Salem Five

I bought two Jumbo CDs within three days of one another, each netting 5.55% APY for 12 months! I called the bank to get the interest on both CDs a few days before they were to mature, and she said 5.55% APY on the first one and 0.016% APY on the second one! I became extremely upset and asked the representative to escalate the call. She said they would call me back, but they never did! I filed a complaint with the FDIC and had my attorney write a letter. After all was said and done, I did get the proper amount of interest, but they delayed mailing out my check after it matured by three days! Buyer beware! Document everything; they do not communicate well! In my opinion, there are much better banks out there with as good or better rates! Definitely not worth the trouble.

I'm Brazilian, I've lived in Boston for many years and I don't have documents from here yet. I went to Salem Five on 11/22 to exchange a check (in the amount of $3,000.00) that I took from a company and I was prevented from exchanging the check because the attendant demanded social security from me, even after presenting a drive license. So I went to Salem Five in another city and they changed normally. I was discriminated against for being an immigrant, as these are not the rules of the system, as I proved through information that the bank itself gave me. I think the Saugus agency discriminates against people. Because I had already explained to the attendant that I had exchanged a check from the same company on previous days and they told me that the rules had been changed days ago (which I later found out that this information was not true). The rule remains the same, the bank requires two documents, one with photos and nowhere does it require this document to be a social security document. They do not require this even when opening bank accounts, unless the check amount is over $10,000.00. If you do not have documents from the USA, avoid making transactions with Salem Five Bank.

I applied to open eSaving account at Salem Five Direct 2 weeks ago and they instantly opened me account as promised. Two weeks latter I get notification that #1 my account is locked since they need some more random documents that prove my address ?? # They put a hard credit pull on my Equifax credit report ?? I specifically called them before to verify there is no hard credit pull and it doesn't state anywhere during the application they perform one. Somehow right now after they performed a pull on my account they state that yes they do it when you open the SAVINGS account. So long story short if you dont want a mark on your credit report for 2 years stay away from this bank with their misleading practices. Also during the account opening I initiated a transfer of funds in and to this point Im confused on what came out of it. The support is not great. So I opened 3 high yield saving account in very small banks in the past year, this one is the worst experience by far. Stay away...

Salam Bank is the worst bank I've ever dealt with, all wire transfer requests have to be sent to them by U.S. mail. I tried for two weeks to do a small external transfer with no success. Their customer service continues to assure me that they have fixed the problem with their system but nope; system won't allow me to transfer. I'm closing my account with these worthless incompetents.

1.5 stars is probably more accurate but thats not a choice. Im about a 3 month old customer and I agree with another review.

THE GOOD

The Bank has a physical branch.

The bank doesnt outsource and you atleast speak with someone who understands the language. The customer servcie has been friendly in fact.

They have a Good rate if you have a big account .

THE BAD

At times you will end up in a 20-30 minute queue

They take 2-3 days to reply to messages

THE UGLY

As I said, Good rate for big accounts - Problem is the bank isnt built for big accounts.

1. It is a genuine pain to do an ACH. Just way too much involved.

2. When you do process an ACH to an external bank, the money is out of your Salem account the next day but it takes Salem 3 business days to be credited to your receiving bank. In other words, they make atleast 3 days of interest off of every ACH transaction - or 5 days if your ACH goes out on a wednesday. Some may question the ethics - others arguably may claim its stealing

3. They have ridiculous restrictions such as:
a.. There is a very low limit per day on ACH's. That alone is a disqualifier.
b. They limit you on ACH amounts per month as well.

I have 3 ON LINE Banks and 2 Brick and mortars. NONE OF Them do business like this.

In a way I get the poor ACH service. Salem isnt in business do business for other banks. But this is the largest PACMAN INDUSTRY on the planet. I guess they just probably dont care and they are trying to get what they can for as long as they can

Deposited $100 initially and then $42K soon after that I thought the 4.1 rate was good and they have a physical branch. But now I see that they limit $5K daily withdrawals and $20K monthly. No way I can do the money amounts that I want when they limit withdrawals like that. I have never seen a bank with limits like this. .But I should have tried a test run withdrawal and checked. Lesson learned. Silly me. I will pay my $25 Bank wire fee and wire the $42K back to chase.

Always screws up escrow payments - I currently have 2 loans with Salem Five, and every year they screw up one of more of my escrow payments. Either sending the payment to the wrong address, or failing to send the payments at all. The only Bright spot of my mortgage was the loan officer. Avoid mortgages here. They don’t sell your mortgage… so you are stuck with them.

Fees are insane and customer service is not very helpful. Lost my job and overdrew my account by 9 dollars; was charged a 35 dollar fee. Deposited money to get back in the positive, but was not able to get the fee reversed or even reduced.

When I went to close my account, I was told I needed something notarized; which I cannot even afford until I start my new job. Just lacking compassion plus high fees. Stay away

I recently wrote a review of Salem Five, but I can’t find it. I don’t know what happened to it because it was approved. I love Salem Five, Marblehead branch being my favorite because I live in the area. Salem branches and Swampscott branch are wonderful. Never a problem with this bank! Professional and accommodating staff!

I wanted to pay of my equity line and I stopped in the branch in Hamilton MA and the ladies in the bank were absolutely delightful to deal with and the customer service off the charts. While it was a team effort, I had a wonderful conversation with Bethany while both ladies assisted me with my transaction. Now that is what customer service is all about! Arguably the best banking experience I have ever had!

It would be nice to have your bills paid at your convenience within 24 hours, these people don't care and they will never change, show me a bank any different and you will find there isn't.

Account locked out. There is no automated password reset. They ask security questions, if you can't remember one answer, you are automatically locked out. You have to wait until they are open to reset your password during day hours like a 19th century bank

Outstanding service. Well trusted bank. Have had 6 loans with them. Very approachable and honest. Always have provided excellent advice and customer service!

While their interest rates were attractive they were very hard to deal with. I had to send them information along with a check to open an account. It went USPS with a tracking number. The information was delivered then lost in their system. They took no accountability and I had to put a stop payment on the check. So it cost me the stop payment charge and postage which they did not reimburse.

Salem five has begun accepting payments then CHARGING NSF FEES. This account is opted out of overdraft .after years this started happening in Dec 2020