在银行和信用社之间选择

There are many points in your life where you need to make financial decisions. 无论你是否想节省你的血汗钱, 买一所房子，甚至是一辆车, 你必须首先决定哪所学校适合你. 和, before mulling over the finer details of individual financial institutions, you should also underst和 whether a bank or a credit union best meets your needs 和 what makes them different. Here are the top differences between banks 和 credit unions to help you compare.

银行对信用社所有权

银行是盈利性机构 由投资者所有他们是公司的股东. 每个股东都有一定数量的投票权来选举董事会成员, 这与他们在公司的投资有关. While these shareholders do not necessarily bank at the institution they hold stock in, 他们的目标是从股票中获得投资回报, 所以要有经济上的激励. 银行的董事会成员通常是拿薪水的雇员.

相比之下, credit unions are not-for-profit financial cooperatives owned by their members. As with any cooperative, membership alone makes you a part owner of the company. 不管你的账户里有多少钱, 你的初始存款在选举董事会成员时给你一票. These board members are volunteers 和 are members of the credit union. Any profits generated are given back to members in the form of lower loan 利率, 较高的储蓄利率和较低的费用. 事实上, this is one of the founding reasons credit unions were started – to offer affordable credit 和 financial 服务s to help people within their own community thrive. That’s one major reason many credit unions are known for their contribution to the local community outside of their products 和 服务s. 虽然银行当然也支持他们的社区, it’s typically less of an internal cultural priority than within credit unions. 在MECU，我们是 致力于让巴尔的摩 一个更好的居住地. Through charitable contributions, employee volunteerism, community outreach & 金融教育，MECU关心与我们一起工作和为之工作的人.

成为客户或会员

One of the major allures of a bank is that nearly anyone can become a customer. 如果你能达到他们的最低存款金额和财务标准, 你可以开户或申请贷款. 

成为会员的资格 各信用社情况不同. Some qualifying conditions of joining a credit union include where you work or what industry you work in, 组织的成员资格, 你住在哪里, 你去哪里上学或做礼拜, 或者家庭成员的资格. 例如，在MECU，你可以 有资格成为会员 如果你在巴尔的摩地区生活或工作.

评估金融产品

Banks 和 credit unions tend to have similar financial offerings, including business 和 10大网赌网址正规论坛支票 和 储蓄账户、定期存单(股票)、贷款等 货币市场 账户等. 许多银行夸耀其账户部门的多样性, such as specialty 储蓄账户 but most larger credit unions provide a range of financial products 和 solutions, smaller credit unions generally offer less variety 和 frills in their accounts 和 loans, 然而，他们的设计是为会员负担得起的.

比较银行的费用、利率和奖励 & 信用合作社

Since credit unions were created to be able to offer lower 利率 和 fees on products like 抵押贷款 和 汽车贷款 to members of the community, 许多人加入信用合作社是为了利用 低汽车贷款利率 同时维持他们在银行的支票账户. 然而, 如果你想在信用合作社存钱, 要知道，由于他们是非营利性的,y are generally able to offer lower minimum balance requirements on 支票账户 和 low to no 服务 charges.

相比之下, 银行需要盈利, often charge higher fees on less profitable types of accounts (like 支票账户) while offering lower interest 利率 on savings, 除非你有一大笔钱可以存. 另外, banks often offer better credit card rewards but typically charge an annual fee.

Credit unions typically belong to a network that offers rewards on credit cards, 比如现金回馈奖励, 而且通常不收取信用卡年费. 迈克Schenk of the Credit Union National Association said that the average late-payment fee at a bank is $35 compared to $22.50美元在信用合作社.

优先考虑客户服务，方便 & 技术

这些天, both banks 和 credit unions underst和 the importance of convenience, 为客户和会员提供技术和客户服务. Larger banks 和 credit unions will generally have more branch 和 ATM locations, 相关费用因院校而异.  和, most institutions are part of nationwide ATM networks that allow people to access their money wherever they are. 另外, most institutions offer convenient technology including online 和 mobile banking, though specific offerings will be different for each bank or credit union.

最后, most institutions will have a variety of ways to get support – from robust website offerings like chat, 表格及常见问题, 电话和分支支持. Smaller banks 和 most credit unions are generally better known for more personal customer or member support, 但就像大多数其他行业一样, true customer 服务 policies 和 commitment will vary across institutions.

了解你的钱是如何被保护的

银行受几个州和联邦机构的监管: 美联储, 联邦存款保险公司 (FDIC)，以及 货币监理署. 在地方层面上是有的 州银行监管机构 对于州立特许银行. 
信用合作社是由 国家信用社管理局 (NCUA)在联邦层面. NCUA is also responsible for the National Credit Union Share 保险 Fund (NCUSIF), which insures all federal credit unions 和 most state-chartered credit unions. State-chartered credit unions can also be regulated by state agencies. 

FDIC和NCUA都得到了美国银行的支持.S. government 和 provide protection up to $250,000 per account holder per institution. Some banks 和 credit unions choose to be insured by private companies, which means they’re not required to insure your deposits by state or federal law. 

With all of these factors, how should you choose the financial institution that’s right for you? 考虑到你对费用的容忍度, 利率, 金融产品, 你需要多长时间使用一次ATM机或分行, 以及你的钱如何在社区中发挥作用. If you have any questions about the differences between banks 和 credit unions, 或者想了解更多关于MECU的信息，以及如何做 成为会员, 10大网赌网址正规论坛 今天.