Credit/Debt Recovery

Credit Unions Vs. Banks

There's a great article in this week's U.S. News and World Report about credit unions drawing fire from banks.

I heard some rumbling about this a couple of years ago at a credit union conference; they were concerned about the banks' impending efforts to strip Credit Unions of their non-profit status. Now, it seems, the banks are ready to strike.

If you've read my book, you know I'm pro-credit union. If you haven't read my book, do so! It's only ten bucks.

Ahem. The banks are wrong on this one, plain and simple. They're greedy, they're losing the battle for customers, and they're getting what they deserve. Now they want to cry foul and punish credit unions for serving the community better than they do.

That's just my take; I have a lot of reasons for believing credit unions are superior to banks, but let me provide just one. When I was trying to bring the Get Checking program to the Inland Empire, I had a lot of trouble getting banks to sign up, but credit unions were much more receptive. On balance, I just believe that CU's are truly more committed to their members than banks are.

Changes in Banking in October

This article from MSNBC talks about the "Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act" which goes into effect in October.

It will gradually eliminate the "float" time on checks, so no more writing a check on Wednesday when you know the funds won't be there until Friday. Checks will be processed immediately, so you'd better have the money when you write it.

Of course I haven't written a check in a long time; I don't even order blank checks from the bank anymore. How long until we do away with paper checks altogether and use plastic for everything?

And I'm not talking about credit cards... I think the rise of debit cards has reinforced the idea in consumers' minds that you can't spend more than you have in the bank... maybe that's why credit card delinquencies are down...

And stay tuned this week... I'm gearing up some posts that are going to shake things up. It's time to call some creditors to account for their shameful "predatory servicing" practices. We'll start that ball rolling tomorrow.