Mark is the man! One-of-a-kind. He and his team recently helped me close my 2nd mortgage with Leader Bank at incredible speed. Making things happen and easing any and all concerns I had. They made sure I could close and move-in as soon as possible even if it meant they were working after hours and late on the eve of a major holiday. I'll follow a team led by Mark anywhere read more

Working with them now did my application for a mortgage pre approval feb 25 and am still in the process. I submit all my documents the same day I'm asked and I don't hear back for days if not weeks. This is my second pre approval first was with a different bank and I was given a pre approval the same day! I'm a little worried after reading all the reviews . I understand it can be very busy, but almost 2 weeks just to look over paperwork and get an answer that I need different paperwork is somewhat unacceptable . The person I'm working with is great and very knowledgeable , but unfortunately she's probably overworked and has many other pre approvals to do which I get it's prob not her fault . Just wish the process was smoother as I'm very hands on and get things done right away. I will update my review once I hear back or if I decide to go with another bank. read more

Leader Bank - Date of the start of the process - Banks & Credit Unions Near Me - Cambridge, Massachusetts

Horrible bank. Flags your transactions even if less than $10! And they want you to go through a long list of "security verifications" before they will talk to you. They demand personal information far beyond other banks, apparently due to management incompetence. Lots of really bad reviews for Loser Bank, and lots of better banks out there. read more

I cant give less than 1 star. Have commercial loan, have to carry Hazard ins for that. not even a single year bank receives the certificate of ins from the Ins company that has more then 1 location and is fairly known in MA. Then Bank sends to collection services with a bill that is 3 times more that the cost of Insurance itself . Have to call the bank every year and talk to someone to fix the issue. Just adds to already things we do Hope some day this bank wakes up read more

This is legitimately the worst bank I've banked with. I was attracted to this bank because of their HYSA, but the customer experience is just horrible. This bank is scared of transfers and deems every transfer as fraud. I transferred some money from my JP Morgan Chase account into their checkings + savings account and that went through, no problem. Now, when I wanted to transfer some of that money back to my Chase account, all of a sudden they want proof that I own the Chase account. That took days and I kept asking myself when they want proof I own that account when that's the same account I transferred money from. Now, I wanted to transfer some money from the Zeugma plus savings account to the checking account for liquidity, and all of a sudden they want to close my account. I only called them to initiate this transfer because their app doesn't even allow us to do this ourselves even though the option is there. I don't understand this bank and I am highly offended they want to close my account just because I want to do what I want to do with MY money. Save yourself the stress and DO NOT open an account with this bank. Their HYSA rate is very attractive, HOWEVER, hidden inside is a bunch of poor customer service, untrustworthiness, and fear of account activity. If you don't want a headache STAY AWAY FROM THIS BANK and bank with more established/reputable banks like Goldman Sachs or even SoFi. Goodbye Leader Bank. read more

Go anywhere but here for your banking needs. Complete disaster. Once you're signed up it's all downhill from there.

Absolutely horrible. Would not recommend to use them as your mortgage lender. They don't send you notifications at all if the mortgage increases and change your payment due date without telling you. Horrible dinosaur website(s) as well. Do NOT recommend. read more

Used to be a great local bank that cared about the customers -- had had problems login in for several months now, but they don't' care -- you have to call customer service, but they don't work during weekend. And if you plan to link you account to Pay Pal -- good luck! Savings rate is 1% vs 5% other banks, and you are required to make a request at your local branch to review the rate to possibly get better one -- other banks just up it automatically when the Fed rate goes up. Avoid if you can read more

This is a specific review for one employee. I have had one mortgage, one refinance and a HELOC loan through Leader Bank. Longtime customer, starting another mortgage for a home purchase out of state. I get a late night text from Dan Rosenfeld Vice President mind you, messaging me that we will not be financing your mortgage. No explanation, no personal phone call, no other contact period! I even Left him a message to call me, he said he would and then never did. I have excellent credit, great income and a repeat customer and that is how I get treated? I was also already pre approved. Who does business like this? Especially as a Vice President?? I immediately and easily obtained another mortgage. I will no longer do any business with Leader because of Dan's unprofessional behavior with my loan. McKenzie however who did my HELOC loan was excellent. read more

