This member-owned financial cooperative believes that people should help people in all of its business practices.

Not many companies do business today based on an idea from the Great Depression, but Western Federal Credit Union in Hawthorne, Calif. still operates from the belief that people should help people—not for profit or charity, but for service.

Today, Western Federal employs 325 and has assets of around $1 billion. It operates branches in Colorado, Texas, Arizona, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, and California. The company has approximately 119,000 members across the country, many from its core customer base in IT, airline, retail, manufacturing, and aerospace.
Nonprofit Western Federal is headed up by John Bommarito, CEO, who works closely with the organization’s volunteer board of directors. The board is elected by credit union members, and company materials state: “Since we don’t have stockholders, we return earnings to our members through a full line of products and services, competitive rates, and fewer or no fees.”

Simplified car buying
Membership in Western Federal can occur through an employer, one of several qualified communities, through a family member who’s a Western Federal employee, or through two nonprofit organizations. The first is the Surfrider Foundation, which is dedicated to protecting coastal environments. Surfrider members are automatically eligible to join Western, as are members of the Friends of Hobbs, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting Hobbs State Park in Arkansas.

Western Federal offers online banking, online bill pay, direct deposit, consumer loans, mortgage loans, IRA accounts, and checking and money market accounts to its members. Its extensive Web site offers a wealth of information, including rates on all of its loans and savings products, as well as calculators to help visitors determine their loan payments or returns on certificates of deposit.

In addition, to help members with automobile purchases, Western Federal has partnered with Sherman Oaks, Calif.-based Autoland. Members in California, Washington, and Oregon can connect with an Autoland representative onsite or on the phone for assistance in finding a new or pre-owned vehicle.

“Simply tell them what you’re looking for, and they’ll perform an extensive search to find the car you want, in the price range you want, and deliver it to you,” state company materials. Autoland’s buying power allows it to negotiate competitive pricing, and the company offers a five-day/500 mile buy-back policy on all pre-owned vehicles.

“Autoland empowers people in the purchase of their next vehicle,” said Marcia Francisco of Autoland. “It is a comprehensive service designed to make sure that you have an amazing car-buying experience and you get exactly what you want, while making it hassle free and easy.”