SECU Foundation Supports Rural Housing at 0% Interest

North Carolina’s State Employees’ Credit Union, the nation’s second largest financial cooperative, doesn’t do commercial lending, but commercial real estate loans are a key activity at its foundation.

The thing is, the SECU Foundation doesn’t make any money at it.

A good example is its announcement Tuesday of the opening of a new 24-unit housing complex for public school and local government employees in Windsor, N.C., the seat of rural Bertie County in the state’s northeast corner.

The SECU Foundation lent $3.1 million for construction, which started in May 2023, which converted to permanent financing on June 1 after completion. The interest rate on the 15-year loan was a bargain 0%, which at the current market rate of 6.75% meant the Foundation left $1.8 million in interest on the table.

And this wasn’t the first time. Since 2006, the Foundation has lent $11.1 million on five previous projects to meet housing needs for educators and other school staff in rural and underserved areas of North Carolina.

In Bertie County, Ron Wesson, chair of the Partners for Bertie County Public Schools Board, said he was “delighted” with the July 1 opening of the Dream Pointe Apartments.

“Dream Pointe allows us to offer new teachers and teachers who work in our community but don’t live here an exciting opportunity to become full members of the community where they are employed,” Wesson said. “The support and encouragement from SECU Foundation has far exceeded our expectations, and we look forward to a long and mutually supportive relationship.”

Scott Southern, director of grants administration for the foundation, said the Foundation was pleased to help the schools attract and retain teachers.

“Dream Pointe Apartments will not only meet an immediate housing need, but it will also support the continued growth and development of Bertie County,” Southern said.

The SECU Foundation’s previous five loans for housing were:

• $2.2 million for the Hertford Pointe housing in Hertford County in the northeast portion of the state;
• $2.2 million for the Run Hill Ridge housing in Dare County on the Atlantic coast;
• $1.4 million for the Hatteras housing in Dare County;
• $2.5 million for the Echo Ridge housing in Hoke County about 110 miles east of Charlotte; and
• $2.8 million for the Williams-Baldwin Teacher Campus in Buncombe County in the mountains of western North Carolina.

The SECU Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization funded by the contributions of SECU members. The Foundation said it promotes local community development in North Carolina primarily through high-impact projects in the areas of housing, education, health care and human services.

Since 2004, SECU Foundation has made a collective financial commitment of over $258 million for initiatives designed to benefit North Carolinians statewide. That includes $24.6 million in grants, scholarships and loans its 2024 fiscal year that ended June 30.