Fabulous Financials

In this post, I wrote about some of the problems I’ve had in my new house. Just a quick recap: most things have been fixed, some are still in process and there are two major things I’ve turned over for legal assistance.

In that post, I mentioned the carpet was being replaced due to poor padding. Although I upgraded to the highest level, I could feel holes in the floor when I walked barefoot. Come to find out, the padding they used was so old that it hardened in various places. Imagine old cotton candy. I was so pissed, I had them redo the entire house. Then after settlement, I noticed the seams in front of the bedrooms were unusually noticeable. They tried to fix them with a patch (creating two seams instead of one) and made it worse. So all the carpet on the 3rd floor had to be replaced AGAIN.

To eliminate carpet seams, I’m told the threads must flow in the same direction. The only way to guarantee a perfect fit is if the seams are glued together with pieces from the same roll.

Guess how they decided to handle it this time?

Since I was all moved in, they said it was too much trouble to move furniture in the three bedrooms and replace all the carpet. So the Super told the contractor to move furniture in the basement, use that carpet to replace the hallway carpet connected to the bedrooms (assuming it was off the same roll), repair the seams, then put brand new carpet in the basement.

*thinking* You’re STILL moving furniture and you STILL have to order new carpet, but err, umm, ok Einstein?

Since I have the basement set up as BabyGirl’s teen room, it’s fully furnished. They asked me to unhook all the electronics so they could start work, but I told them I wasn’t lifting a finger. “Matter fact, I dare you to break something and I want everything put back the same way you found it!” After going back and forth about liability, blah blah blah, I refused to sign anything and they started losing patience. Umm, ok, and… *shrug*

After wasting a half day trying to convince a brick wall to move, they finally sent in their crew to get busy. At this point, I’m beyond pissed so I was giving everyone the evil eye (lol). Imagine 10 grown men walking on egg shells cuz they know I’m two seconds from going postal. All day was “excuse me ma’am,” “yes ma’am,” “no ma’am”… I was fuming, but in retrospect, it’s kinda funny.

Anyhoo, they moved all the basement furniture into the foyer and garage. They took up the carpet in the basement and used it to fix the carpet seams on the 3rd floor. Then another crew came with new carpet to put down in the basement.

Sounds complicated with a lot of unnecessary work, huh?

Yea, that’s what I thought.

But it gets worse…

Peace & Blessings

~*~*~*~*~*~
Work to achieve, NOT to acquire.
And as always, BE fabulous!

~SM

I received my social security statement in the mail, which is a reminder that my birthday is coming up soon. *hint hint* I can’t wait!! If you hadn’t noticed, your SS statement is usually mailed approx 3 months before your next birthday.

Anyhoo, I have nothing particular to say about it, except…

Ok I lied. I got a lot to say about it. LOL

First, I thought it was pretty funny to note that I only earned $196 in 1992. What the hell was I doing? Picking cotton on the plantation? Geez!

And WTF is a $255 “special one time death benefit?” Is that like the government’s version of sending flowers to the funeral home? Who was the fvcking genius politician to think of that? And why isn’t it an even $250? What’s the extra $5 for? Gas money? Da fvck outta here!!

It’s like saying “Oops! You died. I mean, I’m sorry you died, but I’m glad I don’t have to send you a check anymore. Here’s some change for your troubles.” Dayum! If my family was short on cash, that won’t even buy a matchbox for my ashes.

Just for that, I say, muthafvck Social Security!!

The FICA man (SS and Medicaire) has been taking 7.65% of my income all my working life. Even when I only made $196 (lol). And I probably won’t ever receive a damn dime of it back!! I work all these years contributing to society and my family can’t even get a whole G? That shyt aint adding up!!

Maaaan, fvck ‘em!!

And their retarded azz $255 “special” one time death benefit!!

Oh yea, and fvck Medicaire too! We’re the richest fvckin country in world. Healthcare should be fvckin FREE!!

I’m on a fvck fest roll today. What the fvck you think about Social Security?

I say fvck ‘em!

~SM

As mentioned in my rant yesterday about One United Bank, here’s a screen shot of the online savings account when you first login.

[screen shot removed]

Can you find the misspelled word?

Keep in mind, this is a BANK that wants you to trust them with YOUR money.

They tout themselves as being “The First Black-Owned Internet Bank.”

