Whenever I meet someone for the first time, and I tell them that I work with a Credit Union one of the inevitable questions they always ask is, what is the benefit of joining a Credit Union? This has caused me to begin wondering if there may be some members who have recently joined the JTA Credit Union family who are asking the same thing; or perhaps there is someone who is thinking about joining and is asking themself the same question. What is the benefit of joining the credit union?

It is tempting for me to invite such persons to ask their work colleagues about the JTA Co-op Credit Union, to find out from them how they feel about being a part of our family by simply listening to some of the positive things that our members have to say about us. I feel though that, that will only give a part of the picture and I am convinced that a full picture needs to be seen. Another temptation is to give the simple answer; why not try it for yourself and see? The Credit Union only works with you when you work with it, what do I mean by that? Allow me to explain.

What is a Credit Union

What is a credit union? A basic question I know, but to get a full understanding of how you can work with a credit union you need to know what such and organization is. Essentially, a credit union is a community-based organization, it is a group of like-minded people who have bonded together financially to assist each other and grow. The main principle behind credit unions is the idea of people helping people. Therefore, each member who is a part of the community has the opportunity to grow financially and help others do the same. When new members join our family, we emphasize to them the value of saving. If you talk with any of our representatives you will hear them say that you need to “build up their shares.” Why is this important?

Why Save?

Saving is what gives you power with the JTA Credit Union. You know that old saying by Benjamin Franklin a penny saved is a penny earned. Of course today we use dollars not pennies, but the principle remains the same and is especially true with the JTA Credit Union. Here we pride ourselves in being able to pay our members an annual dividend or profit. To benefit from this annual payout members need to have something saved, because the amount of profit you get is a calculated percentage of what you have saved. So let us say for example that you have saved $400,000 in your shares account, when the Credit Union pays a dividend of 4% for the year the profit you will earn will be 4% of your $400,000. Let us say that someone else only has $100,000 saved in their account, who do you think would earn more dividends on their savings? Well, I suppose you can work it out. Saving is the very first activity that our members will do with us and we encourage them to save as much as they can.

Saving with the JTA Co-op Credit Union also gives our members the power to borrow. When you save with us you have the chance to borrow with ease and in significant amounts. How much you can borrow is determined by what you have saved. Many people say that they don’t earn enough that will allow them to save meaningfully. With them I want to share a little secret. Make saving a habit. If you want to make significant lifestyle changes you have to form positive habits. In the same way if you want to make inroads with your saving you have to make it a habit. The trick to making it a habit is to only save what you can afford. To benefit from saving you must look at it as a long-term venture so be prepared to go at it for the long haul. You don’t have to save a lot to realize real benefits and financial growth, but you have to be consistent. Overtime you will realize that every little bit adds up and before you know it you will have a significant amount saved. A good way I have found to become a habitual saver is to do the following:

1. Set aside a certain amount to be saved monthly, make this amount a part of your budget.
2. Set up a monthly salary deduction for the amount that you would like to save.
3. Ensure that you only budget to save what you can financially manage, if the amount you budget save is too much you will get discouraged and stop.