Tevi ([info]tevs) wrote in [info]oberlin,
@ 2006-01-11 17:28:00
Previous Entry  Add to memories!  Tell a Friend!  Next Entry
Current music:Zanna, Don't! - I Think We Got Love

Questions about banks
Sorry if this seems like I didn't read the banking threads - I did, but I have a few questions that, as far as I could tell, were never addressed:

a] Has anyone had a problem with First Merit other than issues when they've overdrawn their account? The negative comments about FM were all either vague (talked negatively about FM in general) or specifically referenced that one issue, so I'm not sure whether there's a huge problem with them, or just that in particular.
b] Is there anything functionally different about a credit union (i.e., in terms of how I can store/withdraw/deposit my money), or only in terms of how one is run/operated? (Or are the two inherently connected?)
c] Nobody really commented on Third Federal, which was mentioned briefly in one of the threads - how're they (if anyone even uses them)?

Thanks much. :)


(Post a new comment)


[info]getpeached
2006-01-11 10:44 pm UTC (link)
I'll entertain you with one of my favorite First Merit stories:

My boyfriend (now ex) was visiting me in Oberlin at the time and we needed some money to enjoy a delicious brunch at the Feve. We decided to prescribe to societal gender roles and thus, my boyfriend offered to paid. But first, we needed to hit up an ATM. FM was closer to our destination so we stopped to get money.

He wanted to take out 60, agreed to pay the 2 dollar fee for using a machine at another bank, and promptly got an error message on the screen. A receipt printed with the error message and no money was dispensed.

HOWEVER! We soon discovered (after our amazing brunch) that even though the receipt said otherwise, the money and the fee were both taken out of his account. When he called FM, they absolutely DID NOT believe him. Their customer service sucked and when he furnished them with a receipt, they were still assholes about it. This happened nearly a year ago and the bank kept him in limbo with his money for nearly 6 MONTHS.

While I'm sure that this occassionally happens other places too, FM also fails at being a good community member in general. I'm begging you, please please don't use them. They're not very nice and don't invest your money where it SHOULD go.

(Reply to this)


[info]shannonmc
2006-01-11 10:50 pm UTC (link)
i don't like first merit. have had an account there since the very beginning of my freshman year (i'm a sophomore). if your check card is lost or stolen, it takes forever to get it replaced (i reported mine as stolen and asked for a new one in early june and still haven't received a new one, i stopped trying in august). they're just not very personable or friendly or... good. i *love* lorain, though. check them out. they're friendly, their policies and terms of service are great, they give good gifts, etc. i've not tried to have my card replaced yet, so i can't tell you how that goes, but, judging by the quality of their service otherwise, it would be a breeze. they *really* care about service and making you happy and all that. i very highly recommend lorain.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

[info]getpeached
2006-01-11 10:54 pm UTC (link)
Lorain National is the most amazing place ever. Like, seriously if I were ever a banker, I would work there.

(Reply to this) (Parent)

[info]thebigbt
2006-01-11 11:51 pm UTC (link)
I lost my card and got a new new one in about a week or so.

I guess the thing is that First Merit isn't guaranteed to screw you over, but there's a higher probability than with the other banks, so you might as well start an account with Lorain National.

(Reply to this) (Parent)
Lorain National
[info]pseudoyoink
2006-01-12 01:04 am UTC (link)
I had an account at Lorain for the four years I was a student, and I could not have been happier with their service. They were always courteous, efficient, and well-managed; Dawn, who managed the Oberlin branch (she still may, I don't know) greeted me by name any time I came in that she wasn't dealing with another customer, and made a point of seeing how I was doing when, nine months after commencement, I was back in town and went to close my account. My experience with them was better than any other bank I've been with.

(Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)
Re: Lorain National
(Anonymous)
2006-01-12 01:31 am UTC (link)
She's still working there, and does the same for me.

(Reply to this) (Parent)

[info]user_undefined
2006-01-13 06:46 pm UTC (link)
Lorain is definitely good. I overdrew my account recently, and they were really helpful and didn't charge me as much as they could have. (There's a $30 charge for overdrawing, plus $5 per day, but they didn't charge me the daily fees, just the initial overdraw and my negative balance. Phew.)

(Reply to this) (Parent)

[info]luckysnorkel
2006-01-11 11:37 pm UTC (link)
I don't want to get crucified or anything, but I like First Merit. I've had an account there since the first week I was in Oberlin, and I'm a junior now. I've never had any problems with them, and they've always treated me really nicely when I've gone in there. I have a couple friends with accounts there too and I've never heard them tell any horror stories.

Of course, I'm not trying to negate what other people have said about the place, and perhaps I'm the exception to the rule, but I just felt like I should put it out there that not everyone who uses FM is guaranteed to get screwed over by them.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

[info]faeriez
2006-01-11 11:40 pm UTC (link)
Ditto- I've had an account at First Merit for over seven years, and I've never had a problem with them. Granted, I've never lost a card or overdrawn my account, but- from my experience, as long as you're keeping track of your shit, you shouldn't have a problem. And the tellers there have always been super-friendly. *shrugs*

(Reply to this) (Parent)

[info]dynamint
2006-01-11 11:59 pm UTC (link)
One thing about the credit union that may or may not have been addressed in the other threads - they don't cash checks. They have an agreement with First Merit so you can cash your checks there, but they don't keep enough money out to do it themselves. (Or so they told me at orientation last year.)

