Credit Union - Which one?

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

We are neighbors Im in addison. Unfortunately this area is credit union hell,  there are credit1 credit unions around here, but not too much else. I had a good experience withdupage CU until they moved the branch on St Charles rd away. If you dont need branch access I would go for alliant (just tell em you go to church in elmhurst ) anybody in Dupage or kane counties can join kane county teachers as well.

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Cool , we are indeed neighbors... Would you know which beureau they hard pull for joining?

Do they require verifcation of some sort, to prove that I go to church in Elmhurst, I know this is a silly queston lol

[Anonymous]

I went into the branch on touhy and wolf rds to join alliant and they never asked. Online it asks you, but no verification. I believe alliant soft pulled eq. (Def no hard pull for either savings checking or share secured loan) KCTCU i have been a member of for way toooooo long to have any idea.dupage cu i believe was a TU puller but its been a longlong time there as well. 

[longtimelurker]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Any recommendations for any CU for my needs?

Thanks

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Honestly, I think you are overthinking the bank/CU angle.  And many of the benefits you claim for CUs aren't necessarily true.

Bank may be for-profit, but that doesn't stop them from offering better rates.  Two cars ago, the best deal I got was from my bank, not a CU (I am a member of three CUs for various reasons).  My bank was 1.5% better than any other bank or credit union I shopped.  My current car has a loan through a CU, primarily because I couldn't find anyone else to finance it (it is a 10 year old sportscar).

Also, I have no minimum balance required at my online banks, but I do at my credit unions.  It's a pittance ($5), but it's my "share" of the CU, and I can't get it back unless I close the whole account.

You also, generally, don't need to be a member of a CU to apply for a loan with that CU.  That's how I got the loan for my current car, and that became CU number 3.

When the time comes to get your auto loan, apply for preapproval at a number of banks and CUs, and see what will give you the best rate.  FICO lumps auto loan inquires together if they happen within 30 days, so don't worry about your score hit.  Once you find a good rate, then join that bank/CU and get the loan.

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Which bank is that?

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Lots of banks:  Ally, Charles Schwab, Capital One 360.  There are many others as well; those are just the ones I use (or have used in the past).

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I see Charles Schwab does a HP, others on your list dont..

With the online banks, do they send you a debit card?

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Online banks give you a debit  (/ATM) card, plus you can ACH to other banks.    In general, a well-chosen online bank is going to beat most other choices, with things like unlimited ATM fee reimbursement, much better tates on deposits etc.     They all have slightly different conditions, I use Everbank which suits my needs well.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I went into the branch on touhy and wolf rds to join alliant and they never asked. Online it asks you, but no verification. I believe alliant soft pulled eq. (Def no hard pull for either savings checking or share secured loan) KCTCU i have been a member of for way toooooo long to have any idea.dupage cu i believe was a TU puller but its been a longlong time there as well. 

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Cool, might have to try it out.

Also would you know if you join a couple of CU the same day, will FICO treat them as a single join, assuming those CU HP on joining?

[Anonymous]

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@longtimelurker wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Any recommendations for any CU for my needs?

Thanks

---

Honestly, I think you are overthinking the bank/CU angle.  And many of the benefits you claim for CUs aren't necessarily true.

Bank may be for-profit, but that doesn't stop them from offering better rates.  Two cars ago, the best deal I got was from my bank, not a CU (I am a member of three CUs for various reasons).  My bank was 1.5% better than any other bank or credit union I shopped.  My current car has a loan through a CU, primarily because I couldn't find anyone else to finance it (it is a 10 year old sportscar).

Also, I have no minimum balance required at my online banks, but I do at my credit unions.  It's a pittance ($5), but it's my "share" of the CU, and I can't get it back unless I close the whole account.

You also, generally, don't need to be a member of a CU to apply for a loan with that CU.  That's how I got the loan for my current car, and that became CU number 3.

When the time comes to get your auto loan, apply for preapproval at a number of banks and CUs, and see what will give you the best rate.  FICO lumps auto loan inquires together if they happen within 30 days, so don't worry about your score hit.  Once you find a good rate, then join that bank/CU and get the loan.

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Which bank is that?

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Lots of banks:  Ally, Charles Schwab, Capital One 360.  There are many others as well; those are just the ones I use (or have used in the past).

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I see Charles Schwab does a HP, others on your list dont..

With the online banks, do they send you a debit card?

---

Online banks give you a debit  (/ATM) card, plus you can ACH to other banks.    In general, a well-chosen online bank is going to beat most other choices, with things like unlimited ATM fee reimbursement, much better tates on deposits etc.     They all have slightly different conditions, I use Everbank which suits my needs well.

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I had a look at Everbank, they require 1500 min balance on joining for a checkings account, but then no fees per month.

Does that mean that the balance can be $0, and there would be no fees?

Also for fee reimbursement, it says:

EverBank does not charge its clients ATM fees at EverBank or other financial institution ATMs.
Other financial institutions may charge our clients a fee for using their ATM.
We will automatically reimburse our clients for other financial institution ATM fees on U.S. ATM transactions during any month that the average daily balance for the account is at least $5,000.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I went into the branch on touhy and wolf rds to join alliant and they never asked. Online it asks you, but no verification. I believe alliant soft pulled eq. (Def no hard pull for either savings checking or share secured loan) KCTCU i have been a member of for way toooooo long to have any idea.dupage cu i believe was a TU puller but its been a longlong time there as well. 

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Cool, might have to try it out.

Also would you know if you join a couple of CU the same day, will FICO treat them as a single join, assuming those CU HP on joining?

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I doubt it. Alliant is definitely a soft pull though. And they actually pay a solid dividend and have pretty good rates on cars. You can ask in branch if they soft or hard though and maybe stagger them a bit. I would probably be more worried about multiple chex system pulls, some places will reject you for a checking account if you get too many tooclose together

[ibmrad7]

I didnt read the whole thread but if you havent made a choice yet then look into BCU. Hands down the best Credit Union in this area. They even beat my auto loan rate from DCU.

[Anonymous]

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@ibmrad7 wrote:

I didnt read the whole thread but if you havent made a choice yet then look into BCU. Hands down the best Credit Union in this area. They even beat my auto loan rate from DCU.

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How the heck did I not know about them. Eesh good call, soon as I close on my house I will be joining them. 

[Anonymous]

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@ibmrad7 wrote:

I didnt read the whole thread but if you havent made a choice yet then look into BCU. Hands down the best Credit Union in this area. They even beat my auto loan rate from DCU.

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Cool, will look into that too. Do they HP or SP?

Thanks

[ibmrad7]

Cool, will look into that too. Do they HP or SP?

Thanks.

It's going to be a HP on TU mostly but they give you multiple offers with the same pull. I have a referral code sitting with me, let me know if you would like to use.