CD Rates continue their inexorable match downward. It was only a few months ago that a top five year CD rate could get as much as 3.30% APY. Now, according to the BestCashCow database there are only a few banks in the U.S. offering 60 month CDs at 3% APY or above. Below are a few of them:

• North Shore Bank, a Co-operative Bank located in Peabody, MA is offering a 60 month CD that pays 3.00% APY. The bank has 8 branches and $450 million in assets.

• Citizens Progressive Bank located in Columbia, LA is offering a 60 month CD that pays 3.03% APY. The bank has 4 branches and $75 million in assets.

• Adrian State Bank located in Adrian, MN is offering a 60 month CD paying 3.02% APY. The bank has 1 branch and $34 million in assets.

There are still plenty of banks offering five year cd rates between 2.75% - 2.85% APY. You can use BestCashCow to find the best cd rates in your local area by clicking through on the CDs tab above.

Research has also shown that on average, banks that offer high deposit rates are a slightly healthier than their peers that offer average or below average rates.

Getting a high interest rate these days is tough; most APYs offered for traditional deposit accounts can’t even keep up with inflation. In order to get the highest interest rate available, long-term CDS usually offer some of the best options. But what if you don’t want the long-term commitment because you either may need to withdrawal some or all of the money, or you want to see if interest rates may go up? Good news: there are low-penalty and no-penalty CDs on the market that will allow you to earn that higher interest rate without much (if any) penalty for early withdrawal.

Ally Bank, for example, currently offers a 5-year CD that pays 2.33%. If you invest $50,000, your estimated earnings at the CD maturity is approximately $6,100. What if you need to withdraw your money at during year four? No problem; this CD is a low-penalty CD so you’ll only lose the equivalent of 60 days interest. You never lose any of your principle, and your deposit is always FDIC insured up to federal limits. So, if you withdraw your principal at month 48 instead of month 60, you’ll just lose the interest for months 46 and 47—all the while earning the higher 2.33% APY for months 1-45.

Ally also offers a no-penalty CD that pays 1.13%. The term for that CD is 11 months, but you can withdraw your entire principal and all of your earned interest with no penalty whatsoever, at any time. However, keep in mind that if you do make an early withdrawal, it must be for the full balance and all interest earned. This no-penalty CD is not like a savings account, meaning you cannot make additional deposits or withdrawals. Once you open the CD for your funded account, that’s the way it stays until either it matures or you withdraw the entire amount with interest. However, there are no fees to open or maintain the CD, and there’s also no minimum deposit required.

If you’re afraid APY offers going up after you’ve funded your CD, you may want to check out the Ally Raise Your Rate CD. This product offers both 2 and 4-year CDs, and you have the option of increasing your rate once with their 2-year CD or twice with their 4-year CD. You’ll get a personalized Rate alert to let you know when the rate goes up, and when you open or renew your CD, you get the Ally Ten Day Best Rate Guarantee. That give you insurance that you will get the very best rate Ally offers during the first 10 days of your CD opening or renewal. Like other Ally CDs, there is no minimum deposit, no monthly fee, and interest compounds daily. Currently, the 2-year Raise Your Rate CD pays 1.39% APY and the 4-year pays 1.98% APY. If you choose to withdraw a Raise Your Rate CD early, the penalty is calculated using the interest rate in effect on your account on the day you request the early withdrawal. This account, like Ally’s regular CD, only penalizes you 60 days interest.

Although it’s difficult to maneuver financially and earn high interest rates in this economy, it’s nice to know there are some products available on the market that offer you some flexibility—without steep penalties.

In February 2011 we launched a new version of BestCashCow that included comprehensive local and national rates on a variety of bank products, information on every bank and credit union in the United States, mapping of every branch and credit union location, and a new look and feel. By using the new BestCashCow, we believe that Americans can earn an extra $30 billion per year in their savings, CD, and checking accounts.

Now we need your help to spread the word about how BestCashCow. Spend a few minutes telling others on Twitter and Facebook about the site. Specific instructions for doing so can be found on the iPad2 contest page. Once you do and let us know on our contest page, you'll be automatically entered to win an iPad. And you'll be helping fellow Americans earn an extra $30 billion per year.

Everyone Can Win

While there is only one iPad2 winner, everyone can make that or even more. According to the FDIC, U.S. commercial banks currently possess over $6.2 trillion in savings accounts and CDs – much of which you, and your friends, and your friend's friends keep in low yield bank accounts. Most readers who spend 10 minutes to research rates on BestCashCow will find bank accounts that pay at least .5 percent more than what they are currently earning. On average that equals $500 more per year for a family of five to put towards education expenses, a vacation, a house renovation, or retirement. Collectively, Americans could save an extra $30 billion in additional savings each year.

Check out Rates

If you're new to BestCashCow , then spend five minutes checking out some of the site's features. Here are some places to start:

• View the best local rates for CDs, Savings Accounts, Checking Accounts and Mortgages. We provide the best rates for every zip code in the United States. Check out CD Rates in your zip code as an example and notice how we calculate the distance to the closest branch.
• Profile pages and financial overviews for every bank and credit union in the United States.
• Mapping that shows bank locations.
• Original research into bank and credit union trends to help you make better banking decisions.

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