bank rates

Redneck Bank 3.10% MMA

Posted in Money Market Accounts by RateRunner
March 27, 2009 10:59 AM - 37 Comments

A smart reader noted that Redneck Bank is paying 3.10% on its money market account.

And that’s true.

It’s owned by Todd and Wade Huckabay, two brothers from a family with a long history in Oklahoma banking and rare sense of humor for the financial industry.

The Huckabays control Bank of the Wichitas — and its online division, Redneck Bank — and All America Bank — and its online division AmericaNet Bank, which we’ve written about before.

Both online banks offer the same good interest rates on checking and money market accounts that attracted us to AmericaNet Bank. Deposits are accepted from all 50 states and, as Redneck says, there’s “nuttin to sign, fax or mail” this is “100% internet bankin’.”

To quickly recap, you can earn:

5.25% APY on the first $10,000 in a Redneck Rewards Checking account (and 2.25% on balances above $10,000) by making 10 check card purchases per month.

3.10% APY on the first $35,000 of a Mega Money Market account, with no monthly fee and up to five free withdrawals a month.

An added bonus is Redneck’s hilarious Web site.

Customers click on an outhouse to access their accounts, and the door swings open for them to login. You can tell Redneck is a classy operation because there’s a roll of toilet paper inside — not an old catalogue.

Don’t miss our “Worst Rate of the Week” on Bankaholic’s Personal Finance Blog. We’re calling out a big bank that’s paying so little on its money market accounts that we’re defaming poultry by calling it a turkey. (You can always find our Personal Finance Blog by clicking on the “finance” tab at the top of this page.)

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Comments (37)
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37 Existing Comments
  1. Craig said:
    on March 27th at 11:29 am

    Be aware of ChexSystems. They are the equivalent of Experian, Equifax and TransUnion but for banking.
    If a person tries to open over 3 banking accounts in a 90-day period, ChexSystems tells the bank and they will reject your application (adding what’s called an “inquiry” to your ChexSystems profile each time you apply anywhere). 95% of the banks use them. Their website is ConsumerDebit.com They can cause significant frustration if you don’t know how their game is played.
    Also, if you try to open more than 2 accounts in a 72 hour period, your Equifax account gets locked up and the banks will reject your application. Hope this helps.

  2. Lars said:
    on March 27th at 02:36 pm

    Was approved for an account 3/21, but cannot use the account because they have failed to assign an account number. I called and was told that they are still waiting to assign a number. Can’t take advantage of the high interest rate if account numbers are not assigned.

  3. Rudy said:
    on March 27th at 02:44 pm

    Redneck’s higher rates come at a price: be prepared to deal with a lot of aggravation, including a 1998-style interface. Don’t expect to be able to make external transfers: in theory they do provide ACH transfers, but mine doesn’t work for some obscure reason which customer service doesn’t even seem to be aware of. (My transfer limit is set to $0, so I can’t transfer funds in or out.) Also, CS emails don’t go through the online banking interface, but to some other “secure email” location which they have instructed me to visit without disclosing its location. In short, this bank is not ready for primetime.

  4. Gary said:
    on March 27th at 03:21 pm

    Anybody out there , what other institutions do have with high rates that do have their act together, I am getting overwhelmed trying to parse all the info from the various sites like Bankrate.com and now i have found this one. thanks gary t , boise

  5. Bob said:
    on March 28th at 10:52 am

    I had the same experience as Lars. I opened my account 3/20, but have not heard anything since from the bank. No account number, nothing in the mail. I sent them an email on 3/24, no response so far, and finally called them yesterday. I was forced to leave a message. Have not gotten a return phone call yet, it has been 24 hours. Not too happy with customer service to say the least.

  6. G TX said:
    on March 28th at 12:00 pm

    Same experience as Lars and Bob but with their sister company Americanetbank – owned by same people as redneck bank. I have 2K tied up in their bank since 3/11 with no account number or return phone call. Very frustrating!

  7. getherdone said:
    on March 28th at 03:38 pm

    Once credibility and trust are compromised its time to take your money and run especially if the bank is many miles away!

  8. harry said:
    on March 30th at 08:59 am

    Lars and Bob Any updates?

  9. Bob said:
    on March 30th at 10:33 am

    I do have an update. I got a confirmation email on Saturday of my initial deposit being processed. I noticed that the funds ($1,000) have been debited from my account this morning. The email shows the last 4 digits of my new account number, so the account has been created. Still can’t log in and move more money into the account, I guess I’ll get the information I need to do that in the mail soon. I’ll let you know.

  10. harry said:
    on March 30th at 12:44 pm

    nothing like the bank taking their good old time…the interest rate will probably drop by the time you can get some real money in there.

  11. Bob W said:
    on March 30th at 06:01 pm

    Here is a bank that will pay 5% up to 50k with 12 debit transactions and 1 ach a month: http://www.westbankiowa.com/.

    Also http://www.bankaltoona.com/ up to 25k with 10 debit and 1 ach.

    Advantage, non of the above problems.

