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Although banks offer a wide variety of accounts, they can be broadly divided into five types: savings accounts, basic checking accounts, interest-bearing checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, and certificates of deposit. All five are insured by the FDIC (in most cases, up to $100,000 per account). Most banks offer all of these types of accounts, so the bank you choose probably won't restrict this decision, although it does make sense to choose the account type you want first, so you can focus on that type as you shop around to various banks. Here is a brief description of each type of account:
Set of services, but usually at a higher cost . Also, unlike a basic checking account, you are usually able to write an unlimited number of checks. Checking accounts which pay interest are sometimes referred to as negotiable order of withdrawal (NOW) accounts. The interest rate often depends on how large the balance in the account is, and most charge a monthly service fee if your balance falls below a preset level.
These accounts invest your balance in short-term debt such as commercial
paper, Treasury Bills, or CDs. The rates they offer tend to be slightly
higher than those on interest-bearing checking accounts, but they
usually require a higher minimum balance to start earning interest.
These accounts provide only limited check writing privileges (three
transfers by check, and six total transfers, per month), and often
impose a service fee if your balance falls below a certain level. Certificates of Deposit (CDs)
These are also known as "time deposits", because the account holder has
agreed to keep the money in the account for a specified amount of time,
anywhere from three months to six years. Because the money will be
inaccessible, the account holder is rewarded with a higher interest
rate, with the rate increasing as the duration increases. There is a
substantial penalty for early withdrawal, so don't select this option if
you think you might need the money before the time period is over (the
"maturity