Unless you a diligent saver who wants to earn high-interest rates, and is comfortable managing your money entirely online, then, this CIT Savings Builder review is not for you.
This review on CIT Savings Builder will focus entirely on what the bank is all about, the product it offers, as well as other relevant and equally important information every customer needs to know.
According to research conducted by Statista, it has been found that the value of savings deposits in the United States increases every single year. In fact, in 2018 alone it has reached $9.28 trillion.
Meanwhile, in a separate study also by Statista, it has been found between that 2010 and 2019, families in the country save for different reasons, however, according to most of the respondents, the top three reasons why they save is for liquidity, retirement, as well as purchases.
Let’s face it, saving money is important. It helps us buy the things we want and need, but more so, it helps us get through challenging times.
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Savings is important that most – if not all – financial experts always advise people to always keep a certain percentage of their monthly income to the bank (or whatever financial institution of your preference for that matter). That, before you even allot money for your expenses, make sure to put a certain amount into your savings first.
Now, when saving a portion of what you earn, you have different places to put your money into for safekeeping. But, the most common and the most popular one is through banks.
There are lots of banks out there, and to be honest, it could get a little challenging choosing the right institution. However, if you know exactly what you need and want in a banking institution, trimming down your options should be a lot easier.
Ideally, when choosing a bank to safe-keep your money, you should go for banks that offer high-interest rates. That way, your savings grow faster than usual.
As mentioned earlier, there are lots of banks out there, and each bank offers products appealing to specific target markets. Today, though, we are going to focus on the CIT Savings Builder, it’s a product by CIT Bank that providers customers at very competitive rates.
In the next sections, we are going to provide you essential information not just about the product, but the bank as well.
Specifically, in this CIT Savings Builder review, we are going to provide answers to the following questions:
- What is CIT Bank?
- What are the pros and cons of CIT Bank?
- Who is CIT Bank best for?
- What are the products offered by CIT Bank?
- What is CIT Savings Builder?
- Who would benefit from the CIT Savings Builder?
- What are the advantages and disadvantages of CIT Savings Builder?
- How to open a CIT Savings Builder account?
- Is banking with CIT Bank safe?
WHAT IS CIT BANK?
Before we even talk about the product, which is the very reason for this review, it is important that we also get to know the institution that actually provides it.
Knowing a little about the bank is about being able to build that confidence you need as a potential bank account holder. You need to ensure that the bank is credible and reliable because after all, it is your hard-earned money, and that as much as possible, you should be with a bank that provides amazing features and perks.
Anyway, so here are some key points about CIT Bank —
CIT Bank is a subsidiary of CIT Group, which is a popularly known financial holding company.
CIT Bank is an online-only company, which means it has lesser operating costs as compared to traditional or conventional banking institutions.
Since it operates online only, it enables the bank to offer customers higher interest rates and fewer fees.
CIT Bank offers a variety of products and services, including checking, savings, as well as certificates of deposit accounts. In this review, however, we are going to particularly focus on the CIT Savings Builder account that comes with the highest annual percentage yield (APY).
Since CIT Bank operates entirely online, this means the bank does not have physical branches. Thus, if you are not comfortable with banking online only, then, CIT Bank and its products and services are not for you.
CIT Bank is insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), which means all deposits receive up to $250,000 in the event of a bank failure.
If you want to know more about CIT Bank, here’s an insightful review by BankTruth:
WHAT ARE THE PROS AND CONS OF CIT BANK?
The previous section provided some of the most important things you need to know about CIT Bank, the provider of the CIT Savings Builder account.
This time, we are going to share with you a few of the pros and cons of CIT Bank, which includes:
PROS
- High-Interest Rates – One of the best benefits customers get from opening an account, particularly a savings account with CIT Bank is that it offers a high annual percentage yield as compared to other online-only banks in the market.
- No Monthly Service Fees – Another feature of CIT Bank is that it does not charge monthly service fees contrary to some banks of the same type.
- Minimal Banking Fees – While CIT Bank does implement certain fees, theirs are definitely minimal and bearable.
