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FOMC Meeting May Indicate Fed Rate Policy Intentions

Posted by: RateAPY Bank Rates News
September 25th, 2009

The Fed’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) began one of its regularly scheduled meetings on September 22, 2009, and anxious investors wait to see if the Federal Reserve will give indications about adjustments to its monetary policy which affect everything from cd rates to mortgage rates. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke made recent ... Read more »

Banks Loosen Overdraft Policies

Posted by: RateAPY Bank Rates News
September 25th, 2009

As Congress considers legislation to protect consumers from bank fees, two of the nation’s biggest banks are backing off from their most punitive overdraft policies. The Wall Street Journal reports Bank of America announced it would no longer charge customers overdraft fees for overdrawing their accounts by less than $10 in a day, and J.P. ... Read more »

While families are saving more these days, it is harder than ever to find out where to safely grow those savings

Posted by: RateAPY Bank Rates News
September 22nd, 2009

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis has some good news about the state of the American economy: families are saving money at higher rates these days. In the second quarter of 2009, consumers were saving five percent of their disposable personal income, compared to a recent low of about one-half percent back ... Read more »

Weekly Mortgage Survey Shows Refinances and Fixed-Rate Mortgages Dominant

Posted by: RateAPY Bank Rates News
September 22nd, 2009

A weekly survey of mortgage rates by the Mortgage Bankers Association provides an interesting snapshot of the mortgage market. While this survey reports average rates for purchases and refinancing as opposed to the most favorable current mortgage rates, it reveals general trends of the market.
During the week of September ... Read more »

FDIC Deposit Insurance Extension Affects CD Term Length Decisions

Posted by: RateAPY Bank Rates News
September 22nd, 2009

On May 20, 2009, the federal government opted to extend through 2013 the temporary increase in the standard maximum deposit insurance to $250,000 per depositor. Consumers wary of the stock market have turned to saving their money in bank certificates of deposit (CDs) as a way to maintain ... Read more »

New Rules for the Credit Road: First of New Credit Card Consumer Protections in Effect Now, and More to Come

Posted by: RateAPY Bank Rates News
September 18th, 2009

The first parts of the new federal credit card rules went into effect last month, and more consumer protection is on the way in February. Now card companies have to give you 45 days notice on interest rate increases, with the chance to opt out, and more time–three weeks–to pay your bill before late fees ... Read more »

Banks Say Watchdog Idea Bites

Posted by: RateAPY Bank Rates News
September 18th, 2009

Banks and other businesses are gearing up to fight President Obama’s proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency, a watchdog that would oversee mortgages and other consumer loans and monitor compliance with consumer-protection laws. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce announced last week it’s launching a multi-million dollar campaign to derail the plan. The campaign will begin ... Read more »

Have Home Prices Bottomed Out?

Posted by: RateAPY Bank Rates News
September 15th, 2009

Following a three-year decline, home prices are finally creeping up, according to the latest from the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index, which tracks residential real estate values. Data released last month showed home prices rose in June over May in 18 of the 20 largest U.S. cities, and the U.S National Composite Home Price Index rose ... Read more »