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Why you should open a long-term CD this week
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When inflation surged to a four-decade high in June 2022, the Federal Reserve responded with a series of interest rate hikes. Starting with a 25 basis point hike that March, by the following summer, the Fed had raised its federal funds rate to its highest level in 22 years. And it’s been frozen there since. While this has caused a financial burden for millions of borrowers, it’s also been a major boost for savers who were able to take advantage. Those who opened certificates of deposit (CD) or high-yield savings accounts were able to earn exponentially more on their money than they could have just a few years prior.
But the rate climate is changing once again.
Inflation has fallen dramatically from where it was in 2022 and concerns over unemployment are growing. Against this backdrop, the Fed is poised to issue its first cut since 2020 this week. And while that will be a help for borrowers, it should urge savers to take some actions now while they still can. Long-term CDs, which don’t mature for more than a year, are one of the best ways to capitalize. Below, we’ll detail why.
Start earning more on your money with a top long-term CD here now.
Why you should open a long-term CD this week
Not sure if now is the right time to open a long-term CD? Here are three reasons why you should consider acting this week.
Rates are still high
Rates on long-term CDs are still in the low 4% range now. That’s $4.00 earned for every $100 deposited. So if you deposit thousands of dollars and don’t touch the money until the account has matured, you could earn hundreds of dollars in interest. Put another way: A 4% CD interest rate is 769% better than what you can earn with a traditional savings account, which averages just 0.46% right now. So take advantage while you still can. Just be sure to do so with an amount of money you’re comfortable leaving in the CD for the full term (or risk having to pay an early withdrawal penalty).
Get started with a high-rate CD online today.
Rates are falling and will fall again this month
Depending on the lender in question, the rate you can get with a long-term CD may have already fallen compared to what was available earlier in the year. That’s because some lenders may have already priced in presumed interest rate cuts. And that rate could fall again, both after the Fed issues its first cut this week and as new economic data is released in the weeks ahead. Plus, rate cuts could be issued again in November and December, at which point the money you could earn with a CD will be significantly reduced compared to what you could make if you act now.
The alternatives won’t protect you against rate cuts
No savings vehicle can fully protect you against rate cuts, even CDs, which are affected by federal rate hikes and cuts. But the alternatives will offer you even less protection than a long-term CD will. That’s because rates on money market, high-yield savings and even high-yield checking accounts are all variable and subject to change as the rate climate evolves. But rates on CDs are locked, allowing savers to earn a predictable return despite any cuts in the larger rate climate. This is a major advantage, in particular, for long-term CDs which will help savers weather upcoming rate adjustments until the market levels off again — possibly for years to come.
The bottom line
CDs are still a smart bet for savers but they’re becoming less so as interest rates decline and will become less favorable once rate cuts start to be issued this week. So don’t wait for that to happen. Act today, lock in a high interest rate ahead of any major cuts and enjoy the big returns that you simply won’t be able to earn with comparable alternatives.
Start shopping for CDs online today.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The U.S. Justice Department is demanding records related to the July shooting death of Sonya Massey — an Illinois woman who was killed in her home by a sheriff’s deputy — as it investigates how local authorities treat Black residents and people with behavioral disabilities.
The government made a list of demands in dozens of categories in a letter to the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office, dated Thursday.
“The Sheriff’s Office, along with involved county agencies, has engaged in discussions and pledged full cooperation with the Department of Justice in its review,” Sangamon County Sheriff Paula Crouch said Friday.
Sonya Massey, a 36-year-old Black woman, was killed July 6 when deputies responded to a call about a possible prowler at her home in Springfield, Illinois. She was shot three times during a confrontation with an officer.
The alleged shooter, Sean Grayson, who is White, was fired. He is charged with murder and other crimes and has pleaded not guilty.
“The Justice Department, among other requests, wants to know if the sheriff’s office has strategies for responding to people in “behavioral health crises,” the government’s letter read. “…The incident raises serious concerns about…interactions with Black people and people with behavioral health disabilities.”
Andy Van Meter, chairman of the Sangamon County Board, said the Justice Department’s review is an important step in strengthening the public’s trust in the sheriff’s office.
At the time of the fatal shooting, the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office was led by then-Sheriff Jack Campbell, who retired in August and was replaced by Crouch.
Deputy Sean Grayson’s history of misconduct
Grayson has worked for six different law enforcement agencies in Illinois since 2020, CBS News learned. He was also discharged from the Army in February 2016 after serving for about 19 months. He was hired by the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office in May 2023.
In an interview with CBS News in early August, Campbell said that Grayson “had all the training he needed. He just didn’t use it.”
In a recording released by the Logan County Sheriff’s Office, where Grayson worked from May 2022 to April 2023, a supervising officer is heard warning Grayson for what the senior officer said was his lack of integrity, for lying in his reports, and for what he called “official misconduct.”
Girard Police Chief Wayman Meredith recalled an alleged incident in 2023 when he said an enraged Grayson was pressuring him to call child protective services on a woman outside of Grayson’s mother’s home. He said Grayson was “acting like a bully.”
The recording and Meredith’s description of Grayson’s conduct showed how he quickly became angry and, according to documents, willing to abuse his power as an officer.
Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office history of accusations
According to a review of court records in 2007, Massey’s killing was the only criminal case in recent history against a Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office deputy for actions on duty. Local officials characterized her shooting as an aberration.
However, CBS News obtained thousands of pages of law enforcement files, medical and court records, as well as photo and video evidence that indicated the office had a history of misconduct allegations and accountability failures before Grayson. The records challenged the claim that Massey’s death was, as said by the then-sheriff, an isolated incident by one “rogue individual.”
Local families were confident that Massey’s death was the latest in a pattern of brazen abuse that has gone unchecked for years.
Attorneys for Massey’s family recommended an updated SAFE-T Act that would expand an existing database used to track officer misconduct to include infractions like DUIs and speeding during police chases.
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