North Penn Federal Credit Union News

Winter 2003 Newsletter

Special Loan Promotion: Mortgage Rates at All Time Low

Your Credit Union wants to offer Mortgage and Home Equity Loans at all time low rates. However, you will have to act promptly, because this promotion could end at any time based on the number of applicants, and the amount of money they want to borrow. Your Board of Directors has authorized an amount of $1,500,000.00 to be put into this promotion. We are looking for members who want to pay off existing mortgages or borrow for a new Home Equity Loan.

The rates for this promotion will be 5.9% up to 5 years, and 6.4% up to 10 years, if you qualify. If your present mortgage or Home Equity Loan is at a higher rate than this, you may be able to refinance and reduce your monthly payments or eliminate several years from your loan and save thousands of dollars in interest.

You will be able to refinance your loan for the exactamount you presently owe or you may qualify for an additional sum based on the equity in your property. If you have two or more loans at present, you will be able to consolidate them into one mortgage payment. Don’t miss out on this offer, call the Credit Union today for more information.

Top Four Financial Resolutions for the New Year

The New Year has begun, and once again it’s time to make all of those resolutions. In addition to the many vows you have made to yourself this year, like losing those last five pounds or spending more time with your family and friends, you should adopt these financial resolutions to help you to be more money savvy in the coming year.

4. When it comes to loans, consolidation is the key. Writing out check after check can get pretty tiring. Furthermore, it must be discouraging to keep paying on your loans when the principal never appears to go down. Therefore, you should talk to a loan officer at your Credit Union to discuss the possibility of consolidating your loans. First, it will be much easier for you to pay your bills each month, which will help you to avoid those late payment fees. Secondly, you will be able to combine your loans at a lower interest rate, which will help you to save money.

3. When it comes to savings accounts, consolidation is NOT the key. When you combine all of your savings in one account, it becomes difficult to distinguish the exact amounts that you are saving for each item. Therefore, utilize the various accounts that your Credit Union offers, including vacation club or other special accounts. Then, be sure that you have separate accounts for any large expenditure for which you are saving your money, such as a down payment on a home, purchase of a large appliance, or well deserved getaway.

2. Save now for a brighter future. College education costs continue to rise as quickly as they have in the past. Currently, a public school education costs approximately $10,000 per year, while private school costs are in excess of $25,000 per year. Now is the perfect time to begin saving for your child’s education. Open a custodial savings account for your child, and allocate a specific amount from each of your paychecks to be saved for a better tomorrow.

1. Budgetwith reason. Use the 60-30-10 principle. The amount of your total household bills should not exceed 60
percent of your net income. That 60 percent should include your mortgage/rent, car payment, credit card bills,
medical expenses, grocery bills, etc. Then, you should invest 30 percent of your income into options with which
you feel comfortable. You should be sure to diversify your portfolio so that you have investments of differing degrees of risk, maturity dates, and liquidity (stocks, bonds, Tbills, Certificates of Deposit, IRAs, and savings accounts). Lastly, you should use the remaining 10 percent of your net income strictly for fun. Be sure to include using the Credit Union among your New Year’s resolutions!

IRA Deadline Approaches

You still have until April 15th to make deposits for 2002 contributions to your IRA account. Get those deposits in as soon as possible.

If you have IRA certificates in other institutions that are maturing in 2003, we would like you to consider transferring those funds to an IRA account at your Credit Union. If you have any questions on how to do this, contact your Credit Union office. We can arrange to transfer the funds from the bank to your Credit Union. We are sure you will find the Credit Union rates competitive or higher than other institutions.

You can also make rollovers to your IRA account. The Credit Union offers both Traditional IRA and Roth IRA accounts. IRAs are still an excellent way to defer valuable income until you retire

Protecting Your Credit
and ATM Cards from Theft

It’s a safe bet to assume that someone somewhere is looking for something you probably have – your credit or ATM cards. With millions of credit and ATM cards in circulation, thieves need not look too hard to find victims.

The best protections against card fraud are to know where your cards are at all times, and to keep them secure. For ATM card protection, it’s important to keep your Personal Identification Number (PIN) a secret. Don’t use

your address, birth date, phone or Social Security Number. Memorize the number. Statistics show that in one-third of ATM card frauds, cardholders had written their PINS on their ATM cards or on slips of paper kept with their cards.

The following suggestions from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) may help you protect your credit and ATM card accounts.

For Credit Cards:

• Don’t disclose your account number over the phone, unless you know you are dealing with a reputable company.
• Never write your account number on the outside of an envelope or on a postcard.
• Draw a line through blank spaces on charge slips above the total so the amount can not be changed.
• Don’t sign a blank charge slip.
• Tear up carbons and save your receipts to check against your monthly billing statements.
• Open billing statements promptly and compare them with your receipts. Report mistakes or discrepancies as soon as possible to the special address listed on your statement for “billing inquiries.” Under the Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA), the card issuer must investigate billing errors reported to them within 60 days of the date your statement was mailed to you.
• Keep a record in a safe place–separate from your cards–of your account numbers, expiration dates and the telephone numbers of each card issuer so you can report a loss quickly.
• Carry only those cards that you anticipate you’ll need.

For ATM cards:

• Don’t carry your PIN in your wallet or purse or write it on your ATM card.
• Never write your PIN on the outside of a deposit slip, an envelope or on a postcard.
• Take your ATM receipt after completing a transaction.
• Reconcile all ATM receipts with Credit Union or bank statements as soon as possible.

Top Four Financial Resolutions for the New Year

IRA Deadline Approaches

Protecting Your Credit and ATM Cards from Theft

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Protecting Your Credit
and ATM Cards from Theft