| 5 star: | (3) | |
| 4 star: | (1) | |
| 3 star: | (3) | |
| 2 star: | (2) | |
| 1 star: | (3) |
The reviewers who are giving ConnectOne high marks are mostly new customers. ConnectOne gives new customers the higher, advertised rate for its online savings account while it gives existing customers a lower rate. I opened an online savings account at ConnectOne two or three years ago and was happy at first. Then they changed the name of the account and stopped giving me the higher, advertised APR. (I asked the CSR, "What's the difference between the online savings account I opened two or three years ago and the one people are opening today?" Her answer: "Nothing.") When I complained, they matched the higher rate they give new customers—but then lowered it after one month without notifying me. That, plus the fact that you can't initiate a withdrawal of more than $3K a day, led me to close my account and move my savings elsewhere.
I could not interact with this bank, over the phone or online, could not manage money, login or speak to anyone without being required to do text message verification every time. I asked their customer service what happens if one travels overseas where they won't have access to their US phone number and was told one would be out of luck. I said this wasn't possible and was told by the representative he would check more on that. After 30 minutes on hold he came back saying he couldn't find any info. I closed my newly opened account because of this. Do not want to be cut off from my money and I do not live glued to a phone. I do not want to use text messages for online or phone banking. These are excessive and para noid security measures, which I don't face with any other banks. This bank offered good rate on their savings account and I was able to open the account online, even though this required a lot of additional document uploading and a lot of back and forth over messages and over the phone with their manager and employees. After all that time had been wasted I had to move the money back out and close the account because every step requires text message verification, I don't need this. The bank needs to straighten out their policies, they're not usable by a normal adult person.
Anyone who opened a new CD? Were you able to fill out a beneficiary form as part of the online process or did you have to request the form after the account was set up? Thanks.
Very shady bank, Told me my app was rejected because of something but then later told me the truth that it was some error in their system and are now asking me to do another app.
Great current rate, but according to their webpage, if you decide to cash out a CD upon maturity, they send you a check in the mail. If you have another account with them, you can dump the principal into that account. Perhaps this is a common practice, but I'd rather not have any large checks floating around in any of the mail services. Would be nice if you could ACH it back to your original bank.
Opened their online savings account after spotting their top-of-the market interest rate. Went smooth and easy, the standard two-trial-micro-deposits route.
Amazingly, they'll let you deposit up to $999,999.99 a day if you use their mobile check-deposit app (no more than $50k amounts per check, but write as many as you want up to $999,999.99).
They'll also let you open multiple accounts (just add beneficiaries to expand your FDIC coverage) to exploit their high interest earnings (current .65% rate stops at $250k, so just open 5 such accounts but have 5 beneficiaries -- that's the $1.25 million max FDIC coverage you can have per bank).
Fast, clear-English speaking customer service on the phone, no wait times thus far.
Bonus! Fast ACH transfers out of your account to another bank. Capped at $3k a day, but I executed one this past Friday at 9:30 a.m. and by 3:00 p.m. on THE SAME DAY, the money arrived at the checking account that I selected.
By the way, I live in "backwoods Georgia," but they made me feel like I lived in their neighborhood. Their website's pretty decent, too.
The Fed recently announced they will be holding rates near zero until 2023. This is another punch in the stomach for savers and investors who are seeking a good place to park their cash until stock market buying opportunities appear. Before opening a new account, be sure to ask questions typically not answered on websites. 1. Is your interest rate compounded daily and paid monthly? (Some might be daily but only paid annually) 2. What is your current saving APR? (Rates frequently are revised and may not be updated on the Web) 3. What is your maximum incoming and outgoing transfer limits? (Some institutions hold onto your money and won't let go or have restrictions). All the above questions were asked on 03-17-2021. One huge drawback for investors is a 3K daily limitation on outgoing transfers. This is just not practical when a stock or ETF goes down in price and becomes a buying opportunity. Three thousand dollars to purchase stocks/bonds/mutual funds is just a drop in the bucket. Therefore, be sure your institution places no restriction on the amount your can transfer out.
After reading the warnings in reviews about ConnectOne not processing transfers as expected, I called the bank before applying and inquired about the strange issues. I was assured that there are no special requirements and restrictions I need to know about their transfer practices, and I can just do transfers as I wish like with any other bank. So I opened the account. Then, when I initiated a transfer from ANOTHER BANK, trying to get out some of my own money, ConnectOne rejected the transfer over and over again after calling them about it. Eventually they admit they DO NOT ALLOW MY MONEY TRANSFERRED OUT! Unheard of! It was very generous of them to let me know I could only try to call my "funding account" and ask them to "recall"! They kept saying with such straight tone trying to convince me it is normal for banks to reject external transfers and tell me to do a "recall" from my finding account! And then when I finally took my hostage money by "recalling" from my funding account, they close my account with money still left in it, with no explanation, no reason, no notice shamelessly! I found out my account was closed when I tried to look for my left over money !huh Unbelievable!WOW