Hi! I’m Rebekah. If you come into the Main Office, you’ve probably seen me behind the teller line, or lately in my current position as a Financial Services Officer. I’ve been around here a little while. Seven years to be exact and loving every minute of it! My husband and I live here in Rome with our sweet, beautiful baby girl (our English Bulldog, Cream Cheese). You might be seeing me pop in here from time to time contributing to the blog.
An article was sent to me that I found very interesting. Kelly Spors, writer of the column “Small Talk” in the Wall Street Journal, recommended that her readers look to smaller banks and credit unions for credit cards. Her reasons: smaller banks and credit unions often carry their own branded credit cards and charge lower fees than larger banks and the national companies.
Did you know that the average interest rate on a major bank credit is 13.76%? If you call around, I bet you’ll find that your local credit unions offer interest rates below this average. I know we do. We actually offer two— 9.9% and 11.9%, depending on your qualifications.
I have members come into my office all the time wanting one of our credit cards so that they can pay off and close their others. The biggest complaint I hear from these members is that their interest rate is really high and the credit card company keeps raising it. Remember—13.76% is average. Companies are charging 20% or higher! I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be paying any more interest than I have to.
And if the interest wasn’t bad enough, then there’s the crazy fees. I don’t think it’s fair to be charged an enormous late fee if I’m only one day late on my payment. Lucky for you, that’s not the credit union way. We’ll give you 10 days before you are charged a late fee. I don’t know of any major bank offering that! If you’re like me, and you sometimes forget to make your payment, you’re going to be paying a much smaller late fee. We’re talking an average of $15 less.
| Credit Card Issuer | Interest Rate(s) | Late Fee | Over Limit Fee |
| Northwest Georgia Credit Union | 9.9% or 11.9% fixed | $20 | $10 |
| Discover | 11.9% to 18.9% variable | $19 or $39 depending on balance due | $15 or $39 depending on balance due |
| Wachovia | 8.9% to 19.99% variable Defaults to 29.99% for late payment | $20, $29, $39, depending on balance due | $35 |
| Chase | 13.24%, 17.24%, 22.24% variable Defaults to 29.99% for late payment | $15, $29, $39, depending on balance due | $39 |
I can’t think of a single reason why you shouldn’t call or come in to see what we can do for you… unless you like paying lots of interest and high fees!
