“Selected an Excellent Choice Credit Union. Access Federal CU is great credit union with a high level of customer satisfaction, serving the areas of Oneida County and the City of Oneida"
By: Allan R Kirby
We review Credit Unions:
Mysmallbank.com feels compelled to find the best credit unions and community banks in order to write a small review. These reviews are to help you learn more about community banks, possibly one that's in your area that you might be interested in. In this review we are choosing the following local Credit Union:
Location: Clinton
Headquartered: 6 Franklin Ave, PO Box 308, Clinton, NY 13323
Branches: 5
Year Established: 1947
Review:
We found Access Federal Credit Union one of those hidden gems that seems to go unnoticed with the exception of those who are already members at one of their five branches. In fact with 23,000 members you would be hard pressed to find any serious negative comments about this credit union. However to determine how we felt about the Access Federal Credit Union we needed to look at reviews, services offered as well as their commitment to their membership and the communities they serve. What we found was this is a great credit union that is clearly shown by the high satisfaction and positive reviews.
Access Federal Credit Union currently has close to $190 million in assets, five branches and nearly 23,000 members. ibanknet. Additionally they have a history of providing services to their members since the Credit Union's founding in 1947.
When we reviewed this credit union we were happy to see so many positive responses over the years. When you read about members that have banked at the same credit union for over 30 years, the tell us that members stick with this credit union over the long term. However let's be clear we do not ignore any negative reviews and do read them to see if there are any real identifiable issues. However what we found was people who spoke highly of the credit union clearly articulated why. This cannot be said with some of the negative reviews which did not clearly state the issues or the issues were minor in nature.
Products and Services
What we liked best was the fact that they had very competitive vehicle loan rates. We did some research at a number of larger regional banks and found Access Federal Credit Union beat their rates every time. Although the difference was not substantial especially if you actually call the regionals banks. You can get a better discount to the posted rate if you negotiate with the regional however we still found on average you got a .25% to .5% better rate at Access Federal CU.
Helping out the Younger Generations. We where pleased to see the Gen Y Checking account that is offered to younger members which is designed to help them develop good financial habits early. This account has no minimum balance to open. Benefits: The first order of the ACCESS exclusive checks is free and you get a I-Tune Card, worth $15.00 value as well when you open an account.
"We found this credit union has a high level of satisfaction from its members"
Secondly looking at employee reviews working at the credit union we found employees spoke highly about working at the credit union. Specifically we found staff liked the work environment and their coworkers. It appears overall employees felt this is a good place to work at. Employees who provided reviews highlighted that working at the credit union is "Very fun and fast pace job at times" or as one specific employee highlighed "This place is nice to work for. The team is wonderful. Couldn't ask for better peers to work with." We all know that a positive working environment provides a better experience for its members.
Excellent Choice Credit Union
It's not hard to see why this is such a great Credit Union, they have great reviews, competitive rates, good services and happy staff. Mysmallbank.com believes Access Federal Credit Union is well deserved to receive the designation of Excellent choice, Credit Union. (Note 2) . So if you're looking for a great community based credit union and you live or plan to live in the areas Access Federal CU operates this could be a great financial institution for you.
Finally we found that Access Federal Credit Union is a federally insured credit union through NCUA (Note 1) .
Who is Eligible
As per their website: If you live, work, worship, or go to school anywhere in Oneida County or the City of Oneida, you are now eligible to join ACCESS Federal Credit Union. Also, businesses (and other legal entities) located within Oneida County or the City of Oneida are eligible to join ACCESS. Additionally the credit union highlights that Immediate family members of any ACCESS Federal Credit Union member are also eligible for membership. For example if an Oneida County resident joins the Credit Union, then their spouse is eligible for membership. Once the spouse joins, the spouse's brothers and sisters may also join. After the brothers and sisters become members, their spouses may join. Next their brothers and sisters may join, etc. If you have a family member that would like to join.
Apply Now to become a member.
The following provides additional information on Access Federal CU services, branches as well as fees.
Services Offered:
Full Service Credit Union: Yes
Routing Number: 221379895
Banking:
Regular Savings
Money Market Savings
Holiday Savings
Share Certificates
IRAS
Checking Accounts
GEN Y Account
E-ACCESS Checking
Credit Union Loans:
Vehicle
Loans:
Unsecured
Recreational Vehicle (RV) Loans
Harley-Davidson Motorcycles
Share Secured Loans
Share Certificate Secured Loans
Home Equity Loans
HELOC
Mortgage Loans
Business Banking
Business Savings
Business Checking
Business Loans
Credit Card: Visa
Credit Union Online
Online and Mobile Banking: Yes
Access Federal CU Branch Location:
Clinton Branch
6 Franklin Ave
Clinton, NY 13323
Telephone (315) 557-1000
Fax (315) 557-1004
Lobby Hours:
Monday - Friday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Saturday 9:00 am - Noon
Drive Up Hours:
Monday - Friday 7:30 am - 5:00 pm
Saturday 7:30 am - Noon
Camden Branch
74-76 Main St.
PO Box 438
Camden, NY 13316
Telephone(315) 245-2148
Fax(315) 245-0055
Hours:
Monday - Friday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Saturday 9:00 am - Noon
Oneida Branch
2094 Glenwood Shopping Plaza
Oneida, NY 13421
Telephone (315) 366-9840
Fax (315) 366-9826
Hours:
Monday - Friday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Saturday 9:00 am - Noon
Rome Office
230 S James Street
Rome, NY 13440
Telephone (315) 339-3000
Fax (315) 339-3039
Hours:
Monday - Friday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Saturday 9:00 am - Noon
Sherrill Branch
Highbridge Road
PO Box 8
Sherrill, NY 13461
Telephone (315) 693-0035
Fax (315) 361-5067
Drive Up Hours
Monday - Friday 8:30 am - 5:00 pm
Fee Schedule:
Yes: Click Here
Are Federal Credit Unions Better vs Banks?
Federal Credit Unions banks are local banks that provide financial services to smaller communities and tend to be better than major banks for a number of reason which include:
Better rates on savings accounts and certificates of deposits.
Competitive mortgage rates.
Fees tend to be lower at community banks.
Local deposits are used to make loans to local businesses.
Federal Credit Unions tend to have a better understanding of the communities they serve.
Federal Credit Unions tend to have a more personalized customer service experience and have higher customer satisfaction rates.
Federal Credit Unions provide local jobs and support local charities.
Notes:
1. The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) is one of two agencies that provide deposit insurance to depositors in U.S. depository institutions. NCUA's standard maximum share insurance amount at $250,000.00.
2. Periodically Mysmallbank.com will name a credit union as a top choice (Top credit union) based on a number of criteria such as customer and employee reviews, complaints, satisfaction, growth, locations, brand and social responsibility. We only select the best credit unions, so they must meet minimum standards of excellences (Excellent Choice) in order to be reviewed by Mysmallbank.com
In Review is a segment of the MySmallBank.com blog written by Allan R Kirby, who writes and produces Personal Finance articles and videos along with My Success Magazine.
Disclosure: mysmallbank.com nor the author received any compensation from the mentioned credit union for this article. The article is our opinion only and is written to help readers learn more about local credit unions.