RIGHT now, home improvement loans at Clonakilty & Dunmanway Credit Union have never been so popular, with more and more people borrowing for projects from new kitchens or driveways to major refurbishments.
The meitheal referred to times in rural Ireland when the whole community got together to pitch in and help out a neighbour to bring in the harvest or with other time-sensitive tasks.
It’s a spirit firmly embedded in the Credit Union’s DNA.
Instead of talking of barriers to why the job can’t be done, they concentrate on helping to get the job done.
‘People have these myths that you can only borrow three times what you have in savings or you need to be joined for a certain amount of time before you can borrow,’ says Sinéad McCarthy, of Clonakilty & Dunmanway Credit Union.
‘But you can literally join today and apply for a loan tomorrow… it really is as simple as that.’
Borrowing is very easy – online (cdcreditunion. ie), over the phone (023 8833842) or by appointment.
Loan decisions (with unsecured loans up to €70,000 possible) are made very quickly by local people for local people.
Siobhán O’Mahony and her partner Timmie O’Brien experienced firsthand this community-led support.
Their conversion of the former post office in Butlerstown featured on RTÉ’s Great House Revival.
‘They couldn’t have made it easier for us,’ says Siobhán.
‘They had an answer very quickly … we simply couldn’t have done it without them.
‘They don’t just look at you as a figure – they try their best to look at the whole picture. It’s not like (as we were told a million times!) sending it off to head office in Dublin where a computer says ‘no’!’
Instead, the result was a bit more like ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’, with everyone gathering around to pitch in and make the dream become a reality – in other words, a modern-day meitheal.
For further details, and to see information on Home Improvement loans, visit: www.cdcreditunion.ie