- FDIC Insured – Of course, another feature that CIT Bank does have is that it is FDIC-insured, which means, should the bank fails, each account holder receives up to $250,000 insurance money.
CONS
- Online-Only – Unless you are okay with managing your account entirely online, then, the fact that the CIT is an online-only bank will be a downside for you.
- No ATM Access – Similar to most online-only banks out there, CIT Bank does not provide ATM access as well. To withdraw money, you will have to transfer it to a different account that comes with an ATM card or access to in-person withdrawal from the bank.
- No Physical Branches – Obviously, since CIT Bank is an online-only bank, it does not have physical branches. Again, all banking transactions are done entirely online.
WHO IS CIT BANK BEST FOR?
CIT Bank is an online-only bank that offers a high annual percentage yield (APY) particularly only its Savings Builder account.
With that said, CIT Bank is appealing to customers who:
- Want to save money in a bank, and grow their money quickly because of high APY
- Want to manage their accounts entirely online
- Do not mind not having ATM access
- Want an online bank that does not charge monthly fees
- Have minimal charges in common bank fees
If you see yourself in any or all of the above-mentioned, then CIT Bank is perfect for you.
WHAT ARE THE PRODUCTS OFFERED BY CIT BANK?
Although this is a CIT Savings Builder review, just to give you an idea, we are sharing with you other products that CIT Bank offers.
Apart from the CIT Savings Builder, which we are going to discuss further in the next section, CIT Bank also offers checking and CD accounts.
Here’s a quick backgrounder of these two accounts:
Checking Account
Generally, standard checking accounts do not earn interest. So, the fact that CIT Bank eChecking Account pays 0.10% APY on balances below $25,000 is a big plus.
Sure, there are other online checking accounts out there that pay more, but usually, these accounts require a series of spending as well as deposit requirements to be able to earn the high rate.
With their eChecking account, CIT Bank offers $30 per month in reimbursements of outside ATM fees. Additionally, for this account, the bank does not charge any ATM fees.
The bank does not offer its own free ATM network, which means if you withdraw cash more than what is allowed in a month, it may cost you a lot.
CIT Bank eChecking account does not charge a monthly fee, which is also a perk that not all online-only bank provides.
To open an eChecking account, CIT Bank requires at least a $100 initial deposit.
Certificate of Deposit
To compare to other CD accounts offered by other banks of the same type, CIT Bank’s Certificate of Deposit accounts are above average.
The bank’s CD terms range from six months to five years. The APY also varies depending on the term. As a general rule, the longer your money is in the bank, the higher the APY is.
To open a CIT Bank CD account, a minimum deposit of $1,000 is required. While the amount is common for national banks, some online banks as well as credit unions have lower minimums as compared to CIT Bank.
WHAT IS CIT SAVINGS BUILDER?
In the previous sections, we talked about CIT Bank and what it has to offer. Now it’s time to do a serious CIT Savings Builder review.
So, what is CIT Savings Builder?
The CIT Savings Builder is CIT Bank’s high-interest rate savings account product. It offers two-tier interest rates, which are the Upper Tier and the Base Tier.
While the two tiers offer good rates, the Upper Tier definitely shines the most. It’s one of the highest APYs on savings accounts out there. The Base Tier, though, is still higher than a lot of what brick and mortar banks offer.
The CIT Savings Builder account upper-tier pays up to 0.40% APY for accounts with less than $25,000 with at least $100 monthly deposits or for accounts with a balance of more than $25,000 balance.
Meanwhile, the CIT Savings Builder account base tier pays up to 0.29% for balances below $25,000.
To open a CIT Savings Builder account, the bank requires at least a $100 initial deposit. Compared to other online banks that offer savings accounts, this stands in the middle ground, because while some do not require any initial deposit at all, others would have at least $5,000 to open or earn interest.
So, definitely, this one’s a “just right” kind of deal.
Overall, the CIT Bank Savings Builder account has strong rates and just the right perks that come with it.
WHO WOULD BENEFIT FROM THE CIT SAVINGS BUILDER?
So, in the last section of our CIT Savings Builder review, we talked about what this product is all about.
