Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with creditunion

What is the best way for me to try to get a debt consolidation loan?

drjimmy11 — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 22:17:49 -0800

What is the best way for me to try to get a debt consolidation loan? I have around $20k of credit card deb. The interest rates vary, some are quite high and some are decent. I have a decent salary and I could pay it off in a few years, but I would prefer to get a debt consolidation loan and pay that instead.

The issues:
1. My credit score isn't very good, around 650 at the moment. When the financial crisis hit, a bunch of my cards closed my account or lowered the credit limit right down to the balance I was carrying. Ratio of debt to available credit is the main thing holding my score down- prior to the crisis it was up around 700.

2. I have one debt consolidation loan from my credit union already. This will be paid off in about 3 more payments. This was a "special offer" they had and I'm not sure they offer any specific debt consolidation loan right now. I also owe my bank about $3500 on a Visa card they issue. I've had an account there for about 9 years now and in general they've been great.

I'd like to get a loan to pay off some or all of the debt. A good interest rate would be nice, but I realize that's probably not going to happen in the current climate and with my crummy credit score. My main goal is get the debt off my credit cards and get my credit score back up.

So my questions are:

What's the best way to approach my bank about this? I don't want to just randomly start applying for loans without knowing if I'll be accepted. I'd like to get a little more insight into the process they use:
-Will I help my chances if I pay off the credit card they issue first? -Will it significantly help my chances if I finish paying my current loan before asking for another one?
-How much of a factor is the amount I ask for? I would be happy even being able to borrow $10k or so. When asking for these kind of loans, does it make sense to just ask for a high amount, and then they will meet you with what they're willing to lend, rather than just saying "no?" I think that's how it happened last time.
-Does it hurt my credit score to apply for and be turned down for a loan?
-If anyone has insight into the inner workings of giving loans, I'd be curious to hear an estimate of what kind of credit score is generally needed to get a loan like this.

Finally, is there any website that would help me find other banks that might be willing to give me this loan? Or are there any other novel solutions to revive my credit score I'm missing? I realize no one is lending much money right now, so the only answer may well be "just pay it off yourself."

Other data:
-I don't want to go into debt consolidation or bankruptcy.
-I rent and lack many other valuable assets. My car is old and beat up.
-I am in California.

This is not a referendum on the wisdom of my past financial decisions. Thank you.

Think global, bank local?

Mender — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 08:45:32 -0800

Do you use a credit union based in Brooklyn or Manhattan? If so, which one, and have you had a good experience there? I keep a savings account with a major national bank, and have been considering switching it to a local credit union. Looking for recommendations for credit unions in Brooklyn or Manhattan (I would also consider Queens). Tell me about your experience and why you would or would not suggest a particular organization.

Bonus question: is there a reason I should not put a large chunk of my savings in a credit union? I am not a financial risk taker, so if there are risks I might not be considering, please let me know! Anything I should know about credit unions in general?

Full faith and credit of the US Government or an insurance company I've never heard of

zombiedance — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 21:51:11 -0800

My credit union (in California) switched from being federally insured to private insurance through American Mutual Share Insurance Corporation (aka ASI). Should I put my money elsewhere? Or am I needlessly worrying? I feel like I understand the level of risk/safety with a federally insured account. My gut reaction is that my money is now at greater risk -- if the credit union fails, rather than being backed by the government, it would be backed by another private firm that could, itself, fail. But this is pretty much just conjecture on my part, and up until now I've been pretty happy with my current credit union.

Tellers in crappy polos and aprons need not apply.

thebestsophist — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 10:45:05 -0800

Help me find a good credit union or small bank around Milwaukee, WI. I recently opened a business account with Guardian Credit Union but have had nothing but trouble and terribly unprofessional service. I need to move, and soon. I've had experience with other banks in the Wisconsin area, such as US Bank, Wells Fargo (though the closest one I've seen was Madison), and Associated Bank. I will not do business with any of them every again. I would think my requirements are simple, but apparently not:

Professionalism. I am never doing business with a bank where the teller is not wearing at least a button down shirt or blouse ever again. If someone is handling several thousand dollars of my money, I want them to dress like it.

Payroll for me, and my partner.

Online banking, including electronic transfers (not that many, just need to be able to do them).

Decent interest rates on savings, and checking if possible.

Responsive customer service. If I call and leave a voicemail, I expect to get a response in one business day.

Things such as being able to have a relationship with my banker, is a big plus.

What's a good bank or credit union in Las Vegas?

metalheart — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 05:40:21 -0800

Henderson, NV / Las Vegas Filter: What bank or credit union would work best for us? You've all been really helpful with my other Vegas-related questions, so hopefully this time will be no different! My fiance and I are in search of a good bank or credit union to use in Las Vegas, now that we've moved here. Here are some of the things we're looking for in a bank/credit unions:

- Low/few fees.

- Good online banking that will hook up with Mint. We're geeks.

- Fairly good savings account rates. It'd be nice if it was with the same bank/credit union as our checking, but I suppose it's not absolutely necessary.

- Something that links up pretty well internationally. We've moved from Melbourne, Australia, and we both intend to travel back there, as well as elsewhere in the world, and it would be nice if we could just stick with the one bank/credit union without trouble. I know that'd likely be Bank of America, but we've not heard great things about it, so if someone knows something better, we'd like to know about it.

Any other recommendations or advice would be greatly appreciated, too, of course. Thanks!

