Credit Union Term Deposit Rates

If you have thought about investing with a credit union, you may have discarded the idea because you thought their rates would not be competitive and their banking systems would be small scale and outdated. In fact, credit unions in Australia are the exact opposite, there are even more credit unions in Australia than there are banks and build societies put together. Credit unions offer competitive products and services and if you have yet to compare credit union term deposits rates, then you could be missing out on growing your investment easily and securely.

Term Deposit	1 Month	3 Month	4 Month	6 Month	12 Month	24 Month	36 Month	60 Month	Min Deposit
Heritage Bank Term Deposit	3.00%	5.60%	3.40%	5.60%	5.50%	5.55%	5.55%	5.80%	$1000

Features of a Credit Union Term Deposit Account

When you invest in a credit union term deposit you may seem to be getting many of the same features you have come to expect from big bank investments. However, there are actually significan’t differences in the operations and structure of a credit union which make the experience easier, smoother and more engaging, not to mention more profitable. In choosing a credit union term deposit you are also getting:

• A financial institution whose first focus is its members. The members are you, the customer, and your credit union does not work to promote themselves to big shareholders or corporate investors, but instead puts all of their profits back into providing a better service, a better product base and a more competitive interest rate structure across the board for you.
• Anyone can become a member. When you open any sort of savings, investment, loan or credit account with a credit union, you become a member of that institution. From that point n you can enjoy the focus put on the community and the members of the credit union, as well as enjoy customer service which is regularly voted among the best in the financial services industry against the major banks; in the October 2009 Roy Morgan banking satisfaction survey, the percentage of each institution’s customers who said they were satisfied was 87.3% of building society customers, 85.9% of credit union customers, compared to only 72% of customers at the big four banks.
• A secure fixed investment. A term deposit account is a fixed investment with a guaranteed return and when you invest with a credit union you can be assured of that security. Australian credit unions are registered as Authorised Deposit-Taking Institutions and are therefore independently regulated in the same way as the banks. This means the operations, service and products of credit unions are regulated by ASIC and APRA so you can feel secure investing your term deposits with a credit union. As credit unions are ADIs, your deposits are also guaranteed under the Australian Government’s deposit scheme until October 2011, where the government will honour all deposits up to $1 million for free, if your financial institution cannot.
• A vote in the governance of your credit union. As a member of the credit union when you hold a term deposit account, you also have a vote how, and by whom, the organisation is governed. This is as simple as filling out a postal vote form when elections for new positions within the credit union come up for renewal and you can usually find out all about the people you are voting for in the package posted to you, or on the credit union’s website so you can make the right choice for the future of your investments.
• The difference between building societies and credit unions. You now know the differences in customer service, member involvement and competitive products and pricing when profits go back into the organisation rather than to the share holds, these are what separate credit unions from the banks in Australia. However, there is little difference between credit unions and building societies as both are Mutual ADIs which means they are run for their members, with a community focus. The differences between credit unions and building societies comes from their founding history and regional differences.

If you are ready to compare the term deposit rates from credit unions, view the Savings Account Finder™ comparison tables here. When you have found a credit union term deposit rate on an account which meets your investment term and deposit needs, you can follow our secure links and start your online application now to lock in your rate and account options and start growing your investment funds.