Two Credit Unions that Almost Anyone Can Join

A couple of days ago, I did a post about the benefits of joining a credit union. In the post, I gave a link to a site (FindaCreditUnion.com) that you could use to find a credit union that you're eligible to join. Realizing that not everyone will take the time to use that site, I decided to find a couple of credit unions that almost anyone can join. Now you have no excuse for not joining one!

Oak Trust Credit Union is located in the Chicago area (which doesn't really matter since you're probably not looking to do your day-to-day banking there). It's been around since 1964 and is a member of the NCUA (the organization that insures your deposits - just like the FDIC). Anyone can join by making a $1.00 donation to the Illinois Press Foundation. They have a note on their site to make sure you know that the $1.00 donation is non-refundable!

Christian Community Credit Union is open to anyone who belongs to the Christian faith. You have to be willing to affirm a "Statement of Faith" when you apply for membership (though I'm not sure if there's any way they could actually tell if you truly meant it or not!?). If you're not a Christian (another topic for another day) but have a family member that is, you can have them join and then join under their Family Member clause. This credit union is NOT federally insured. They have private insurance that serves the same purpose - but I'm just not as familiar with the company they use (American Share Insurance).

Once again, joining a credit union is a great idea and gives you alternatives when it comes to loans, investments, etc. If you don't have another one already in mind, check out one of these!