The impact that CDFI credit unions can make in lower income areas by providing financial tools for the community raises the financial independence of individuals in that area and then lessens the amount of ongoing aid that needs to be provided by the government directly to those communities.
CDFIs are critical to increasing access to capital in communities across the country. Here at Communities Unlimited, we are filling gaps that the market cannot fill. Leveraging the CDFI Fund, we provide lending services that are critical to basic infrastructure in rural places, sparking entrepreneurship in small towns, and deploying capital to increase investment in homes and property in rural areas. Our lending portfolio includes rural and regional water and wastewater systems, small business loans for unserved entrepreneurs who cannot access a loan from a traditional bank, and consumer loans for home improvement, private wells, and private septic systems in rural places. The best part about our lending services: our clients pay them off. These are not handouts but loans. CU’s lending services, through the CDFI Fund, are critical for increasing access to capital and driving economic growth in rural places.
CDFIs stimulate the economy and is a vital segment of economic development and contributes directly to the GDP.