Had a horrible experience getting pre-approved for a mortgage. Not with one, but with two of their senior officers. The first one (from Needham branch) couldn't care less, didn't even listen to what i was looking for and what my scenario was. He was in a "Lala Land" while i was speaking, then threw a few vague statements into the conversation and once my allocated 15 minutes were up, he was gone faster than a Northeaster. Never followed through on the things he said he would send me (like interest rates, additional contacts i requested). The second, from Burlington branch, at least didn't put me on a timer, but 1) completely missed the whole caveat of my scenario and gave me incorrect information (actually they both missed the point) and 2) again, never followed through. I ended up reaching out to two other brokers each from a different institution, who listened, explained what is the best route to take (both nailed the tricky part in my scenario) and actually produced a pre-approval letter within an hour! With Leader Loan center I'm still waiting for a call back. read more

Got our mortgage through Leader Bank as soon as we closed we were passed off to Specialized Loan Servicing (SLS). No communication beforehand, just suddenly getting bombarded by terrible customer service calls and demands for very personal information. Reached out to Leader Bank to figure out what's going on - "Oh yeah - you're now going to work with SLS ..." Five years later - it's still an awful experience and not at all aligned with what was sold to us by Leader Bank. SLS makes payments needlessly difficult, removing the PMI filled with unnecessary hurdles despite meeting contracted benchmarks, and cannot talk to a person to get support. Wish we never went with Leader Bank. read more

There are two things that a business can do to excite me: give me a good deal on good service. Leader Bank delivers on both. They are one of the only banks I have ever seen to offer a cash back reward for using a debit card. I see it often on credit cards as a trap to lure us into overspending, and building debt, but never on a tried and true, responsible spending debit card. They have other accounts, but Zeugma Rewards is the only one worth having. That is an easy win in my book. Then they also reimburse your account to external ATM charges, so you can recover that $3.50 surcharge when you need to get cash in the middle of the night, because you are just craving street hot dogs and the vendor only takes cash, not like I have ever done that, or any thing. But wait, there is more. Leader Bank employees routinely give you their direct contact information, because Leader Bank is a true, neighborhood bank. You get a person when you call, not a telephone tree, and they are all ready, and willing to help you navigate your banking needs with a positive attitude. I am always thoroughly impressed when I need to talk to an agent at this bank. But Leader Bank is not done there. So a few weeks ago some one stole my credit card information. Not the card, the thief just copied the information, and tried to buy things online. Leader Bank was very helpful in locking the account, but here is the kicker for me. I just walked into a branch, requested a new card, and they printed it for me right there during the visit. That is infinitely more convenient than waiting for cards to come in the mail, which was my experience with some other banks. On top of all of that, I am actually fairly serious about my banking choices. I like to keep my money local in small banks, and credit unions, because small banks are more likely to lend and support borrowers in my neighborhood. Leader Bank is exactly that while still providing a seamless banking experience for me as the customer. For those of you, keeping score at home, Leader Bank has just gone 5/5 in providing great value, and service. Just do your self a favor, and switch your bank today. You will be glad that you did. read more

I'd be extremely wary banking here. After 10+ years banking, here I have finally decided to close down both my savings and checking accounts. To provide some context, here are some instances that made me make this decision. 1.) I travel often (not now, because of COVID) but travel often to Europe several times a year. Every single time I traveled, I let Leader Bank know where and what dates I would be traveling. They supposedly put the alerts on, but of course, never did. Since 2017, every single time I left the country, my debit card got blocked. It got so bad that the group I travel with knew this would happen to me and expected it to happen, how embarrassing. 2.) As a young professional, I wanted to start my investing journey via the app, Robin Hood. They were unable to verify my account on Robin Hood so I called Leader Bank several times for them to help me verify it. After a week of no returned calls, I emailed the CEO and magically, someone called me 25 minutes later. 3.) When I closed my saving account, I wasn't able to close down the checking account due to pending charges. Unfortunately, that checking account was used for a Venmo transaction and overdue the account, 100% my fault. I received an email from one of the branch managers at 9:30AM that I had to bring a deposit by 11:30AM to clear the item. 2 hours? You're going to give someone 2 hours to come in and make a deposit? 4.) When I went to clear the account, I was short .28. I was hoping that the bank would cover the minuscule amount of funds I needed to pay but of course, no mention of that whatsoever. I work in finance and anything over $2, we take on, that's just plain and simple good customer service, but not Leader Bank! Overall, the customer service at this bank is awful. The tellers and managers all treat you worse than the scum at the bottom of your shoe. Do yourself a favor, and bank elsewhere. read more

Had a mortgage done through them. They don't respect deadlines, the customer service was unhelpful and rude. Avoid at all costs specially for a mortgage. read more

