The New York Daily News provided a long profile on how consumers are surprised to find their credit unions also offer mortgages–just not the risky kind. The story profiled one member who had learned just that, and included quotes from New York State CUL CEO William Mellin, who noted that half of the state’s 499 CUs offer home loans. The story said that no New York credit union offers interest-only loans, negative-amortization adjustables or mortgages with low but short-term teaser rates, “When I was frustrated, he was the person who showed me how to get a deal done,” she said. “That’s how it’s supposed to be in a credit union.”
CONSUMER AFFAIRS.com warned readers of a “dangerous new identity theft scheme is targeting credit union customers across the country.”
The warning was over bogus e-mails to credit union members urging them to call a certain telephone number to confirm their personal information, so-called “vishing” attempts.
The goal, of course, was to steal the members’ identity. Such tactics, the piece noted, “can be especially effective because consumers who encounter a live person are much more likely to let down their guard.”
