I like the idea of a less profit-driven business that is maybe more community-focused but I wonder if they have the same capability as a bank? Have you been able to do your banking needs at a credit union? Was the customer service decent?
Hey, I’m a banker. Obviously, credit unions are smaller businesses than a large bank. If you haven’t used a small bank before, note that it is different.
But the biggest thing that I can think of you may not expect is that credit unions are not insured the same as a bank. Some may be insured adequately for your needs, or they may not. Do your homework.
Considering the competition, they are all good in comparison.
To find a great one is rare though.
Edit: I see lots of bad experiences and figured I should add more context. I use credit unions that are not available to the public. There is a requirement to work somewhere for all my CUs. Perhaps that is why i have had better luck.
I believe the bad stories, we live in the shitter multiverse after all.
Excellent, I only use credit unions.
I currently don’t have an account with a CU at the moment but based on what I’ve heard from people in my city, they are great with what they stand for, have great loan rates, and are friendly. The main problem is that they lag behind with technology. Their online banking and mobile apps are slow, buggy, and lack features. So make sure to take that into account.
I have, until recently, tried to bank only with credit unions. I have had a couple of poor experiences but nothing awful enough to get me to go back to banks.
As with anything else, do your homework. Not all credit unions are the same and not all are run well.
What you need from a credit union will help determine your choice. A couple near me focus on home mortgages while another is all about CDs and savings.
I do my own investing and found myself using CashApp more and more for lots of things and ended up closing my credit union account because I was getting just as good a deal on ATMs and services I used frequently.
