About Credit Unions

You're an Owner

When you deposit money into a credit union savings account, you become a member and an owner. While other financial institutions pay profits to outside stockholders, credit unions return their net earnings to their own member-owners through high dividends (interest) on savings and low rates on loans.

The Board of Directors sets policy while various committees provide guidance to the Credit Union's professional staff and oversee all aspects of the Credit Union's operations. These unpaid volunteers have a personal interest in the credit union's success because they are member-owners just like you.

Private, Not-for-Profit Institution

Credit unions are government-chartered to serve specific, restricted groups of people based on some common bond. Services are typically custom-designed to meet the specialized needs of the field of membership.

High Quality and Affordable Financial Services

Credit unions are cooperative organizations that began in Europe to combat the then-common practice of the wealthy lending money at high rates of interest to those less fortunate. People banded together in protest and started to pool their available money and lend it, at reasonable rates, to their peers in need.

"People helping people" is the basic premise of credit unions — then and now.

Most large credit unions provide a full range of services that are equal to or better than those at other financial institutions. Credit unions typically have lower loan rates, pay higher dividends, and often have low or no fees. These are just some of the benefits of being a member of Spectrum.

Federally Insured

Funds on deposit at credit unions are insured up to $250,000 by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), an agency of the federal government. The NCUA has stronger backing per dollar than either of its counterparts, the FDIC (insuring banks) and FSLIC (insuring savings and loans).