NFCU Eligibility Question

[Caardvark]

Hoping someone familiar with NFCU eligibility can confirm my plan is valid.

Long ago I gave up on the notion of joining NFCU because no one in my immediate family was in the armed forces. However, just the other day I was having a conversation with my uncle-in-law and he mentioned he was a member of NFCU (he was in the Navy). And, of course, he was singing its praises.

This got me thinking so I did some research and think I may have a path to membership.

1. My father-in-law (brother of my uncle-in-law) could join since he is an immediate family member
2. My father-in-law could then sponsor my wife for membership
3. My wife could then sponsor me

Is this a legitimate path?

[Anonymous]

Yes that is a legitimate path to membership. Make sure that your uncle-in-law gets his DD214 on file with NFCU though so the security team doesn’t freeze all of the accounts waiting for verification from him.

[Caardvark]

Thanks. I'll let him know.

One more question: Can my father-in-law sponsor me? Or, will my wife need to join first, then sponsor me? She'll be joining regardless of the answer but it would reduce the number of indirect sponsors if my father in law can sponsor me directly. 

I saw that it says "stepchildren" as eligible but I did not see "in-laws."

[Anonymous]

I wouldn’t think in-laws would count. Best to do direct family members, it’s far less likely to come under scrutiny in review. 

[CreditInspired]

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@Caardvark wrote:

Hoping someone familiar with NFCU eligibility can confirm my plan is valid.

Long ago I gave up on the notion of joining NFCU because no one in my immediate family was in the armed forces. However, just the other day I was having a conversation with my uncle-in-law and he mentioned he was a member of NFCU (he was in the Navy). And, of course, he was singing its praises.

This got me thinking so I did some research and think I may have a path to membership.

1. My father-in-law (brother of my uncle-in-law) could join since he is an immediate family member
2. My father-in-law could then sponsor my wife for membership
3. My wife could then sponsor me

Is this a legitimate path?

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Your FIL can sponsor you directly 😁

[UncleB]

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@CreditInspired wrote:

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@Caardvark wrote:

Hoping someone familiar with NFCU eligibility can confirm my plan is valid.

Long ago I gave up on the notion of joining NFCU because no one in my immediate family was in the armed forces. However, just the other day I was having a conversation with my uncle-in-law and he mentioned he was a member of NFCU (he was in the Navy). And, of course, he was singing its praises.

This got me thinking so I did some research and think I may have a path to membership.

1. My father-in-law (brother of my uncle-in-law) could join since he is an immediate family member
2. My father-in-law could then sponsor my wife for membership
3. My wife could then sponsor me

Is this a legitimate path?

---

Your FIL can sponsor you directly 😁

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+1

If it will make you feel any better you can give them a call, but I'm confident you'll be fine. 

Also, no worries on the DD-214 for your relative; since he's an established member it's exceptionally unlikely there will be any issues (NFCU likely verified everything on him long ago).  All he needs to do is provide his NFCU access number to his brother (your FIL) so your FIL can become a member... after that, he's out of the picture.

I joined just a week after my step-brother (he was active USAF at the time) and it's been smooth sailing for both of us.

Side note:  The vast majority (99%) of verification issues we see are when someone joins as a 'roommate', then others join via that new member.  When someone joins via an existing NFCU member who was military it's exceedingly rare for there to be any qualification/verification concerns, since NFCU is said to have ways to check those things.

[Caardvark]

Thank you all!

I think I am all set! My wife's half-brother is a marine and, I just found out, a member of NFCU. I had totally forgotten he was in the marines (he's been discharged for nearly 10 years) and that that made us eligible. Duh!

He sent us his Access Code today so I'll be joining tomorrow! 

[UncleB]

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@Caardvark wrote:

Thank you all!

I think I am all set! My wife's half-brother is a marine and, I just found out, a member of NFCU. I had totally forgotten he was in the marines (he's been discharged for nearly 10 years) and that that made us eligible. Duh!

He sent us his Access Code today so I'll be joining tomorrow! 

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That's fantastic!  (Not to mention so much simpler than the other way you had proposed! )

I joined late one night back in November 2015, and less than an hour later I was "nudged" by some good folks on here to app for a card... I was insta-approved for the lowest APR and largest credit line that I had ever been given up to that point.   

(My two NFCU cards combined make NFCU my most generous lender, at $44.2k.)

I look forward to hearing how they work out for you! 

[Caardvark]

Ha! It's on my list come May but I'm staying in the garden until then. I have a few things going on with my reports this month and I'm curious to see if anything changes. My most recent severe late (90-days) turns 4 years old next month and I'd like to see if I eek out a few extra points. 

Whether I do or not, I'll be applying shortly thereafter. 

Is the UW standard the same for the flagship vs other cards? That's the one I'm interested in.

[UncleB]

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@Caardvark wrote:

Ha! It's on my list come May but I'm staying in the garden until then. I have a few things going on with my reports this month and I'm curious to see if anything changes. My most recent severe late (90-days) turns 4 years old next month and I'd like to see if I eek out a few extra points. 

Whether I do or not, I'll be applying shortly thereafter. 

Is the UW standard the same for the flagship vs other cards? That's the one I'm interested in.

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Keep in mind there's no HP for membership, so you can get that knocked-out now even if you want to wait to apply for products later on.

The UW is said to be similar (if not identical) for all their cards, with the caveat that the Flagship has a minimum $5k credit line. 

Note that once you have any of their cards they are really good about letting you PC to another one, with the APR adjusted to the new product.  For example, if you PC from the low-APR Platinum to a rewards card they'll increase your APR to the equivalent for the new product, and if you PC from a rewards card to a Platinum you'll (usually) get an APR reduction.

More info on all of this can be found here:  https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Card-Applications/Navy-Federal-Thread-for-CLI-and-Additional...