Newsroom

April 20, 2015

Harney: First-time home buyers should go to CUs

A nationally syndicated columnist urged first-time home buyers to join credit unions for the best deals and cited NAFCU's data showing that credit unions have more than quadrupled their share of total mortgage market volume in nine years.

Kenneth Harney's column appears in The Washington Post, The Boston Herald, The L.A. Timesand many other publications.

"Want to buy your first home with little or nothing down and maybe get a refund on part of your realty agent's commission?," Harney began. "Consider joining a credit union that is aggressively growing its mortgage business. Credit unions have been expanding their presence in housing … by offering deals you can't find at most banks."

In addition to citing NAFCU data, the article used examples of credit unions "pulling in hordes of young first-timers," such as Navy Federal Credit Union, NASA Federal Credit Union and State Employees' Credit Union in North Carolina. The article noted that many credit unions refund portions of real estate agent commissions, and it emphasized that "credit union home-purchase programs generally have miniscule delinquency and default rates."

Finally, the article pointed borrowers to CULookUp.com, the credit union locator site administered by NAFCU Services, to learn more about credit union membership.