At Truliant, we have an internal Success Story Inbox that allows staff to share some of the great things they are doing to help our member-owners. For instance, here’s a short story from Susan at our Truliant Way Member Contact Center in Winston-Salem, NC.

“Through speaking with Ms. Member (Name changed for privacy) today I was able to provide her with a solution that thrilled her. She called for an RV pre-approval, but I noticed right away she had some high balance unsecure debt. I asked what her interest rates were and they weren’t really too bad 5% to 15%. I knew already that she had some equity in her home, so I decided to run some numbers.

Through our conversation I learned that a fixed rate would be best for her. When I offered her “an end in sight” on most of the unsecure she was very excited. We aren’t saving her too much in “required” monthly payments, but we were able to reduce her interest rates and will have some funds left for the home improvements that I learned she was looking to do. Plus she is happy knowing that in 5 years those items will be paid for!!

This was a win-win for the member… oh and she was pre-approved for her RV loan also!!”

This is just one of many stories of this nature, but rest assured – at Truliant, we are always looking out for your best interest and trying to help you better your financial future.

At Truliant, we have an internal Success Story Inbox that allows staff to share some of the great things they are doing to help our member-owners. For instance, here’s a short story from our Clemmons, NC Member Financial Center.

“Ms. Member (name taken out for privacy) came into my office this afternoon to discuss consolidating current credit card debt, a little over $32k, to our Visa Platinum. 

She was made aware of this product through Sivi, the teller at our drive up window. Sivi had mentioned to Ms. Member that she noticed that a few credit card companies were drafting payments from her account and that she simply wanted to let her know of our fixed rate credit card.

Ms. Member went home to discuss with her fiancé and came back today to meet with me to see if she could apply. In talking with her I found out that she owns a 2009 Honda Accord that is paid for. I then informed her that she had the option of taking out a new lien on her paid vehicle. 

I quoted an estimate of what the payment and rate might be for 5 yrs and then again for 4. Ms. Member was very happy with what she heard and decided to move forward in an effort to cut her credit card debt.

It’s also worth noting that we’re in the process of getting her a Visa Platinum card so she no longer has to deal with high/fluctuating rates on her other credit cards.”

In this example our member still will clearly have debt to deal with, but at least it’s now in chunks that are easier to manage and won’t have extremely high interest rates. When dealing with debt it’s important to keep in mind how much of your payment is going to the principal… and how much is being washed down the tube in interest payments.

Yesterday, I got an email from Georgia, a member that attended a Truliant community service event that further confirmed our mission (for me), which is “To enhance the quality of life for our members and to become their preferred financial institution.” 

She really made my day and I’d like to share her email with you.

“Marjorie,

 Truliant has really changed my life! I did not know that when I signed up as a member over a year and a half ago that I would reap the benefits of such a wonderful establishment. 

After being released from bankruptcy several years ago, I have worked hard to rebuild my credit. Today, I am a living testimony that hard work and determination can pay off. 

Truilant financed my brand new car for 4.6% yesterday!  The interest rate and payment are well within my budget. I am so happy and truly grateful for your employees believing in me. 

Rest assured that I will tell everyone that I come in contact with about Truliant and how my life has been enhanced greatly.  I’m proud to be a member-owner. Have a great day! 

Georgia”

About the Author: Marjorie Rorie is the director of community services for Truliant and is responsible for developing cost-effective strategies and initiatives for serving “underserved” households, people of modest means and multicultural populations.

One of our previous success stories highlighted a member that turned down an extremely low auto loan rate and instead worked with Truliant – primarily because she trusts the credit union and knows we’ll be there to meet her needs.

Well, we’re happy to let you know it’s happened again. This story was recently shared by Dana at our North Point Member Financial Center in Winston-Salem, NC.

“I first helped Jane Member (name extracted for privacy purposes) almost two years ago; she had acquired over $47k of personal and credit card debt. Not to mention that her credit wasn’t the best, but we were able to help her by doing a debt consolidation. This really saved her a lot of money by reducing the amount of interest she was paying out.

She came back in the other day because she really wanted a new Acura TL. Upon pulling her credit I was happy to see that her credit had gone up 113 points in almost two years (that’s a success on its own) and we were able to give her a great rate on her new loan.

There’s something that surprised me though.

When I called the dealership to get a bill of sale faxed over, the finance manager said they were currently offering 1.9%. Obviously this would have been a better rate, but Ms. Member told me she wanted her car financed at Truliant because of the great service she always receives no matter which MFC she visits.

She was very excited that she could get the quality car that she wanted and the personal service we offer. She also thanked me again for helping consolidating her debts two years ago and for helping repair her credit.”

Great story Dana, thanks for sharing!

At Truliant, we have an internal Success Story Inbox that allows staff to share some of the great things they are doing to help our member-owners. Here’s a quick story from Jackie at our New River Member Financial Center.

“I recently received an email from another staff member concerning a deceased member’s account that was still open. The member’s daughter was listed as the joint account owner, but unfortunately I didn’t recognize her name. The account had a sizeable amount of money in it and I was determined to track down the daughter.

Long story short, the member passed away in 2006, but thanks to the Internet I was able to reach a relative and eventually get in touch with the members daughter. 

While working closely with another employee we determined that there was also an Accidental Death Policy (AD&D) in which the daughter was entitled to. Needless to say she was overwhelmed that we had gone to this extreme to locate her. 

She had no idea that the account was still open, and as it turns out the AD&D policy proved to be a big help.  The daughter was in tears as she explained that she was still paying for her mother’s funeral four years later and that the policy would pay the remaining debt.  

I know this is a different type of success story, but I wanted to highlight that by going the extra mile we can most certainly make a difference.”

At Truliant, we have an internal Success Story Inbox that allows staff to share some of the great things they are doing to help our member-owners. Here’s a quick story from Robin at our High-Point, NC Member Financial Center.

“I had the best experience working with a member-owner this week. She works for another financial institution, but became a member at Truliant through an auto loan a couple of years ago. 

She stopped in to make an auto payment and saw our sign about the 90 day deferred payment. This was of interest because she just found out that she has to pay $849 in taxes, and skipping those car payments would be a big help. 

While doing the application, I noticed that she had several credit cards that were probably at high rates based on experience with those companies. I knew she had enough equity in her car to pay off a couple of the cards, and she was very interested in perusing that option.

We couldn’t defer the payments for 90 days, but we were able to refinance the car, with the rate dropping for her from 6.55% to 5.75% (subject to credit approval). In doing so we had the $849 for the taxes and $3,438 remaining to use towards her credit card (interest rates ranges from 15 – 28%) debt. When everything was said and done she completely paid off all but one of her credit cards, but it only had a remaining balance of $300.

We dropped her car payment by $3.00 and eliminated $323.00 a month in credit card payments! She is in much better shape now and on a good path to bettering her financial fitness.”