*sigh* I’m embarrassed…

If you’re looking for a high yield savings account, sign up for ING Direct using a referral link to earn $25 with an initial deposit of $250. That’s an immediate 10% return. Then once you have an account, you can refer up to 25 people for an additional $10 each.

Related Posts:

One United Just Lost My Business

My Drama With One United Is Over

Thank Gawd!!

If you’re looking for a high yield savings account, sign up for ING Direct using a referral link to earn $25 with an initial deposit of $250. That’s an immediate 10% return. Then once you have an account, you can refer up to 25 people for an additional $10 each.

I tried to keep my wrath in one post, but if you missed it, here’s a recap.

- I opened the account on June 23rd
- The money was withdrawn from my checking account 4 days later
- By July 3th, I still did not have access to the OneUnited account
- This prompted multiple phone calls to customer service, to no avail, emails to executives which were deleted, and lots of frustration

July 7th update:

Just FYI to all - I never received a call back. Hmph, go figure! However, I did receive an email. They asked me how they could improve their services and I linked them to my blog post because I wanted them to see my complaint in detail. Since I have no interest in continuing the business relationship, there’s not much they can do to make me change my mind anyway because I’m beyond pissed.

To make matters worse, they told me I could NOT close my account via any written request (email or snail mail). Since it is an online account, I could only transfer the money out. Hello, I can’t access it!! Then the person in the email (no signature or identifying information re: name, email address, phone, fax, etc. like most businesses require) said they didn’t “anticipate activating my account before next Monday.” WTF!! That’s July 10th!! For an account that was opened on June 23rd!! 17 friggin days!! Ummm, how about activating the account before you withdraw money from a person’s checking account!! Jeez!! I can’t wait to be rid of them and I intend to share my experience with everyone I know.

All I can say is good luck to anyone who has an account with them, and for all others — consumer beware!!

July 13th update:

I’m finally able to access the account. The web interface is nothing impressive. I was too threw when I saw tabs at the top of the page with misspelled words. WTF!!! Somebody show me how to post a screen shot, please! LOL
(UPDATE to add screen shot)

Serious issue - the email person (remember they gave me no name) told me to transfer my money out. Guess what!!??!!?? There’s no way to link the account to another bank!!

You can only do inter transfers to another OneUnited account. The only way to get your money is to submit a manual request that asks for everything but your blood type. I felt like I was applying for a new account all over again.

The top of the page says your request may take four business days to process your transfer request. Basically a whole friggin week. WTF!!!

Ok, after you enter your name, address, ss#, bank name, routing number account number, amount to transfer, etc., you click submit and wait. There’s no confirmation number, no message on the next page, no email to let you know they received your request. Nothing!

You just WAIT…wait and wonder if you did everything right…and wait a whole week for YOUR money. The 5%+ rate is nice, but for all this BS, NO THANK YOU!!

Further, I read here that there’s a fee after 6 months of inactivity. So if I can’t close my account (only transfer money out), will I be charged inactivity fees after 6 months? I guess I’ll know soon enough. *sigh*

Oh yea, one more thing. I sent an email to two of the bank’s executives. It was a very professional and detailed email outlining my experience to date, why I originally chose the bank, but why I now have concerns. The email wasn’t complaining, it wasn’t whiny, nor was it accusatory. It was professional and clearly stated the facts. I included my real name, address, and home/cell phone number if they wanted to contact me (or have someone else contact me) for future reference. I attached read receipts to both emails and they were both deleted.

I will NOT give a bank my life’s savings or consideration of future investments that has such limited NO concern for its customers.

And finally, on July 21st:

My money was deposited back into my checking account and the OneUnited account balance is ZERO. For reasons that make absolutely no sense to me, they wouldn’t let me close it, but as long as my money isn’t in it, I consider it closed. If they try to charge me inactivity fees after six months, it’ll be on ’cause I aint the one!

I sent one last email to discuss my dissatisfaction, I attached read receipts, and it was also deleted. Customer service at its finest. I can’t say I’m all that surprised because, sadly to say, I’ve never been impressed by the customer service from most black owned companies. I want to support the black community but it’s hard to settle for less when there’s so much competition. We have many obstacles to overcome, but sometimes, we create big boulders for ourselves. We need to do better and step up our game!!

As I told the person who referred me to the bank, I hope the company succeeds, but I would never consider being a customer again and I’ll share my experience with everyone I know. It’s water under the bridge now, at least for 6 months, and I’m glad it’s over.

