Pension Plan Assets. Pension plan assets increased $1.1 million, or 9.8%, to $12.2 million at September 30, 2022 from $11.1 million at December 31, 2021. The increase resulted from estimated returns on pension assets of $1.5 million and employer contributions of $328,000, partially offset by estimated benefits paid of $349,000 and interest costs of $390,000.
Deposits. Deposits decreased $3.7 million, or 1.2%, to $308.3 million at September 30, 2022 from $312.0 million at December 31, 2021. Interest-bearing accounts decreased $3.9 million, or 1.5%, to $250.6 million at September 30, 2022 from $254.5 million at December 31, 2021. The largest decrease in interest-bearing deposits was in savings accounts which decreased $5.7 million, or 5.2%, to $104.6 million at September 30, 2022 from $110.3 million at December 31, 2021. Certificates of deposit decreased $1.2 million, or 1.6%, to $74.5 million at September 30, 2022 from $75.7 million at December 31, 2021 due to an increase in non-renewal of accounts at maturity. Conversely, interest-bearing checking accounts increased $3.0 million, or 8.0%, to $40.1 million at September 30, 2022 from $37.2 million at December 31, 2021. Money market accounts increased $51,000, or 0.2%, to $31.4 million at September 30, 2022 from $31.3 million at December 31, 2021. Noninterest-bearing deposits increased $140,000, or 0.2%, to $57.7 million at September 30, 2022 from $57.5 million at December 31, 2021.
Municipal deposits held at Generations Commercial Bank increased $1.7 million, or 26.3%, to $8.0 million at September 30, 2022 from $6.3 million at December 31, 2021.
Federal Home Loan Bank Advances. Short-term Federal Home Loan Bank advances increased to $13.6 million at September 30, 2022 as a result of increased loan originations during the first nine months of 2022 along with a decrease in total deposits. Long-term Federal Home Loan Bank advances decreased $7.3 million, or 40.9%, to $10.5 million at September 30, 2022 from $17.8 million at December 31, 2021 as a result of repayments.
Total Equity. Total equity decreased $5.8 million, or 13.4%, to $37.7 million at September 30, 2022 from $43.5 million at December 31, 2021. The decrease was primarily due to an increase in accumulated other comprehensive loss of $5.3 million as a result of a decrease in the fair market value of our investment securities available-for-sale and a decrease of $1.6 million due to stock repurchases, offset in part by net income of $1.0 million during the nine months ended September 30, 2022.
Comparison of Operating Results for the Three Months Ended September 30, 2022 and 2021
General. Net income for the three months ended September 30, 2022 was $300,000 as compared to $173,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2021, an increase of $127,000, or 73.4%. The increase was due to a $591,000 decrease in noninterest expense, partially offset by a $204,000 decrease in net interest income, a $181,000 decrease in noninterest income, a $46,000 increase in provision for loan losses, and a $33,000 increase in income tax expense.
Interest and Dividend Income. Interest and dividend income decreased $217,000, or 6.2%, to $3.3 million for the three months ended September 30, 2022 from $3.5 million for the three months ended September 30, 2021. This decrease was primarily attributable to a $238,000 decrease in interest on loans receivable, partially offset by an increase in interest on interest-earning deposits of $11,000 and a net increase of $15,000 in interest on investment securities. The average balance of loans decreased $3.2 million, or 1.1%, to $286.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2022 from $289.2 million for the three months ended September 30, 2021. The average yield on loans decreased 28 basis points to 4.21% for the 2022 period from 4.49% for the 2021 period, reflecting a decrease in higher-yielding loans in addition to an increase in amortization of deferred loan costs period over period. The average balance of investment securities decreased $3.4 million, or 9.0%, to $34.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2022 from $38.0 million for the three months ended September 30, 2021. The average yield on investment securities increased 44 basis points to 3.12% for the 2022 period from 2.68% for the 2021 period due to purchases of $23.6 million in higher-yielding corporate bonds throughout 2021.
Interest Expense. Total interest expense decreased $13,000, or 3.3%, to $383,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2022 from $396,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2021. Interest expense on total interest-bearing deposits increased $4,000, or 1.3%, to $304,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2022 from $300,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2021. The increase was primarily attributable to an increase of