Best Reward Checking Account with Carolina Premier Bank earns 5.00% APY
North Carolina based Carolina Premier Bank offers their best checking account that gives the highest interest rates if the account holder meets certain monthly requirements:
5.00% APY for balances through $25,000
0.50% APY for deposits above $25K
Base interest rate is 0.50% if monthly requirements are not satisfied
ATM fees incurred anywhere in the U.S. is reimbursed
In order to enjoy the highest interest rate for this checking account, account holders must be able to do the following on a monthly basis:
Account holder must make at least 12 purchases using the debit card; amount must be at least $5 each
Set up an auto debit or a direct deposit
Complete at least one online bills payment
Choose to receive electronic statements
The bank also requires consumers to open another account with them to take advantage of the benefits of this money in the bank deal. You can maintain a certificate of deposit or a savings account to get the best checking account rates. The initial deposit required to open the checking account is as little as $200.
The bank does not impose any balance requirements nor do they collect any monthly service fees.
The website of the bank was down when we visited it so we confirmed this info through their customer service line. The CSR told us that customers can open the passbook savings account for $200 which has current interest rates of 2.10%. This account does not charge any monthly fees.
It is not typical for a reward checking account program to ask clients to open an additional account. The minimum purchase of at least $5 is also not very common. This puts a bit of pressure on the debit card holder to spend more but that is how banks come up with funds to keep the high interest offerings.
Interested individuals can drop by a branch to open this checking account. Their office is in Charlotte, North Carolina. Caroline Premier is a start up bank which was established in 2007. Bankrate.com gives the bank 3 stars for its performance based on their June 2009 data.
Carolina Premier Bank is covered by the FDIC through certificate number 58516.
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