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Credit unions
DH and I have a large amount in our checking account that we need to put aside for an emergency fund/house down payment account. I originally was just going to open a money market acocunt at my current bank. Yesterday a freiden of mine was telling me how she went to a credit union and refinanced her car, that they had such better rates than regular banks. So now I'm thinking that I should keep this fund at a credit union.
Does anyone belong to a credit union? Do they typically have better savings and loan rates for members? I like the idea of being able to transfer money between my accounts at the same bank, but with a fund close to 5 figures a better interest rate sounds better.
ETA: How do you get into a credit union, anyway? I see all of them in my area have requirements, mostly "work at any of these places". Is there no credit union for regular people?!
Re: Credit unions
Many CUs will let you fill out an application if you have a friend or family member that belongs to the CU. I'd definitely check around at interest rates and see how the credit unions around you are structured. One thing I will say is that I've always gotten better service at a credit union than a bank but of course, that is a very subjective thing.
We used to keep all our savings at a Money Market account at the union, but we have since talked to a Financial Adviser who set forth an investment plan for us. I don't think Money Market accounts are earning that much right now, so you may want to consider talking to an adviser who can help you move your money to somewhere else to earn more.
As for joining one, I would check at your workplace HR to see if there is an available union. Also, I think that if a close family member is eligible, you might be eligible too? It is worth checking out!
I was part of credit union because of my zip code, you can check your closest credit union website for details on their membership requirements.
The one I belonged to says this for membership: Persons who live, work, attend school or worship in and businesses located within 10 miles of each of the following branch locations: and then lists the zip codes.
My Dh and I both belong to credit unions and we love it. Our particular credit union has better loan rates but I don't really see a better rate in the savings accounts. To be eligible for our credit union, we had to either live, work, worship in the same county that the bank is located in.
Also, we do have money market accounts through Ally, which I can't rave enough about. For each MM account, we're allowed 6 transactions per month and we can easily transfer/deposit funds from our credit union checking account into the Ally account, all from online. Ally also reimburses you at the end of your statement cycle for any ATM fees you might have incurred over the past 30 days (obviously if you took out money from a ATM machine from your account).