Owner’s Manual

REAL ESTATE LOANS

We take great pride in how we help members afford the American Dream.  Our financing allows you to be the architect of your future, providing you with the key to unlocking the benefits of financial security, terrific tax advantages and peace of mind.

MORTGAGE LOANS
You’ll find the best mortgage benefits at Gulf Coast Educators.  Since we’re member-owned, we always give our members the best deal possible.  With advantages like low closing costs and fees, we make getting a loan easier for you.  And you’ll always get the best service in town.

HOME EQUITY LOANS
Now is the perfect time to use the equity in your home to pay off high interest debt, make needed renovations or refinance your existing home equity loan at our low rates.  Using the equity in your home, you can open a home equity loan and enjoy peace of mind knowing that funds are available whenever you need them.

LAND LOANS
Found that perfect retirement spot or weekend getaway but not quite ready to build?  A land loan from your credit union may be the answer.

TEACHER MORTGAGE LOANS
If you are a teacher looking to buy a home, you are in luck. With a GCEFCU Teacher Mortgage, you can finance your new home up to 103%, with no down payment or PMI required.

MORTGAGE REFINANCING
Refinance your mortgage to get a better rate and lower your monthly payment, shorten your term to pay your loan off faster, or both. Refinancing is available up to 95% of your home’s value.

SAVINGS ACCOUNTS

To become a member you need to open a Primary Savings Account. Once opened, your membership comes with our commitment to build and maintain a lifelong relationship with you.  Once you are a member, you will have access to a full range of financial services, all under one roof, and can open any additional credit union accounts.

PRIMARY SAVINGS
This is the account that establishes your membership at the credit union.  The initial deposit is only $1, and a  minimum balance of $1 must be maintained. Dividends are paid monthly and we offer the convenience of unlimited access to your funds. Once your primary savings is open, you can open additional credit union accounts.

MONEY MARKET ACCOUNTS
Looking for convenient access to your money while earning a higher dividend than a regular savings account and without being locked into a term?  Then our Money Market account is the perfect answer. A minimum opening deposit of $100 is required with dividends paid on amounts greater than $2,500.

TERM SHARE ACCOUNTS
This is the highest earning account we offer at the credit union.  Term Share Accounts are fixed-term investments that earn the highest rates without any risks.  These investments are offered in terms from 3 months to 5 years with a minimum opening deposit of only $100.

PREMIUM DEPOSIT ACCOUNTS
This account is designed to reward members who use multiple credit union services by adding 1/2% APY to any new Term Share Account opened (excludes Jumbo CD’s) Members who use 3 of the following services at Gulf Coast Educators will qualify for the ½% APY bonus: Checking account, direct deposit, loans, IRA, VISA Debit card or Bill Pay.  *APY = Annual percentage yield

JUMBO TERM SHARE ACCOUNTS
This account is for larger deposits of $100,000 or greater.  This account works the same as our Term Share Account, but offers higher dividends.

COLLEGE SAVER CERTIFICATE
Featuring a minimum deposit of only $250, this certificate is an ideal way for kids to start saving money.  It is much like the Term Share Account, but with unlimited deposits in amounts of $50 or more. A College Saver Certificate can be opened for any member age 17 and under.

HEALTH SAVINGS ACCOUNT
Offering Peace of Mind for Health care. With the Health Savings Account from Gulf Coast Educators, prepare yourself for future health needs. Convenient and tax-advantaged, HSA accounts help offset high deductible health plans such as TRS ActiveCAre 1-HD.

INDIVIDUAL RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS
Saving for retirement couldn’t be easier than with a Gulf Coast Educators IRA.  We offer three different options:

• Premium Market IRA – Our Premium Market IRA offers members a high yield retirement option, without any risk.
• Standard IRA – Choose from a Traditional or Roth Standard IRA account to begin saving for retirement.
• Educational (Coverdell ESA) IRA – Withdraw funds, tax-free, when it’s time to pay for college.

CHRISTMAS CLUB ACCOUNT
An excellent account to help you prepare for the holidays far in advance.  A minimum deposit of $25 is required to open the account with minimum monthly deposits of $20 or more.

SANDY SAVERS KIDS CLUB
The Sandy Savers Kids Club offers our younger members a wonderful opportunity to get involved in credit union events, as well as earn prizes for saving money.

DOLLAR UP SAVINGS ACCOUNT
Saving money can be hard, but we are here to help! By linking your Gulf Coast Educators debit card to our new Dollar Up Savings account, you can automatically save a little bit of money every day.

ADDITIONAL ACCOUNTS
Open additional accounts conveniently through Online Banking.  Use them for budgeting or saving up for something you really want.

CHECKING ACCOUNTS

Realize all the benefits of a checking account plus enjoy many cost-saving, convenient features when you bank at Gulf Coast Educators.  Start with free checking or move up to Advantage Checking for added benefits.

REGULAR CHECKING
A checking account from Gulf Coast Educators is not only easy and convenient to use and manage, it comes with a host of benefits, not the least of which is the chance to save you money with no monthly service charge.

ADVANTAGE CHECKING
This account is one of the most popular with members.  It offers all the benefits of regular checking plus many additional features.

STUDENT CHECKING
Our Student Checking account is just for members ages 13-17 years old. It gives you the chance to gain the financial independence you’ve been looking for, without spending a dime. With your own checking account and debit card, you can start spending your money, your way.

MONEY MARKET ACCOUNTS
Looking for convenient access to your money while earning a higher dividend than a regular savings account and without being locked into a term?  Then our Money Market account is the perfect answer. A minimum opening deposit of $100 is required with dividends paid on amounts greater than $2,500.

