Bankrate Releases First Ever Rewards Checking Survey
Bankrate's new 2010 Rewards Checking Survey takes a look at the growing high-yield offering and what requirements consumers must meet
NEW YORK, March 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- With rewards checking accounts projected to become a more popular option for deposits in coming years, Bankrate.com is releasing its first annual 2010 Rewards Checking Survey. The survey takes a look at what to expect if opening a rewards checking account from a bank or credit union as well as what to look for to make sure the account gets the maximum yield. The results of the survey can be found here: http://bankrate.com/finance/checking/high-yield-checking-perks-have-strings-1.aspx.
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Among the findings, including requirements for the highest yield that consumers should know:
- The average Annual Percentage Yield for rewards checking accounts maxed out at 3.3%;
- The average default APY if not keeping up with the minimum requirements was 0.16%, a significant drop-off;
- The balance cap for earning the high APY was, most commonly, $25,000;
- Of the accounts surveyed, 95% have a requirement for a certain number of debit card transactions to be made each month in order to receive the highest APY. The average amount of debit card transactions required was 11, but the most common requirement was 10 per month;
- The majority (91%) of the rewards checking accounts surveyed have requirements for direct deposit and/or bill pay but 48% only require one or the other. One direct deposit per month is the standard requirement;
- A mandatory bill pay requirement is demanded by 35%, ranging from logging in to as many as four bill payments per month. One bill payment per month is the most common requirement.
"Consumers are looking for ways to boost their interest earnings in this low rate environment," said Greg McBride, CFA, senior financial analyst for Bankrate.com. "Rewards checking accounts offer very compelling yields, so long as consumers are able to meet each of the account requirements on a monthly basis."
Bankrate surveyed 211 institutions for this study. Fifty-eight of those surveyed offer high-yield checking accounts, 41 of which are nationally available.
About Bankrate, Inc.
The Bankrate network of companies includes Bankrate.com, Interest.com, Mortgage-calc.com, Nationwide Card Services, Savingforcollege.com, Fee Disclosure, InsureMe CreditCardGuide.com and Bankaholic. Each of these businesses helps consumers to make informed decisions about their personal finance matters. The company's flagship brand, Bankrate.com is a destination site of personal finance channels, including banking, investing, taxes, debt management and college finance. Bankrate.com is the leading aggregator of rates and other information on more than 300 financial products, including mortgages, credit cards, new and used auto loans, money market accounts and CDs, checking and ATM fees, home equity loans and online banking fees. Bankrate.com reviews more than 4,800 financial institutions in 575 markets in 50 states. In 2008, Bankrate.com had nearly 72 million unique visitors. Bankrate.com provides financial applications and information to a network of more than 75 partners, including Yahoo! (Nasdaq: YHOO), America Online (NYSE: AOL), The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times (NYSE: NYT). Bankrate.com's information is also distributed through more than 500 newspapers. Bankrate, Inc. was acquired by Apax Partners, one of the world's leading private equity investment group, in September 2009. Apax operates across the United States, Europe and Asia and has more than 30 years of investing experience. For more information on Apax, visit: www.Apax.com.
For more information contact: Chris Spagnuolo Public Relations Manager [email protected] (917) 368-8671
SOURCE Bankrate, Inc.
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