Now, let’s discuss who would benefit from it the most.
With what CIT Savings Builder has to offer, it would be most ideal for people or customers who:
- Are looking forward to earning quickly from their savings account
- Want high annual percentage yield
- Can afford the initial deposit requirement of $100
- Have the capacity to main at least $25,000 with a minimum of $100 deposit a month to earn the highest rate available
WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGED OF CIT SAVINGS BUILDER?
This CIT Savings Builder review will not be complete if we are not going to give you a list of the advantages and disadvantages of the account.
So, here it is —
ADVANTAGES
- High Annual Percentage Yield – As mentioned earlier, the CIT Bank Savings Builder account has one of the most competitive rates in the market today.
- No Monthly Fees – CIT Bank does not charge monthly fees for Savings Builder account holders, however, it does charge a $10 outgoing wire transfer fee if your account balance falls below $25,000.
- No Ongoing Balance Requirement – CIT Bank requires at least a $100 deposit to open a Savings Builder account. Once the account is open, customers need not worry about maintaining a minimum balance requirement. It is important to take note, however, that if your account balance drops below $25,000 and you are not depositing a minimum of $100 per month, then expect that your APY will drop until such time you meet one of these bank requirements again.
- Easy Fund Transfer – CIT Bank has an app that is available for both Apple and Android devices. The app allows customers to view account balance, quickly transfer money between linked accounts, as well as remotely deposit checks.
- Free 24/7 Online and Mobile Banking – CIT Bank is an online-only bank, thus, it’s only right that it is accessible both online and mobile.
- Mobile Check Deposit – As mentioned, earlier, CIT Bank supports mobile check deposit, which is not available in other online-only banks.
DISADVANTAGES
- No ATM Access – This one’s not surprising, though, because it is common for almost all online-only banks’ savings accounts not to have ATM access. So, if you are someone who wants to have access to your account not only through online or mobile, but ATM as well, then you may have to look for another bank. To withdraw money from your account, you may do an electronic funds transfer, request a mailed check, or wire transfer.
- Minimum Initial Deposit – Although compared to other savings accounts, the minimum initial deposit requirement of $100 is still considered low. The only reason why we consider it as a disadvantage is that other online-only banks that offer savings account product does not minimum initial deposit requirement at all.
With all the pros and cons listed, it’s up to you now to decide if the CIT Savings Builder is the right deposit account for you, or something else.
HOW TO OPEN A CIT SAVINGS BUILDER ACCOUNT?
By now, you are probably wondering already how to actually open a CIT Savings Builder account.
To open a Savings Builder account, you must be at least 18 years of age and must be a citizen of the United States or a permanent resident.
Since the application process is done online, it would only take a few minutes to finish.
To begin the process, you will need to fill out the application, and provide basic information such as your name, address, phone, email, and Social Security number (or other taxpayer ID).
Once done, you may proceed to fund your account with at least $100. To deposit, you may opt to link another bank account and perform an electronic transfer or choose to do bank wire or mail in a check.
IS BANKING WITH CIT BANK SAFE?
One of the major concerns of depositors when it comes to online-only banks is how secure it is.
With CIT, the bank has made sure to put all security and safety measures in place to avoid possible fraud or identity theft threats.
The bank follows the standard requirement to ensure all depositors’ data and of course, money is safe and secured.
Ultimately, CIT Bank is a member of FDIC, which means all deposits are insured up to $250,000 per deposit in case of a bank failure.
FINAL THOUGHTS ON CIT SAVINGS BUILDER REVIEW
Overall, there’s much to love about CIT Bank and CIT Savings Builder accounts per se. It comes with lots of perks that not all online-only banks can offer.
However, of all the features available, the fact that CIT Savings Builder offers a high annual percentage yield as compared to most online as well as brick and mortar savings accounts out there, definitely makes CIT shine the brightest.
So, given all the perks that CIT Bank has to offer particularly on its savings builder account, are you convinced that this one’s the right account for you?
To conclude, this CIT Savings Builder review only proves that the account is best for savers who are diligent in saving money and that it is one of the few online-only bank savings account products to beat.