  12. Bob said:
    on April 3rd at 11:02 am

    Here is another update. I called the bank this morning, and got through. They gave me my account number, and I attempted to set up my login. I got login error messages and called back. They told me I have to choose the “checking” account type, not savings. So I logged in successfully and attempted to set up a transfer, to move $34K over to take advantage of the full $35K. I got an error message saying my session has timed out. I tried multiple times without any luck. My alternative was to go to my funded account and set up the transfer there. Will take 3 business days to get the trial deposits through. I may keep this account open until the rate drops below or at the other MMs that I have open. I guess if your name is Redneck bank, you have to have a Redneck operation.

  13. Annette said:
    on April 6th at 09:29 am

    I was getting ready to transfer my funds into Red Neck Bank but after reading this information I am going to stay with DollarSavingsDirect even if it is a lower interest rate at 2.05%. At least I don’t have a problem with transfers. Also Redneck does ask you to mail something – proof that you live where you live, i.e. electric bill, etc. What’s up with that?

  14. Bob said:
    on April 6th at 11:07 am

    I haven’t been asked to mail anything. I got my Visa debit card Saturday, and initiated my first transfer today from my Capital One account to Redneck. I guess I’ll do them externally, so that I don’t have to use Redneck’s website to do transfers. The rate is still 3.10%, they are a legitimate bank, so I’ll keep $35K of my money there until something changes. It just took a little long to get the account set up.

  15. G TX said:
    on April 7th at 10:19 am

    Update,
    I closed my checking account almost a month ago and still have not received a check with my balance. I am keeping my MM open at 3.1% but suggest people use an Etrade or other bank to initiate ACH as transfers or apparently check requests are just not possible with this stone age bank.

  16. Ri said:
    on April 8th at 04:26 pm

    I opened an account online at Redneck bank yesterday afternoon. They did the verification deposits last night. I received my account number two hours ago and a confirmation email that my account is now being funded. Maybe they have gotten the glitches out of the system. So far… so good…I’ll let you all know how it goes.

  17. Mtnman100 said:
    on April 8th at 09:02 pm

    I just requested for closure of my Redneck Mega Money account after about two weeks of trying to get it to a usable state. Here is an excerpt of what I wrote them:

    I have had repeated difficulties in set up for online access and then
    bank-to-bank transfers due to your unobvious web site interface and lack of instructions on email notifications. This required me to make several calls to your reps. Now, working with your customer service, I have just found out that the maximin limit per day for deposits and withdrawals is $1,500. Such a limit is ridiculous, not something that I can live with for an online backing account, and should have been disclosed in large print somewhere in your material prior to one’s opening your Mega Money Account.

  18. Dave said:
    on April 9th at 10:05 am

    This bank is horrible. As many others, I had to call to get my account number. This website appears to have been built by my 2.5 year old nephew. I cant transfer funds because i keep getting a session expired error. Now I read you can only transfer $1500 per day? What the!? Redneck bank is a big fat dud! I am leaving my money at GMAC.com, FNBODirect.com, and DollarSavingsDirect.com.

  19. Bob said:
    on April 9th at 11:38 am

    Dave and Mtnman100 experiences are accurate. I had the same problems they had. I got $34K in Redneck this morning, but used Capital One to deposit the funds. At this point, I am fine with them. I will use CapOne to move the money back and forth, and keep $35K there until the rate lowers to where it doesn’t benefit me enough to keep it there. Any additional funds I want to save will go to Capital One or DollarSavingsDirect, which pays 2.01% and 2.05% repectively. Anything over $35K in Redneck’s account pays 1.63%, so I will not be adding any more funds to that account at this point.

  20. Annette said:
    on April 10th at 04:41 pm

    My application at Red Neck Bank was approved April 2, 2009 and it’s now April 10th and no account number. I also didn’t know that you can only deposit or withdraw $1500 a day, thanks Mtnman100. I didn’t see that anywhere! There are to many other reputable banks to do business with so why would anyone want to add this kind of stress to your life. I would hope BankAholic would follow up with this banks tricks and also BankRate.com

  21. Annette said:
    on April 10th at 04:43 pm

    BOB – Please let us know what it’s like when you go to move your money out of Red Neck Bank……..

  22. Bob said:
    on April 10th at 09:34 pm

    I sure will. I will attempt to move the interest earned out at the end of the month, but I’ll do it via Capital One. They’ll have to honor the transaction request, as they did when I moved $34K in successfully, while they only allow $1,500 in at a time. I suspect that I’ll have no problems whether its $100 or $35K.

  23. Laura said:
    on April 14th at 02:58 pm

    I opened an account online at Redneck Bank about a month ago. It was approved in my inital attempt, and everything went smoothly. If you read the web site, it plainly states the $1500 limit – and also says you can contact customer service to request that limit be increased if you so desire. They sent the account #, check card and PIN right away, and even mailed me a koozie! I don’t mean to be critical, but could it be that those of you who are soooooo frustrated about the “rules” didn’t take the time to actually read the info provided on the web site beofre signing up for a mega-market account?

