Mission

Self-Help's mission is to create and protect economic opportunity for all, especially people of color, women, and rural and low-income communities.

What We Do

Self-Help is a family of nonprofit organizations that includes two credit unions, a loan fund, and a research and advocacy group.

We foster economic opportunity on two levels: direct service, and research and policy. By combining practice and policy, we're able to develop better tools for economic development and have an impact that reaches beyond the immediate communities that we serve.

Some examples of our work:
* We provide responsible, sustainable consumer financial services through our networks of credit unions in North Carolina and in California.

* We lend to small businesses, nonprofits and community facilities to help them succeed and grow.

* We invest in community development projects to help create and maintain jobs and childcare, education, and housing spaces.

* We make home loans to help more people attain home ownership.

* We develop residential and commercial real estate to help revitalize neighborhoods and communities that have experienced disinvestment.

* Through our research and policy arm, the Center for Responsible Lending, we protect homeownership and family wealth by fighting predatory lending practices.

* We advocate for policies and practices that extend fair economic opportunity to all.

Since our founding in 1980, we have served 88,436 members and have made 74,548 loans to families, individuals and organizations. We have invested more than $6 billion in this work over our 32-year history.