One West Bank Offering Two Flexible CD Options

CD rates and products come in many different shapes and sizes. There are traditional CDs, in which you make a one-time investment for a fixed period of time, and now there are an increasing number of liquid or hybrid CDs. These products generally allow users to withdraw cash penalty-free at some point, or to deposit more cash at the original fixed rate.

OneWest Bank has two CD products that cover both of these angles - the Raise Your Rate CD and the Keep Your Options Open CD.

Raise Your Rate CD

The Raise Your Rate CD pays 1.5% APY for a 12-month CD. That's a competitive rate. But at anytime during the period you can opt to raise the rate to what the bank is offering new customers. If you believe rates are going significantly higher over the next 12 months (we don't think they are) then this might be a good CD to open.

Keep Your Options Open CD

The Keep Your Options Open CD, like the Raise Your Rate CD allows you to raise the rate one time in its 12-month term. But it also allows you to make two penalty free withdrawals during the term also. In return for this flexibility, it pays a lower opening rate - 1.4% APY.

So are these good deals? The top 12-month CD rate is currently 2% APY. The best savings and money market rates are near 1.95% APY (excluding SmartyPig and the bonus from Everbank). Our savings and cd rate trends show that while rates are still trending down, the slope has become very gradual. It's unlikely the best savings rates will fall below 1.5% in the next 12 months. In addition, Bank of America is offering a totally liquid money market savings account that pays 1.5% APY fixed until April 2010. These are all options to consider.