Branch network

BRANDON, Vt. -

RIVERSIDE, Calif. -

ATLANTA -

BOULDER, Colo. -

MECHANICSBURG, Penn. -

PENSACOLA, Fla. - After building this state's first commercial building to receive the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification three years ago, Navy FCU is completing its second LEED facility here.

INDIANAPOLIS -

With competition for prime branch sites more intense than ever, credit unions and banks are moving quickly to secure their next locations. Perhaps too quickly. In the rush to outrace competitors into the next hot market, financials sometimes neglect to include some basic provisions into their sale or lease agreements that could save the institution considerable angst in the future.

When a credit union evaluates a new market for branching, household growth is almost always the first statistic they seek as a gauge of market opportunity. This is certainly sensible, since it is easier to thrive in a market where additional households can support the added branch than in a flat growth market where a new branch just carves the existing household pool into one more slice. This belief has led bankers to branch aggressively into Florida, Texas, Arizona, and other high-growth areas.

The past 10 years have seen an unprecedented wave of branching by financial institutions. With several thousand branches being opened each year at an average cost of more than $2 million, the industry is collectively wagering billions of dollars on the likelihood that consumers will continue to visit physical branches to fulfill their financial needs. But are the investments delivering the returns necessary to justify their capital investments?

WASHOUGAL, Wash. - Officials of Columbia CU will join local dignitaries later this week to break ground on the area's first financial institution built to LEED "Green" standards. The facility, the first of three green branches planned by the $800-million credit union for 2008, will incorporate environmentally friendly aspects and be rated under Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards.

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif. - CO-OP Shared Branching, a division of CO-OP Financial Services, reported it has developed "CO-OP Fast Branch," a self-service kiosk that supplies more services than a conventional ATM, including deposits by check (no envelopes, no deposit slips), withdrawals by check, loan payments and advances.

RONKONKOMA, N.Y. - People's Alliance Federal Credit Union is trying to make sure that anyone eligible for membership knows it.

VIENNA, Va. - With the opening of four new branches in Atlanta, Navy Federal Credit Union has found a way to grow its membership while sticking close to its military heritage.

Over the last five years branch networking has exploded. As more and more credit union branches are built, I've noticed one consistent flaw. Most credit unions are skipping the final, most critical step in opening a new or remodeled facility-educating their employees.

PADUCAH, Ky. - Credit unions searching for new members or a stronger community image might fare better looking to their past instead of advice from a high-powered design team.

SAN FRANCISCO - Credit unions looking to cut costs and increase efficiencies at their branches may want to take a page from the credit union movement's overarching cooperative spirit and apply it to branch management.

MILWAUKEE, Wis. - When it comes time to decide between building new or working with you have, return on investment (ROI) is a big part of the equation-but there are some hidden things that can factor into the equation as well.

CHESTERFIELD, Mo. - As credit unions race to expand their branch networks, they need to beware of cannibalizing their existing branches and even undermining their own brand.

LAS VEGAS - There are indirect members and there are credit union branches, and often the twain never do meet.