Maun Valley Credit Union

Good:
Low interest rates, low monthly repayments, no hidden charges or extra fees, affordable loan

Bad:
You must be living, employed or volunteering within Mansfield, Mansfield Woodhouse, Forest Town, Pleasley, Pleasley Hill, Clipstone, Kings Clipstone, New Clipstone, New Houghton, Stoney Houghton, Rainworth or Blidworth to become a member

Verdict:
Small financial business serving the local community to provide a more flexible option for saving and borrowing

You must be living, employed or volunteering within Mansfield, Mansfield Woodhouse, Forest Town, Pleasley, Pleasley Hill, Clipstone, Kings Clipstone, New Clipstone, New Houghton, Stoney Houghton, Rainworth and Blidworth to become a member.

Credit Unions offer a few different unsecured loans for any purpose. Their loans are fairly cheap and are based on your proven ability to repay, this is why they do a thorough check of your income and expenditures. You need to be a member and you can apply for a loan after you have started saving with them for 13 weeks or 3 months.

First you will need to become a member of the union. To apply for a loan, you need to complete the Loan Application Form (see example below), which you can get from their office or a collection point or you can download from their website. You then need to send it into their office, a collection point or the County Contact in Mansfield. All loans are reviewed by the Loan Officer. They will inform you of their decision as soon as possible and you will be asked to sign a Loan Agreement.

The process may in some cases take up to two weeks so this is not a good option for you if you need your money quickly. You cannot manage your loan online so if you need to make changes, you need to contact them or go into a branch. With credit unions, the money you are borrowing is the money of other members, so if you fail to make payments, they take this very seriously. Their opening hours are very limited, which makes it difficult for you to go in to organise all your documents and sign your agreement. On the other hand, they want to help you rebuild your finances if you haven't got a good history. Their rates are extremely low and their repayments are really small each month.

Main Office
Monday-Thursday: 9:30am-2:00pm
Friday: 9:30am-1:00pm
Between 2pm and 4pm is Appointment Only

Shop Regents Street Monday-Friday: 9:30am-4:30pm

Barrow Hill Walk Community Centre Monday: 9:30am-10:30am