The Quest for an SSL alternative to Alliant

[SouthJamaica]

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@Anonymous wrote:
NFCU loan went on the report today. I thought it only helped with FICO 8? These are amazing changes. Score are from 4 days before the loan posted. I’ve been going through the report to see anything else that changed to make such a big difference and couldn’t find anything. Never thought I would ever be in the 800 club. Everyone on the forum has been great.
All from Experian
Fico 8 776 to 808
Fico 2 743 to 787
Fico Auto 8 702 to 823
Fico Auto 2 723 to 773
Fico Bankcard 8 725 to 846
Fico Bankcard 3 742 to 782
Fico Bankcard 2 715 to 796

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Those are by far the most extreme stats I have ever seen for taking out an SSL and paying it down.  Are you 100% sure it's all attributable to that one event?  Usually it's worth 25-35 points in the FICO 8 scores, and it's usually not worth much in the mortgage scores.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I opened a 10-year joint-SSL at SSFCU today with the minimum balance of $10,000. No HP to join the CU, no HP for SSL application, either.

The application was instantly approved. The loan officer was concerned that prepaying the loan too early could cause the loan size to be reported to the CRAs incorrectly. However, I didn't want to pay the extra interest so paid the loan down to $500 anyway.

The next payment due is immediately pushed from June 2019 to July 2027 (i.e. 8 years and 1 month). However, the next payment amount remains unchanged (~$97). Unless the system later updates the monthly payment amount, I think the loan will be paid off around 8 years and 6 months instead of 10 years.

Will report back once the account shows on CRs.

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The SSFCU loan showed up on the reports today. My score did not change since I already have an Alliant SSL opened back in 2017. However, my wife's EX FICO8 went up from 721 to 771. With only 20 months of credit history, she's very happy with the score.

EQ reported the highest balance correctly at $10,000. EX reported the original balance correctly as well. I'm not seeing this account in TU yet.

[Anonymous]

It sounds like we may have a winner in SSFCU, folks!  I am still being cautious, but I'd say cautiously optimistic.

TtiGeR... can you recap for us in one place the answers to the following questions?

*  How difficult is it for a person to join this CU?  Is any US citizen eligible?

*  You got a 10k loan.  Are smaller loan sizes eligible for the ten year term?  If not, did you find out what the relationship is of loan size to loan term?

Based on TtiGeR's test so far, it sounds like there is no HP to join the CU, no HP for the loan, and most importantly that a huge prepayment pushes the loan way into the future.

Let me ask everyone who might read this to avoid calling the CU or trying to apply for it.  Wait until we can create a writeup that answers all questions in a way that avoids people alerting the CU that we may be impleneting this technique at their institution.  Excessive calls have scared off certain institutions in the past, so please do not call or apply right now.

[Anonymous]

I think it was stated a few pages back that SSFCU has very restrictive membership criteria. :-(

[Anonymous]

Yep Texas, Colorado and Utah only.
I considered joining myself but @Saeren convinced me not to bother.

[SouthJamaica]

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@Anonymous wrote:
I think it was stated a few pages back that SSFCU has very restrictive membership criteria. :-(

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Here they are:

• You live, work, worship, attend school, volunteer, or your business is located in Texas, Colorado, or Utah.
• You’re a member of select military branches/units or a Department of Defense employee at specific military bases within our service areas.
• You're a family or household member1 of an existing member.

[Anonymous]

Can I find a mail forwarder in Texas, change my bank account address to that, use the bank statement as proof of Texas residency, join the CU and then “move” back to the previous address?

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

It sounds like we may have a winner in SSFCU, folks!  I am still being cautious, but I'd say cautiously optimistic.

TtiGeR... can you recap for us in one place the answers to the following questions?

*  How difficult is it for a person to join this CU?  Is any US citizen eligible?

*  You got a 10k loan.  Are smaller loan sizes eligible for the ten year term?  If not, did you find out what the relationship is of loan size to loan term?

Based on TtiGeR's test so far, it sounds like there is no HP to join the CU, no HP for the loan, and most importantly that a huge prepayment pushes the loan way into the future.

Let me ask everyone who might read this to avoid calling the CU or trying to apply for it.  Wait until we can create a writeup that answers all questions in a way that avoids people alerting the CU that we may be impleneting this technique at their institution.  Excessive calls have scared off certain institutions in the past, so please do not call or apply right now.

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> How difficult is it for a person to join this CU?  Is any US citizen eligible?

I'm not a US citizen. The branch we visited had no problem opening our account using our AUS passports (probably because we provided a local address?) The address could be easily changed online. I did ask "Can a friend living in another state join?". The lady said she knew someone from California joined by attending a free online class at a local college. She said volunteers are also welcome to join even if they only volunteer locally once a year or so. She also indicated if my friend stayed with us for a few days, he could be considered a "household member". However, the official membership requirement is:

You live, work, worship, attend school, volunteer, or your business is located in Texas, Colorado, or Utah.
You’re a member of select military branches/units or a Department of Defense employee at specific military bases within our service areas.
You're a family or household member of an existing member.

> You got a 10k loan.  Are smaller loan sizes eligible for the ten year term?  If not, did you find out what the relationship is of loan size to loan term?

$10,000 min for 10 years

$4,000 min for 5 years

On the first visit, we opened a savings account. A couple of days later, our deposit became available and we sat with the loan officer for 10 minutes to open the loan. The loan was instantly approved and funded after we completed the DocuSign. I setup online banking and paid 95% off an hour later.

[Anonymous]

Ehh, are you on Green Card?

I am on Student Visa, and I am able to open an account with them. However, when I get denied when tried to apply a SSL through phone.

Planning on visit in branch but I doubt it will make any different!

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Ehh, are you on Green Card?

I am on Student Visa, and I am able to open an account with them. However, when I get denied when tried to apply a SSL through phone.

Planning on visit in branch but I doubt it will make any different!

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No. We are not permanent residents. The loan officer in the branch instantly approved the loan saying SSL has such a low risk she never personally saw any application denied in her carrer (not sure how long that was).