“Don't be fooled, CrossRoads Community Federal CU may be small, but they are a highly-rated local credit union that has served Cheektowaga and the surrounding area since 1939. "
By: Allan R Kirby
Credit Unions are often considered geographically small, irrelevant, and just do not have the depth and breadth of services that big banks have to succeed in today's technology-driven world. Mysmallbank.com believes differently.
In fact, Mysmallbank.com believes Credit Unions provide a superior customer service experience; with attractive products and services and provide its members' competitive savings and mortgage rates. Additionally, Credit Unions provide critical support to small business owners and the agricultural community which is often left behind by the big banks. For example, by leverage local deposits from its members, local Credit Unions can provide loans back to local businesses and customers from the same community. A win for the entire community.
Mysmallbank.com feels compelled to find the best credit unions and community banks; regardless of how small they are; in order to write a review. These reviews are to help you learn more about community banks, possibly one that's in your area that you might be interested in. In this review we are choosing the following local Credit Union:
Name: CrossRoads Community Federal Credit Union
Location: Cheektowaga
Headquartered: 3031 William Street, 14227, NY
Branches: 2.
Year Established: 1939.
History:
CrossRoads Federal Credit Union (CRCFCU), was chartered in 1939 as Westinghouse Buffalo Divisions Federal Credit Union, serving the employees of Westinghouse Electric Company. By 2006 Westinghouse FCU with its one office at 3031 William Street, Cheektowaga had grown to 7,300 members and assets of over $30 million. That same year on March 1st Westinghouse FCU made the decision to obtain a community-based charter and changed its name to CrossRoads Community Federal Credit Union. The name change was designed to reflect the increased focus on serving the whole community which was expanded to include: Anyone who lives, works, worships, goes to school or volunteers in; and businesses located in; Amherst, East Aurora, Cheektowaga, Elma, Lancaster, Orchard Park, Williamsville, and West Seneca, New York areas.
In 2012 the Buffalo Fire Department Federal Credit Union merged with CrossRoads Community FCU which increased their presence in the communities they serve and allowing more opportunities for people in the area to become a member of this credit union.
Currently, CrossRoads Community Federal CU has over $70 million in assets, 2 branches, and nearly 7,000 members. ibanknet
CrossRoads Community Federal Credit Union operates in the city of Cheektowaga which is only 25 minutes south of Niagara Falls and just 15 minutes to the Canadian Border. This means there is definitely no shortage of things to do if you live there. However, Stiglmeier Park seems to be a very popular destination as well as seeing the Cheektowaga Town Hall.
“Cheektowaga's earliest known historical occupants were the Iroquoian-speaking Neutral people. They were pushed out by the more powerful Seneca people, the most western of the Five Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy, who were seeking to control the fur trade. They named this site as Chictawauga, meaning "land of the crabapples" in the Seneca language. wikipedia
Finally, we found that CRCFCU is a federally insured credit union through NCUA (Note 1).
Reviews:
Mysmallbank.com did take the time to read reviews on CrossRoads Community Federal Credit Union knowing that reviews only provide a partial picture of the Credit Union. What we mean by this is that reviews do not always reflect the true banking experience you will receive at one of their branches. However, in the case of CrossRoad Community FCU, we found member reviews to be nothing short of exceptional on google and Facebook. This is not surprising, CRCFCU size allows them to be razer focused on the needs of their members through high-quality customer service and support.
Looking a little deeper we found why members love this credit union;
Referrals
CrossRoads FCU periodically provides opportunities for members to enter a draw to win a $250 prepaid credit card when they refer to new members. This is a good way to get members involved to expand the credit union's membership.
A unique service offering (Christmas Club)
We love these types of offerings, the Christmas Club accounts help members who sign up avoid the financial stress associated with holiday shopping and other related expenses like travel. Saving money throughout the year will ensure members are financially prepared for the holidays without getting into financial debt. The following provides an example of the deposit schedule CrossRoads uses.