Unfortunately OneUnited is NOT the hidden treasure I thought it would be. I’ll admit. I was wrong! I jumped to conclusions and assumed the best because it is “…the largest Black-owned bank and first Black-owned internet bank in America.” It also offered a competitive rate (5.00% APY) for its online savings account. I researched their history, financials, customer service feedback, made sure they were FDIC insured, etc. My findings generated nothing but positive results. Not sure if it’s the same bank but even Bankrate.com gave “One United Bank” a 4 out of 5 star rating. Even with all of my due diligence, I am sadly disappointed.

If you’re looking for a high yield savings account, sign up for ING Direct using a referral link to earn $25 with an initial deposit of $250. That’s an immediate 10% return. Then once you have an account, you can refer up to 25 people for an additional $10 each.

I opened the Unity savings account online, input bank account information, authorized online transfer for the deposit, verified ownership of my checking account, blah blah blah and all that jazz. I received multiple “welcome” emails that were supposed to guide me through the remaining steps. Everything was kosher until…

Problem #1: I received an email that welcomed me as a new customer yada yada. I went online to view the status of my account and the results were: application decision “approved,” decision details “congratulations…,” tax certification and signature card “complete“, funding status “We are ready to fund your account as soon as we finish processing your application.” What? Ok, no biggie. Must be some kind of technical glitch. Wait…

Problem #2: The next day, the deposit was withdrawn from my checking and I received an email from OneUnited that said my account was funded. Aight, cool! Go to view account online again, but status shown above remains the same. This time I try to register my account to see if I can access it anyway. Input my name, address, social (also user ID/password), employer info, three (dumb azz) validation questions, mother’s maiden name, blood type, height, weight, favorite food, promissory note on my child’s life, etc. *exhale* After all that bull, I get an error message!

Problem #3: Few days later, I get a letter welcoming me as a new customer blah blah with my account number and other information. BTW, the mailing address for the bank is on Crenshaw Ave. *raising an eyebrow* No offense Cali people, but a bank located on Crenshaw was a little surprising. LOL So anyway, I try to access my account online again. This time, I login with my social as the user ID and last four as the password (per registration instructions). This time I get “This login session is not allowed as you already have an existing Internet Banking session on this computer.” WTF!!!! Close all my browsers, try again. Nope! Delete the cookies, try again. Nope! Restart my computer, try again. Same thing!

Problem #4: I notice the “message of the day” below the account login says “Having trouble logging in? Call us toll free at 1-866-689-4071. We’re available 24/7 and will promptly serve your needs.” Thank goodness!! I call, give them everything except the color of my panties to verify my identity, to which they respond “Ms. Single Ma, you can not access your account online yet because it is still pending…” WTF!!! Keep in mind, I received multiple emails that said my account was complete, the deposit has been withdrawn from my checking acct, I received a letter with my account number and other info, and I completed the online account registration process.

Problem #5: I asked the…umm…person to check my account and tell me if the initial deposit was made. This is when I get pissed!! She said she was not able to access my account because she works for a third party company who only provides technical support. WTF!! Did I just give my social security number to a person who is not even employed by the friggin bank?!?!?! Single Ma: “Ok, may I speak with a bank employee?” Techie: “I’m sorry but the bank is closed. You can call back on Monday.” *roll my eyes* Single Ma: “whateva!” *click*

Problem #6: Monday morning (umm today), I call ‘em up. Now I have several issues: 1) why is my account status still pending although I’ve received multiple communications stating otherwise, 2) where is the money that was taken out of my checking account, 3) why can’t I access my own account, and 4) why am I not informed that tech support is a 3rd party company. Dial 877-663-8648, push 3 for this, 2 for that, input your account number, your social security, hair color, push 5 for more, 7 for a joke, and 15 if you want to hear the happy birthday song. After all that, they don’t even have a person available. You have to leave a friggin (I know I’m saying friggin a lot but I’m thinking the real word) message and someone will return your call in 24 hours. You don’t even have the option to hold if you want. Oh yea, you do have the option to email them at customersupport@oneunited.com and be sure to include your account number and any other identifying information. Don’t worry, the message says their email system is secure. PUH-LEEZE!!

This is friggin ridiculous!! Why black people, why!?!?!?!?!

Whenever they decide to call me back, I want my account closed ASAP!! And of course, I will follow up in writing.