CFCU Community Credit Union

Opened an account as a graduate student at Cornell. For six years I received exploitative fees at every turn on my account. My account ultimately developed a negative balance due to fees after I stopped using it, and then received $38 fees each time a transaction was made against it due to old information in an online shop. I now have a large negative balance and can neither close the account or negotiate the fees. This is the worst experience with a bank I've ever had, after accounts both at home and abroad at around 6 or 7 different institutions. I'd be pleased to see this one go down.

It’s not even worth my time to get into it. But don’t try to get any sort of loan from them, that’s for sure. I may not be in the BEST position ever, BUT definitely not in a position to be denied everything and treated like dirt. And lie about checking my credit. Used the same report from almost a year ago, before a lot of hard work on my end. Closing my accounts and going to Summit!!

I won't go to this bank ever again. So happy I paid off my car loan and closed all accounts. They are very disorganized, full of narcissists ( people pretending to know what they are doing). They will run your credit without your permission.

If I could give them Zero Stars I would. This is by far the worst institution I have ever banked with. I joined CFCU because it was the institution that gave me my current car loan. I found it would probably be easier to bank with the same company as my loan provider, it wasn’t. More often than not have, most of my bills are set to autopay. One random Monday I had a bill scheduled to pay I logged in and noticed that both my cable company and wireless provider had changed their pay dates to that day. So I had three payments come out. This created a negative balance. The same day they cleared I put money in the bank to cover the overdraft. Didn’t matter, they still charged me $38 x 3 “Courtesy Fees” when I called and spoke with a representative they talked to me like I was a POS. I asked about the grace period and was told there wasn’t one, I said I know there was enough money to cover 2 of the Bills in there and she told me that the most expensive bill cleared first making the other bills over draft. How convenient for CFCU and how inconvenient for me, a customer. I most recently deposited a sizable check into my account and again was treated like trash. And was told I’d have to wait 6 days for half of it and another 6 for the other half. Not really a big deal as I wasn’t intending to blow it frivolously. Again, I’m the customer and CFCU appears to be looking out for themselves not for me. I will be leaving and taking my business to Tompkins Trust Company.

This Company is a SHAM! If i could i would rate this Company Zero Stars, Their Organizational Status is so bad they they nearly lost a $12,000 Check On an Insurance Cash Buyout They said they never had it until one they they found it in their junk pile somewhere in their area of their location where the check was located. And they Find it 2 Weeks Later When the Payment was Due in Nearly 2 Days. DO NOT EVER GO WITH AN AUTO LOAN WITH THIS COMPANY! THEY ARE HORRIBLE PEOPLE WHO RUIN PEOPLES CREDIT WITH STUPID BS LIES!

I recently applied for an auto loan with CFCU. I've been a member there for twenty one years, but unfortunately had to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy two years ago. My credit score is 690 now, and CFCU recently offered me a loan at 10% APR. Another local credit union just granted me financing at 3.99%. As a result of several other similar experiences with CFCU over the years, it's become clear to me that they are not nearly as understanding or flexible as are other financial institutions in Ithaca. Thankfully, there are much better alternatives to CFCU and other, less flexible organizations similar to them.

1 review

1.0 star rating
5/12/2016

Applied for and got a (ALLEGED) no closing cost mortgage. With a down payment loan, $5000 in sellers concessions (that they wouldn't let me use all of) and a representative telling me (3 times ) they would cut my lawyer a check at closing I figured it would go well. Wrong! Between cfcu, their lawyer, sellers lawyer and even my own, I got screwed out of $4312. A no closing cost loan made what should have been a $65k mortgage into a $68k mortgage, plus the fact that cfcu lied to me and never cut my lawyer a check except out of MY account! I was lied to and cheated out of over 4 grand and as far as I'm concerned, they owe it to me. They don't talk to me anymore since I called them on it, but they love taking my money. They're no better than any crooked bank.

CFCU has the best customer service of any bank I have dealt with in Ithaca! My first experience with CFCU was when I bought my first car a few years ago and needed a small car loan. The staff at CFCU made it possible to get a loan at a time when many other local lenders were not as easy to work with. Working with a bank that contributes jobs to the community I live in was another added benefit. After the easy car loan experience I switched all my banking over to CFCU and found the online banking to be easy to use and convenient. I would recommend CFCU to anyone living in or around the Ithaca area for their top notch attention to detail and customer satisfaction. I will use them in the future for future banking needs.

CFCU is nice because it has very local customers, employees, and locations. Although it lacks the convenience of more corporation oriented national banking institutions, less advanced and fewer ATMs, the local business warmth and friendliness makes CFCU much more trustworthy to me. I would rather sacrifice certain conveniences than get ripped off by another national banking institution, like Citibank or Bank of America.

I switched to Cornell Federal Credit Union (CFCU) after being at a local bank from, literally, the day I was born. I had had a savings account at my old bank from day one, opened by my parents. As banks have changed drastically over the past few decades, so did my life. I bought a condo on my own; I sold the condo and bought a home on my own, I bought a new car, I needed more financial accounts for my children. My old bank was constantly sending me updates about fees, and it seemed that the fact that I had been a customer there forever didn't matter a bit. Nor did it matter that I had an excellent credit history. I then switched to CFCU, and it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The people at CFCU are consistently helpful and personable. If I go in with a goal, they tell me how they'll assist me in accomplishing it. Nothing I bring to them is too small or too big to handle. I am fee-free, their online banking is a joy to use, and I have never had it malfunction. A few times when I noticed suspicious activity on one of my accounts, they immediately resolved the matter. When my son lost his debit card, they immediately replaced it and removed any suspicious charges. I cannot say enough good things about how this bank operates, the people they employ, or the services they offer. I feel so fortunate to have CFCU as my primary bank, and I am not nostalgic for my old one at all!