Community Reinvestment

Because of our expertise and local knowledge of housing markets and needs, Brenix Credit Union Bank has identified housing as the primary area where we can make the greatest impact in bringing an acceptable quality of life to the communities in which we invest. We also provide lending to small businesses and support financial education as part of or CRA investment focus.

When evaluating competing investment opportunities, we consider the purpose of the investment; the level of innovation or complexity; the degree to which the investments are not routinely provided by other private investors; and the impact of the investments in responding to identified community development needs.

Our primary investment focus includes:

Mortgage Backed Securities

We believe that the availability of financing at fair rates for housing in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods remains a critical community need. Mortgage backed securities have a direct positive impact on the community when the purchases increase the amount of financing available. For this reason, we work directly with Fannie Mae and similar agencies that are chartered to help increase homeownership. Purchasing securities directly from these entities frees up capital on their balance sheets to provide more financing in low- and moderate-income areas. We believe that security purchases from other banks or through brokers have less of an impact on increasing home ownership because they are merely trading already-issued securities and do not provide assurance that the seller will replace the securities by providing new financing in low- to moderate-income areas.

Affordable Housing Tax Credit Investments

We are an active lender in financing the construction of affordable housing through the use of tax credits. We are one of the few banks of our size active in this area and has developed a successful market niche in financing smaller unit projects (under $25 million) that larger banks consider too small and complex in analysis and monitoring to be worth their attention. We have used our expertise to make direct investments in this area because these projects are an extremely effective way to create high quality affordable rental housing.

Other investments we may consider:

• Housing finance bonds targeted to low- and moderate-income communities
• Investments in Community Development Corporations
• Investments in Small Business Development Corporations
• Investments in New Market Tax Credits
• Municipal redevelopment bonds targeted to low- and moderate-income communities
• Investments or deposits in Community Development Financial Institutions
• Purchases of multifamily affordable housing revenue bonds

Further, our investment strategy includes a targeted charitable giving program, which focuses on supporting local organizations in low- and moderate-income communities and in other communities throughout our assessment areas that:

• Provide and/or promote homeownership programs
• Offer health, financial, cultural and educational programs
• Offer leadership development programs to youths and adults
• Provide skill or vocational training programs
• Offer business management programs to small business owners
• Promote economic growth and employment in the local community
• Focus on assisting new immigrants with their credit needs

Our community service strategy is centered on bringing an acceptable quality of life to the communities we serve. Our primary objective is to enable low- and moderate-income individuals and their communities to grow into sustainable, desirable, more culturally integrated and more comfortably managed lifestyles and environments. We do this through financial education, small business lending and by supporting community organizations that are making a positive social impact.

As part of our ongoing CRA service goals to assist low- and moderate-income individuals and continually assess the credit needs of our local communities, Brenix Credit Union Bank provides multi-lingual banking services in English, Spanish, and Chinese, accessible through convenient delivery channels such as ATMs, online banking and 24-hour telephone banking. We offer extended banking hours at most of our branches and through our in-store branch network, provide banking services seven days a week. We also offer products such as free checking, low-fee remittances, low-doc and no-doc mortgages, and a secured credit card program to further meet the financial needs of our local communities.

Among our other qualified community service activities are:

• Participating on advisory boards and committees in support of community development—sharing our expertise in credit, loan review, fundraising, civic leadership and other impactful community activities. 
• Providing technical assistance on financial matters to small businesses or community development organizations; providing education and training for financial access, including home ownership counseling, financial planning, and small business lending.