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Oakville Beaver | Thursday, September 7, 2023 | 34 insidehalton.com Ree Help You! DE RANGO PHARMACY INC. / Free RX Delivery > bby dt r. } BB OPINION HAVE THE BIG 5 BANKS ALIENATED =e MILLENNIALS? SWITCHING TO A CANADIAN CREDIT UNION MIGHT BE YOUR BEST OPTION, WRITES CHRISTINE IBBOTSON Dear Money Lady Readers, Do you know the differ- ence between the Big Five panks anda Canadian cred- it uni We're re an stressing about inflation and interest rates ys, and the demand far Seay "financial advice is on the rise. Home owner- ship, mort; renewals, investment assistance and basic budgeting can't be CHRISTINE IBBOTSON Column a banker, so the Big Five ramped up the online bank ing movement during COVID-19 pandemic ee re- duce costs, lower overhead, and i se profits for their shareholders. But this is not what I hear from my readers who send me hundreds of emails every week, worried about their future. Today more than ever, Canadians found on social media sites. want good customer ser- ing said, most vice, honest financial ad- peor automatically gravi- vice, and they do indeed tate to one of Canada's larg- want a partnership with est banks (BMO, RBC, TD, _ their bank to help them cre- BS, and CIBC), especially ate a future for their fami- why not? lies. The Big Fiveno now dominate The online banking this country's financial sec- movernent has alienated tor with ii 1d made paced {riltion in Canadian asset TaToves, credit today is expensive, and many mil- lennials feel home owner- ship may not be a reality in their lifetime or they feel they just don't get the right advice to save and invest for their future. We have all been systematically trained by the banks to seek Snancial a advice online and do our banking through a "do-it-yourself" app. It was widely believed that mille would nev- er value a relationship with them oe panna Are they being sold a product for their benefit or the banks? Is it _ worth having a with a banker anes to. ma out later that they are no longer there, and they have to start over with someone new? Why not consider a cred- it union instead? Canadian credit unions are financial institutions, just like banks. Both organizations have brick and mortar loca- tions where you can 20 and do your banking. Both offer chequing and savings ac- counts, mortgages, loans, munity, with their primary goal to provide better prod- ucts and services to mem- bers. Commercial banks, on the other hand, are large for-profit entities that work for their shareholders. “Our advisers stay in their roles longer to build solid relationships with our members," said Ken Shea, CEO of East Coast ae Union. "We work ents to create a nate tan for home ownership, even if they can't get into the mar- ket right now, and we prom- ise to still be there in the fu- ture to help them through the entire buying process.” Right now, we could all use a little help in n this eco- nomic environny Find- ing a ofbeclenal could save you thousands of dol- lars, give you peace of mind, and provide you with a cus- tomized solution to build the future you have always wanted. Good luck and _ best wishes, ‘Money Lady Christine Ibbotson is an now on both "CTV Morn- ing Live" and "CTV News at 6." Send your money questions (answered free) through her website at ww- w.askthemoneylady.ca. Follow her on Facebook an- d Instagram.