Disappointed in your bank? Move over to a credit union. Here is some free advice from Midknight Review - new and revised.

Financial Protests against Corrupt Banks Help Credit Unions

Talk about a growing national instinct toward greater self-reliance – now these folks have their money in member-controlled, not-for-profit institutions instead of in mega-corporations that nickel and dime depositors at every opportunity. The Credit Union National Association (CUNA) reports that over 40,000 people joined on Bank Transfer Day, bringing $80 million in deposits with them. What's more, credit unions issued nearly $90 million in new loans.

If you plan to transfer your bank account because of bad service, don't like getting hit by fees, or want to teach big-bank cronies a lesson, there are a few things to watch out for so everything goes smoothly...

What Are the Benefits of Joining a Credit Union?

Credit unions offer you a long list of advantages over big commercial banks. Bank Transfer Day wasn't only a move to punish publicly traded banks, it's a clear sign the free market is looking for a better deal, a better service, at a better price.

• Credit unions carry lower maintenance fees and higher interest rates than big national banks.
• The Credit Power Index measures the spread between interest charged to borrowers and interest paid to depositors; the higher the index, the worse for consumers. At the end of July, the index was five and a half points lower for credit unions than for banks, assuring a significant payoff for depositors who make the switch.
• Credit unions are nonprofit. This means that instead of paying out profits to shareholders, the benefits instead flow to their members – the depositors. Publicly traded big banks, which tend to serve hedge funds and pension-fund shareholders. And as the Credit Power Index demonstrates, the banks do so at the expense of the depositor.
• "Credit unions beat banks on deposit rates across the board," confirms Mainstreet.com. The average interest rate on the 12-month certificate of deposit at banks was 0.47% at the end of July. The same product at credit unions offers a 0.73% return – more than 55% higher.
• Over 75% of credit unions offer no-strings-attached free checking. In comparison, only 45% of banks offer the same benefit according to Bankrate.com analyst Greg McBride.
• Deposits at credit unions are insured up to $250,000, just like commercial banks.
• National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) spokesman David Small says many of the nation's credit unions "are in rural areas where there is no other banking option." In other words, credit unions enable communities to be more self-reliant and healthy.

Banks Have Been Losing Customers to Credit Unions
Long before Bank Transfer Day

Believe it or not, nearly one-third of Americans are members of credit unions. With the negative press on banks, the Fed, bank bailouts, bank failures, and excessive, punitive fees charged by big banks, depositors have been steadily moving to credit unions over the past few years. CUNA CEO Bill Cheney says one million members joined credit unions in 2010, and he expects to see that number easily exceeded in 2011.

According to a report in Mainstreet.com, since September 29, 2011, the day that Bank of America announced its $5 per month debit card fee (now rescinded), credit unions nationwide added nearly 20,000 new members each day. The result is approximately 650,000 new credit union members in just a matter of weeks, according to CUNA.