Santander Bank 13-Month CD 2024 Review
Santander Bank offers a certificate of deposit with a 13-month maturity term that is available to customers who can visit a branch (more than 400 Santander locations in the Northeast and Florida).
The Santander Bank 13-Month CD is an excellent option for a big boost to your short-term savings–if you’re comfortable with locking up your funds for a little over a year. This CD rate is even higher than the rates from popular online banks providing a comparable CD maturity term. Furthermore, the $500 minimum opening deposit is much lower than what we’d expect from a brick-and-mortar bank offering such an attractive CD rate.
The notable downside is the penalty of six (6) months of interest earned if you have to take your funds out before maturity. However, it shouldn’t be a major concern if you have enough of a financial buffer to avoid early withdrawals.
Santander Bank 13-Month CD Account Pros & Cons
Compared to Other Certificates of Deposit
TD Bank 12-Month TD Choice Promotional CD
The 12-Month TD Choice Promotional CD offers an APY that is slightly lower, but the advertised rate is only available if you already have an eligible TD Bank checking account. The CD has a $250 minimum opening deposit and an early withdrawal penalty of six (6) month’s interest.
Citi 11–Month Fixed Rate CD
Citi offers an 11-month CD maturity term with a promotional APY that can match the interest on the Santander 13-month CD, but it requires a balance of $100,000 to obtain that advertised rate. Otherwise, the Citi CD rate cannot compete at the lower rate tier. This Citi CD has a $500 minimum deposit requirement and an early withdrawal penalty of 90 days of simple interest.
Capital One 1-Year CD
Capital One’s 12-month CD rate is slightly lower. The upsides are the $0 minimum opening deposit and early withdrawal penalty of 3 months of interest.
Interest Rate
The interest rate on the Santander 13-month CD is among the highest available considering the relatively low minimum deposit requirement of $500. Typically, such a competitive CD offering would require a much larger opening balance, especially from a brick-and-mortar bank.
Early Withdrawal Penalty
The early withdrawal for this penalty CD is equal to six months of interest earned. It’s a large amount given the typical penalty for this CD maturity term is around three months of interest. Combined with the high APY, the early withdrawal penalty is a big disincentive to tap your funds early.
Maturity & Renewal
Santander sends a mail notice at least 20 days before the date of maturity.
Upon maturity, this CD will renew into the available term closest to 13 months at the rate offered on the renewal date.
You have a 10-day grace period after the maturity date to pick a new Santander CD, add funds to the CD, withdraw your funds without penalty, or close the account entirely.
This is the standard procedure for CDs at most financial institutions.
FAQs
Who can open this CD?
To open this Santander 13-month CD, you must:
- Be age 18 or older
- Have a Social Security number
- Have government-issued ID
- Have a valid email address
Is Santander Bank FDIC-insured?
Yes, Santander Bank is FDIC-insured and your deposits qualify for coverage up to $250,000 per account ownership type.
How is a CD different from a savings account?
A savings account allows you to make deposits and withdrawals on a regular basis while the APY can change. Meanwhile, a certificate of deposit is designed to lock the rate and the funds for the entire CD maturity term. The tradeoff for this “inconvenience” is a higher APY on the CD. So, CDs are great to grow savings that you’re comfortable with leaving untouched.
