When granting a loan to our members, the Provo Postal Credit Union will look at the following traits to determine whether or not a loan is a win/win for you and for the Credit Union:
1. Credit – Does the member have strong credit. What has the credit history reflected over the years?
2. Character – What is your prior history with PPCU? Has the history been favorable? Do you pay your bills at PPCU? Have you been stable at your residence or employment? Are you trustworthy?
3. Capacity – Do you have a stable job with enough income to qualify for the debt? Typically, you must be around a 40% debt-to-income ratio or less (only 40% of your gross income can be used for debt payments). Are you able to meet the monthly payment requirement on this and all other loans?
4. Collateral – Is the value of the vehicle or real estate such that the credit Union can protect its member’s assets by making the loan as requested? What is the loan-to-value ratio (LTV) on this piece of collateral? Typically, the LTV must be 80% or less.
5. Capital – Do you have other assets that could be liquidated if need be to make payments on the loan?
6. Conditions – What are the current market conditions? Is it a favorable economy? Does the loan request we have in front of us make sense under current economic conditions?

Some members may be strong in some areas & weak in others. We look at all of the factors & weigh them accordingly. Not meeting every criterion does not necessarily disqualify someone for a loan. By the same token, being strong in many areas may not necessarily qualify someone for a certain type of loan request.

Types of loans we make at Provo Postal Credit Union:

New & Used Vehicle Loans:
We offer very competitive rates on both new & used vehicles, with terms up to 72 months. Let us help you in your purchase of your next vehicle. The better your credit & higher the down payment, the lower your credit interest rate will be. Under certain circumstances, rates can be as low as 4.5% APR.

ATV/Motorcycle Loans:
Looking for some winter or summer fun? Let us help. We can even finance motor homes for as long as 120 months.

Mortgage & Real Estate Loans:
We offer many types of real estate loans, including home equity lines of credit (the balance is revolving & can be used over & over again), home equity loans, as well as mortgage loans for the purchase or refinance of personal, & investment properties. We will even finance land or developed lots. We have many options, even for commercial property. Fees and certain restrictions do apply. If you have a question, please do not assume we will or will not finance a particular type of real estate loan. Give us a call and we can discuss it.

Share Secured loan:
You pledge the shares and we make the loan secured by your shares at 2.5% above whatever you are earning on the share account.

Signature/Unsecured loans:
With a strong enough credit score and stable employment, we can grant an unsecured loan up to $6,500. Because of the economy and a recent trend of bankruptcies, we have had to raise the bar, so to speak, on unsecured loans. We still offer them, but we prefer to make loans secured with even an older vehicle or other collateral.

Credit Builder/Credit Repair Loans:
We make loans to help you build your credit or repair damaged credit. We loan you the money but stick it into a share account. You make monthly payments out of pocket. After a year’s period, you have a good-reporting account to the credit bureau, as well as a savings account with a balance in it that is yours to keep. What a fantastic way to build your credit and save money at the same time.

There are a number of potential pitfalls in shopping for a car. Here are a few to keep in mind:

1. If you are trading in your old car don’t expect to get “high book” for it. If a dealer offers you high book for your trade, you can bet the extra money has been added to the price of the car you are buying.

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Unethically creative identity thieves have a new trick up their sleeves: sending text messages to your cell phone as if they were a financial institution and asking you to ‘confirm’ your account number, PIN, or other pieces of information.

As a member of our credit union, you should know that we will never ask for your personal information by email or text messaging. NEVER give information that is private and confidential over your cell phone’s text feature, and don’t call the 800 number that spam text messages ask you to call. Here are other steps you can take to ensure that you don’t become an identity thief’s next victim:

• Be careful when asked for your telephone number. Giving your phone number in response to contests or online promotions can lead to unwanted calls and messages.
• Never respond to unsolicited text messages – it only lets the sender know they’ve reached a working number and may lead to more messages in the future.
• Consider blocking all text message services for your phone. While this may be somewhat inconvenient if you like texting your friends, it will protect you from this growing form of identity theft.
• Be cautious about the services you subscribe to.
• Be wary of urgent messages that request personal information.
• Report any messages that seem ‘too good to be true’ or advertise illegal items to your local consumer protection agency.

Many unsolicited electronic ads and scams originate overseas, often making it extremely difficult to track the individuals who are responsible. Take initiative and protect yourself by never responding to spam text messages.