 5.1% 18-month Brokered CDs available (from various banks), so this rate can be easily beaten.
CDs are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) up to $250,000 per individual at each bank. 1 Brokered CDs are technically not FDIC-insured.
Callable?
does Navy Federal have any good checking account bonuses? Thinking of joining
No.
Also keep in mind they do a hard pull to open a checking account.