You guys really rock! I have been a client of this bank for many years and I love it. Customer service exceptional. My last proof was today. These people don't rest until you are satisfied. Keep the good work! read more

I absolutely loved every step of the process with Leader Bank. Especially our Loan officer Vikas Selhi. He was there to guide us in every step of the way. Also I Talked to a lot of mortage lenders and Leader bank turned out to be the best deal. Highly recommend it. read more

I'm a real estate broker in Boston and work with Matt McCarthy all the time with my clients. Matt's my best mortgage broker hands down and all of my clients love working with him. His team is a pleasure and their rates are the best! 5 Star! read more

Went in today. - No line - Changed unrolled coins into cash - Waived 5% fee - Pleasant helpful teller - Grabbed fresh baked cookie on way out - In and out under 5 minutes I am not currently a customer, but this brief experience has me seriously thinking about it. read more

Only home refinance I've had where the monthly mortgage increased by 14% per month. Terrible technology, not impressed.

I used Leader Bank's mortgage services. I appreciate that the mortgage process is supposed to be painful and so my review is not about this. Rather, I am unpleasantly surprised with Leader's online systems. Creating an account was painful, setting up automatic payments was painful, making additional payments above the minimum payments is cumbersome. It is as if they recognize that digitalization is a thing but are not willing to make the investment so that their online platforms can function smoothly. I wish I had used my big bank's mortgaging services instead as I know that their online system functions well. If your time is valuable and you want a smooth experience, I would go to a big bank for mortgage services. read more

Worst of the worst of the worst service. Please do not waste your time here. From start of the process to the closing and after loan sanctioned there was always a confusion or delay from theri end. After 2 years of loan payment they still does not provide good customer service. False information and poor service. read more

Oh how i've longed to combine two of my great goals in life, one, being the first person to review something, anything, on yelp. And the other is spreading my love for my tiny little bank, Leader Bank. As a person who'd been kicked from baybank, to bankboston, to sovereign, fleet and then the evil of BofA, I said enough and went off to find a small bank. I tried wainwright, but i honestly have to say that i found their staff at both the davis branch and alewife branch to be...lacking something, like basic humanity. Off i went again, this time finding leader. Leader is a small bank (only 3 branches they told me) two in arlington and one (mine) in central sq. all of the staff is great, most of them know me by name, and i can honestly say it looks like they're having fun at their jobs, not dying miserably behind thick (very thick) bulletproof glass. And now the good stuff, great rates, and i've yet to encounter any fees, i even overdrew my account once and without any arguments they took back the fee, and then another time i almost overdrew, and the friggin branch manager called me up to make a deposit to cover....the branch manager!!!! and they're part of the SUM network so it's basically like having a free atm around every corner. checking is totally free, online banking, all the standard stuff is totally free, they count my dirty change i've been hoarding, and they have pretty good cd rates too, not that i have enough money to put in one! i honestly can't rave enough about them...but hey the best part is, they give you free bottled water and coffee....need i say more?? read more

I had an account with them for years. The problem is- even when my account had overdrawn, I always paid it. One example of unprofessionalism is when I had a large bill to pay, and I had money in my account. They refused to allow me to use my debit card for the transaction because they said "the money was just deposited and we need to make sure you don't spend it in case something else comes through. Come to the bank and you can get your money from the teller". So I had to walk to the bank and withdraw the money from the teller. Usually if you tell the bank ahead of time that you are making a large purchase, they will allow you to increase your DEBIT card limit for the transaction. And if the money is visible, not pending, and MY OWN MONEY, how dare you force me to come in and deal with uncomfortable situations where I had to be "educated" by their assistant manager. What was the difference between raising the limit and having to come in and personally beg you to give me my money? Obviously you know the money is there. That's just one example of belittling behavior. I was often embarrassed and harassed by the assistant manager over petty things. I understand that my account had been overdrawn in the past but that's what the option is for. I paid it back. He would often speak out loud and mock me and my situations. Right or wrong, he was extremely unprofessional. I was with them for years. No other bank had ever been so petty and rude in my life. It doesn't matter if my money was in my account for 2 days before I spent it. That's my business! I hated going in that bank it was so belittling every time!!! He wouldn't even get up out of his seat to approach me - just called out my business from his office when I passed him. I don't care if I put a dollar in my account and spent it the next day. THATS MY BUSINESS. read more

