Dear Alliance Member,

As you may be aware, Alliance Credit Union of Florida officially merged with Self-Help Credit Union on June 1, 2025. We are excited by the opportunity to serve you as a member. I want to share with you some of the changes that you will see in the coming months.

Merger Dividend

First, the Self-Help Board of Directors approved a one-time special dividend payment to members of Alliance. If you were a member on December 31, 2024, and are still a member today, you will receive a merger dividend. The dividend will post to your accounts in July. It is equal to 2.57% of the December 31, 2024 balances on all your Alliance share accounts (savings, checking, money market, certificates, and individual retirement accounts). The total merger dividend paid to members exceeded $1.4 million, in recognition of the earnings that Alliance accumulated over the last 81 years to serve greater Gainesville. If you joined the credit union after December 31, you are not eligible for the merger dividend.

Deposit Rates

Dividend rates paid on most deposit accounts increased on June 1. For example, Alliance paid 0.01%-0.10% APR on regular share savings accounts before the merger. Self-Help pays 0.30% APR on those same accounts. We have increased the money market share account rate past 2.00% APR and pay 4.00% APR on a one-year term certificate.¹ This is your credit union. We are committed to ensuring your deposits earn a strong return.

Fees

We eliminated all overdraft “courtesy pay” fees and bounced check (NSF) fees. This ensures that when you make a mistake and overdraw your account, you do not get penalized. In the coming months, we will replace fee-based overdraft with an overdraft line of credit for members who occasionally overdraw their accounts.

Lending Changes

We are reintroducing a Home Equity Line of Credit loan product to Alliance members on August 1, 2025. We know that this is an important product that helps homeowners tap into the equity in their home. In 2026, we will be expanding the suite of loan products available to members.

Home Mortgages

Self-Help offers a 30-year fixed rate mortgage with very low downpayments and no private mortgage insurance. We will begin offering this service in Gainesville in September. We recognize that it is hard to buy a home at any time, but particularly in the current housing and rate environment. We have multiple products designed to help families with limited savings become homeowners, with particularly generous terms for first-time homebuyers.

More Services to Come

We are planning additional improvements in 2026, after we combine the operational systems of Alliance and Self-Help. When that occurs, you will be able to access Self-Help’s 37 other branches in the Southeast, including our three branches in Jacksonville, and other nearby communities like Winter Park, Apopka, DeLand and Tallahassee, as well as our financial coaching and FICO credit score review. Members will also have access to Self-Help’s green lending products, including an affordable electric vehicle loan, rooftop solar lending, and our Energy Saver home improvement loan. We appreciate the 81-year history of Alliance. What started as a volunteer-run organization in the basement of City Hall in 1944 grew to become the credit union for thousands of Gainesville city employees and local residents. We are honored to carry that history forward and find ways to reinvest in the membership, city, and broader community in Northeast Florida.

Sincerely,

Randy Chambers
President

_{¹Rates are as of June 1, 2025 and are subject to change. Please check www.alliancecufl.org or www.self-help.org for current rates.}