Volunteers from Old Hickory Credit Union recently helped with The Reality Store, a program for 8th graders in Sumner County.  At TW Hunter Middle, a mock “real world” was located in the cafeteria, and students entered and were assigned a mock job, salary, and family.  Their task was to find housing, transportation, insurance, and basically everything else in this real world…all in less than one hour.  The goal:  have at least some cash left over.  Surprisingly, most of the students were fairly conservative with their purchases, even funding retirement accounts before completing their assignment.  Students left the Reality Store with a healthy respect for their parents and a better understand of how money affects their lives.  And, one student said he’s planning on a career change.  He hated his fake job as a mortician.

We were pleased to be invited this week to Career Day at Madison Creek Elementary School in Goodlettsville.  Right away, we realized that credit unioning is not nearly as exciting to elementary school students as the helicopters, cement trucks and fire trucks all being displayed at the school.  However, we found a receptive audience of students who were excited to tell us what they wanted to be when they grew up. 

Old Hickory Credit Union Save-A-Saurus member Madie Lewis, pictured above with our presenter Ragena Richardson, has chosen a unique career for her future…she’s planning on owning a horse-boarding facility.  Even though she doesn’t have any horses, or a barn even, she’s got the pink cowboy hat and boots.  That’s a start.  That, and she has an account at the credit union she’s using to save money to buy her first horse. 

Career Day was supposed to be a learning experience for the students.  It was also a learning experience for the credit union volunteers.  When we asked the students how they earned the money they saved we got lots of great alternatives to salary.  Several students got paid for good grades, some for doing chores, and some for special holidays.  Our favorite?  One student said, “That’s all good, but you know sometimes if you just ask for the money…people will give it to you.”  Wow!  In our business, we call that a hold-up and it’s usually accompanied by a note!  That approach probably works better with grandparents.  Keep up the good work, Madison Creek.

National Credit Union Youth Week is April 20 through April 26, 2008 and Old Hickory Credit Union is responding to the national call of credit unions to help prepare the next generation for their financial futures.  We’re celebrating Youth Week at each of our branches, including our mini branch at  Madison Creek Elementary School in Goodlettsville.  Check out our Youth Week plans and be sure to include your children in the fun.

Grow Your Green at Old Hickory Credit Union is this year’s Youth Week theme.  All members under the age of 18 who make a deposit of at least $20 during Youth Week are automatically entered into our drawing for an iPod.  Save-A-Saurus members ages 11 and under can pick up a free kite when they visit our branches during Youth Week, and parents and grandparents of younger children ages 8 and younger can register to win one of our Grow Your Green gardening baskets at each of our branch locations.

We’ll also be opening our mini branch at Madison Creek Elementary School in Goodlettsville for Youth Week.  We visit the school monthly during the school year with our Save-A-Saurus dinosaur Nickelous and open new accounts and accept deposits from our members there.  A series of mini-seminars about saving money will be conducted for 5th and 6th graders on Tuesday.  We’re also rolling out the “green” carpet for incoming students there that week, enrolling new kindergarten students and opening their first savings accounts on Friday.

Students at TW Hunter Middle School can look for us Friday, May 9 at their Reality Store event where students learn how to manage their household finances, juggling an imaginary mortgage, salary, insurance and more.

If you haven’t passed along the benefits of credit union membership to your young children, visit us during Youth Week to find out more.

Sometimes it’s nice to have a friend in the business, so to speak.  As a credit union employee, I use credit reports often to make decisions about member accounts.  But I’ll admit that there’s plenty I don’t know about the world of credit reporting.  That’s why I invited Laura Hooper, our local Equifax representative, to speak with the employees of one of my most valued credit union clients, Cracker Barrel Old Country Stores, when they invited us to do a Lunch and Learn seminar about credit.  Laura presented a very informative session on “Understanding your Credit and Protecting your Identity” at the Cracker Barrel corporate offices in Lebanon yesterday.  Since her information was so great and timely, I thought I would give you her answers to some of our member’s questions here.

How long does information stay on my credit report?  Charge offs and collection items drop off your report after 7 years.  Bankruptcies drop off after 10 years.

What’s really on a credit report?  The bulk of the info consists of details about credit accounts opened in your name.  Things like open date, credit limit, loan amount, balance, payment terms and history. 

What’s NOT on my credit report?  Checking and savings acount data, gender, ethnicity, religion or political affiliation, medical information, criminal records, and motor vehicle records.

How do I get a free copy of my credit report?  Avoid the sites you see advertised on television and go to the site that was developed by the Big Three credit agencies:  annualcreditreport.com

How is my score determined?  Payment history makes up about 35% of your score.  How much you owe makes up about 30%.  The length of your credit history makes up about 15% of your score.  New credit (how many new accounts, etc) makes up about 10% ofyour score.  The types of credit you use makes up about 10% of your score.  Your credit score is an evolving thing.  It might change daily as merchants and lenders report your information to the agency.

I’ve heard that allowing someone to pull my credit report may lower my score, is that true?  Somewhat.  A few inquiries (requests for your report) should do no harm.  And, if you’re car or home shopping, several inquiries by different lenders should do you no harm either.  Lots and lots of inquiries from different types of lenders could possibly affect your score by a few points.

