Banks?

I agree 100% with the following:

"...DEFINITELY get your checks direct deposited. Do it all beforehand so you can just set up the direct deposit when you get there (or online if they finally got that working again). If you don't use direct deposit you'll have to pick up your paycheck every payday, which is a hassle, then if you don't have a bank in sandusky, you'll have to go to somewhere that'll cash checks for you....".

Make sure to sign up for Direct Deposit the very SECOND that you process into Housing, etc. Trust us, it will save you a "lot" of hassle.

There isn't a bank in this country that doesn't have a group of people who hate it. That makes it hard to get a good bank recommendation from anyone. When two people can have two opposite experiences at the same place, a single person's vote for or against carries less weight. It seems like in the end, you end up with the bank that screws you the least. :)

I left National City long ago when they intentionally processed a large check, many small checks, and a deposit in that order (even though the deposit had been made two days earlier). The bank manager admitted the deposit delay was not normal. He then fed me the standard bank line that large checks are processed first for "customer convenience." The end result of that combination of "not normal" delay and "convenience" was several $35 fees for bounced checks, many of which were less than $35. I couldn't afford that kind of convenience.

If I hadn't been so upset, the look on the manager's face would have been pretty funny. It was very much a mix of deep embarrassment and someone who was just caught stealing. He stammered, said he would have to call someone at a higher level (so much for getting anywhere with the #1 at the branch) and then get back to me. He did tell me before I left that he agreed it was a problem, but I never got a return call or any money back.

I'm with Key now. I'm not their biggest fan either, but at least I earn Continental miles with my debit card. :)

You make a good point Walt.It is very hard to get a good bank recomondation for any of the places people have suggested to me,as people have such a wide range of different experiences.I'd noticed that credit unions seem to get less negative feedback from most people than banks do though,so that's what I'm leaning towards.

i got the $150 gift card when i signed up for National City

Do they have an Huntington bank there? Thats the bank I've been using for years and I wanted to know if I had to switch or not

There are no Huntington Banks near Sandusky. I had Huntington the summer I worked at CP. If you get direct deposit and use your debit card it's not much of an issue. I found if I needed cash, the best way to get it was to do the "cash back" option when I was out making a purchase at a store. The 75 cents Huntington charges for a debit transaction is a lot less than the $4-5 you get charged for using another bank's ATM.

Can you do direct deposit to any bank, or only local ones? I live in Nebraska and really don't want to set up an account with a new band if I don't need to.

you can use it at any bank/credit union

The nearest Huntington was in Port Clinton, so like a 25min drive. Other than that, I opened a National City account when I got there and it was awful. The "points" thing is stupid. And if you plan on using online banking, good luck. It takes like 7 days for anything to show up, even in pending. It was ridiculous. Not to mention when a clerical error decided to take $200 out of my account. Yeah, eventually after arguing with about 16 people I got my money back, but they tried to convince me I wrote a bad check...which was funny, because I didn't even have checks. Not a good time.

My experience with National City was pretty bad too. I didn't even get past setting the account up because they mailed my debit card, checks, and online banking info to some random address that definitely wasn't mine not once, not twice, but three times. I finally told them to give me my initial deposit back and close the account. I was glad I hadn't closed my old account out yet.

If you are going to switch banks, I strongly recommend checking out your local credit unions. I made the switch a few months ago, and they beat the crap out of a bank in every way possible. Most of them have alliances or co-ops that allow you to do all your banking at other credit unions for no fee, so I'd imagine you could probably find one that has an alliance partner in or near Sandusky.

I had a not so great experience with the Bank of America in Sandusky. After specifically requesting that my checking and savings account be linked,they weren't and it end up costing me quite a bit of money in overdraft fees. And after I finally got the whole mess sorted out,they wouldn't let me close the account because it had to remain opened for 6 months or something.The people that worked there were rather rude,not only to me,but to other CP employees as well. I definatly would NOT reccomend them.

I wouldn't recommend them in any city. They seem to have wrote the book on crooked banking practices.

I personally have had nothing but great times with National City. Granted I haven't worked at CP before, but I had to set up a direct deposit with them just over three years ago when I started my lifeguarding gig. I had a problem (which was my fault) and went in and talked to them about it and they took care of it for me. I guess it all depends on who you get. I would reccommend signing up for something while you are still at home. That way if something gets messed up before you even start at CP you can handle it easier. Just an idea.