CROSSROADS COMMUNITY FCU CHRISTMAS CLUB
Simply circle one of our easy deposit schedules.
$ 5.00 a week for 50 weeks - $250.00
$ 10.00 a week for 50 weeks - $500.00
$ 20.00 a week for 50 weeks - $1,000.00
$ 40.00 a week for 50 weeks - $2,000.00
Doing some rate checks with a number of larger regional banks and posted discounts, it was clear that CrossRoads was very competitive with their rates and in some cases provided better rates than what I could get, disappointing for me but great for CrossRoads members.
Given the customer, highly rated reviews along with their great services offerings provide to their members we are giving CrossRoads Federal Credit Union a designation of Excellent choice, Credit Union. (Note 3) So if you're looking for a great community-based credit union and you live or plan to live in the Cheektowaga area, this could be a great financial institution for you.
The following provides additional information on CrossRoads Credit Union's services, branches as well as fees.
Services Offered:
Full-Service Credit Union: Yes
Banking: Checking/Savings.
Investing: No
Credit Union Loans: Mortgage, Auto, and Home Equity loans.
Credit Card: Master Card.
Safe Deposit boxes: No
Routing Number: 222082741
Credit Union Online
Online and Mobile Banking: Yes
CrossRoads Community Federal CU Branch Locations:
Main Branch
3031 William Street, Cheektowaga, NY 14227
Telephone: 716-896-8084
Toll Free: 1-800-290-5801
Fax: 716-896-8086
Email: info@crcfcu.com
971 Kenmore Avenue, Kenmore, NY 14217
Telephone: 716-874-7284
Toll Free: 1-800-290-5801
Fax: 716-876-3654
Hours of Operation:
Cheektowaga Office:
Monday - Wednesday: 9:00am - 4:00pm
Thursday & Friday: 9:00am - 5:00pm
Saturday: 9:00am - 1:00pm
Kenmore Office:
Monday - Wednesday: 9:00am - 4:00pm
Thursday: 3:00pm - 7:00pm
Friday: 9:00am - 5:00pm
Saturday: Closed
Fee Schedule:
Yes: Click Here
Learn more:
Contact:
Toll-Free: 1-(800) 290-5801
Mailing Address
3031 William Street, Cheektowaga, NY
14227, USA
CrossRoads Community Federal Credit Union on Facebook
Are Federal Credit Unions Better vs Banks?
Federal Credit Unions banks are local banks that provide financial services to smaller communities and tend to be better than major banks for a number of reasons which includes:
Better rates on savings accounts and certificates of deposits.
Competitive mortgage rates.
Fees tend to be lower at community banks.
Local deposits are used to make loans to local businesses.
Federal Credit Unions tend to have a better understanding of the communities they serve.
Federal Credit Unions tend to have a more personalized customer service experience and have higher customer satisfaction rates.
Federal Credit Unions provide local jobs and support local charities.
Notes:
1. The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) is one of two agencies that provide deposit insurance to depositors in U.S. depository institutions. NCUA's standard maximum share insurance amount at $250,000.00.
2. Periodically Mysmallbank.com will name a credit union as a top choice (Top credit union) based on a number of criteria such as customer and employee reviews, complaints, satisfaction, growth, locations, brand, and social responsibility. We only select the best credit unions, so they must meet minimum standards of excellences (Excellent Choice) in order to be reviewed by Mysmallbank.com
In Review is a segment of the MySmallBank.com blog written by Allan R Kirby, who writes and produces Personal Finance articles and videos along with My Success Magazine.
Disclosure: mysmallbank.com nor the author received any compensation from the mentioned credit union; crossroads fcu for this article. The article is our opinion only and is written to help readers learn more about local credit unions. Every credit union we review is notified via email at the time of publication. Buffalo Fire Credit Union / Buffalo Fire Department Credit Union BFDCU was merged with Crossroads fcu.