Is it time to bank out...and join a Credit Union?

wither it's because you are feeling uneasy with the banks because of the government bailouts or because you have noticed that your bank has started charging a lot of fines recently. You may be wondering if there is a better place to put your money.

Now before you go old school and start stashing your cash in your mattress, there is a better place to bank your money and that would be in a credit union.

If your in the dark and wondering...what is a credit union? The answer is simple they are very similar to banks but with some key differences. They are owned by the members of the Credit Union. That's right if you join a credit union you become part owner of that union. Another differences is that credit unions are not-for-profit.

What those differences mean is that credit union are able to give there members higher returns and give out loans with lower interest rates. Also because they aren't trying to find ways to turn more profit credit unions tend to have less fees then banks.

and if you are worried about safety, the money put into credit unions are insured by the government by the federal agency, the NCUA (National Credit Union Administration) which insures accounts at the same level as the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) does for banks. which is up to $250,000.