Reward Checking Accounts

I've mentioned Reward Checking Accounts in previous posts, but I think the subject deserves a post of its own. I think a reward checking account could be the best place to stash your short-term savings, up to $10,000 to $20,000--if you are OK with the monthly requirements to get the high interest rate. If you don't meet the requirements in a particular month, you will get a much lower interest rate for that month. Read on for details.

INOVA 6-Year CD: An Update

Update: INOVA has slashed its rates, so their 5-year and 6-year CDs no longer are competitive with the PenFed CU 5-year and 7-year CDs.

I discussed the INOVA Federal Credit Union 6-Year CD in my last post. In this post I share the conclusion of the process of transferring money from my existing IRAs into my new INOVA IRA, provide some contact information, and answer a few more questions about INOVA.

INOVA 6-Year CD

Update: INOVA has slashed its rates, so their 5-year and 6-year CDs no longer are competitive with the PenFed CU 5-year and 7-year CDs. There is no longer a reason to read this post other than for some general background on why to consider CDs; e.g., the Why I Am Doing This section.

I’ve run across another CD I like: the INOVA Credit Union 6-Year CD. It pays about 2.50% APY, and the early withdrawal penalty (EWP) is only six months of interest. I am transferring funds currently held in IRA money market accounts (paying almost no interest) at Vanguard and Fidelity into IRA CDs at INOVA CU. Following are more details on the features of the CD, comparison to other CDs I like, an explanation of why I am doing this, and a description of my experiences in opening the account and transferring the money into the CDs at INOVA. This is a long post, but hopefully you’ll appreciate the details.