VISA® DEBIT CARD
A debit card is an all-in-one solution.  It works like a credit card anywhere Visa is accepted and as an ATM card at any one of the thousands of “No-Surcharge” Allpoint ATMs or at other ATMs worldwide.

ELECTRONIC SERVICES

Your Gulf Coast Educators Federal Credit Union accounts are as close as the nearest computer or phone.  What could be easier?

ONLINE BANKING
We love seeing our members in our branch offices.  However, if you would rather skip the drive and instead visit us by using your computer, that’s great too.  With Online Banking, members can perform almost any task from the convenience of any computer – home,  office, while traveling or wherever. Best of all, Online Banking never closes.

BILL PAY
With everything else going electronic, why pay your bills any other way?  With our Online Bill Pay system, you can pay all your bills from one screen and save time, money and trees!

MOBILE BANKING APP
With a mobile device or smart phone, you have full access to online banking as well as financial calculators including payments for all types of loans.  View rates or locate the nearest branch office, the closest shared branch office or surcharge-free ATM, check your account balances, transfer funds, and access Bill Pay.  Our Mobile App also features Remote Deposit Capture which enables you to deposit checks by taking a photo of the front and back of your endorsed check.

Download our FREE Mobile App from the App Store or Android Market for your iPhone, iPad, Android Smartphone and other tablets that run Android.

Zelle®
A fast, safe and easy way to send money in minutes¹ to friends, family and others you trust, right from the Gulf Coast Educators Federal Credit Union mobile app.² Zelle makes it easy to send money to, or receive money from, people you trust with a bank account in the U.S. Find Zelle in your Gulf Coast Educators Federal Credit Union app.

SavvyMoney
This feature which is found in online banking and the mobile app allows members to get their credit scores, reports, credit monitoring and more at no charge.

REMOTE DEPOSITS
Use this feature within the credit union’s mobile app to deposit a check into your account.

FINANCIAL WELLNESS
With the Financial Wellness tool, all of your transactions are automatically classified into different categories, such as groceries, entertainment, utilities, etc. Upon selecting the Analytics tab within online banking, you can now view a break down of your spending in each category month after month.

ACCOUNT TO ACCOUNT TRANSFERS
Transfer funds between your Gulf Coast Educators accounts and accounts held at other financial institutions.

SCHEDULED TRANSFER
Use this feature to set up automatic recurring payments to your credit union loan, or automatic recurring payments to your college child’s account.

TELEPHONE BANKING
What if you’re not near a computer?  No problem.  You can take care of all your standard banking needs from your home or mobile phone.

ACCOUNT ALERTS
You can set up account notifications within the SETTINGS section of your online banking. Simply go to the NOTIFICATIONS tab and click the gear icon by the notification that you would like to enable. Once you have turned on a notification, you can select which account you would like the notification for and how you would like to be notified. If you have any questions, please feel free to call or text us at 281-487-9333.

APPLE PAY
Apple Pay allows members to pay using their compatible Apple device. It makes paying faster and more secure.

MOBILE WALLET
With your mobile wallet, you can pay for purchases online and in person, straight from your phone. First, you must add your debit or credit card to your mobile wallet app. Which app you use will depend on which phone device you currently have.

CONVENIENCE SERVICES

As a full service financial institution, we offer our members more than just regular credit union accounts.  We’re here for you 24/7.

GULF COAST EDUCATORS INSURANCE SERVICES
Independent insurance agency wholly owned by the credit union which offers auto and home owners insurance from a variety of well known A rated carriers.

ALLPOINT SURCHARGE FREE ATMS
There is never a charge to use a Gulf Coast Educators VISA® debit card at one of our ATMs. Other financial institution ATMs charge fees (surcharges) to use their ATMs.  To avoid these charges, we’ve partnered with Allpoint Nationwide Network.  With Allpoint you have access to your funds wh “no surcharge fees” at tens of thousands of ATMs nationwide.

DIRECT DEPOSIT & PAYROLL DEDUCTION
Your time is worth money and we know it. That’s why we offer you the convenience of doing business with your credit union through direct deposit. The best part is that our members with direct deposit report receiving their deposits at least a day before their coworkers who have accounts elsewhere*.

FOREIGN CURRENCY EXCHANGE
Traveling?  Well, you need local currency.  We offer the most convenient, safe and secure method of purchasing foreign currency for 100+ countries without paying the outrageous fees found at airports and hotels.

WIRE TRANSFERS
Enjoy the convenience of sending either a domestic or international wire transfer.

INVESTMENT SERVICES
A variety of investment options are available to help you meet your long and short term goals and achieve success.
*Not Guaranteed by the Credit Union. *Not a Deposit *Not Insured by any Federal Government Agency. *May Lose Value.

DISCOUNT TICKETS
We offer our members discount tickets for several amusement and theme parks in our area. To purchase tickets, you may contact the credit union for your verified member password (NOT your online banking password), and then purchase them online.

CYBERSCOUT
Gulf Coast Educators FCU provides our members with the nation’s premier identity theft services, including proactive resources and on-on-one expert victim assistance, for only $1 a month or as one of the services included with the Advantage Checking account.

FRAUDSCOUT™ – PREMIUM ID PROTECTION
FraudScout™ from CyberScout can help protect you from identity theft and fraud by detecting activity that may indicate your personal information has been compromised. Working with the three top credit bureaus — TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian — this service continuously monitors millions of pieces of credit and public data to ensure your information remains safe.

SAFE DEPOSIT BOXES
Some of our locations offer safe deposit boxes to keep valuables safe. Please call for availability.  Yearly safe deposit box rental fees:
$15.00 3 x 5  |  $25.00 3 x 10  |  $40.00 5 x 10  |  $75.00 10 x 10