Spokane Teachers Credit Union posted a 13 percent increase in net income for 2009, despite having a $4.3 million investment loss and a $1.5 million charge to help replenish a national credit union deposit insurance fund.

The Spokane-based credit union had almost $9.1 million in net income last year, up from $8 million in 2008, says Bill Before, STCU's vice president of finance and chief financial officer.

STCU's deposits grew 22 percent in 2009, to $1.13 billion, up from $927 million a year earlier, and membership grew 10.8 percent to 86,400 members. Before says he attributes some of that growth to people continuing to seek safety and soundness.

Meanwhile, STCU's loans jumped 14 percent, to about $1.14 billion, up from $997 million a year earlier, he says. Before says that STCU's total loans would have been higher, except the credit union sold some of its home mortgages on the secondary market last year to keep its fixed-rate assets down. He says the credit union also had 22 percent growth in Visa credit card accounts, and a 27 percent increase in auto loans, as well as 11 percent growth in commercial loans.

Overall, STCU had a return on average assets of 0.67 percent for 2009, compared with 0.7 percent the previous year. Before says the credit union is satisfied with that, considering the added expense of the $1.5 million National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund insurance premium and $4.3 million in investment losses incurred when it had to write down its capital in the corporate credit unions it belongs to that were taken into conservatorship by the National Credit Union Association last year.

For the coming year, STCU is projecting net income of about $12 million.

"We think we're approaching a peak in the loan losses, so we feel we should be able to manage it from here," Before says. The credit union also is budgeting for a steeper NCUSIF insurance premium payment, he says.

He says the credit union plans to keep holding off on expansion of its branch network this year.

"With all of this change in the economy, we're kind of holding off for a year. We're going to take a rest on new branches this year and re-evaluate in 2011," he says.