How do lenders use my report?  Most lenders, like credit unions and other financial institutions, might use your report to assist them in determining the risk of lending money to you.  These types of lenders will also take into consideration factors other than your credit, including job history and income.  Your score also determines your interest rate in many cases as well.  Online lending engines are generally just loaning to you based on your score. 

How can I learn more about identity theft protection?  Visit http://mycrediteducation.com 

Many of today’s credit union members have no idea how credit unions got started or what makes us different.  Credit unions were all started for pretty much the same reason, the little guy had no say in how banks were run.  Consequently, the little guy ceased to be represented and served by banks.  That gave a tremendous amount of power to other groups who were willing to fill the gaps for lending.  So called “loan sharks” really did exist and many people were taken advantage of financially after the Depression.

Old Hickory Credit Union got its start in January of 1934.  That makes us very likely one of Nashville’s oldest financial institutions.  Workers at the DuPont plant in Old Hickory joined together to form Old Hickory Credit Union which has now grown to serve more than 24,000 in Middle Tennessee and around the world.  Controlling 100s of millions in assets is everyday work for this one-time “little guy” credit union, but we’re still fundamentally the same.  In particular, and like all credit unions, we’re run by a volunteer Board of Directors of regular working people.  Every year at our Annual Meeting, we hold our election of our Board of Directors, and each member gets to vote in that election.  This year’s Annual Meeting and Election is scheduled for Friday March 14 at all branch locations.  Stop by any branch location that day to cast a ballot in our election and you will automatically be entered into our door prize drawing for some really nice prizes including a GPS and an iPod.  It’s our way of saying thanks.

While you’re online, take a look at this blog for credit unions called lookoutforthelittleguy.com 

Our Budget and Credit Counselor, Janice DesMarteaux, has some really good advice for people who want to totally eliminate their debt.

Question: “Is it really possible to be totally debt free or is that an unrealistic goal?”

Janice:  “It’s totally realistic and really possible.  It’s a mindset, really.  If being debt free is what you want, then set that as your goal and then commit yourself to doing everything it takes to get there.  I work with members all the time to help them get out of debt and I’ve seen it happen.”

Question:  “How would a person get started?  I can’t afford to pay extra on my debt.”

Janice:  “Start with the little things, they really do add up.  The areas where most of us overspend are on entertainment and groceries.  If you spend a lot on dining out or movies and concerts, cut back on that a little.  And, watch those items you’re buying at the grocery store.  Buy items that will last while they’re on sale.  Start comparing costs instead of just dumping items in your cart.  You can still ‘have a life’ on what you make, just don’t borrow to get it.  And, apply the money you’ve saved directly to your loans.”

Editor:  “What do you say to people who say, ‘I won’t ever be debt free; I have a mortgage’.”

Janice:  “A house payment is unavoidable for most of us, but you can still pay it off early.  There’s no reason that you can’t pay off a 30-year loan in 17 - 20 years.  The key is paying off your little debt first, then start applying what your were paying monthly on the little debt to your mortgage.  A lot of people are hung up on that tax deduction they get for mortgage interest.  That same money applied to a charity or religious group would still be the same type of deduction.  So go ahead and pay off your mortgage early and don’t worry, you can replace that tax deduction.”

Whether you want to pay down your debt or get debt free, Janice DesMarteaux can help you put together a family budget and credit plan.  This is a free benefit available to credit union members.  If you’re interested in meeting with Janice, call her at (615) 847-4043 ext. 7158 or e-mail her at jdesmarteaux@ohcu.org. 

We get the advice everywhere, “get out of debt”.  But is it realistic for most of us to eliminate our debt altogether?  So, we want to hear from you.  Are you debt free or have you nearly eliminated your debt?  Post your comments here and share your advice.  I’ll follow up with some advice of my own.

 Malinda

Our contracting team at H & H Construction is putting the finishing touches on our Nashville Clarksville Pike branch.  If all goes well, we hope to open for business on Monday, August 13.  As is always the case in construction, things can change, so check our blog and website often for updated information.  A big grand opening celebration is scheduled for September.  Watch our blog for details.

Recently, the credit union celebrated the groundbreaking of our seventh branch, which will be located on Clarksville Pike in Nashville.  Weather permitting, we hope the new branch will be open this summer.  Construction is expected to move along quickly, because the branch is a modular building, mostly pre-built before it arrived here.  We plan on adding our signature columns and white front to the building, which is the first new branch for us since the Greenbrier location opened two years ago.

William Douglas of our Old Hickory branch will serve as Manager.

Members who travel Briley Parkway near west Nashville will find the branch conveniently located, because it is very close to the junction of Briley and Clarksville Pike.  Saturday hours are planned for this branch.

The branch address will be 4123 Clarksville Pike, Nashville, TN 37218.

Click here to see updated pictures of the branch construction!

Our new friends at Lightning 100’s Team Green are all about adventure…and the environment.  This community of Tennesseans love to get out and experience outdoor activities together.  Right now, they’re really stoked about being accepted into the Nashvile Red Bull Flugtag event being held at Riverfront Park on June 23.  Visit their website at teamgreenonline.com and check out some of the great “green” events they have scheduled this year.