Chicago banks and credit unions, redux

korpios — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 10:04:16 -0800

What's the best bank or credit union in the Chicago area? I just found out that I can't deposit cash, money orders, or third-party checks into my E-Trade Bank account, which is a deal-breaker. (My fiancée can't open a bank account, so she needs to deposit her paychecks into my account ... and E-Trade won't accept them, signed over and all.)

I need excellent online banking that works fine in Firefox (I do everything online), physical locations (I've learned my lesson here re: deposits), ample no-charge ATMs (or fee reimbursements for third-party ATMs), and free checking.

I'm aware of this post from 2006, but every suggestion there was shot down by someone else. Is there better advice to be had in 2008? ^_^

Durham, NC: What's your favorite credit union?

take me to the river — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 15:10:27 -0800

I’m looking for a full-service credit union in or around Durham, NC. I'd like to join a local credit union for personal checking and savings and a future small business loan/business checking and savings. I want great customer service (don’t want to feel like just a number, which is why I’ve avoided banks for the most part). Self-Help Credit Union is intriguing, and I’d love to hear from anyone who’s had experience with them.

Seattle: Need a new credit union or bank!

Bob Dobbs — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 12:56:37 -0800

Seattle: Please recommend a great bank or hopefully credit union Hello All,

We just moved to just south of Seattle. Will likely be moving much closer if not into Seattle proper or north Seattle in the next few months.

I am looking for a great bank or ideally full service credit union. I have a couple needs:
1. Personal checking
2. Business checking and saving
3. Have to have EXCELLENT customer service. ie. I want to be able to email and or call managerial level people at the bank directly once in a great while. Do not want to deal with a central answering service in India. CANNOT deal with large monolithic "you are a number" impersonal banks.
4. Excellent online banking services with easy transfers between accounts. Online bill pay is a nice feature but not essential.
5. We will likely be looking at buying a home and car within the next year or two; would like to have a place that can handle all this for us.

I'm more partial to credit unions if possible.

Thanks!

Any Prosper.com Borrowers in Da House?

WCityMike — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 15:13:34 -0800

I'd welcome hearing of Mefites who have had experiences with the Prosper website as a borrower. (Or, if no one can help me on that, recommendations for Chicago or national credit unions accessible to most anyone.) My searches seem to indicate that lendors are pleased with their return for the most part, but I've found little feedback from borrowers about their experiences on the site. Although I very much welcome experiences or feedback on the site of any sort, my concerns are primarily with regard to security of the institution (it feels a bit Web 2.0 experimental, and I'm concerned what would happen if the whole thing went 'poof!'). I am also wondering if I would be able to find a loan for my intended amount — I do not own a car or a house that I could offer as collateral, but would ideally like to move a debt from three credit cards that is not precisely ... small. (I'd rather not name the amount unless I really have to.)

Over the last month, I've cut a lot of fat from my monthly expenses, but my last step is to see if I can find a less interest-heavy home for my credit card debt. (I also find myself resenting the zero-tolerance policies with one of my lendors wherein a payment made online one day late result in a rate hike and a late fee.)

Alternatively, can anyone share good experiences with, or recommend, credit unions that would be accessible to anyone or that would be available to an average Chicagoan?

ATMfilter: How to prove my ATM really did give me the wrong amount?

smashingstars — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 14:06:49 -0800

My credit union's ATM gave me too little money. It's a moderately small error, however, I have reason to believe this won't easily be resolved. How can I prove there was an ATM error, and what course of action should I take to get my money back? Friday night my husband and I withdrew $200 via our credit union's ATM. In the stack of $20s was a five dollar bill, which meant we received $185 instead of $200. As it was the weekend I emailed their customer service, and followed up with a phone call when they opened today.

The employee I spoke to all but accused me of lying about the $15. She said said someone had printed out my email and given it to everyone in the CU, and the issue had already been referred to the president of the CU, who is supposed to call me back Wednesday. I got the impression the president is just going to tell me there's nothing they can do.

Since I had absolutely no idea where to even begin with this, I started reading previous ATM questions on MeFi. While I'm now convinced this is human error, I'm still not quite sure how to proceed with the CU. I'm concerned because I don't know how this $15 discrepancy can be proven. It seems like a situation where it's my word versus the ATM's. If this is a case of a $5 bill accidentally being placed in the stack of $20s, would the machine even detect the error? What sorts of things should have shown up when the CU looked into this situation?

Do you think it would be effective to give the CU suggestions on how to find the $15 error? It's a small CU in a small town, and I'm afraid they might simply not know what to do in this situation because it's never come up before. What kinds of suggestions can I make?

Should I switch from a bank to a credit union?

starbaby — Wed, 28 Jun 2006 09:39:28 -0800

CreditFilter: Does opening a new account look worse on your credit than keeping an older one? I have a savings account with a very credible, very loan-friendly credit union. I also have several checking accounts [among my boyfriend and myself, not just alone] through a not-so-nice bank. I have heard that the credit union is the way to go when I finally decide to purchase a house. I have also been told that they are more likely to give me a loan if I do my checking with them, as they can see my withdrawals and deposits.

The bank I am currently using and I have not been getting along. They have been charging us overdraft charges when I don't think they should have been, and I have more than once had to actually call them and clear up some problems with our accounts.

I would like to switch my checking account from the bank to the credit union. I am worried, however, that a switch in my account history would end up hurting my credit. Does anyone know if this is a valid fear, or is to so small as to not matter on a credit history?

What other factors might I be missing when considering switching from a bank to a credit union?

[For the record, I have had the bank account for around three years, and the savings account for about two.]

Thanks in advance.