Derek and Joni Gusoskey
DEREK GUSOSKEY, A member of Local 290 (Bremerton, Washington), has worked in the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard since 2013, specifically in Shop 26 where he’s a lead steward.
“We work on nuclear submarines and nuclear aircraft carriers, very specialized work,” Gusoskey says. “I am a member of the U.S. Department of Defense, where we maintain and modernize equipment that men and women in uniform rely on every day to protect our freedom.”
His work is a point of pride. After suffering financial setbacks from a bad real estate investment and the 2008 market crash, Gusoskey also found financial stability and a unique resource through his Boilermaker job.
“My wife and I hit rough patches along the way. And we had to watch the housing market come back to life,” says Gusoskey. “We found our current home in 2016. We were pre-approved, and through a ‘for sale by owner,’ we made the deal that day.”
Gusoskey and his wife decided to refinance their home this year through the Union Plus Mortgage Company.
“I’ve worked to repair my credit. And it just so happened that everything worked out this year. Union Plus went above and beyond,” he says. “At first I couldn’t believe it. But there’s no catch, it’s just a perk of being a union member.”
Gusoskey went into the refinancing process with low expectations due to his prior experience with other lenders.”
“I was skeptical because I’ve been burned so many times before,” Gusoskey says. “It’s a buyer beware situation. I’ve worked too hard for my money to be parted with it that easily.”
But, he says, he left pleased and surprised at how uncomplicated Union Plus made the process.
He also said that the process happened on time, just as Union Plus promised. “Everything happened on or before the timeline they gave us, including our communications, the e-signatures and everything else. One click notifies Union Plus so they can move things onto the next step for underwriting. It all works well.”
Gusoskey was also happy to receive special benefits, such as a $500 gift card for closing.
“Union Plus Mortgage Company is just fantastic across the board,” Gusoskey says. “I go around telling everyone about Union Plus whenever I can. Because of the refinance, I was able to put the money back into the house. I paid off debt, and now it’s just the truck payment and the house payment. Life is good.”
