272280 jan 08 nl-ngfcu - National Geographic Federal Credit Union

Expecting a Refund?
If you have money coming back
to you from the IRS this year, you
can ensure a speedy transfer of
funds by asking the IRS to
deposit your check directly into
the Credit Union account of your
choice. Form 1040 offers you that
option. All you need is your Credit
Union routing number (255080011)
and your personal account number.
INTEREST RATES
Effective January 2, 2008
Loan Rates
APR*
New or Used Auto
Up to 100% of Purchase Price
New 5.75% Used 6.00%
New or Used Motorcycle
New 7.25% Used 8.25%
New or Used Boat
New 8.00% Used 9.00%
Share Secured
4.25%
Fixed-Rate Closed-End Second Mortgage
60 months (5 years)
7.25%
7.50%
120 months (10 years)
7.75%
180 months (15 years)
Home Equity Line of Credit
6.75%
Ready Credit up to $5,000
11.75%
Signature Loans up to $20,000
Contact Credit Union for rates.
Share Draft Overdraft Protection
15.00%
Savings Rates
We Are Here to Help
Are you having trouble making your loan
payments? Missed payments can affect your credit
score and make it more difficult for
you to borrow in the future. But
we can help by examining your
finances and developing a
plan to get you back on track.
Call us at 202-862-8626 for
assistance.
Account
Type
Minimum
This requires 1% of the membership signatures.
All nominations will be closed on January 25 at 4:00
p.m. Contact Darlene Pinnock at Dpinnock@ngs.org
for more information or to apply.
Holiday/Office Closings
Annual
Percentage
Yield
0.75%
0.25%
2.521%
2.96%
0.75%
0.25%
2.55%
3.00%
3.69%
4.17%
4.65%
4.79%
4.89%
3.75%
4.25%
4.75%
4.90%
5.00%
Regular Shares**
$5
Share Drafts** avg. balance $500
Club Accounts**
IRA
Certificates
6 Months
$500
1 Year
$500
2 Years
$500
3 Years
$500
4 Years
$500
*APR = annual percentage rate. Rates may be higher depending on the borrower’s individual
credit profile. See a loan officer for more details about your qualifying APR. Rates are subject to
change at any time without prior notice.
**Dividends on regular shares, share drafts, and club accounts are calculated on the “Average
Daily Balance” method, and paid monthly. All other share accounts dividends are paid quarterly.
Seeking Board Applicants
If you are interested in running for the NGFCU
Board of Directors, submit your name by January 4,
2008. Submission by petition will be held
January 4–25, 2008.
Dividend
Rate
Start the New Year
with a Great Rate
Celebrate the New Year with a National
Geographic FCU 6-month CD special and earn
4.25% APY.* There is no penalty for
early withdrawal.Take advantage
of this special now through
January 31, 2008.
Please contact
Philippe at
202-862-8626
for more
details.
FREE
Effective January 2, 2008, the first five ATM
withdrawals per month will be fee free. Surcharges
from other institutions may apply.
1145 17th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Phone: (202) 775-6135
Toll-Free: 1-888-99NGFCU
Fax: (202) 429-5703
Our offices will be closed for the following days:
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, January 21
Presidents Day, February 18
JANUARY 2008 ISSUE
Federally insured by NCUA
designed & printed by visions, ink. 272280 12/07
*APY = annual
percentage yield.
A Closer Look at Identity Theft
LINCOLN’S
New Look
Five dollar bills are about to get a makeover.This
spring splashes of gray and purple will be added to
them.The changes will be similar to the ones that
have already been made to $10, $20 and $50 bills.
Back when the folks at the U.S. Mint made plans
to redesign those bills, they thought they’d be
leaving the $5 bill alone. But that was before
counterfeiters figured out a way to make phony
hundreds out of fives.The new design should
make that impossible.
The new bills will be available at your credit
union, of course—at the amazingly low price of $5
a piece.
The Secret Service is best known for the protection
it provides U.S. presidents and their family members.
But among its lesser known duties is the investigation
of crimes involving identity theft. Researchers at Utica
College’s Center for Identity Management and
Information Protection recently reviewed 517 such
cases closed by the Secret Service between 2000 and
2006 and gleaned some potentially valuable
information from them.
Contrary to what you might expect, they found that
the criminals had relied on the Internet for less than
one-fifth of their crimes. If a recent survey sponsored
by AARP is any indication, that would probably surprise
a lot of people. Only 30 percent of the survey
respondents knew that identity theft is more likely to
occur when you complete paper forms by mail or in
person, not over the Internet.
Rerouting other people’s mail with change of address cards
was the most common low-tech way to obtain personal information.
Dumpster diving and mail theft were also popular methods.
In most cases, the victims didn’t know the people who victimized them.
Judging from this study, the average identity thief is young and male and works by himself. In the cases
examined, 60.5% of offenders were between 18 and 34.Two-thirds of them were male.The overwhelming
majority—80%—worked alone or with only one collaborator.
The study also found that most offenders didn’t steal entire documents, such as driver’s licenses or credit
cards. Nearly two-thirds of them stole only fragments of identifying information.
The researchers hope that their work will help law enforcement officials in their efforts to combat identity
theft.The Federal Trade Commission estimates that about 3 million Americans fall victim to it each year.
SAVE YOUR STATEMENT
Did You Know…?
According to the Bureau of Engraving
and Printing, the average lifespan of
a circulating $5 bill is 24 months.
Make sure you save your end-of-the-year statement from us. It
will show your dividend earnings for the year 2007.You’ll need
that information when you do your taxes. And if your
dividends for the year totaled more than
$10, keep an eye out for IRS Form 1099.
It will be arriving in the mail sometime
this month.