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Credit union advises other benefits as savings account interest rates yield returns

WeDevelopment Credit Union
Posted at 5:10 PM, Apr 21, 2023
and last updated 2023-04-22 10:49:46-04

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — There's not a lot of good connected to inflation. One exception is high yield interest savings accounts.

CNBC reports savings interest rates have hit a 15-year high. The result is high returns for account holders.

Despite the benefits, not everyone has a high-yield savings account.

“Often times with a high-yield interest savings, generally there’s a minimum deposit," said Gwendolyn Washington, CEO of WeDevelopment Federal Credit Union. 

She said some of her customers can't afford the deposit needed for a high-yield savings account.

Instead, she recommends a certificate of deposit.

“You can deposit $100 and then make weekly, bi-monthly or monthly deposits into the CD," Washington said.

She added the longer the money is in the account, the higher the interest rate.

Washington explained some of her credit union clients work low wage jobs or are on fixed incomes, but she says people can still save.

“They may say well Gwen, all I have is $5 or I have $10. Is that enough to start a savings account? We say yes," Washington said.

One of the people saving is Adenike Amen-Ra. She opened a checking and savings account at the credit union Friday afternoon.

"A penny saved is a penny earned, so just the idea of the accumulation, you always have a little nest egg you can increase and pull from," Amen-Ra said. "I believe in the idea that money should earn its interest.”