  24. Jack Stone said:
    on April 14th at 08:45 pm

    Redneck Bank performed everything it said it would when it said it would when I opened two accounts last week. Every trial deposit was posted as expected in five external accounts that are now linked for transfers to Redneck Bank. Like Laura, I read the restrictions ($1500 daily transfer limit, select “Checking” when setting up the account, etc.), was willing to accept the rules and am getting 61% more interest than at GMAC. Maybe Redneck processes are actually screening out the “best and the brightest”…

  25. ESP said:
    on April 15th at 08:22 am

    I also just signed up for a mega money market account…it did take about a week for the account to be assigned but so far I have had no problems. Yes, there is a $1500 restriction but you can send a larger amount in the mail if you want to. Perhaps the bank has ironed out the wrinkles now as I have not had any difficulties with them whatsoever.

  26. ZooMNFinancial said:
    on April 15th at 11:05 am

    I got the initial funds (small amount to make sure everything is AOK) in just fine. Now I am trying to transfer in more $ and it times out on me.

  27. Annette said:
    on April 16th at 12:29 pm

    Well folks, keep the cards and letters coming. Maybe Red Neck Bank has got wind of their blunders and are cleaning up their act. I talked with them yesterday to close my account that I had just opened but before I did I started asking some questions and the woman ‘hund up on me.” Great customer service……..heads up!

  28. Saban said:
    on April 16th at 04:50 pm

    The Koozie was good for a laugh. It keeps my pabst blue ribbon cold. I agree with most comments. Very hard to deal with. I had trouble establishing my account, as they had my SSN screwed up, which also affected the PIN, which was the last four of the SSN. I had to call four times (four days) to finally get it fixed. The Cust. service was nice, but I think they got overwhelmed with business because of the rate. Took about two weeks from when I opened the account until I was able to see information on the web. The $1500 limit is frustrating, but I knew that going in. What’s worse is that it averages about five days to transfer money from my local bank to Redneck. I think they need to fire Dave’s nephew as web designer. It scares me on how secure the site is. Looks like a site from the early 90’s. I’ll stick with them for now, but once the rate drops, I’ll move quickly

  29. Annette said:
    on April 18th at 03:21 pm

    F.Y.I. I just canceled my account 3 days ago with the woman who hung up my face and I received my dollar back in the mail in 2 days! !!!!

  30. Bob said:
    on April 21st at 08:32 am

    I did my first withdrawal, through Capital One’s website, not through Redneck’s website. No problems. So if I do transfers externally, I don’t have any problems moving money into or out of Redneck bank. I’m fine doing it that way.

  31. Carl said:
    on April 22nd at 11:02 am

    Hey, guys. I opened up an account last month. I received my account info, a welcome letter and my initial deposit confirmation within a couple days. True, the Web site doesn’t appear high tech, but hey, at 3.1% APY, who cares! It’s FDIC-insured, and that’s what counts!

    And yes, you must abide by the terms. They clearly state you can only transfer $1,500 at a time. Read the conditions, people!

  32. Bob said:
    on April 22nd at 06:25 pm

    Effective May 5th, the rate changes to 2.00 APY for balances up to 35K, and 1.63 APY for balances over 35K. I will move most of my cash out of Redneck, but keep the account open. I’ll move more there in the future if the rate exceeds that of my other accounts.

  33. Tony Ellis said:
    on April 23rd at 07:29 pm

    Just got everything in a usable state. It took much longer than advertised. That wasn’t what bothered me, it was the bait and switch. I’d been with Emigrant for several years and have been watching the rates of others. Although Emigrants rates have dropped off it happened gradually. I’ve never seen a bank drop a rate by that big a percentage.

    Tony

  34. Andy said:
    on April 26th at 12:55 am

    Redneck Bank and its two sister banks evantage and AmericaNet Bank announced that they’re cutting the rate of their reward checking accounts from 5.25% to 4.00% APY and their mega money market accounts to 2% starting May 5th.

  35. Lucas said:
    on April 27th at 09:39 pm

    Yep – I just signed up for the MMA account and found out that the rates they’re advertising on the webpages are false. Along with my welcome email, I received a message that the interest rates are being cut to what Andy is quoting above.
    Now the MMA account is lower than my First Internet Bank account. Forget it. I’ll be closing my account.

  36. Bill Fleeson said:
    on May 10th at 01:20 pm

    WORST BANK IN THE WORLD. It took almost 1 mo. to open the acct. and the same welcome letter told me the rate dropped. You can only open with $1000,add $1500 at a time The site is very difficult to use . I never could transfer money in or out to my checking acct. When I called up to cancel I couldn’t do that – I had to E mail them .The only thing that worked well was the cancellation.A check in 3 days!

  37. Betty said:
    on June 17th at 11:26 am

    I opened my MM account the end of March. They were overwhelmed with new business but I’m a patient person when it comes to getting a higher rate in a solid bank. Has been very good since and the people there were pleasant to work with. I’m pleased that I changed even after they lowered the interest rate.

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