How to Divorce Your Bank

(MoneyWatch)  Ready to divorce your bank because you're tired of it hiking your rates, slashing your credit limits and hitting you with fees every time you turn around? You're not alone. Recent retail banking surveys have uncovered a steady decline in consumer satisfaction with their financial institutions.

The problem is that most people continue to bank with "Mr. Wrong" because they're convinced that there's no "right" financial institution out there, said Gabe Krajicek, chief executive of BancVue in Austin Tx.

Depending on how picky you are, of course, that may be true. However, you can get higher rates on your deposits and lower rates on your loans by switching to a community bank or credit union.

The Credit Union National Association, in fact, hosts a daily comparison of bank and credit union rates on it's web site, which also aims to explain what makes credit unions different. The sort version is that they're non-profit cooperatives that don't pay taxes and don't have shareholders, so they can pass more of their profits on to "member" customers. That annoys the heck out of bankers, who maintain credit unions have an unfair advantage. That's true...but, not your problem.

You can't just walk down the street and join any credit union. You have to qualify for membership. But, that's become increasingly easy in recent years, as many credit unions have thrown open their membership ranks to anyone living in a set zip code or state. CUNA also makes it easy to search for a local credit union.

To be sure, the rate differences won't make you rich. One year certificates of deposit were paying about 0.33% more at credit unions than banks on Monday, for example. And you might knock a percentage point or two off your credit card or auto loan rate, if you use a credit union rather than a bank.

However, if you're willing to engage in some profitable behavior for the bank or credit union--use direct deposit and your debit card a set number of times each month, for example--BankVue, a marketing organization, says some of its members offer high-rate checking accounts that will pay as much as 4 percent to 5 percent interest on the cash balance. Why? The bank earns money from interchange fees when you use the debit card, and doesn't spend much on you when you're banking electronically.

There are no panaceas. But, if you're unhappy with your bank, you might be able to do better. Shop around.