CIT Bank is an online banking platform, that offers some of the highest-paying savings accounts and certificates of deposit (CD) available anywhere. They offer both online and mobile banking, and charge no fees. If you’re looking for high-interest savings, CIT Bank should be on your short list of potential sources.
About CIT Bank
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CIT was founded in 1908, to make financing available in and around St. Louis, Missouri. It is the parent company of CIT Bank, which is based out of Pasadena California. CIT Bank has since grown to where it has more than $30 billion in deposits, and over $40 billion in assets. It operates in Southern California as OneWest Bank.
Nationally, CIT Bank is one of the most prominent online banks in the country. It offers some of the most attractive interest rates available on certificates of deposit, high-yield savings, and Custodial accounts.
On the commercial side, it provides financing, leasing, and advisory services, mostly to middle-market companies and small businesses. CIT Business Capital also delivers an array of lending, leasing, and factoring financing solutions, also to middle-market companies and small businesses. It also provides senior secured commercial real estate loans to owners, developers, and investors through its CIT Real Estate Finance Group.
CIT Bank Savings Products and Rates
CIT Bank offers a full range of savings products, including high-yield savings and both regular and Jumbo certificates of deposit (CDs). Here’s a rundown of each product that they offer:
Savings Builder High Yield Savings
With the Savings Builder High Yield Savings Account, you can take advantage of high APY with an affordable minimum deposit. Here’s a quick rundown:
- Up to 1.00% APY if you make monthly minimum deposits of $100 monthly or maintain a $25,000 balance.
- No account opening or maintenance fees
- Daily compounding interest to maximize your earning potential
- Deposit checks remotely and make transfers with the CIT Bank mobile app
Overall, it’s an awesome way to score interest with reasonable minimum deposits.
Get Started with CIT Savings Builder
Premier High Yield Savings
The Savings Connect account requires a minimum of $100 to open. There are no maintenance fees or account opening fees required. Interest is compounded daily, and the account comes with free online banking. It is available for neither custodial accounts nor for IRA accounts. Interest rates are as follows:
- 5.05% APY with a minimum $100 opening deposit (as of 7/27/2023)
Open a CIT Bank High Yield Savings Account >>
Jumbo CD
Jumbo CDs are available with a minimum opening deposit of $100,000. They are offered with tiered pricing, based on the term of the CD. These CDs are available for custodial accounts, but NOT for IRA accounts.
The rates for Jumbo CDs are as follows:
- 2-year CD: 0.40% APY
- 3-year CD: 0.40% APY
- 4-year CD: 0.50% APY
- 5-year CD: 0.50% APY
Term CDs
Term CDs are available with a minimum opening deposit of $1,000. They are available for custodial accounts, but NOT for IRA accounts.
The rates for Term CDs are as follows:
- 6-month CD: 5.00% APY
- 11-month CD: 4.80% APY (no penalty)
- 13-month CD: 4.65% APY
- 18-month CD: 4.60% APY
No-Penalty CD
This CD offers high interest rates with both flexibility and access to your funds. It requires a minimum initial deposit of $1,000, there are no account opening or maintenance fees, and interest is compounded daily. The CD is available for custodial accounts, but NOT for IRA accounts.
No-Penalty CD rate: 4.80% APY for an 11-month term.
Early withdrawal advantage. No withdrawals are permitted during the first six days after receipt of funds by the bank. However, you can withdraw the total balance, including interest earned, without penalty, beginning seven days after the funds have been received.
Open a CIT Bank No Penalty CD>>
Custodial Accounts (UTMA)
You can set up any one of the above CD products within a Custodial Account for a minor child. The account is held in the minor’s name, with you acting as custodian. That means that you will control the account until the child reaches 18, or in some cases, 25.
There is no maximum limit as to how much you can contribute to a custodial account, however current tax law allows you to contribute a maximum of $14,000 per year as a gift, without incurring the federal gift tax.
How to Sign-up with CIT Bank
The sign-up process with CIT Bank is fast and easy, and is completed entirely online. That’s done by going to the Open a CIT Bank Account page, and going through the steps.
You’ll be asked to provide the following information:
- Your Social Security number
- Your driver’s license or other valid state identification
- A check, or your bank routing and account numbers, from the account you’ll be using the fund your new CIT Bank account
- Names and personal details (Social Security number, valid ID) of any joint account holders and/or designated beneficiaries
You can fund your account by check, electronic funds transfer or by wire. CIT Bank will make two test micro deposits to your designated funding account. That account must be a bank checking or savings account. Micro deposits will be offset with a single withdrawal from the same account. Within three days, you’ll receive an email with instructions on how to verify the deposit amounts made to your funding account.
This is the method that CIT Bank uses to ensure the safety and security of your funds.
Once that process is complete, your account will be open and ready to go.
CIT Bank Features and Benefits
CIT Bank is a No Fee Bank Platform
The only fee that CIT Bank has is a $10 per wire transfer fee on outgoing wire transfers for accounts with an average daily balance of less than $25,000. Other than that, CIT Bank does not charge account fees, such as monthly maintenance fees, online transfer fees, incoming wire transfer fees, or account closure fees.
And as is the case with all banks, CIT Bank does charge penalties on early withdrawals of its CD products. Early withdrawal penalties on CDs are as follows:
- Terms up to 1 year – 3 months interest on the amount withdrawn
- Terms more than 1 year up to 3 years – 6 months interest on the amount withdrawn
- Terms more than 3 years – 12 months interest on the amount withdrawn
Online Banking
With CIT Bank online banking, you get real-time access to your account. Online banking features include:
- Manage your accounts and account information online
- View and download statements and account activity
- Schedule and make transfers to and from other banks
- Schedule and make transfers between CIT Bank accounts
- Create banking reports
- Open new accounts
- Receive and manage account alerts
- Send secure messages
Accounts Available
CIT Bank Premier High Yield Savings, Jumbo CDs, Term CDs, No Penalty CDs, and Custodial Accounts. See the next section for full details on each of these accounts.
