Another Salem Five Direct Savings Account Promotion - Available Nationwide

Anonymous - #1, Thursday, February 2, 2012 - 12:21 AM

I got in on the 1.25% deal last year.  As of April I will be closing my account.  As the reader hyperlinked above said their fee structure is just horrible.  If you sneeze the wrong way you will get a fee. You have to read every bit of the fine print & even then it still isn't clear.  Customer service is poor.  Now before closing my account I will be pouring over the fine print again as if you close the account "the wrong way" you'll be hit with a fee. Not worth the effort.

Anonymous - #2, Thursday, February 2, 2012 - 1:31 AM

I found the bank's customer service representative to be very helpful and highly knowledgeable.  The Salem Five Direct fees and limits do not apply if you initiate the transfers from your external account.  So unless your external account charges a fee or has a limit, this shouldn't be an issue. 

 

Anonymous - #3, Thursday, February 2, 2012 - 2:52 AM

I'd also avoid setting up external transfer accounts, as Salem Five has (or at least had) an unpublished practice of completely disabling your online access until they could talk to you over the phone to confirm you set these up.  The website mentions the test deposits and the need to log back in to report the amount of those deposits, but it doesn't warn that you won't be able to log back in at all until the phone call.  I suggested they warn people about this practice, but they thought it was only an issue for people on the west coast and it'd be less secure if criminals knew in advance of the practice.  Small banks can sure some up with some crazy ideas and policies.  I hope they've at least made the process of opening a trust account easier (they expect you to mail in a copy of the trust [and know where to send it] before they'll actually mail out the welcome kit that's promised by the website at the end of the online application).

Rosedala - #4, Thursday, February 2, 2012 - 1:15 PM

To Anonymous #3:

"(they expect you to mail in a copy of the trust [and know where to send it] "

Are you sure they expect you to send a copy (entirely?) of your trust?  I have a trust too and all i do is send them only the first and last page of it...and, only for the matter of my beneficiaries.  However, I don't have an account with this bank and it may be different there...

Jeanne - #5, Friday, February 3, 2012 - 11:30 AM

PLEASE NOTE: The 1.00%APY is only AT THE TIME OF OPENING. They will offer this rate through August, but may not keep the rate once the account is opened (verified with CSR):

"Minimum balance to open the account is $100. The rate may change after the account is opened. The stated APY applies to new eOne accounts opened after 01/24/2012. Fees may reduce earnings."

Shane (anonymous) - #6, Sunday, April 8, 2012 - 11:44 PM

I got into their promotion last year with the 1.25% APY guaranteed rate until April 1, 2012.  The new rate I received after this promotion was the 1.00% APY promo - even though I was an existing customer.  I verified this through their CS dept.  Seems like they mirror Ally Bank here - and take care of their current customers.

Anonymous - #7, Monday, April 9, 2012 - 11:25 AM

I had a different experience with their CS dept.  I had the 1.25% promo but the website doesn't list an APY on the account details page so I don't know what I'm earning.  I called to find out if the account is earning 1.0% or not and they didn't know if I'd earn that or the 0.85% until the next statement posted in May.  They were willing to extend the 1% offer to people who had the 1.25% offer but also open a checking account (though the saleswoman also mentioned that this can just be done via the website).

Anonymous - #8, Tuesday, April 10, 2012 - 11:49 AM

I just opened an eOne savings account with Salem Five.  I was very disappointed when there took back their test deposits.  (Like it's really going to break them to give you two test deposits that are under $1.00 each.)  The reason that I am disappointed that they took the test deposits back are because Ally Bank is counting those as two withdrawals.  So if you already have made your six monthly withdrawals, these two test deposits can end up costing you a $20.00 penalty from Ally.  Salem Five should just deposit the money without taking it back.  All they said at the time of the application is that they would be making two test deposits.  They did not say anything about taking them back.

So beware if you have already made your maximum withdrawals from your funding bank.  You may get hit with an unpleasant surprise.

Anonymous - #9, Monday, May 14, 2012 - 8:05 PM

Salem Five is an excellent local bank if you want to do business with a brick-and-mortar branch, but these online "eOne" offerings aren't any good. I have had an eOne savings account for over a year, and I will be closing it soon, because I'm not happy. They have these really tight security restrictions around any transaction -- they essentially treat all their online customers like presumed criminals. They limit the amount you can transfer in and out of your account per day and per month, which is incredibly annoying in practice. For example, when I needed a large cashier's check, I was unable to transfer the money to my local brick-and-mortar bank and pick up the cashier's check there; I had to request one be mailed to me from Salem Five. When that check was inadvertantly destroyed, the clueless customer service reps refused to recognize the law pertaining to when those funds had to be returned to my account. I eventually had to show up at a physical branch (thankfully I live in Massachusetts) with a copy of the law to prove they needed to return my money to me after 90 days.

You need an online savings bank with no limits on transfers, so you can always transfer to a local brick-and-mortar branch and do business in person if need be.