North
Coast Credit Union
Eligibility and Overview
North Coast Credit Union started life as the City of Bellingham Employees Credit Union, over 70
years ago, and, since then, has grown to over 14,000 members. It serves the area of Washington State and membership
is open to those who live or work or attend school or worship in that state. They are currently offering new
members who sign up by depositing at least $100 and a gift card from local businesses worth $25.
Home Banking and Checking Accounts
Smart Checking is North Coast Credit Union's top end checking account offer; on sign up you are expected to direct
deposit your paycheck, use the debit card and bill pay service once a month, and receive e statements having given
your e mail address. In addition, they offer a $10 overdraft fee up to what they call their Smart Pay Protection,
to cover the occasional overdraft, which should be cleared within 35 days. If there is the possibility an overdraft
will last longer than that, they suggest a Smart Loan would be the better option, to secure a line of credit,
according to credit checking and need. Smart checking accounts earn 3.90% APY on the first $1000 in the account.
The Home banking facilities available on all checking accounts are; convenient fee free ATMs as they are part of
the CO-OP ATM network; online bill payment; e mail alerts; online statements; fund transfers and the VISA debit
card. Their basic checking account is Convenience Checking, which does not require a minimum balance or charge a
monthly fee. It offers unlimited check writing and a free ATM or Visa Debit card. Choice Checking is one step up
and offers the same as Convenience checking but based on a minimum balance of $1,000 for which you earn 0.1% APY
with an additional .25% interest on any certificate of deposit you take out, plus additional $50 contributions
added to your CD in their "Build-a-CD" scheme.
Credit Cards and Loans
Apart from the Visa Debit card North Coast Credit Union does NOT offer credit cards. In fact, they positively
discourage their clients from taking on the potential dangers of credit card debt. What they offer instead is a
revolving line of credit which if not used there is no charge. If used, the rates vary between 9% and 18% on a
personal unsecured line of credit and the Smart line of credit rates are, 8% to 18%, both are interest-only
payments. The Smart line of credit accompanies a Smart checking account and can be up to $20,000; the Personal Line
of credit, on any checking account can be up to a maximum of $10,000 and has a $25 annual fee. The line of credit
also acts like an overdraft facility. North Coast Credit Union has signed up in partnership with Balance
to offer members who need it, financial and debt counseling. Balance also offers financial education and budget
management support and training
Source: Credit Cards For People With Bad Credit Rating
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