John Rea

It's only been about two months since I first started going to Gold Coast Federal Credit Union, but I'm pretty confident that I've had enough experiences with them to say that they are a really good bank, perhaps one of the best in the West Palm Beach area. Everyone there is friendly, with most of them coming off as genuine when they ask you how your day has been. I currently don't have to pay a monthly fee for my checking account, which is a nice change from some of the other banks I've gone to in the area that force a twenty dollar fee on you. Even the location is great; it's very easy to get in and out of without any hassle. I really enjoy going here, and urge anyone in the area to check them out.

I've been on and off with Coastal Federal Credit Union for a few years now. When I first started my account there, everything was perfect. The employees were nice and friendly, and I could always expect a problem to be resolved the same day. Then over the months, things started to take longer than usual, which was fine, but when I went in one day, everyone I knew had been replaced. None of the new people even bothered to say as much as a hello to me. I promptly closed my account and went somewhere else. Eventually though, I came back because I really enjoyed my time with them, and hoped that maybe they went back to how they used to be. They did, and I honestly couldn't be happier that I gave them another chance. They are a great credit union now.

I used Ashford General Insurance when I lived in Florida; I needed to find a good company to buy boat insurance from, and was directed to Ashford General by a few of the fishermen on the pier. I ended up being a customer of theirs for about two years before finally moving out of state. Through that entire time though, I never once had an issue with how they dealt with me, and I never had any problems with my payments. Everything worked as smoothly as one can hope for when paying for insurance. Anyone in an area of one of their locations should definitely check them out.

I've had an account at Waterbury Firefighters credit union ever since I can remember. My father was a firefighter, so when he started an account there, he got me a checking account as well. Over the years, I've run into a few problems here and there such as getting put on hold for about an hour without even getting more than a sentence in, but other than those few rare cases, it's been great dealing with them. I know most of the people there now, so whenever I go in, I'm always greeted by everyone. The actual accounts are pretty good too. I've never had to pay any monthly fees in the 10+ years I have had an account there. It's one of the few credit unions that I actually see myself continuing to go to for as long as they are open.

When opening my first business, I decided to go with Capitol Bank for my business accounts based on the recommendations that I had received from multiple other business owners in the area. I was not sure what to expect as I had only ever had a normal checking account up to that point, but the person who I talked to at Capitol Bank explained everything clearly and helped me with any questions I had. The experiences I had with Capitol Bank were always great. I never once had a problem with them, and they always were there to help me out when I encountered something new on the business side of things.

I move around quite a bit, and during my travels I've experienced a lot of different insurance companies with some being great and some being ”I never want to think about again”. Briody Insurance Services is one of the good ones that I have used. I called them up one day, and by the end of the day, I had a new car insurance policy with them. The rates are cheaper than most places I've used, and the different agents I've talked to have all been an absolute delight to converse with. I never had a single problem when I was on my policy, it was a welcome change after dealing with State Farm.

Living in New England, there were plenty of Credit Unions to choose from, but over time I would consistently hear more and more of my friends talking about how great American Eagle was. I eventually decided to schedule an appointment and see what sort of benefits they provided. Halfway through my appointment, I could see why people were talking about American Eagle. The services provided were as good as any traditional bank, and the people always remembered your name. I never felt out of place when I would go into any of American Eagle's branches. It was a welcome change after just being rushed through when I was at Bank of America.

During a short period of time when I lived in North Carolina, I used Carolina Bank as primary bank for my personal savings and checking accounts. I really enjoyed every moment I was inside Carolina Bank as all of the employees were really sweet to me, and they were willing to help me with even the smallest problem. As for the checking accounts, those were perfect as well. There were not any hidden fees or charges for using additional services such as the drive-thru. All in all, I really enjoyed my experience with Carolina Bank, and would easily switch back to them if I were to ever move back into the area.

Chase was one of the last banks I ever thought about when first choosing a place to open my first account. I had never really heard anything about the quality of service, but it turns out that the quality is one of the highest I have experienced from a traditional bank. I opened a checking account with Chase, and am happy I did. Like some of the other banks, I have no monthly fee for using a teller instead of an ATM, and there are plenty of Chase ATMs spread throughout my city. Chase is a bank I don't think I will ever leave.

I recently purchased car insurance from U.S. Lloyds Insurance Company as I try to get away from some of the bigger providers such as State Farm. I was fairly concerned about the rates as I had never heard of Lloyds before, but when meeting with an agent there, my concerns were eased greatly. The rates are comparable to most other big-name companies, but are slightly lower. I've spoken to a few different agents at Lloyds, and they have all been really nice people who aren't trying to get you to buy different plans. I don't plan on leaving them anytime soon.

As most of my family is in New Mexico, I decided that I should try and find a good credit union that would allow me ease of access when I'm in town. After searching for awhile, I came across U.S. New Mexico Federal Credit Union. I went in one day in the morning, and walked out two hours later with an account there. The person who helped me with my questions and account was amazingly nice. It's not just the employees that are great, the online banking is actually as good as some of the bigger banks. It's super easy to use, and it's always available. I highly recommend USNMFCU to anyone in the area.

I used Morris Sheppard Texarkana Federal Credit Union for a short period of time while I was living in Texas. There's nothing bad I could say about Morris Sheppard; I had a great experience every time I had to go inside or call. Every time I would go in, there would be people that remembered me who would then greet me like an old friend. That's not something I've ever gotten from other banks and credit unions. The best part about using Morris Sheppard though was how quickly they would get me a replacement card when I had to cancel it. Usually when I've had to request a new card, it would take a week before it arrived, but with Sheppard, I had it the next day; it was great.

