Self-Help Shares

For families hoping to buy their first home, this week brought some bad news: many will have to pay more for a mortgage.

Last week, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced it was cutting the mortgage insurance rate for Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-backed loans by 0.25 percentage points.

Back in December, Self-Help staff in Asheville (Wall Street location) noticed a note attached to a catering dish delivered for a holiday event. The note was anonymous, but we soon discovered that one of our homeowners, Martha Worley, was the thoughtful person.

Everybody can be great … because anybody can serve. 
You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. 
You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. 
You only need a heart full of grace. 
A soul generated by love.”

— Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

On Monday, January 16, Self-Help offices will be closed to observe Martin Luther King Day. Just a glance online shows a wide range of special events all over the nation and North Carolina, and many on our staff will be participating. We asked a few of our colleagues about their plans. Continue reading to see a sample of their responses.

One of our staff members is attending the annual MLK Commemoration service at Duke University Chapel. The above photo, from a previous service, is courtesy of Duke University Photography.

2016 marked the first full year of Self-Help Shares, our blog that helps members and friends stay up to date. The blog covers a wide range of news, from personal profiles of inspiring people to practical financial information to save you time and money.

Here we look back at the 10 topics that received the strongest response from readers in the past year.

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2016 was a challenging year in North Carolina, including fires and floods. But it was also a year of many notable accomplishments by Self-Help members. Cheers to our new homeowners, creative entrepreneurs, resilient neighborhoods, determined students, tireless volunteers and all of our members and partners. 

From us at Self-Help, this tribute is for you.

We received a lovely delivery at our Asheville branch this week: a dish of harvest stuffing, along with a sweet note from a home loan borrower.

What a delightful -– and delicious -– surprise! We love connecting with our members, and we love helping people become homeowners.

To the home owner who sent us this kind surprise: thank you. You made our week.

And to all our members and friends, we’re wishing you a wonderful holiday season, filled with kindness, connection, and the little moments that make you smile.

As NC struggles with two disasters—the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew in the eastern part of the state and raging wildfires in the west—we salute the thousands of people who are helping. Many Self-Help members and staff have provided extraordinary service or joined in volunteer efforts. Here we offer a brief sample of stories, and we will continue to collect more.

Dancers from Ballet Folklorico Xochitl

Second Federal, a Division of Self-Help Federal Credit Union comprises three branches in Chicago, including the Little Village branch. Second Federal began life in 1882 as a savings and loan association. When financial hard times forced the thrift to close in 2012, Self-Help Federal Credit Union (SHFCU) joined with partners to save it, bringing Second Federal into the Self-Help family. Now Second Federal is a full-service division of SHFCU.

On November 9, Self-Help held its annual meeting in downtown Durham, providing members and guests with delicious local food and also plenty of food for thought.

The theme of the event was “Building Opportunity through Clean Energy.”

At Self-Help, we seek ways to fund small businesses, increase access to fresh food, and boost financial opportunities in rural communities. So when a potential borrower accomplishes all three of these goals with one enterprise, it gets our attention. We’re pleased to announce that we recently closed a $150,000 Small Business Administration (SBA) loan with Seal the Seasons, a small business created by entrepreneur Patrick Mateer.