Support the Credit Union Difference
By joining Mainstreet, you made the smart choice to protect your family’s financial future and support our community. As a member of Mainstreet, you can be sure that your money stays right here at home, driving our local economy instead of padding the pockets of stockholders.
It’s important to know the difference between not-for-profit credit unions and for-profit banks. But banks don’t like to talk about these differences. Instead of focusing on keeping money right here in our community, Kansas bankers are pushing legislation to harm credit unions.
This month, when Kansas legislators return to the Statehouse, they will be pushing even harder. Legislators hear from bank lobbyists all the time. To match them, we must all step up and tell our elected officials about the credit union difference. Nothing is more powerful to elected officials than when they hear from their constituents like you.
Watch for ways you can help make sure your lawmakers know about the credit union difference in the coming months.
John Beverlin, President/CEO
Board Director Nominations
Members wanting to fill vacant Board of Director positions may begin the nomination process by filing a petition with 500 member signatures.
For a complete list of procedures and candidate biographies, click here.
Annual Meeting for Members
2020 Shred Days
- Saturday, March 21- Shred It Facility, 10000 Lackman Road, Lenexa, KS
- Saturday, June 27- California Trail Middle School, 13775 W. 133rd Street, Olathe
- Saturday, September 26- Johnson County Govt. Offices, 6000 Lamar Avenue, Mission, KS
- Saturday, November 7- Shred It Facility, 10000 Lackman Road, Lenexa, KS
All Shred Days are held from 9 a.m. to noon, unless trucks are full.
All types of dry paper are accepted. Please ensure your shred materials are clear of plastic, media tapes, corrugated cardboard, electric cords, electronics, lighters, and metal objects. These items potentially cause serious injury to volunteers and truck operators.
Please note: Time and location are subject to change. Check our website for updates on our Community Page.
The Teachers Earned It
Our deep roots in education make us proud to recognize the tremendous work of our community’s educators. Five teachers were presented with the Olathe Public Schools Foundation Educator Excellence Award this season.
To win the award, the teacher must be nominated via essay by former or current students, colleagues or students’ parents. Mainstreet values the impact every educator makes with our future generation of thinkers and doers.
Check out our most recent excellent educators:
It’s Not Too Late for IRA Contributions
The IRS allows you to make your IRA contribution for a particular tax year up until April 15 of the following year. This rule applies to both traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs, allowing for flexibility with the timing of your annual IRA contribution. The total contributions to all traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs you own cannot be more than $6,000. If you’re age 50 or older, you can make an extra “catch-up” contribution of $1,000 each year.
If you have your IRA with another institution and would like to roll it over to CUSO Financial Services, L.P.* at Mainstreet – keep reading. Here’s how you get started with the rollover process:
- Contact your current institution and tell them you would like to rollover your IRA to Mainstreet
- Complete the proper forms
- Fill out transfer paperwork with Dave or Sara
- Ensure that you opt for a direct rollover- which will send the money right to us
- Select your investments
- Let the money do the work for you
Our CFS** Financial Professionals can assist you in ensuring a comfortable retirement strategy that is designed to help you take control of your financial future.
*Non-deposit investment products and services are offered through CUSO Financial Services, L.P. (“CFS”), a registered broker-dealer (Member FINRA/SIPC) and SEC Registered Investment Advisor. Products offered through CFS: are not NCUA/NCUSIF or otherwise federally insured, are not guarantees or obligations of the credit union, and may involve investment risk including possible loss of principal. Investment Representatives are registered through CFS. The Credit Union has contracted with CFS to make non-deposit investment products and services available to credit union members.
Beware of Gift Card Scams
About one-third of people who reported fraud to the Federal Trade Commission through September of this year say they were asked to pay with a gift card or re-loadable card. That’s up more than 300 percent from the share of people who reported the same scam in 2015. In fact, the FTC says gift cards are now the number one payment method that con artists use.
How are gift cards used in scams? Typically in the con, scammers call or email people, outline some scenario in which they need immediate money, and ask for payment via a gift card. Scammers typically ask for the money on a specific, popular card, such as iTunes, Google Play, or Amazon, according to the FTC.
Gift cards are popular with scammers because they’re just like cash. Spending is anonymous and scammers don’t need the physical card to use them. They simply ask for the gift card number and the PIN on the back.
For consumers, gift cards pack an extra punch to being scammed: it’s very hard to reverse the purchases or get a refund.
Through September of this year, consumers have reported losing a total of $74 million through scams with gift or re-loadable cards, an increase from $53 million during the same period in 2015, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Anyone can be victim of a financial scam, but older consumers are particularly at risk. An estimated one in five people over the age of 65 have experienced financial abuse or fraud, costing up to $3 billion a year. This week, for example, a Quartz investigation uncovered a scheme in which dozens of older consumers lost large sums of their retirement savings when they bought over-priced gold and silver after being targeted by Facebook ads.
How to Spot a Gift Card Scam
- Double-check the email sender. If you receive an email asking for money or other assistance, carefully check that it’s being sent from the correct address of someone you know. Scammers will often have an address that looks accurate but it one or two letters off.
- Refuse to pay over the phone. This is the best way to avoid falling for a scam over the phone unless you initiated the call. And remember that business, government officials, or law enforcement will never ask you to pay with gift cards.
- Trust your gut. Scammers have become increasingly adept at making phone calls and emails sound and look legitimate.
What to Do If You’ve Been Scammed
- If you’ve paid a scammer, you should immediately call the company that issued the card to inform them it was used in a scam.
- Be proactive. If you act before the scammer uses the card, you may be able to get your money back. The FTC has a list of commonly used cards at consumer.ftc.gov/articles.
You should also report the details of the incident to the FTC at FTC.gov/complaint.\\
Source: MSN Money, A Popular Gift Card Scam