I have used this bank for the last seven years. I cannot say enough good things about them. As far as banking goes, this is my go to bank. Checking, savings, loans and CD's - they are by far the best in the area. I have multiple business accounts and loans with them. I am treated very well and with professionalism each time I visit a branch. They have machines to make remote deposits and that has cut down on daily visits to the branches. I use their coin counting machine all the time and it makes life a lot easier. I can even buy gold coins at the branch. They have everything a big bank has to offer, but Leader is able to do it with the small bank touch. Make the switch and you will not regret it. read more

Marcus at Leader bank was good at getting us closed on time. Some issues arose, but all were resolved without delays. Some lenders are not good with small business loans, we had some hiccups, mostly smooth sailing. read more

Leader Bank has provided me better service in just a couple of weeks than Bank of America did in 20 years combined. Their quick reply time and thorough response to my questions have shown me that there are banks who really care about their customers. I am excited to be making the switch. Also, I read the 1-star reviews. They're petty. Everybody makes a mistake once in a while, but some people feel a need to try to injure a business instead of bringing the concern to the company to see if it can be addressed. Glad to be a customer! read more

Leader bank wasted my time for weeks. Told me it would take several months to review a refi because I own several properties. There's more than three times the loan amount in equity alone. I should have known better than to waste time with small time operation. The loan officer agreed!!! read more

Refinanced in June with them. Nothing but problems, delays. They told the closing lawyers we were the cause of delay because "our finances weren't in order", however we had been waiting days for a new closing disclosure because lots of calculations were incorrect that we had to point out to them to correct. They double paid our property taxes and our homeowners insurance. Now just months after closing a new escrow reanalysis shows are payment going up nearly $200 a month. We will never use this bank again. read more

This has to be the best bank I've ever worked with. I had accounts and long standing relationships with several other banks but the level of service you get from a high-quality local bank like Leader bank is unsurpassed. I would highly recommend all small business owners to consider banking with Leader Bank rather than being just another small fry for one of the giant corporate banks in town. These guys know what it means to be a growing business, they have earned an incredible reputation for customer service and reliability, they help a small business with their numerous contacts in the business eco system in Boston and act as facilitators in many ways that a big corporate bank just would not do. Sumit Dhankar in particular has been an ally to me as I juggled my work demands with my banking concerns. He is prompt, professional and pleasant at all times. He has made banking a pleasure again! In short, I consider Leader Bank integral to the success of my business and recommend them wholeheartedly! read more

I've had a few personal events that crushed me financially this past year. Mark Orent, the manager, has always been there giving advice and helping as much as he could, more so then any other bank or Leader branch. I live far from Cambridge but after seeing the service in other branches I keep coming back here. Thank you Mark! read more

I have an account here and I love going in. Everyone greets you with a smile as you walk in; they have coffee and food for free; and they will help with any issue you have. If need be, they will be flexible and make sure you leave happy. They have waived fees and expedited clearing a check when I asked. read more

I don't bank here, but their ATM fee is only $1 for non Leader customers - 5 stars in my book!!

I don't personally bank here, but I work for a law firm that does. Over the course of my employment, I have become what I like to call a "honorary customer." (I have to make the deposits for the firm and am usually the point of contact between our firm and Leader Bank). I have never once been disappointed with the service offered at the bank. All the employees have always been extremely helpful and friendly. I have had many good times chatting with the tellers, and always look forward to my next visit. They are very professional, courteous, and nice. And some of them are actually really funny! Unlike larger institutional banks, this bank makes you feel like an actual person, and not just some random bank account. There is something very human about this place and the level of comfort felt is astounding. They offer quite a few competitive services (check out the rates on the savings accounts!). I'm originally from Texas and no Leader Banks exist there (as far as I know), so unfortunately, I am stuck with a larger bank that is also located in Texas so that my parents can transfer funds into my account more easily when I get desperate. I have decided, however, that I will explore my options with Leader Bank in the future. read more

I have been meaning to write this review for some time now, as I closed on my home in Jamaica Plain on 8/3/18, but I just wanted to take a quick moment to praise Sherry Keenan Burke, Senior Loan Officer, with Leader Bank for the her OUTSTANDING efforts in helping me to secure a mortgage on my home purchase. While I have purchased one other property in the past, this was my first time buying on my own (without a cosigner) and I had never applied for a mortgage before (previous property was purchased using a home equity line of credit). The whole process of applying for a mortgage was extremely daunting for me, and I tend to be somewhat nervous when working with banks in general. However, Sherry made the entire process easy and patiently guided me through all of the steps along the way. More importantly, I really felt as though Sherry was on MY side from the initial application to the final closing and genuinely wanted to help me get financing that best fit my needs and interests. When I decide to either move or purchase an additional property, I will not hesitate to work with Sherry again and I would highly recommend her to family and friends! read more

