RMLEFCU Blog - A blog for all things law enforcement and credit union related.

12 Nov

5 Reasons to Get a Holiday Loan

The chaos of holiday season is starting up and if you’re fretting over holiday expenses, RMLEFCU is here to help you. It can feel overwhelming when you start thinking about what you need to buy or where you need to travel over the holidays, and this can leave you feeling stressed out over your budget. Our holiday loan can help you solve the holiday budget crisis and more! Read on to see how getting a holiday loan can save you this season.

Planning Ahead

If your holiday shopping funds and expenses usually run low before the holidays are over, your seasonal budget may be miscalculated. A Holiday Loan can help you to plan and execute a holiday budget as closely as possible. When armed with a solid budget, unforeseen expenses and more often, unexpected sales, we’re more likely to stay on track.

Less Stress

The holidays are stressful enough. Holiday loans give you the cash you need so you can have one less thing to worry about. It gives you a chance to relax and enjoy the holidays with family and friends. When you apply and receive approval, you can have up to 12 months to repay your Holiday Loan. Once your funds are secured, you can follow your repayment plan, and not stress about credit card debt or cutting holiday expenses. Cover all your expenses and relax while doing so.

Know What You Can Spend

While the funds from a Holiday Loan are there to help you get through a busy financial time, we help you ensure that you can afford the payments before finalizing the loan. You may need to change your gift list, shopping plans, social calendar, or travel plans if your monthly budget cannot accommodate the additional amount. We will help you to work out the details so that in one year (or less) you can pay off your loan and be prepared for next year!

Set a Budget

The RMLEFCU Holiday Loan is currently at 5% APR*. This rate is substantially lower than most credit cards and the terms permit repayment for up to 12 months in defined monthly amounts. Resorting to high-interest rate credit cards to cover the cost of gifts or unexpected expenses could wreak havoc on a household budget. A Holiday Loan makes payments predictable and manageable.

Fast and Convenient

Applying for a holiday loan with RMLEFCU is fast and convenient! You don’t even need to make a trip to the credit union. Just simply apply online or give us a call at 303-458-6660. With our credit union’s quick local decision making, you’ll be notified in no time about your approval! Time to brighten up the season with an RMLEFCU holiday loan.

05 Nov

How to Spend your Holiday SlideBy Cash

The Holiday SlideBy may be our most anticipated offer every year! Free up some welcome cash for seasonal needs by skipping loan payments in November or December with RMLEFCU’s Holiday Loan SlideBy.

Complete the coupon — which includes your agreement to pay a $25 processing fee for each loan payment skipped (all loans must be current) — and return it to RMLEFCU. Most consumer loans qualify. (Sorry, no lines of credit, VISA or mortgage loans—see details.)

Once approved, you have the freedom of skipping either your November or December payment — so you’ll have the dough to put some go-go-go in your Ho-Ho-Ho! While you’re waiting for your coupon to be approved, here are a few things you can spend your extra cash on!

Holiday Travel

Holidays are not cheap. Visiting family and hosting dinners can add up. The extra cash you save from your Holiday SlideBy can help alleviate some of the costs and even provide the funds for you to travel this year! The holiday season is all about spending time with friends and family and being grateful. It’s not meant to be about cooking the perfect meal or hosting the perfect party. Focusing on that is going to run you ragged! Relax and have fun with your loved ones this year with a little help from RMLEFCU.

Fix Something That’s Broken

Extra cash means you can finally get fix that broken HVAC unit or get your car checked out! Applying for the Holiday SlideBy means you can have one less payment on a loan. You can put that money toward fixing whatever’s been on the back of your mind. Check one more thing off your list this holiday season with RMLEFCU’s Holiday SlideBy.

Invest in Yourself

The holidays are all about giving, but what about giving back to yourself? This extra cash from our Holiday SlideBy program can give you the extra push to develop a new hobby or take a class! Hobbies are a great way to decrease your stress level. You can use this extra cash to find a local class or purchase the items needed to start your hobby! You can also use this cash to take a class for additional certification in your industry.

Whatever you decide to spend your Holiday SlideBy cash on, RMLEFCU is here to help you free up some extra cash this holiday season. If you have any questions about our Holiday SlideBy process, give us a call at 303-458-6660.

25 Oct

How to Save Money During Thanksgiving Weekend

If you’ve ever hosted Thanksgiving, then you know how easy it is to rack up a large bill. Turkeys, casseroles, sides, pies, and cakes can all add up to an enormous grocery bill, and if you decide to decorate… It can get expensive! To help you out this Thanksgiving, here are a few ways you can easily save money and keep on your holiday budget.

Prioritize Holiday Plans

The holiday season lasts for several months, just focusing on Thanksgiving can mean ignoring all the other holidays, which can cause some problems down the line. It’s important to plan out all the things you’d like to do between now and the new year. Incorporate travel, gifts, dinners, and parties and rank these events on their level of importance.

For instance, you might decide to stay home for Thanksgiving, so you have a little extra cash for presents or travel during Christmas. Or perhaps vice versa, have a Thanksgiving trip to see family or friends and cut back on Christmas plans.

Make a Budget

After prioritizing your plans, you can create a budget that reflects the priority of each holiday for the upcoming season. Before you decide to buy groceries or snag some good deals on gifts, take a quick peek at your budget to make sure you’re staying on track.

Having a budget for the holidays will ensure you don’t overspend and are left with a pile of debt. If you need a little extra cash for the holidays, check out RMLEFCU’s Holiday SlideBy! We’re offering an option to skip a payment on a loan in November or December. This is a great way to have a little extra cash for the holidays.

