[Expired] Bank of America $500 Checking Bonus

• Maximum bonus amount: $500
• Availability: Nationwide, but you must have received this offer by direct communication with Bank of America. People have been able to get the $300 bonus without receiving the direct communication, so it might be also possible to do that with this (I’d recommend reading through the comments on that post). Must also not have a checking or savings account with BofA already.
• Direct deposit required: Yes, two qualifying direct deposits of $2,000+
• Additional requirements: None
• Hard/soft pull: Soft
• Credit card funding: None, but you can fund with a debit card up to $250
• Monthly fees: Waive-able 
• Early account termination fee: None
• Expiration date: June 13th, 2015

The Offer

Direct link to offer

• Receive a sign up bonus of $500 when you open a checking & savings account with Bank of America and complete both of the following:
  • Open an interest checking or core checking account and receive two qualifying direct deposits of $2,000 or more within 90 days of account opening
  • Open a Rewards Money Market Savings account, deposit $20,000 into that account within 60 days of opening your new checking account and maintain a balance of above $20,000 for at least 30 consecutive days.

The Fine Print

• Eligibility: Offer only available to customers and Bank of America employees who receive this offer via a direct communication from Bank of America.
• To be eligible you must not current have a personal checking account or Rewards Money Market Savings account with Bank of America and can’t have been the owner or signer of either of these accounts within the past six months
• A qualifying direct deposit is: recurring direct deposit of a paycheck, pension, Social Security or other eligible regular monthly income, electronically deposited by an employer or an outside agency into your new personal checking account.
• Every attempt will be made to deposit your bonus within 60 days of meeting the account requirements

Avoiding Fees

Core Checking $12 Monthly Fee

The $12 monthly fee is waived if you meet one of the following requirements:

• Have at least one qualifying direct deposit of $250 or more
• Maintain an average daily balance of $1,500 or more
• Are a student under the age of 23

Interest Checking $25 Monthly Fee

The interest rate on this account is 0.03% APY, so I really wouldn’t bother personally. The monthly fee on this account is waived if you hold balances of $10,000 or more in your eligible linked accounts. Combined balances include the following:

• Average daily balances for the statement cycle in eligible linked checking, savings and money market savings accounts
• The current balances, as of the end of the checking statement cycle in linked personal CDs and IRAs
• The current balance, as of two business days before the end of the checking statement cycle, in your eligible linked Merrill Edge^®and Merrill Lynch^® investment accounts

Rewards Money Market Savings No Fee

This account does not come with any fees.

Early Account Termination Fees

It looks like Bank of America does not charge any early account termination fees according to their fee schedule.

Our Verdict

If you’re considering this offer and haven’t received the direct communication, I’d strongly recommend reading the comments on this post first. A lot of people have successfully received the $300 bonus without receiving the communication, but that doesn’t mean that this bonus is the same. Personally I’d want to go into a branch and get a banker to sign me up for the offer so I can ensure that I’m getting the bonus.

Obviously this bonus has bigger hurdles and you’ll also lose $17 – $85 in interest by tying $20,000 up for 30 days but you’ll still come out well ahead. Please share your experiences with this bonus in the comments below.

Hat tip to Danny Deal Guru