Pros: -The tellers are friendly. -They have a fee free change machine below a certain daily limit a couple hundred I think. -Free checking. Cons: -Excessive atm fee to use a bank debit card (non CU network). -I never received a sound atm card after the merger. So I pretty much stopped using the account -Website is not user-friendly. To get access to my account, I have to go into the branch first to get a one-time use code so I can log in. -Excessive wait time for tellers. I have spent 20+ minutes in line here on a few different occasions. read more

They are slow. Verrrrry, very slow. ALL their locations are slow. Tacoma, Burien, Seattle. Slow, slow, slow. Ugh. Hire some more tellers! Seriously! When you have six people waiting in line for TWENTY minutes or longer but only one bank teller is helping customers...you're wasting my time and everyone else's. There's one teller who is nice and a bit speedier, she used to work at the West Seattle branch and she's okay. The rest of them, though...good grief! One time in West Seattle, I had to wait for thirty minutes to cash a check. Once again, one teller and there were three people behind me. Two tellers were walking around behind the thick glass just talking casually and laughing about something. I was about to blow a gasket, I was so furious. I also have a BECU account and wish I could close my Sound Credit Union account but I get my Social Security deposited into that account and I know it will be a giant pain in the butt to change to BECU... read more

These so called professionals wouldn't even give me a call back after he said he would..unbelievable... I bet if I had a corporation and white he would've!!! read more

No difference between SCU and any other big bank/financial institution. When I used to have over 250K in a high interest savings account with them, they would bend over backwards to resolve any issues. I would get phone calls from the district manager within an hour. Now that I've taken that money out and invested it, they can't be bothered to do even the most basic things, and when they make a mistake (Which they do surprisingly often) they are adamant in their refusal to take any responsibility. Most recently I was disputing a charge for a purchase I made while raveling in China. I filled out all of the paperwork for the dispute, they credited the amount back while they investigated. They then sent another letter asking for more information. This was exactly the information they had asked for in order to file the dispute, literally verbatim. That was sent in. Six weeks later I get a letter saying that they have closed the case because they have been unsuccessful in their attempts to contact me for more information (i.e., a single letter that was replied to). They included in this letter an incorrect date that they credited my account as well as an amount that was more than was nowhere near the credited amount. The letter said that they were going to debit my account for this new sum. The letter was dated 1/30, but post marked 2/6 and they were going to take action 2/10. I called and they initially told me that the account was in fact still open, that they had received my follow-up letter but it was after the due date (Not possible) and this whole thing was simply one typo. When I corrected the service person that there were multiple typos and errors in their letter, I immediately got attitude. She then changed the story and told me that the dispute had been closed and they may or may not decide to reopen it. I asked to speak to a supervisor and she put me on indefinite hold (I gave up after 23 minutes). I'll be going across the street to the other credit union. read more

Sound is very convenient so I opened an account and had a debit card with it. On several occasions I had fraudulent transactions attempted on my card. I found out that a card can only be reported Monday-Friday during day hours. Then it takes 4 weeks to replace the card. Very inconvenient. 2. Sound advertised easy transfer between funds and Sound and other financial institutions. NOWHERE does Sound tell you that the transfer is limited to $2000 per day. When I brought this to the branch's attention, I was told it was too bad but that is the way it is! Sound does not overnight a replacement card and does not allow more that the $2000 transfer. When I went to the branch to terminate the account; told them the reason for the termination; they would not allow me to close the account without my wife being with me even though either one of us can sign checks on the account. Without telling me, Sound froze the account which caused autoplays set up on the account to be rejected causing me to incur late fees even though there was sufficient funds in Sound. When I called Customer service and after waiting 19 minutes, a snippy operator told me that I was told by the Branch that my account was frozen! ( not true) and it was my fault! I am not out of Sound for good! read more

This one star is for the teller MICHAEL. Avoid him at all costs. I have been going to this bank for 4 years and never had issues making deposits and transferring money to other member accounts. I've had the same check deposited via mobile, paper check, and direct deposit for these 4 years. Only when MICHAEL assists me, there always seems to be an issue. First encounter, I tried transferring money from my checking to my mother's checking, who also is a member here. He told me I needed her member ID but I only had her name and birthday at the time. He said he couldn't do my transaction. I told him I've done this many of times, what is the issue. He raised his voice at me and said its against policy. I said is this a new policy because I've done this so many times. He said other tellers should have never done this. He still was able to do the transaction anyways, but took 10 minutes ! Fiddling around with papers and pens and typing slowly. I said is there a problem still?!? He said no just making sure I'm checking all my boxes. I told him this doesn't take that long everytime I transfer money to another member account. When he was finished I said don't I need to sign ? He said oh, I clicked out already. I said what happened to checking all the boxes !?! And stormed out. I do the same transaction transferring money to my moms account with another teller the next month, things went smooth and under 5 minutes. Today I was like oh here we go again. I made sure I had all my papers and my mom's account number ready so I can deposit my check and transfer money to my mom. Wanted the process to be as smooth just like every time I do this. He tells me there will be a 7 day hold on my check unless I don't have to stub attached to the check. I never had to have that ! My job uses USBank to write our checks but my history shows this check is deposited into my account twice a month wether it be direct deposit or paper check. So what's the hold ?? He said they had to verify my check. Once again, this is never issue with other tellers. I waited for my sister to come deposit her check and it cleared fully. So we asked the another teller why does my sister not need the stub attached to her check. We work for the same company and use this bank. The nice teller, I think her names Jaranya, verified it with a manager I assume, and I got my check cleared and in full. So why is it only a problem with MICHAEL !?! read more

