A recent FICO sponsored survey polled 127 risk managers at US firms. 83% of those polled said they expect credit limits on new credit cards to be lower than they were in the past and a whopping 95% said they expected credit card interest rates to stay the same or move higher. Additionally, 85% of those surveyed said that the recent credit card act passed by congress will cause interest rates to rise even more. Now it could be that people are just pessimistic when it comes to credit card companies, or they could be on to something here.

personal finance

Microsoft is giving away Microsoft Money Plus Sunset Deluxe for free. This product was discontinued last year by Microsoft so there will be no support and the online capabilities of the software have been disabled for the free software, but you can’t complain about the price.

If you don’t need too much from your accounting software and you’re ok with not having online capabilities then this is definitely worth the download. Microsoft money has the ability to import your banking data and also print invoices for your business. If you want something with a little more power for your business I suggest buying a more powerful tool like Quicken.

personal finance

Broadway Federal Bank is offering offering some competitive long term CD rates. They’re running an internet special for a 2 year CD with a 2.53% APY. You can fund your account via ACH transfer or check. In addition to this great online rate there’s also additional rates that are not available online. These can be opened either in a local branch or via mail. The rates are as follows: 3.56% APY for a 6 year CD, 3.05% APY for a 5 year CD, and 2.79% APY for a 3 or 4 year certificate of deposit. The minimum deposit on these accounts is $1,000.

After submitting the application you need to send in a copy of your driver’s license, but the rate locks when you submit your application which is good.

If you’d like to open an account in person Broadway Federal Bank has branches in Inglewood and Los Angeles, California.

Broadway Federal Bank has a 2 out of 5 soundness rating from bankrate and is FDIC insured. Find the highest jumbo CD rates at our site.

CD Rates

East Carolina Bank is offering a reward checking account to residents of North Carolina that’s paying out 4.01% APY on balances up to $25,000 and 1.01% APY on balances over $25,000. if you don’t meet requirements for reward interest the interest rate falls to 0.05% APY. The account also comes with $20 in refundable ATM fees per statement cycle.

To earn the reward interest rate you need to make 10 debit card purchases, 1 direct deposit or bill pay, and receive e-statements. You need to fulfill these requirements every month.

There’s a $100 minimum deposit on the account but no minimum balance requirements or monthly fees.

East Carolina Bank also has a savings account offering 1.5% APY on balances up to $50,000. Interest on the portion of your balance over $50,000 drops to 1.01% APY. You need to maintain at least $200 in your account to avoid a $2 monthly service charge on this account.

Branches of East Carolina Bank are located in Washington, Leland, Morehead City, New Bern, Currituck, Hatteras, Engelhard, Williamston, Wilmington, Hertford, Greenville and Columbia, North Carolina.

East Carolina Bank has a 2 out of 5 star soundness rating from bankrate and is FDIC insured. To visit their website click here.

Checking Rates

PNC Bank is giving $75 free when you open a checking account with direct deposit. The promotion is set to end on May 24th 2010. You must make your first direct deposit of at least $400 within the first 60 days of opening your account and you need to make 10 check car purchases in that same time period. Your account will be credited with the $75 bonus one week after your first direct deposit is made. You might be able to get a larger bonus depending on where you live. Apparently PNC is giving larger bonuses to certain regions.

Opening a PNC checking account doesn’t cause you to get a hard credit pull and you can do it online or over the phone to get the $75 bonus.

PNC is a FDIC insured bank and has branches in several states across the East Coast including Delaware, Florida, Virginia, Kentucky, New Jersey, Ohio, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Washington DC. This promo doesn’t have many requirements and is a great bank deal.

Bank Bonus

SunTrust Bank is offering an unusual CD bundle to customers nationwide. You can open a 26 month CD and a 49 month CD in order to get a 3% APY on both accounts. You need to open each CD with the same amount of money with a $2,000 minimum on each. You also must have a checking account in order to qualify. You can open an account over the phone and transfer funds in via ACH transfer. The early withdrawal penalty is 8 months’ interest for the 26 month and 1 years’ interest for the 49 month CD. There’s no hard credit pull to open an account so you don’t have to worry about any effects on your credit score.

SunTrust Bank has a 2 out of 5 star soundness rating from bankrate and is FDIC insured. To visit their website click here.

CD Rates

Tennessee Commerce Bank is offering a 2.10% APY 2 year CD and a 2.50% APY 3 year CD, both with a minimum deposit of $2,500. These rates are available nationally and the early withdrawal penalty on both accounts is 6 months’ interest.

New accounts can be funded via ACH transfer, wire, or check. You can submit an application online, via mail, or fax. You’ll need 2 forms of ID to open a CD. Incoming wires are free while outgoing ones cost $25. You need to send a request in writing in order to close your CD at maturity. The do have ACH transfers available when you close your account which is pretty convenient.

Tennessee Commerce Bank has a 2 out of 5 star soundness rating from bankrate and is FDIC insured. To visit their website click here.

CD Rates

BBVA Compass Bank is offering a $100 bonus for customers that open a new Build-to-Order Free Checking Account. This promotion is set to expire on May 31st, 2010. In order to receive the bonus you need to setup direct deposit within 120 days of opening your account. This promotion is limited to residents of Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, New Mexico, and Texas.

The Build-to-Order Free Checking has no minimum balance requirements and comes with a $25 anniversary bonus on the account. There may be a hard credit pull to open a new account so be aware of that.

BBVA Compass Bank is a FDIC insured bank. To visit their site click here.

Bank Bonus

First Federal is offering a 3.50% APY 5 year CD with a minimum deposit of $1,000 and a 2.65% APY 3 year CD with a minimum deposit of $20,000(the rate drops to 2.40% APY for a $1,000 minimum deposit). The early withdrawal penalty on these CDs is 180 days’ interest.

This deal is limited to residents of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida and you can apply online for an account. You can fund the account via an online banking ACH transfer which is very convenient.

The CD rate locks in when the application is submitted and the maximum ACH transfer that can be made is limited to $50,000. Upon maturity the bank will mail you a check or send the funds to your checking account if you have one with them.

First Federal is also offering an interest checking account called Moolah Checking and is yielding 2.51% APY for accounts up to $25,000.

First Federal has branches in North and South Carolina. They have a 3 out of 5 star bank soundness rating from bankrate and are FDIC insured. To visit their website click here.

CD Rates

It’s been a while since I last posted but here’s a good bank promotion. TD Bank is offering a Flip Ultra Camcorder when you open a new checking account with them. In order to qualify you need to make 8 debit card purchases and use online bill pay 2 times within 45 days of opening your account. This promo is good until June 5, 2010.

You can apply online or open an account in the following states: Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia and Washington DC.

The value of the camcorder is about $100 and is reported to the IRS and TD Bank is and FDIC insured bank. TD Bank has a 3 out of 5 star soundness rating from bankrate. To visit the promotional page click here.

Bank Bonus