High-Yield Checking

There’s checking… And there’s High-Yield Checking.

In this free checking account, your money is a certified over achiever. It works hard for you even when it’s just sitting there.

  • No minimum balance requirement and no monthly service fee
  • Pays 1.50% Annual Percentage Yield* on balances up to $25,000
  • Pays 0.10% Annual Percentage Yield* on balances in excess of $25,000
  • Up to $25 ATM fee refund per monthly qualification cycle
  • Plus, all of the good stuff you’d expect for free, like eBanking, remote deposit and bill pay

Earning your rewards each month is as easy as doing these three things:

  1. Enroll in eStatements
  2. Make 8 debit card transactions
  3. Receive at least one direct deposit and/or ACH credit

 

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But don’t worry if you don’t meet the rewards qualifications during the month, High-Yield Checking has no monthly service fee. The best part is, you have another chance to earn your rewards the very next month!

Add Courtesy Pay to Your Account

An overdraft occurs when you do not have enough money in your checking account to cover a transaction, but we pay it anyway. Ardent Credit Union (Ardent) can cover your overdrafts in two different ways:

We have standard overdraft practices that come with your account called Ardent Courtesy Pay coverage.

We also offer overdraft protection plans, such as a link to a savings account or line of credit, which may be less expensive than our standard overdraft practices. Contact us to learn more about these options.

Ardent Courtesy Pay adds a safety net to your personal checking account. If you don’t have enough money in your account to cover a transaction, we may cover the transaction and overdrawn balance up to an approved limit. Ardent Courtesy Pay eliminates the embarrassment and expense of returned checks, and also protects your credit rating.

If you overdraw your account by checks, ACH electronic payments or Point-of-Sale Debit Card transactions, Ardent Courtesy Pay may cover your transaction, even though you do not have enough money in your account. If you use Ardent Courtesy Pay, your account will be negative and you will be charged a $32.00 Ardent Courtesy Pay fee. However, you will not incur any merchant fees. We will cap the total amount of overdraft fees charged to 6 per day.

If you have established overdraft protection to cover a negative balance through an automatic transfer from a savings account or a personal line of credit, the credit union will access funds from these sources before using Ardent Courtesy Pay

We will mail you a letter to notify you immediately any time your account is overdrawn. You should make every attempt to bring your account to a positive balance within 24 hours. If you are not able to do so, you will receive a letter from us informing you of the situation and your options. If, after a period of time your account has not been brought to a positive balance, we will have no option but to close your account and take other steps to recover the funds. If you have special circumstances or concerns, please call us. We want to serve you.

You should make every attempt to bring your account to a positive balance within 24 hours. If you are not able to do so, you will receive a letter from us informing you of the situation and your options. If, after a period of time your account has not been brought to a positive balance, we will have no option but to close your account and take other steps to recover the funds. If you have special circumstances or concerns, please call us. We want to serve you.

As a service to members in good standing and to help you avoid the fees that may be charged by third parties for "bad" checks, we may, at our sole discretion, approve your reasonable overdrafts up to a dollar amount (inclusive of fees). A fee will be charged for every non-sufficient fund (NSF) item regardless of whether we pay it or return it.

You should know that we are not obligated to cover any item presented for payment if your account does not contain sufficient collected and/or available funds. Furthermore, service charges assessed against a check or checks, or any other request for funds made upon your account, does not obligate us to pay said request for funds. Nor does it obligate us to provide prior written notice of our decision to refuse payment.

It is the obligation of the credit union to operate in accordance with all applicable safety and soundness standards. If you issue a check or make a transaction for funds exceeding what is available in your account, you are responsible to the credit union for the amount of any overdraft and applicable fees immediately, without notice or demand from the credit union, in accordance with the terms of your account.

If you have any questions, or would like to discuss more details of the Ardent Courtesy Pay program, please call us today at 1-800-806.9465.

Tools & Resources

Unlock your best deal with our Auto Buying Concierge

Kids accounts that reward good savings habits 

Resources

Conversion Form - for Basic Checking

Other Checking Products


Rates

Checking

Rates effective starting: December 22, 2024

Features High-Yield Checking1 Cashback Checking1 Basic Checking
Best for member wanting higher interest paid on balances cash rewards for card usage simple account that pays interest
Monthly Service Charge $0 $0 $0
Minimum Daily Balance $0 $0 $0
Interest Rate earn up to 1.50% APY (on balances up to $25,000); 0.10% APY (on balances in excess of $25,000) No 0.01% APY
Cash Back $0 1.50% of debit card purchase amount (earn up to $10 per month) $0
ATM Fee Refund up to $25 monthly up to $25 monthly $0
Requirements to Earn Rewards and ATM Refunds Requires direct deposit, 8 debit card purchases and eStatements during calendar month Requires direct deposit, 8 debit card purchases and eStatements during calendar month N/A
ATM Withdrawal Fee No fee from Ardent No fee from Ardent No fee from Ardent
Checks Free initial order Free initial order Free initial order
Debit Card FREE with:
  • Access to nationwide-network surcharge-free ATMs
 FREE with:
  • Access to nationwide-network surcharge-free ATMs
 FREE with:
  • Access to nationwide-network surcharge-free ATMs
Other Features
  • Transact at 5,000+ branches in shared network nationwide
  • Account-switching concierge service
  • eBanking with Bill Pay, Mobile Banking and Remote Deposit
  • Incoming electronic transfers from external accounts
  • 24-months of eStatements
  • Member-to-Member Transfers
  • Transact at 5,000+ branches in shared network nationwide
  • Account-switching concierge service
  • eBanking with Bill Pay, Mobile Banking and Remote Deposit
  • Incoming electronic transfers from external accounts
  • 24-months of eStatements
  • Member-to-Member Transfers
  • Transact at 5,000+ branches in shared network nationwide
  • Account-switching concierge service
  • eBanking with Bill Pay, Mobile Banking and Remote Deposit
  • Incoming electronic transfers from external accounts
  • 24-months of eStatements
  • Member-to-Member Transfers

1APY=Annual Percentage Yield. Rate and APY may change after account is opened. To earn the reward (higher APY or cash back) and ATM surcharge refunds, make 8 debit card purchases, get one direct deposit and/or other electronic deposit and receive eStatements monthly. Debit card purchases must post and settle to your checking account during the calendar month. ATM-processed transactions do not count towards qualifying debit card purchases. The deposit must post to the account during the calendar month. Electronic transfers between accounts do not count as a direct deposit. Transactions may take one or more banking days from the date transaction was made to post and settle to your account. If all three qualifications are met during the calendar month, domestic ATM fees up to $4.99 per single transaction charged by ATM owner incurred during the month will be reimbursed up to $25.00. For High-Yield Checking, the first $25,000 of the account balance earns 1.50% APY and balances over $25,000 earn 0.10% APY. Non-qualifying accounts earn 0.01% APY on balances. The High-Yield APY is based on compounding interest monthly. For Cashback Checking, 1.50% of debit card purchases up to $10 during the calendar month will be credited to your account at the start of the next month.  Membership qualifications apply. No more than one checking account of each type per member. Member must maintain their $5 membership savings account to be eligible for checking accounts. For more details, visit ardentcu.org or call us at 800.806.9465.