We've been banking with Sound for 8 years and they've been great. We've never done a loan or anything like that. Just checking and savings. Oh, their ATM frequently has problems. The staff is nice and friendly. They have a change machine without a fee as long as you're a member. read more

I'm giving only four stars because I guess there's always room for improvement. My recent interaction was very positive. They solved my account problem, and I got the new visa card I was looking for. I've been a member here for 3 years now and have come to like this place. I think there may be one closer to my home but why change when you like where you're at. Before I got my visa card I tried BECU and after being on hold for 15 minutes, going thru endless menu's, I decided that would not work for me. Sound credit is a good value, and if you have a savings account, I think they pay the best interest around, even tho' interest rates are pathectic. That's ok, I like the service, and its a nice building to keep my my huge $850 savings. At least Sound Credit answers the phone and you can talk to someone relatively quickly. I recommend them. read more

I needed a loan to consolidate some credit card debt. They found a way to get me approved and I was able to get the finances needed to stay on top of all the bills. read more

RIP Watermark. Since they transitioned from Watermark to Sound Credit Union, it's been one bad surprise after another. I had some major health events this last year and it was agonizing to understand that had I been in better health I would have caught all of this much sooner. Their website is clunky, regularly times out on you and it isn't nearly as intuitive. After being kicked off several times, I was finally able to paste an email trying to figure out what went wrong and to see if they would reverse these fees because of the lost settings. The old Watermark would have been so much nicer about this. Instead I received a curt reply, telling me that I would have known if I'd read the 2"+ thick booklet they mailed out to everyone as they went through the transition. My account settings were completely lost and I was being penalized because the money flow between my accounts wasn't functioning like it used to (plus my direct deposit was funneled into the wrong account, when I was told during a branch visit that it would do the exact same thing). Unlike before, there were no email notifications so it just KEPT HAPPENING. Time to close the account and move on. It's sad to me because I joined Watermark back when it was Telco a million years ago. I remember being so proud of myself for getting my first car and faithfully paying off my car loan with them. It was one of those milestones where I felt like an actual grown up. read more

I'm baffled by the yelp reviews from Sound. I love this credit union. Our experience was positive from the beginning and remains very positive. We transferred all of our savings, checking, credit cards, line of credit, and business accounts from Salal and we have no regrets. The customer service it TOP notch and they always have a smile and a kind greeting. I rarely call in but when I do, the wait is a little excessive. I wish they would work on that. Otherwise, I highly recommend Burien Sound Credit Union. read more

Went to open accounts and refi car loans. Lena was amazing! Service here was great and enjoy doing business there.

I don't bank with Sound Credit Union, but the business I work for does. The service is consistently bad. I went on my lunch hour today to make a deposit for work. Sat in the drive thru for over 10 minutes, that's how long it took teller #0410 to process my transactions. When I questioned her about the length of time I was told that it was because I had multiple checks(5)plus cash and they don't like to do those through the drive thru. First time I've heard that. Then her excuse was that they were having issues with the scanner, this is the second OR third time I've heard that excuse from them! Either the scanner needs to be replaced or this teller needs to come up with another excuse! I would never bank with these people! Consistent bad service and when there is an issue, it takes forever for them to fix it. read more

I had a minor problem that Cindy Ho, the branch manager, was unwilling to fix for me. I won't bore you with the details but I had never had an issue like this before in 30-40 visits to Sound CU. Closed both personal and business accounts and will never go back. Terrible customer service IS NOT why I switched from a bank to a credit union!!! read more

Best place in Burien to have a saving account, by far 5 star, they have great service and are the only place to have a change machine for coins. 1 star for business accounts so that a average of 3 star, the problem with the business account is mainly their processors they partner with, I contacted a rep and they said their machine is $450 by far the highest price I ever heard, so delve in to do some research and they have over 1200 complaints against the and have a 92% negative reviews, so purely a corporate problem, might want to find some new processors if you expect to grow your business accounts. read more

If you are looking for a professionally run credit union, this is not your place. We entrusted a good chunk of my mother's life savings at this institution only to have them send it all to the state due to inactivity. (It was her savings intended for long-term care so we had no immediate reason to make deposits or withdrawals). They did this without even bothering to contact me as the co-owner of the account. It was a very traumatic experience trying to get it back. Not exactly a community-minded bank looking out for you. Do yourself a favor and go to a credit union that actually cares about their customers! read more

I stated having to go to Sound Credit Union because I moved. The entire staff has amazing customer service!!!!!!! They seem to intuitively know what I need when I have to go in. I have to say I am so thrilled that I have to do my banking there. Ambaum Blvd Sound Credit Union is the best banking!!!!!!! read more

I tried to open an account and got there 10 minutes before closing. While the two reps weren't helping any clients at the time, one approach me 5 minutes later and told me that they were closing in 5 min and they don't have enough time to open it. I had worked at Bank of America in Des Moines and we have clients there till 7 pm and willing to help but this location rather get off on time. I'm very disappointed with the staffs there! read more

I have been a member of Sound/Watermark/Telco since 1977 and have many years of excellent credit. I recently spent 3 months getting a home mortgage from Sound Credit Union, which included pre-approval. I have documented time after time that papers were sent to me with significant errors, dates were not met, changes emailed to the loan officer were not made, a rude email from the loan officer regarding an error in which she told me to just sign, etc. I also was not advised the loan would immediately be sold to Franklin American Mortgage. To top it all off, Franklin (via the loan officer) would not fulfill the loan unless I provided the closing papers for the sale of my previous home, which had closed over a month previously. This was after they had received my very large down payment, the close date and filing of my purchased home was completed with the county records! Now they want documentation of where I had funds to make that down payment? I gave Sound and their loan officer one star because I finally did get the loan completed. read more