Are Relationships with CUs Real?

[Anonymous]

I'm a member of USCCU, and they've been nothing but awesome to me. Gave me my first credit card, and I have the email of multiple of their people who I've built a relationship with that I can just email with questions about my account and the like.

[creditguy]

Anyone who is a member of a CU trechnically has a relationship with that respective CU. joining establishes the relationship but everything you apply for from there on is based on numbers and not friendship or relationship. All that warm fuzzy feeling of relationship goes out the window if you don't have the scores, income or CR to back up what your applying for. So while relationship may give you friendlier service from a teller it doesn't do squat for borrowing money.

[Anonymous]

I hate my CU.  Got my first CC with them when I was 18 and used it 5-10 times a month into my mid 30's.  Had a $10k limit; I usually kept the balance in the $2-3k range so I never got another card.  Many times I paid in full.  ZERO late payments for 15+ years.  Highest balance I EVER had on it was $5400 once, quickly brought it back down.  For the last 3 years of having the card I also set up an automatic $400/mo payment to it so while the minimum payment was $54 or something they always got $400.  Esentially it was impossible for them to not get paid and I always had $5-10k in my checking account (their account) that it pulled the $400 from.  Last year I went and applied for a car loan through Honda and the dealership did the usual check with 15 nearby lenders for the best interest rate.  One of them was my CU who did not offer the best rate; I ended up with someone else.  My score dropped a little with the new account/debt opening and within 2 weeks I receive a letter in the mail from my CU that they are closing my CC.  I pleaded with a human being about it but it got me no where.  The system "flagged me" and that was that.  Basically computer equation shut me down and an institution that I had been with for almost 20 years was willing to do nothing about it.  I asked them to just lower the limit to whatever number they have to in order to keep the account open and they said no.  Anyway my AAoA dropped significantly since it was my oldest line, and of course my score then dropped significantly.  Since it was my only CC my utilization went to 100% and it stayed 100% because I picked up a new CC that gave me a $3000 limit and that was about the balance I was carrying on the CU card.  My CU totally ruined my 2015 and even nearing half way into 2016 I'm still clawing my way back to where I was prior to them cancelling my CC for no good reason.

[Revelate]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I hate my CU.  Got my first CC with them when I was 18 and used it 5-10 times a month into my mid 30's.  Had a $10k limit; I usually kept the balance in the $2-3k range so I never got another card.  Many times I paid in full.  ZERO late payments for 15+ years.  Highest balance I EVER had on it was $5400 once, quickly brought it back down.  For the last 3 years of having the card I also set up an automatic $400/mo payment to it so while the minimum payment was $54 or something they always got $400.  Esentially it was impossible for them to not get paid and I always had $5-10k in my checking account (their account) that it pulled the $400 from.  Last year I went and applied for a car loan through Honda and the dealership did the usual check with 15 nearby lenders for the best interest rate.  One of them was my CU who did not offer the best rate; I ended up with someone else.  My score dropped a little with the new account/debt opening and within 2 weeks I receive a letter in the mail from my CU that they are closing my CC.  I pleaded with a human being about it but it got me no where.  The system "flagged me" and that was that.  Basically computer equation shut me down and an institution that I had been with for almost 20 years was willing to do nothing about it.  I asked them to just lower the limit to whatever number they have to in order to keep the account open and they said no.  Anyway my AAoA dropped significantly since it was my oldest line, and of course my score then dropped significantly.  Since it was my only CC my utilization went to 100% and it stayed 100% because I picked up a new CC that gave me a $3000 limit and that was about the balance I was carrying on the CU card.  My CU totally ruined my 2015 and even nearing half way into 2016 I'm still clawing my way back to where I was prior to them cancelling my CC for no good reason.

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That's wierd, but at least closing the account had no immediate impact to AAOA, if it's on the file, it counts.  That 3K/3K though, yuck.

Guess moral of this story is to always diversify.

[Anonymous]

Yup, no doubt about it.  I'll never only have 1 or 2 cards ever again.  I figure if that can happen with a near perfect account it can happen to any account any time.  I just really don't like the way the situation was handled; there was definitely no "relationship" feel with the CU.  I feel like if a lender is going to cancel your account at X score or whatever, at X+Y with Y being whatever buffer brings you up to the "nearing the danger zone" level, once someone's score touches the X+Y range something should happen.  The lender could call, send a letter, SOMETHING.  Maybe drop the CL by 50% and send a letter saying the CL was dropped 50% due to a drop in credit score.  If the score continues to drop, we reserve the right to and WILL cancel you account.  If your score returns to where it was, we will consider a CLI.  It just really sucks that there's no warning or "chance" to remedy a problem, especially when many times the customer doesn't even realize there is a problem.  I can understand some of the bigger institutions not wanting to waste their time with this (although it would be nice and certainly help their CS ratings) but you'd think smaller CU's would at least reach out once before pulling the plug.