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Money Essentials

1. Why is a bank the safest place to keep your money?
    Banks pay interest on most accounts.
    Bank deposits are insured by the federal government.
    Banks do background checks on employees to insure no one hired has a criminal record.
2. The best way to get the most competitive interest rate on a bank CD or credit card is to:
    Call the banks in your area.
    Check the bank ads in your local paper.
    Ask your current bank to give you the best deal it has.
    Compare rates on the Internet.
3. If you take out money from a CD before it reaches maturity you must:
    Pay the IRS a penalty, typically 10 percent of the account's value.
    Pay the bank a penalty, typically three months' interest.
    Pay both the bank and Uncle Sam a penalty of three months' interest.
    Forget it. You can't withdraw your money until a CD matures.
4. How often do most banks review and possibly change the interest rates they pay on savings and checking accounts?
    Daily.
    Weekly.
    Monthly.
    Quarterly.
5. If you want to get a guaranteed interest rate on a bank deposit for up to five years:
    Take out a mortgage from the same bank.
    Have at least $ 100,000 on deposit.
    Put your money in a certificate of deposit.
    Sign up for a money market account.
6. When shopping for the best interest-bearing account, the only way to make a true apples-to-apples comparison is to review each account's:
    Minimum required balance
    Annual fees
    Annual percentage yield
    Interest rate
7. The longer you lock up your money in a CD, the higher the interest rate you'll get.
    True
    False
8. There are a lot of ways to get a free checking account. One way that won't work is to:
    Have your paycheck deposited directly into your account.
    Keep a high minimum balance.
    Limit your use of the bank's services to its ATM machines.
    Limit your use of the bank's services to its tellers.
9. If you open a credit union checking account, what might you expect:
    Higher account fees and lower rates on loans than a commercial bank offers
    Higher account fees and higher rates on loans than a commercial bank offers
    Lower account fees and higher rates on loans than a commercial bank offers
    Lower account fees and lower rates on loans than a commercial bank offers
10. Money market mutual funds are less secure than savings accounts because:
    They invest your money in the stock market.
    They are not insured by the federal government.
    Anyone with your Social Security number can tap your account.
    All of the above.