Hey, E*Trade baby, here’s something worthy of your best “shocked face.”
Last April we called E*Trade out for offering ridiculously low rates on its 12-month to 24-month CDs.
Little did we know that the discount brokerage had just begun to slash its returns.
Here are the waaayyy below average rates E*Trade is now offering on what it [...]

The Federal Reserve has just reiterated its determination to keep interest rates at record lows until the economy is not just growing, but creating enough jobs to drive the unemployment rate down.
With more than 15 million Americans out of work, we understand that the country can’t afford another jobless recovery like the ones that [...]

Here’s a mid-week rundown of the best, nationally available CD rates based on our current rankings.

3-month CDs: 1.40% APY from TotalBank with a $1,000 minimum deposit.
6-month CDs: 1.60% APY from Country Bank with a $500 minimum deposit.
12-month: 2.00% APY from either The Jacksonville Bank or Franklin Synergy Bank with each requiring a $1,000 minimum deposit.
24-month [...]

New year. Same old story.
In November the best nationally available 24-month CDs paid 2.60% APY.

In December the top rate was 2.50%.
Now it’s 2.40% APY.
Banks have picked up right where they left off in 2009, repeatedly cutting the returns on certificates of deposit.
The average rate for 2-year CDs fell to 1.20% APY in last week’s survey [...]

A small Tennessee bank has leapt to the top of our rankings of the best nationally available 12-month CD rates.
Franklin Synergy Bank, which has two branches in Franklin,Tenn., is paying 2.10% APY with a minimum deposit of $1,000.
Last July we featured a very good 11-month special from this bank that was discontinued only a few [...]

A small Massachusetts bank is once again offering the best, nationally available deal on 6-month CDs.
Country Bank, which has 14 branches in the central part of the state, is paying 1.60% APY with a $500 minimum deposit.
It’s been a regular in our rankings of the best 6-month CD rates since August, and even topped the [...]

Three weeks ago, six banks were still paying 2.00% APY on 12-month CDs.

Now only two offer the best, nationally available return:
The Jacksonville Bank, which has five branches in northeast Florida, with a minimum deposit of $1,000.
Golf Savings Bank which has 37 branches in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana, with a minimum deposit of [...]

Going longer to find a better return than the truly pathetic short-term CD rates banks are currently offering is probably not the right move.

We understand that any certificate of deposit paying 3% or more can look very good right now.
That’s a full point more than the top-paying 12-month CDs, and a half-point better than the [...]

The best 36-month CD rates have fallen below 3% again and there’s no reason to think they’ll bounce back this time.

Our new rankings of the top-paying, nationally available 3-year certificates of deposit is lead by Atlantic Coast Bank, which has 11 branches in Southeast Georgia and Northeast Florida, and is paying 2.85% APY with a [...]