Why Should Take a Closer Look at a Credit Union?
The landscape of savings and investments is fast changing. Banks are now facing fiercer competition from their minuscule counterparts: The Credit Union.
Across the United States, there are over eight thousand credit unions with more than eighty million members benefiting from a plethora of their services. If numbers are safe indicators at how successful the concept of credit unionism has become, then it is safe to proclaim that indeed, the credit union has arrived!
Have your Cake and Eat it Too
What factors lure people to register and actively participate in a credit union? There are five major factors and the first one could be “belongingness” (I know, I just made the word up). 
- A credit union is primarily composed of people who share a special bond towards a common objective or interest. Unlike banks, where people are addressed as clients, credit unions are owned and managed by their members.
- Credit unions provide higher interest rates on their members’ deposits.
- Similar to banks, credit unions may also provide loans to their members, but at lower interest rates.
- A credit union is essentially created to serve the interest of its members – it is service before profit. However, for sustainability, credit unions may design and implement financial programs for the benefit of its members, and in the process, may also earn income.
- Income derived from the operation of a credit union is shared among its members in the form of dividends. It’s like having your piece of cake and the chance to eat it, too!
As promised, there are the five solid reasons why people are shifting gears from banks to credit unions.
Walk on the Red Carpet
Have you experienced cold treatment from a bank personnel? You are not alone. I was in my tattered and a washed-out shirt when I cashed a check at a local bank and what I got was a swift head-to-toe “measuring look”! How about that for customer-service?!?
Of course, that’s an exaggeration of how some bank personnel treat their clients who arrive at the bank in a shoddy appearance. However, there is a grain of truth in it. In most financial institutions, how you look matters as much as the size of your bank account.
Members of a credit union hardly experience bad treatment. In fact, you might feel like a celebrity! Obviously, you will be treated as part-owner, not as a customer.
Become a member of a credit union nearest you and experience first-hand how a credit union can help reshape the lives of those who have been under served by a larger financial institution. Isn’t eighty million credit union members (across the United States) is enough proof?
Empower – Educate – Take Action
H & I Credit Solutions
