Are Credit Unions Really The Best Place To Do Your Banking
A consumer needs $20,000 to help with renovation work that he wants to complete and he also wants to know, are credit unions really the best place to do your banking? On the loan front this consumers is not in bad shape financially and should qualify for a relatively low interest loan to help him complete the renovation work on his home. His credit rating is in good shape. He and his wife both have good jobs with some security or at least as much as you can expect these days.
Regarding his question about credit unions, the answer is that it really depends on what your priorities are for banking services and products. For example, big banks usually have ATM networks across the country providing easy access to your accounts from many different locations. Credit Unions are usually local and as a result have to rely on ATM networks of others which sometimes can make costs for withdrawals higher.
Credit unions tend to pay better interest for money in accounts, however with interest rates so low these days, this is not a significant factor at the time of preparing this post.
Since credit unions are usually local, they tend to be smaller organizations and friendlier as well. Customers service can be a bit more personal which many consumers prefer. In addition since credit unions are smaller and have less overhead to be concerned about, they tend to have lower fees than many banks. If you do a lot of transactions or need to take advantage of a particular suite of services, you may want to compare the total fees that would be charged by both parties before making your decision.
Bottom line, depending on what services and financial products you need to fit your particularly lifestyle, either banks or credit unions may be the best place to do your banking. Evaluate each of them based on your needs before making your decision.
DEFAULT LOAN APPLICATION FOR BORROWER’S INFORMATION
Home/Mortgage Loan Amount :: $20,000
Home Loan Application and Processing Speed (when do you need the funds):: not in a hurry, just want to know what you think about credit unions as lenders
Do you currently have a mortgage? :: yes a mortgage and a car loan
Bank Name and Branch :: Wells Fargo Bank, Broadway
What City/Town, State and County do you live in? :: Oakland, California
Zip :: 94611
What is your employment field? :: Food Services industry
Employment Position :: Sales to local restaurants
When are you paid? (monthly/weekly/biweekly):: Biweekly
Your credit rating to be – excellent, fair, or bad? :: Fair to excellent
How did you find us? :: Looking for loans online and also information about credit unions
How are you paid? (direct deposit/paper check):: Direct deposit
Gross Amount Per Paycheck :: $2500
Do you agree to have this information published online, without your PRIVATE information of course? :: Sure as long as the personal stuff is kept private
Extra information here please (some detail):: My wife and I are planning to do some renovations to our home and we will need a loan to help pay for these renovations. We are considering several options in terms of how much we want to try to accomplish. Ultimately it will depend on how much we can borrow and how much we can afford to pay each month. We have an existing mortgage as well as a car loan and do not want to exceed our budget for loan payments. If we can find a lender that will provide us with a low cost low interest loan and no fees, then we will probably proceed with everything that we are planning.
One of the questions we have is whether credit unions are really the best place to do your banking and whether we can get a competitive loan from a credit union? We currently bank with a local credit union. We find that the service is fine, however sometimes we hear from friends about services that are not offered by our credit union. Should we change to a bank? Should we look for loans beyond our credit union? Any thoughts or information you can provide in this area would be helpful.
Note to Lender :: I work in the food services industry, supplying processed foods and fresh food to restaurants in the area. I meet with customers all over the city, taking orders and also ensuring that they are getting the services and the foods that they need on time in the freshest condition possible. It is very competitive, however we have a well established clientele and are adding customers on a regular basis.
My wife also works at a local company as an office manager. She gets paid biweekly and makes almost as much as I do. Note that we did not include her income in the answers to the questions above. She has been with the company for many years and we anticipate that this will also continue.
We would be interested in hearing what kind of loan interest rate would be available to us as well as your thoughts on credit unions and whether they are the best place to do our banking.