(Reply to this)


[info]si_end_ght
2006-01-12 12:13 am UTC (link)
I'm not sure about this, but doesn't First Merit also not have free checking? Or, it's only free if you can keep $500 in your account. Which, for some po' Obies like me, is impossible to do.

I really like Lorain National but they only have free checking, so you don't get a savings account.

The thing that I really just can't stand about the credit union is it's hours. They're closed on a really random day (either monday or wednesday, I can't remember) and are only open until 4:30, while Lorain National is open until 5 (and 5:30 on Fridays!). I eventually had to leave the credit union because the hours just weren't working with my schedule, but I'm going back to open up a second account in Oberlin because they have free savings accounts. ^_^

Honestly, I always forget Third Federal is even there.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

[info]zflutebook
2006-01-12 12:50 am UTC (link)
ForstMerit does have free checking. I'd ay your best bet is to go to the banking fair at orientation - I chose FM cause they're the only bank that's state-wide, and cause they gave me $25.

(Reply to this) (Parent)

[info]phlipp
2006-01-12 01:39 am UTC (link)
I've had my First Merit account for two and half years with no problem. I think the convenience factor of an atm in Wilder outweighs many other factors. Make sure to get direct deposit if you have an on-campus job (this isn't just merit though) as it is so much better then having to wake up on friday to get your check.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

(Anonymous)
2006-01-12 02:00 am UTC (link)
"I think the convenience factor of an atm in Wilder outweighs many other factors."

But that ATM is VERY often broken.

(Reply to this) (Parent)

[info]perfect_line
2006-01-12 05:04 am UTC (link)
i got a first merit account right before even coming to oberlin (i'm from ohio) and i love it. as for bad customer service and stuff...well...just don't take out more money than you have or you get fined...like every other larger bank. they DO have free checking and their atms are everywhere around here. and if you don't like the people working at the bank, use the atm to deposit. i've never actually walked inside the first merit here.

(Reply to this)


(Anonymous)
2006-01-12 05:26 am UTC (link)
I also never had a problem with First Merit, and in reply to the check card issue, mine was stolen earlier this year, and I got a new one within a couple of weeks.

(Reply to this)


(Anonymous)
2006-01-12 03:01 pm UTC (link)
my friend has an account at first merit and once when he deposited 400 dollars they put it into someone elses account by accident and then were mildly retarded about fixing the problem. LORAIN NATIONAL ALL THE WAY!

(Reply to this)


[info]magicekim
2006-01-12 03:48 pm UTC (link)
I've had an account with FM for about 4 years and have only had one bad experience when trying to get a money order. Despite having a checking account, I needed to have a money order issued and I went there thinking I could just draw the money from my account and pay the money order fee. Besides the ridiculous money order fee, there was a fee for drawing out the money. So I just withdrew from the ATM and went to the post office.

However, when I was opening a savings account, the teller was extremely helpful. There was a glitch in the system when they tried to link both my accounts to my bank card but she stayed on top of the situation every time I went to see what was up (it was eventually resolved).

(Reply to this)


[info]edify
2006-01-12 06:21 pm UTC (link)
my boyfriend deposited a check at first merit. it was for some large sum of money (over 500?), so they said there would be a delay in the availability of the funds. no problem, right? it took them over a month to fix it.

i deposited a check for $1500 at lorain national. i had the funds the same day.

(Reply to this)


[info]miriamsic
2006-01-12 09:10 pm UTC (link)
first merit - land of ridiculous bastards. i was using my card at the atm in wilder when the atm freaked and shut down. with my card inside. so i went to the bank and told them what happened. the lady i was speaking to sighed really loudly, and told me they were going to charge me for losing my card. i said, "i haven't lost it. in fact, i know exactly where it is. it's inside your defective atm." we argued for a while, about that, and also about the id i had presented (she tried to tell me my passport didn't qualify as government issued identification). finally she gave in, saying, "i'm not supposed to do this." for fuck's sake. it is an evil bank. evil!!!!!

(Reply to this) (Thread)
Passport
[info]raimondious
2006-01-12 10:24 pm UTC (link)
In Ohio, they take "state-issued ID" really literally -- you can't buy alcohol with an ID the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT gave you.

I've heard First Merit charges you for anything you do with a teller you could have done at the ATM, but I don't know if this is true, as I use the ATM for everything possible.

My girlfriend left FM for the credit union after a similar experience with ATMs not giving money but taking it from the account. I think they were telling her that she would have to go to the bank that the ATM was attached to in order to get her money, but it was in a different city, so that wasn't possible and they just weren't very understanding.

(Reply to this) (Parent)

[info]newpartner
2006-01-14 12:36 am UTC (link)
I noted it before but it is worth noting again -- Lorain National is one of the few locally owned banks left in the country and a real asset for this area. They take their obligations to invest in areas/people traditionally redlined way more seriously then does First Merit. In fact, a few years back, FM was cited for failure to comply with basic minimum community reinvestment standards.

If this sort of stuff plays a factor in your decision making, LNB is way more community oriented then FM.

If this does not play a factor in who you bank with, you are still a wonderful person.

(Reply to this)


(Anonymous)
2006-01-20 04:27 pm UTC (link)
Just because nobody else has answered your third question: Third Federal is really excellent in every way. And (like Lorain National) also locally owned and community-minded. They just don't go after student accounts the way Lorain National does.

(Reply to this)

Create an Account
Forgot your login or password?
Login w/ OpenID
English • Español • Deutsch • Русский…