Ouachita Independent 4.01% Checking

Interest rates have been drifting lower for high-yield or reward checking accounts, just as they have for every type of bank account.

But if they work for you, they’re still paying the highest rates around. (If you’re unfamiliar with these, take a look at our ABCs of high-yield checking accounts.)

We think Ouachita Independent Bank, which has 11 offices in northern Louisiana, is offering a pretty good deal.

OIB, as it’s called, pays 4.01% on balances up to $25,000 and 1.01% on balances over that.

There are no monthly fees and you can use any ATM as often as you want, at no cost. OIB refunds the fees other banks charge without the usual monthly limit of $25 or $30.

The rules are pretty standard: You’ve got to make at least 12 debit card purchases per month (a couple of more than the usual 10) and have one direct deposit or automatic payment for your car or a utility.

Failure to meet any of its requirements will reduce your earnings to 0.10% and stop the refund for your ATM fees for that month. OIB pays 1.01% on any balance over $25,000.

You can apply for an account no matter where you live, and the online application process has been contracted out to an independent company called CheckingFinder.

That’s good because we’ve heard lots of complaints about the lousy software small banks use when they process applications on their own.

Jon Stewart welcomed free-market advocate Peter Schiff to The Daily Show this week with hilarious clips of him accurately predicting the financial crisis and being ridiculed by pundits on CNBC and Fox News. Watch the video on Bankaholic’s Personal Finance Blog, which you can always reach by clicking on the “finance” tab at the top of every page.