Keep Things Simple

It’s easy to forget what Thanksgiving is all about: being thankful. With Pinterest boards, Instagram, and Black Friday sales, it’s easy to get wound up in hosting the perfect Thanksgiving and getting the best deals on gifts. Reunite with the core meaning of the holidays and with this in mind, think about simplifying these two things so that you have more time to spend with the people you love:

Decorations
Encourage DIY decorations, like paper turkeys or fun garlands! Gather pinecones outside for a pretty, natural, and inexpensive centerpiece! You can also stretch a roll of butcher paper across the table with crayons and markers with prompts like “I’m thankful for . . .” to create a meaningful and collaborative tablecloth!

Dinner
Focus on a few key dishes like the turkey or a ham, two of your favorite sides and one dessert. Leave the rest of your ideas for another time. Sticking to basics will ensure everyone is happy and an easy, low-stress Thanksgiving dinner.

Shop Smart

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are two big consumer holidays that immediately follow Thanksgiving. This can add up to a very expensive weekend. As long as you’ve already made a list of what you want to purchase for gifts or a budget you’re sticking to, it should be an easy weekend to navigate. Stay on track by researching sales and making a specific shopping list before heading to the store or sitting down at your computer.

Remember, Thanksgiving is all about spending time with friends and family and being grateful. It’s not meant to be about cooking the perfect meal or hosting the perfect party. Focusing on that is going to run you ragged! Relax and have fun with Thanksgiving this year. If you have any questions about our Holiday SlideBy promotion, give us a call at 303-458-6660.

18 Oct

Why Join a Credit Union?

It’s important to have a financial institution you can trust. You need a place to store your cash as well as a reliable loan provider and a source for other financial needs.

Most people default to a local bank when it comes to selecting a financial institution. After all, there are tons of banks out there and they offer all kinds of financial services. But banks aren’t your only option — in fact, the smarter decision is to join a credit union.

Credit unions offer many of the same services as banks, but they are non-profit entities owned by their members. A bank, on the other hand, usually exists to make a profit for its investors, whether it is a private company with millions of shareholders or a publicly-traded company. Such ownership contributes to differences in the operation of banks and credit unions.

If you are deciding to join a credit union, it is important to understand these differences. This article will help you decide if a credit union is right for you.

Better Rates

Credit unions offer higher rates on savings accounts and lower rates on loan interest. This is because credit unions are not focused on making money, instead, they are focused on covering their operating costs.

Interest rates can be much lower for loans and, depending on the credit union, you can qualify for additional discounts. RMLEFCU has a special Relationship Rate service that brings your APR* on your auto loan even lower!

Since credit unions are not focused on making money but on helping their members, they can balance these prices better. It ensures that their members are better served and get the best rates possible on car loans, student loans, and mortgages.

Credit Union Deals

On top of better rates for members, credit unions offer exclusive member-only promotions and deals. For example, RMLEFCU offers a yearly Holiday SlideBy loan that allows you to skip a loan payment** in November or December plus many more member perks and services.

Community

Credit unions are required by law to restrict their membership by location, profession, religion, or fraternal association. This builds a tight-knit community between members and employees.

RMLEFCU is the only credit union that serves law enforcement officers in Colorado.

Eligibility is open to current or retired employees of law enforcement organizations in the state of Colorado as well as the family of our current members. See the full list of eligible organizations here. Once you’re a member of Rocky Mountain Law Enforcement FCU, you are a member for life, even if you or your family member no longer works in law enforcement.

Ready to join RMLEFCU? Follow this link to apply for a membership online! If you have any questions or would like to speak to someone about your membership, call 303-458-6660.

*Annual Percentage Rate. With approved credit. Some restrictions may apply.
** Most consumer loans qualify.

08 Oct

Important Information Regarding RMLEFCU Banking Services

We have some exciting news for all RMLEFCU Members. In November, RMLEFCU will be upgrading its technology platform to better serve you. The upgrade will mainly be in back-office operations and will result in a more efficient member service experience. There will be changes you may notice, and some that you may not.

To best prepare for the upgrade, it will be necessary for all RMLEFCU locations to close as normal on October 31st, and remain closed on Friday, November 1st and Saturday, November 2nd. During the closures, online and mobile banking will be unavailable. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and assure you that all member services will be available at the start of business on Monday, November 4.

Our top priority is to ensure a smooth and seamless transition for all our members and staff. With that goal in mind, our staff have been working “double- duty” for several months to both prepare for the transition and to continue to serve our Members on the current system. Comprehensive staff training on the new system is underway and excitement is building as we can now see, firsthand, all the ways in which we will be able to serve you better.

The Newsletter and website will have more information as the conversion date gets closer. Thank you for your cooperation during this exciting time at RMLEFCU. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact any of our staff or our call center at 303-458-6660.

03 Oct

Office Closure Information

Please note: All offices will be closed and all online banking and shared branching will be disabled from close of business on Thursday, October 31 through Sunday, November 3.

RMLEFCU offices and services will close down for three days in November — and here’s why.

In November, RMLEFCU will be upgrading its technology platform to better serve you. The upgrade will mainly be in back-office operations and will result in a more efficient member service experience.

The 2019 upgrade is a bright move to keep the credit union ahead of ongoing changes in financial technology.

How will this affect you? New technology will provide improved speed and efficiency.
New audio phone banking system with many new options.
Most RMLEFCU services will close down for the conversion:
- All branches will be closed from 5:00 pm on Thursday, October 31 through Sunday, November 3.
- Internet and mobile banking will be unavailable as well.
- Shared branching will also NOT be available.
- Debit and credit cards WILL WORK during the closure.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and assure you that all member services will be available at the start of business on Monday, November 4.

Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our Call Center at 303-458-6660. Meanwhile, watch for more information in our newsletters, emails and at rmlefcu.org. Thank you!