Updated: Presidential Internet Checking up to 4.50% APY!

7/21 Update: Presidential Internet Checking now up to 3.50% APY

5/13 Update: Presidential Internet Checking now up to 3.25% APY

Just noticed this while checking my account online with Presidential Bank. It looks like the rate for the Internet Checking is going up to 3% APY on the first $25k. They must have just changed it because the animated graphic and the detailed information page still show the 2.75% rate, but the text references on the homepage show 3%.

Presidential Bank Home Page

Guess I won't be moving most of my money to Emigrant after all!

Edit: Looks like they have changed it back to 2.75% on their home page. Maybe they are planning an increase in the near future? We'll see I guess.

2/8 edit: They have changed it back to 3% and appears to be here to stay! See new postings below...

Moderator Edit: Updated title at the request of users to reflect new rate.

Gotta love banks competing for your business
ING needs to get on the ball and raise rates (I've got $1 there now)

Good, I haven't open emigrant yet.

In my Presidential account, it still shows 2.720%, may change soon.

exciting

earthsci said: they changed 3% APY back to 2.75%

check again?

I do not see the 3%?

earthsci said: they changed 3% APY back to 2.75%

check again?

B@st@rds...definitely says 2.75% again.

Hopefully they are planning to increase and just let the cat out of the bag a little early. I'm going to be upset if they are just teasing us!

changed back to 3% today, but still 2.72% in my account

All the information on their website is changed

Very nice! And I was just thinking about setting up an Emigrant account. If you have the ability to do direct deposit, this is now the best place to put 25k and still remain as liquid as possible.

Mark

Sure, after you send ING a check from Presidential, ING will then add Presidential as an external transfer account.

It's back up to 3%!

furrypanda said: I am thinking about signing up for a new Internet Checking PLUS which will give me the 3% rate but I have no way of setting up a monthly electronic deposit of $200. Will they charge a fee if there is no monthly electronic deposit? Any way to avoid that fee?
No fees, but they'll convert your account to "Internet Checking" which is a less attractive product. It may take them awhile before they figure out your not doing direct deposit (try to avoid calling customer service).

is the lower rate (1.5%) applicable only to the excess above 25k, or the whole thing if it goes over 25k?

like if i have 26k, will i get 2.75% on 25k and 1.5% on 1k?

TruthTeller said: dvdjunkee said: is the lower rate (1.5%) applicable only to the excess above 25k, or the whole thing if it goes over 25k?
Only the excess.

thanks for the quick response =)

dvdjunkee said: is the lower rate (1.5%) applicable only to the excess above 25k, or the whole thing if it goes over 25k?

like if i have 26k, will i get 2.75% on 25k and 1.5% on 1k?

Nope, I've got the lower rate on all the balance.

I would be all over this if not for the $25k barrier. Oh well, back to Emigrant...

jwbodnar said: koRebate said: dvdjunkee said: is the lower rate (1.5%) applicable only to the excess above 25k, or the whole thing if it goes over 25k?

like if i have 26k, will i get 2.75% on 25k and 1.5% on 1k?

Nope, I've got the lover rate on all the balance.

No, it's only on the excess. I've got months of statements that bear out such.

so even if it lists the rate on your account page online as 1.5% when its over 25k, thats only on the part above 25k?

Yes, it definitely shows the lower rate online and on your statement when you're over $25k, BUT if you calculate the interest, you find out that they are paying the higher % on exactly the first 25k and the lower % on exactly the excess. Presidential customer service said that's because their system won't allow them to show 2 separate interest calculations per month or two separate percentages at one time.

Boiler said: puddnhead said: Boiler said: Sure, after you send ING a check from Presidential, ING will then add Presidential as an external transfer account.Cool. Did you do that through Presidential Billpay? Do you happen to know the address if so?

I did it with one of the 50 free checks I got from Presidential, I don't write checks much anyway due to billpay. In theory, I suppose you can use the billpay since all the routing and account information are the same but that's not what I did.

A billpay check wasn't linked for me. But they sent me prepaid envelopes when I called.

no way Zender, really?
I wouldn't have guess that.

Ok smart aleck, how do you get direct deposit from your business account?

The rate on the excess over $25K has also raised..1.75% now.

ccrzhh said: moneycometh said: Does Presidential pull a hard inquiery when we open their internet checking account?
YES unless they changed recently
Also, they won't open the checking if your credit history has old address on file. No negotiations help. My relative offered them to send bills but CSR rejected and even did not know what was the reason ("couldn't verify, check your credit report").

I went through this. All you need is a photocopy of a current utility bill, tax payment, or driver's license with current address. If you choose either of the two former options, you still need to send them a copy of your license regardless (even if its old address). Its a slight hassle, but not really that big of a deal.

Mark

ananthar said: I was charged a $15 NSF fee this Saturday (5/19) for a ACH payment by US Bank that was scheduled for 5/21, and I transfered the required funds from my Presidential Savings account today (5/20). Even if US Bank messed up and sent in the ACH payment on Saturday I still don't understand how Presidential is entitled to process a payment on Saturday when Banks are closed. Note that that weekend ACF fees (and other weekend transactions) are not normally visible until Monday, but you can force it to show weekend transactions early by specifying the following Monday as the end of the date range (specify Tuesday and the transactions won't appear!).

This is a third time this has happened to me. The last 2 times I called to complain and they agreed to refund the NSF fees and claimed their computer automatically reverses NSF fees up to 5 times for similar cases (as long as the funds are transfered by 11am EST of the weekday the check is officially deducted: For example if you see an NSF fee at 10am on Thursday you have till 11am to transfer the funds from the savings account and the check will clear and the NSF fee is reversed automatically), but that I had already exceeded the maximumum 5 times. For some reason my US Bank credit card always schedules my automatic monthly payment on a Monday, but (according to Presidential) the payments are initiated by US Bank at 6am on the previous Saturday, so this problem happened each Month without me noticing for 5 months.
Every time (only once or twice, though) this has happened to me (usually with Fidelity), they will pull again one day later. If that one goes through, the NSF fee goes away without me calling them.

And, I think Monday ACH pulls get sent out Friday night or something, so I'm not sure what the rules are for processing them. Pretty much, I've found that with Presidential, you need to have the money in the account the business day before the ACH happens, as ACH is processed as the very first thing. I've had NSF when I had a scheduled transfer to deposit the same day, but ACH's get processed sometime overnight and scheduled transfers not until 7 or 8 AM.

I have somewhat similar issues with Bank of America and ACH pulls, where my overdraft kicks in because checks from the previous day are released after ACH pulls happen, but overdraft doesn't actually process a transfer unless the balance is still negative at the end of the business day (no deposits or transfers went into the account).