I first started using US Postal Service Federal Credit Union a year after I started my current job as a mail carrier. I figured it would be easier to have everything associated with my job as it might be easier to clear paychecks. Although it is quicker than a regular bank, that's not the reason I've stuck with the US Postal Credit Union; I've stuck with them because they understand my hours and have been kind to me when I come in right before they close. It's a great credit union that looks out for us mail carriers. I highly recommend it to any current post carriers out there.

I became acquainted with Valwood Park Federal Credit Union just recently. I was purchasing a car from a local dealer in the area, and wasn't sure who the lender would be for the loan. The dealer thought Valwood Park would be the best credit union to use, and he was right. I have zero issues with Valwood Park yet. I have had to call a few times to check up on a few payments, and every time they have immediately gotten back to me with an answer. They have been so amazing that I'm now in the process of moving my bank account over to Valwood Park.

While I was going to LSU, I was looking for a few other credit unions that would grant me a student loan. I had already gone to Campus Federal Credit Union to get a loan, which they granted, but I still needed to take out another loan to pay for the rest of the supplies and tuition I needed. I went to Louisiana Federal Credit Union not expecting much, but was very pleased with the experience. The people walked me through all of the steps, making sure I understood every detail about the loan and interest rate. They were very quick with approving the loan; I was approved within the week. It was a great experience and highly recommend it to anyone out there looking for an amazing credit union.

For a brief time I was going to school at LSU. I had just moved there and needed to get another loan to help pay for my extra tuition and living expenses. I looked everywhere, but everywhere I would look would only offer me the loan with a ridiculously high interest rate. A friend mentioned Campus Federal Credit Union, saying that it was used by quite a few other students. I went in expecting nothing, but I walked out loving the place. They offered me the loan within the hour, and the interest rate was smaller than I could have ever of hoped. Campus Federal Credit Union helped me so much that I will never forget it.

I recently used Florida A M University Federal Credit Union for a personal loan for my new business I'm starting. When looking at places to apply for a loan, I wanted to stay away from the typical big name banks after all of the horror stories I have heard about them. I went through a list of credit unions, calling each one up and seeing what their policies were, and immediately I knew this was the place. The employees who I talked to were all helpful, and seemed to truly care about my loan. I went in the next day and got my loan. It was a seamless experience.

I have been going to South Florida Educational Federal Credit Union ever since I switched from Bank of America after a few bad experiences. Before switching, I was greatly concerned with how limited I would be when trying to make deposits and withdraws, but after switching to South Florida Educational Federal Credit Union my fears were eased. It could not be any easier to withdraw money now that I have access to numerous ATM machines. The best thing about South Florida Educational Federal Credit Union is the employees. Every time I go in, I feel that they actually care about me rather than just seeing me as another customer. I highly suggest anyone living in South Florida to switch to South Florida Educational Federal Credit Union.

Buying house insurance was a daunting task for me and my girlfriend when we purchased our first house. We had always heard our parents and other homeowners complain incessantly about how terrible it can be to deal with house insurance. We decided to lay out all of the companies in our area and look at which had the best rates and growth. State Farm was the place that we saw had the best price for new homeowners. I've been using them for over two years now and I have not had a single problem yet. The biggest surprise was how little the rates actually went up. It's nice not having to worry about breaking the bank trying to pay the house insurance.

When I lived in Indiana last year, my current car insurance company was not available to me. When I asked around what car insurance I should get, they all suggested The Horton Group. I had never heard of them before, but was willing to give them a shot based on all of the recommendations. I couldn't tell you happy I am that I went with them. Right from the start they were kind and patient with me. I spent the afternoon with one of the agents, going through every little detail about their types of plans. It was the best experience I ever had at an insurance company. I would love for them to expand to other states so I can go back to them.

I've been with State Farm ever since I got my permit seven years ago, and I don't regret sticking with them. Living in Florida, I'm used to hearing people complaining about how ridiculously overpriced car insurance is here, but with State Farm I never felt overcharged. Anytime I've ever needed to find out something, my agent was always there to answer all of my questions. Recently my agent was transferred, so I was a bit worried about what would happen, but when the new person came in she immediately called me and wanted to come in so we could meet each other. State Farm is company that has a bad reputation, but it's undeserved.

I used to have an account with Wachovia, and when the switch to Wells Fargo occurred I was a bit worried about what type of changes would be made to my checking account. Luckily it was completely fine, and the people at Wells Fargo were really nice when I called them up to see if I was going to be getting charged at a different after the takeover. I really would have liked to stay with them, but there mobile banking just wasn't up to the standards that other banks have set. I would always have problems with the website and app crashing, so I went to Citibank. I hear it's gotten a lot better recently though.

I just recently switched to Citibank after having some problems with Bank of America, and I couldn't be happier. The biggest draw for me was the ability to remotely deposit checks by just snapping a picture. I've never had a bank that allowed it, and I don't think I could ever live without it again. I called them up after doing my first remote deposit, and they couldn't have been nicer. I also decided to try out their credit card, and I was shocked at how high the limit was. I did not expect much, but now it's the card I always keep for emergencies. Citibank is an amazing bank that doesn't seem to get a lot of press, but deserves all of the praise it gets. I don't think I will ever leave this bank.

When I first started looking for a bank, I was apprehensive about Bank of America. You hear so many bad things about them, that it would scare anyone away. After looking at all my options, I ended up at Bank of America. I was stunned when I found out I could open up an account without any monthly fees at all. As the months went by, I had absolutely no problems with Bank of America. Then when I had my debit card information stolen, I learned how kind and compassionate the people who work customer service are. I was worried it would be someone who didn't understand English, but it turned out to be someone local and we even made small talk. I would not give up Bank of America for any other bank. It's been wonderful to me.