IBEW Members Find Their Way To a Home With Union Plus Help

March 2003 IBEW Journal

The IBEW web site led Local 3, New York City, member Reginald Williams and his wife, Pamela, to the purchase of their first home and the entire process was much easier than they thought it would be, thanks to the Union Plus mortgage program.

Most surprising to Pamela Williams was "we did it all on the phone, from start to finish" when they bought their home in Hempstead, New York. She said they had attempted to buy a home through another program, "but they were pitiful." After that experience, she learned about Union Plus from the national IBEW web site and was stunned to be able to do the transaction in only a few months, entirely over the phone.

The Union Plus Mortgage and Real Estate Program, offered through Chase Manhattan Mortgage Company, gives union members a leg up in home loan transactions, including a chance to buy their first home with as little as 3 percent down. In addition to the ease of streamlined transactions, the Union Plus program also offers competitive interest rates, a warranty on mechanical systems and appliances for a year after purchase, and strike and unemployment/disability benefits—features that aren’t in the picture with other mortgage companies. Union members who use the program to buy and sell a home receive an additional $350 toward closing costs.

IBEW members can learn more about the mortgage program by talking to counselors at the Union Plus Mortgage and Real Estate Program at 1-899-848-6466. The Union Privilege Home Finance Center is available at www.unionplus.org. Parents and children of union members are also eligible for the program.

IBEWCURRENTS