Like many online banks, CIT Bank does not offer checking accounts.
CIT Bank Home Loans
CIT Bank offers home loans at competitive rates. These include fixed rate and adjustable rate mortgages, jumbo loans, cash-out refinances, and interest-only loans. They also have a Low Down Payment Program, which enables you to purchase a home with a down payment as low as 3% of the purchase price
CIT Bank Calculators
CIT Bank offers nine different calculators to help you crunch numbers for savings, retirement and debt management. Some of the calculators they offer include:
- CD Laddering Calculator
- Emergency Savings Calculator
- College Savings Calculator
- Retirement Planner Calculator
- Traditional and Roth IRA Calculators
- Mortgage Payoff Calculator
Mobile Banking
CIT Bank Mobile Banking is a free service that enables you to manage your money anytime and anywhere. It’s available for Apple or Android devices, and can be set up simply by clicking the “Get Started” tab under the Mobile Banking tool on the My CIT Bank dashboard. Once you’re signed up for Mobile Banking, you can also enroll in Text Banking, which enables you to check account balances in your transaction history.
Features available with CIT Bank Mobile Banking include:
- Check account balances and transaction history
- Transfer money between CIT Bank accounts
- Deposit checks for High Yield Savings customers
The mobile app is available on Google Play or the App Store.
Customer Service
This is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, through both Online and Mobile Banking, as well as by Automated Telephone Banking. You can also contact the bank by email.
Regular bank hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 9:00 PM; Saturdays, from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM; and Sundays 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM. All hours are Eastern Time.
The Home Loans division is available by phone, Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM. They are closed weekends and holidays.
CIT Bank Security
The bank uses a variety of strategies to keep your account and your identity safe. They provide transaction and activity monitoring, as well as layered security to ensure that you are the only person who has access to your account.
The system employs antivirus protection, firewalls, and 128-bit Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption. They also offer a secure messaging portal with communications encryption, as well as an automatic sign out of your secure session after a period of inactivity.
FDIC Insurance on all Deposits
As an FDIC participating bank, CIT Bank provides $250,000 coverage per depositor on all savings products.
CIT Bank Pros and Cons
CIT Bank Pros
- High interest rates on savings products.
- No-fee Banking – CIT Bank charges no fees to maintain an account. That makes the high interest rates offered on your savings products even more attractive.
- The No-Penalty CD offers high rates of interest, with penalty free availability of funds after just seven days. That’s a rare benefit anywhere in the banking world.
CIT Bank Cons
- No checking account availability. That means that CIT Bank is mainly an online bank for savings purposes. You will need to do your regular banking elsewhere.
- At the present time, CIT Bank does not offer IRAs. That’s because they’re upgrading their IRA online application system. While that transition is taking place, the Bank is not accepting new IRA accounts. But it looks to be a temporary problem, as IRA accounts have been offered in the past.
- No ATM cards available with your account.
Should You Use CIT Bank
CIT Bank is an excellent way to get high interest earnings on your savings. The Premier High Yield Savings account and the large number of CD programs available not only come with high interest rates, but also offer flexibility, such as the ability to get a higher rate after you open your CD, or having access to the funds before the certificate matures.
CIT Advantage
One of the biggest advantages of CIT Bank however is the combination of high interest rates on savings, and the absence of fees. That means that the interest that you earn will be a pure play, and not a high rate that’s reduced by a series of annoying fees.
The platform can also be a source of competitive home loan financing for both refinances and purchases.
The downside to this platform, which is common for online banking services that offer unusually high interest, is that you can’t do your regular banking with CIT Bank. Not only do they not offer checking privileges or an ATM card, but they also don’t make common consumer loans available. That means that if you want a credit card, a car loan, or a home equity line of credit, you will have to go to a brick-and-mortar bank, or some other lending source.
But that’s not a major disadvantage. You can park your savings at CIT Bank and let it earn very high interest, and do your other banking through your regular bank.
If you’d like to get more information on CIT Bank, or you’re interested in signing up for the service, you can do that at the CIT Bank website.
FAQs on CIT Bank
The interest rates offered by CIT Bank vary depending on the type of account and balance. Current rates can be found on their website or by contacting a customer service representative.
Yes, CIT Bank is FDIC insured, meaning deposits are insured up to $250,000 per depositor per account category.
There may be fees associated with certain account types or services offered by CIT Bank. Details on fees can be found on their website or by contacting a customer service representative.
CIT Bank Review
Summary of CIT Bank
CIT Bank is a reliable and convenient online-only savings bank that offers competitive interest rates and a range of deposit products. Their online platform is user-friendly and easy to navigate, and their mobile app provides convenient access to account information and allows for quick and easy transactions.
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Cost and Fees
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Customer Service
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User Experience
Overall
Pros
- Competitive interest rates, especially on savings accounts
- User-friendly online platform and mobile app
- FDIC insured for added security
- Convenient electronic and wire transfer options for deposits
- International transactions supported
- Available customer service team
Cons
- No physical branches for face-to-face interaction
- Limited range of financial products compared to traditional banks
- Potential fees associated with certain account types or services
- No in-person deposit options for those who prefer not to use electronic methods.
Interested in the Savings Builder High Yield Savings.
Is there a “maximum” amount whereby, when you reach the max, the interest rate drops?
Elaine M