"Bank local" (instead of with the big banks that got bailed out at taxpayers' expense) doesn't get any better than this. Leader Bank is a local bank in Arlington, Cambridge and Belmont. I use 2 of the locations regularly (East Arlington and Belmont) and the staff is the friendliest I've ever found in 30 years of banking. They all know my name - managers and tellers - and go out of their way to do favors for me. They have never charged me for a bounced check! I have found it really easy to do business with them because they are small and local. I honestly don't understand the negative reviews - I can't imagine these scenarios at this bank. I highly recommend them both on a personal level (extremely kind people) and political (don't give your money to the megabanks!) read more

We were customers for about a year here and had a very mediocre experience. The basic problem was that *every* time (not exaggerating) we went in for something other than simple deposits or withdrawals, something went wrong or took far longer than it should have. For example, it took us two hours to set up a couple of checking accounts and a savings. Another example: We needed a document related to selling our house in another state notarized. It required only one of our signatures notarized, since the other was flying out for the closing. We started the process (very slowly), I signed, and then we're like OK, please do your thing. The guy was like, no I can't do that, you both have to sign. We went around several times, tried to call our out-of-state realtor and finance person, and then waited a long time for the branch manager. He thought for about five seconds, then said, "I'll just write a note saying only this one signature is notarized". Easy as pie! The lack of creativity and thoughtfulness evidenced by the first notary was pretty typical of our experience at Leader Bank. A third example: We got a cold call from someone at the bank who started making friendly small talk. We thought, get to the point please, what is wrong? Turns out he wanted to sell us a mortgage. Now unsolicited sales calls are lame enough, but concealing their purpose with faux small talk is seriously not cool. Fourth: Some months after we closed our accounts, I got a letter saying that in order to keep my interest rate, I'd need to set up direct deposit and sign up for e-statements. I inquired; yes, the accounts were really closed. The right hand just didn't know what the left was doing. I would choose a different bank. There's more to customer service than smiling and free coffee: you have to also do your job efficiently and correctly. read more

I had a recent experience at the Cambridge branch of Leader Bank and was very satisfied with their service. Mark Orent, who is the branch manager did an excellent job and I was very satisfied with his service. He is very professional and extremely knowledgeable in this field. I highly recommend Leader Bank and especially this branch. read more

Like so many others, I procrastinated for years until I finally made the jump from BOA back to a neighborhood bank. My experience with Leader Bank so far (2 years) has left me wondering why I waited so long. Everyone in the branch is so welcoming that they almost make me me want to skip their excellent online banking platform entirely (though, who can live without bill pay) and do all of my transactions in the branch. I have both personal and business accounts with leader and pay virtually no fees. This is a truly great bank and the level of customer service provided by Mark, Sumit, Simpson and the rest of the team there is unsurpassed in my experience. read more

We have four businesses and two of them use Leader Bank - one of them because we have a mortgage through Leader Bank and part of the agreement is that we have an active bank account for the life of the loan. We signed on with the other organization a few years ago because Leader Bank promised a couple of other services and customized service that I didn't want to negotiate for with a bigger bank, and I thought it would be easier to start consolidating our businesses into one bank. We have now been with Leader Bank for about 3-4 years and I can safely say that they are probably the worst bank I have ever dealt with, and I deal regularly with Citizens, Ally (online only), Bank of America, TD Bank, Beverly Bank, and Wells Fargo. Leader Bank has at least 1 error every week with our account, their online banking system is something from the mid 90s, and their response when I call to have them fix whatever the latest error happens to be is, "take a screen shot and send it to me next time this happens." Next time? Shouldn't the response be more like, "I am so sorry that happened. I am looking into how we can remedy this in the future."? From unilaterally and for no apparent reason (by their own admission) stopping automatic ACH transfers to taking extra ACH transfers, to needing to call multiple times for the same issue, to our online bill pay suddenly not appearing, then taking 3 phone calls to fix it, to tellers not being visible in the Belmont branch for several minutes after walking in the door, I think it's safe to say that Leader Bank has a long way to go before they should be trusted with your money. I will move us away from Leader Bank as soon as I can refinance the business mortgage of one of our entities with another bank. read more

Leader was excellent to work with when financing our first home. Out of all of the parties involved with the purchase, Leader was by far the easiest to work with, the most responsive, and the most professional. Our loan officer, Kevin Buckley was a pleasure to work with. read more