Have you noticed that interest rates on savings accounts have been creeping up over the past few months? A review of bank ads a couple of weeks ago from the Boston Globe reveals some of the rate hikes.
This is certainly much better than the fractions of one-percent that have been offered in recent years. But this bank has tucked a nasty provision in the fine print.
*MOUSE PRINT:
That’s right, to get the advertised rate you have to deposit a minimum of $200,000. Thanks for nothing, Admirals Bank.
Of course, this was not the only bank ad in the Globe. A few days earlier, HarborOne bank offered a higher rate with better terms.
*MOUSE PRINT:
This bank only requires one-eighth the minimum deposit of the first bank — $25,000 — to get a higher interest rate.
But we are not done. Another ad in the same paper as the Admirals Bank ad is even more generous.
*MOUSE PRINT:
Now we’re up to 1.50 percent with a $25,000 deposit. But one final ad in the same paper tops them all.
*MOUSE PRINT:
Bingo. One and a half percent on balances of only $10 or more from Belmont Savings Bank. But why hide that great fact in the fine print?
To the other banks: How about being upfront and posting your minimum deposit requirement right next to the advertised rate that grabbed the reader’s attention?
