Chartway Federal Credit Union offers high interest rate premium certificate of deposit which earns 2.00% APY. This top cd rate deal can be enjoyed by having an initial funding of $5,000 at least through $250,000. You can get the special certificate of deposit interest rate if you have Preferred Plus, Premier, or Elite 50 Checking account. It also requires new money.

The CD rate for the special certificate is very competitive but what hurts the program is the requirement for a checking account. Chartway FCU gives you options which impose balance requirements to avoid a monthly service fee. It will not hurt you if you can maintain a balance of $2,500 for the Elite 50 or Preferred Plus checking to avoid a monthly fee of $10. The Premier checking needs a balance of $5000 plus maintenance of a direct deposit to avoid a $20 monthly fee.

This special current cd rate cannot be combined with any other promo. Early withdrawal penalties also apply.

The credit union also has some competitive cd interest rates that you can enjoy when you deposit at least $10,000. A 6-month deal earns 1.60% APY; 12 months 2.06% APY; 24 months 2.26% APY; 36 months 2.50% APY; and 60 months at 3.11% APY. These certificates also require Premier, Elite 50, or Preferred Plus Checking.

Chartway FCU welcomes sign ups from people who live, worship, study, or work in specific areas covered by their branches in Texas, Rhode Island, Florida, and Virginia. You may need to call the credit union to verify if you are within their market area since we received some reports that the regions are quite narrow.

Membership can also be done through select employee groups and schools. You can check out their website to see the list of qualified organizations and affiliated educational institutions.

Membership to Chartway FCU requires at least a $5 deposit into a share savings account. The credit union operates branches in New Jersey, Ohio, Florida, Texas, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Georgia, and Virginia.

Chartway has some decent ratings. Bankrate.com issued 3 stars for its soundness and safety. BauerFinancial stamped their performance report with 4 stars. These evaluations are both based on their June 2009 data. The credit union is covered by the NCUA through charter number 13242.