Berkshire Bank is headquartered in Pittsfield and is the 2nd largest bank in the state of Massachusetts. It is also the 120th largest bank in the nation. It was established in 1846 and as of December of 2019, it had grown to 1,701 employees at 133 locations. Berkshire Bank has an A+ health rating.
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Great community bank
This is great local bank. I'm very thankful that they are close to my home. More importantly, I appreciate that they offer truly free checking. I switched one of my small accounts to them after the bank I have for my larger loans decided to start charging unless you could keep a minimum average balance. They were also exceedingly helpful and efficient whenever I've had some trouble- PIN problems, card issues or when my account was compromised. Though I wasn't able to figure out who was to blame or how the compromise came about (it could have been clerical error and not malicious) the employees of Berkshire were very kind and quick about reversing the charges, giving me my money back and setting me up with a new account. They took a lot of the frustration out of a stressful situation.
Great for the local community
Berkshire Bank is a sponsor of many community events and really participates in making the communities they serve better places. They provide scholarships to high schoolers and sponsorships to many charity events. The customer service is fantastic and I am always greeted with a smile and a friendly hello. It feels as though the bank wants to work with you instead of you just being a regular customer. The fees and interest rates are also reasonable, given that this is a smaller regional bank. I think that their web interface could be improved because it isn't as competitive as with the national banks and that is understandable given its size. However, I would be more inclined to bank somewhere larger only because the larger banks have easier access electronically.
Not The Best Option
I tried this bank briefly as it was convenient to my hometown and allowed me to start a savings account for while I was working around my hometown. The fees are minimal, which is good, but I found the services lacking and the amount of financial information to be severely lacking. They have no consultation services and no workshops to help new bank patrons make smart decisions about their money. I also find their dividend payouts to be minimal compared to the competition, and their debit card fees and international fees to be somewhat exorbitant, which I guess makes sense for a small county bank. All the same, I did not find enough reasons to hold an account with this bank and fled to a competitor.
Nonexistent Customer Service
Their online business solutions banking product is junk. Very difficult to get access online. No support after hours. LONG WAIT TIMES (10 minutes) for telephone support r=to even answer the phone during business hours. When asking for verification information, they ask about details of deposits only. Since I do not memorize those things, and our manager makes all the deposits, and that I am trying to log in to access that very information, and pay bills, I requested different verification info. Today, the "customer service" person told me (I'm not making this up), "I have nothing else I can ask you". And there you have, time for a new bank.
Behind The Times
You cannot add your checking account to their website so that you can make payments. I have never heard of this. National Grid, National Fuel, Internet & Cable providers all have the capabilities of allowing you to add your checking account to their website to pay your bill. The only way to pay a Berkshire loan is mail a check or Bill Pay on you personal bank's website. Now that takes 2 days to get to Bekshire & you might get charged a late fee if it doesn't reach them. Even though you may have sent the Bill Pay on the last day of it not being late
Data as of Q4 2019
Learn why bank health mattersHealth Grade Components
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| FDIC Certificate # | 23621 |
| Year Established | 1846 |
| Employees | 1701 |
| Primary Regulator | FDIC |
| Profit Margin | |
|---|---|
| Return on Assets - YTD | 0.78% |
| Return on Equity - YTD | 6.03% |
| Annual Interest Income | $509.2MM |
| Assets and Liabilities | ||
|---|---|---|
| Assets | Q4 2019vs Q4 2018 | $13.18B$12.19B |
| Loans | Q4 2019vs Q4 2018 | $9.61B$9.08B |
| Deposits | Q4 2019vs Q4 2018 | $10.42B$9.06B |
| Equity Capital | Q4 2019vs Q4 2018 | $1.75B$1.55B |
| Loan Loss Allowance | Q4 2019vs Q4 2018 | $63.6MM$61.5MM |
| Unbacked Noncurrent Loans | Q4 2019vs Q4 2018 | $63.0MM$49.9MM |
| Real Estate Owned | Q4 2019vs Q4 2018 | $1.7MM$1.5MM |
