Pentagon Federal Credit Union Reviews

Over the course of the initial "interview", the loan officer told us that based on a soft credit pull and other information we provided, we would qualify for 85% of the LTV of our home and that there would not even need to be an in person appraisal as the appraisal would be done via automated valuation model. Based on the loan officer's representations, we agreed to proceed with the application, which included a hard credit check. Appraisal came back with a favorable amount, at which point the loan officer than said that actually, we would only qualify for 80% of the LTV unless we agreed to a drive-by appraisal -- only then would we go up to 85%. This was the first red flag (never good to deal with a dishonest person). We told the loan officer we were ok with staying at 80% as we did not want any further details in closing on the loan. Loan officer agreed.

1.5 weeks of pulling together and submitting various documents, follow-up phone calls and emails and other related work ensue. We were on vacation at the time but spend a considerable amount of time attending to PenFed's request as promptly as we could. During the process, the loan specialist working with the loan officer kept bringing up the fact that she was just waiting for the appraisal to come in. I kept telling her that the loan officer and I had agreed that there would be no appraisal as we were ok with staying at 80% as agreed upon with the loan officer.

She kept being evasive and saying "oh no, I didn't mean an actual appraisal, just the desk report for the automated valuation system." (Didn't really make sense since they had already run the AVS appraisal -- what was there to wait for?) More red flags. We were then told that we had been conditionally approved, and then that our application had been submitted for final approval and we would be assigned a closer who would be reaching out to us in 2 days to set up the closing.

However, the very next day, we got an email asking us to "call urgently." When we called back, we were told that an appraiser had come to our house "to take pictures" and had concluded that 1) our house was under construction (it was the landscaping work I had disclosed to the loan officer from the very beginning) and 2) our house was unoccupied (we have lived in this house full-time for about 1.5 years and all the documents we submitted, including mortgage statements, insurance documents and pay stubs all showed that this was our mailing address; there were trash cans and plants/vegetables/fruit trees around our home as well and one of our friends was house-sitting for us while we were out on vacation). The loan specialist then tells us during the call that we were being declined based on the appraiser's report.

A) We had agreed from the start that there would not be an in-person appraisal. Whenever the subject came up and I tried to clarify, we were repeatedly told there would be no in-person appraisal and the AVS appraisal was sufficient. B) We had disclosed the ongoing landscaping work from the very beginning. We also disclosed the fact that we were on vacation in Europe multiple times. At no point during the process were we told that the landscaping work would be an issue. If we had been so informed, we would not have wasted any of our time or effort (particularly since we were on vacation) responding to multiple requests for documentation and information and we absolutely would not have agreed to a hard credit check.

TLDR: This is a company that is shady at worst and incompetent at best. This company strung us along, made us do all the work and lied to us multiple times during the process (do yourself a favor and read the other reviews describing identical experiences from other applicants). STAY AWAY. There are several other better, more professional and competent options out there.

Eventually I received an email from PenFed acknowledging that they are having some sort of technical problem that caused my payment to fail. They said they will get back to me when the problem is solved. They never did, but soon I started receiving a flood of messages and robocalls telling me that my account is delinquent. I decided to start contacting PenFed to see if I could get my payment processed sooner instead of later. But when I spoke to the PenFed personnel, the problem usually just got worse.

I kept trying to pay my bill online, but the payment would never process. At one point they told me that I can't make any more payments unless I agree that all future payments will be drafted automatically for the full statement balance. Another time they brought back to life a refund from 3-1/2 months earlier, which I thought was completely settled. They cancelled a refund I received for a broken item I received long ago.

When I logged in to my account another time, to dispute their action, a window popped up that said my credit card doesn't come with the right to dispute. I called PenFed to ask about this, but the representative said, "I see that message, but I don't understand why it applies to your account." Trying to solve all of these problems is made much worse by the fact that they typically try to force me to use a voice recognition system that doesn't work, or use a robo-chat that doesn't works. If I ever contact a real person, the odds are higher than 50% that they'll put me on hold and never come back.

Original Review: Oct. 22, 2023

I sent a check I received from a business to PCU. It never arrived in my account. After a month of no help the check sender went to his bank and obtained a copy of the check that was cashed by Penfed. Penfed would not accept the copy of the check and asked that the company providing the check send a PDF of their business account, which they refused. I asked that Penfed contact the bank for verification but they refused. I am out $3000 due to either incompetence or worse. Don't send checks to Penfed. Len

I guess one way to look at it is that PenFed will have very few if any hacks, but at the expense of losing some of its loyal client base. I will stop using PenFed as my primary credit card company (95%), and use my Amex, or NFCU Visa, and/or USAA's credit card--I am fortunate I have options. I am very disappointed in PenFed and its management to a more secure, user-friendly client interface. Now all I have to do is figure out how to pay off my two accounts, and then close the accounts. It's been a good ride, until it wasn't!

I told her it's mandated by the state law to list the at-will notification and she still didn't understand. After a short 5 minute talk with her underwriters, she denied my loan and said that I wasn't financially qualified. (I'm putting 35% downpayment on a 600k house and I make over 130k a year). I AM VERY VERY disappointed by the unprofessionalism of this organization and will never ever reach out or recommend this CU to anyone that I know.