topic Re: Joining to different credit unions? in General Credit Topics

Joining to different credit unions?

Poorboi — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 02:15:35 GMT

I'm a member of my job credit union , is it a good idea to join another one ? Will it help me at all

Re: Joining to different credit unions?

llecs — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 02:23:17 GMT

I'd expect another inquiry. Aside from that, IMO, it doesn't hurt to join more than one. Just keep an eye on any fees.

Re: Joining to different credit unions?

lashaun3 — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 03:52:04 GMT

I just joined my 2nd credit union. The 1st Credit Union I have been a member of for about 5 years. They are very conservative with lending, etc. So I decided to join another as more of an experiment. I joined and applied for a personal loan on the same day last week, they approved me. Then today, they approved me for a credit card. So it depends on your individual needs, if you're looking for checking/savings, loans/credit, investments/insurance, etc. it may be beneficial to join two.

Re: Joining to different credit unions?

TheConductor — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 14:42:09 GMT

There can definitely be advantages to having two.

Credit unions that are more conservative in their lending practices may be able to pay higher dividends on savings, money market, etc.

Meanwhile, those same credit unions may be harder to get a loan from. Whereas a CU that pays out lower amounts may be more liberal in extending to you the credit you need.

Horses for courses, as the saying goes.

Re: Joining to different credit unions?

chasmith — Sat, 13 Oct 2012 12:25:41 GMT

I learned from experience in the financial crisis that having everything in one or two financial institutions can hurt you when one decides to change course. There's also the risk of mergers etc. causing a negative turn.

I choose to belong to two CUs (NFCU and my job CU) and USAA (more like a CU than a bank).