Offer at a glance
- Interest Rate:Â 7%
- Minimum Balance:Â $500
- Maximum Balance:Â $2,500
- Availability:Â Â Select counties in PA
- Additional requirements: Must be new money
- Hard/soft pull:Â Hard pull?
- ChexSystems: Unknown
- Credit card funding:Â Up to $1,000. Visa, Mastercard, Discover & American Express all accepted. Unsure if this works on CDs though.
- Insured:Â NCUA
The Offer
- TruMark Financial is offering a 7 month CD with a 7% APY on balances from $500-$2,500. Money must be new to TruMark
The Fine Print
- Annual Percentage Yield accurate as of 4/15/18.
- Certificate of Deposit (CD) requires a minimum deposit of $500 and has a maximum deposit amount of $2,500.
- New money only.
- IRA CD option not available.
- Maximum one CD per membership account and unique person.
- A membership account is opened under an individual’s Social Security number who is listed as the primary accountholder.
- Penalty for early withdrawal.
- Business accounts are not eligible.
- Offer subject to change without notice. Click here for disclosures.
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
Only fees are early withdrawal penalties (e.g lost interest)
Our Verdict
You’d obviously want to put the full $2,500 in. Over the 7 month period you’d earn ~$102. Basically a savings account bonus of $100, keep in mind the lost interest/opportunity cost. For example if you put the same $2,500 into a 2% APY account you’d earn ~$29 and in a 5% APY account you’d earn ~$73. Personally I don’t think this CD is worth doing despite the high rate due to the $2,500 limit and possibility of a hard pull. Plus you’re really earning under $100 when you consider the lost interest. As always the best high yield savings accounts can be found here. The best savings account bonuses can be found here.
Hat tip to reader Steve R
When I joined several years ago for a checking bonus, it was Chex only. Don’t know if the same still applies.
I’m doing this, as I just signed up for their $150 in gift cards for opening a new checking account and there’s a branch right nearby. It looks like you have to open the 7% CD in branch as it wasn’t selectable when I applied for the checking account, though other (crappy) CDs were.
I opened the CD in branch today. Took 10min, no fuss. One signature and a check.
>Plus you’re really earning under $100 when you consider the lost interest.
Could you clarify the logic behind the lost interest? Hard pull aside, where is the opportunity cost in investing $2500 at 7% instead of at 2% or 5%?
It’s a choice about your own willingness to make the effort/get hard pull for less than $100 (vs putting money in 2% savings with no time limit and no hard pull) I would never get a new credit card for a $100 bonus or less because of the hard pull. This is even more work with the same harms.
I agree. You could just as well go get any of the $150 bonus cards out there. Minimum spend is usually $500 or $1000. Do that and not tie up the$2500 money and get a hard pull.
The point is that the net gain over a 2% interest account is only 5%*2500*7/12 = $73.
Up to you decide if that is reasonable
This
Most good deals are always on the eastside of PA only (Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties)
cool