Deal has now ended, view the best current checking bonuses here. The $200 bonus can be found here.
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $300
- Availability:Must be a resident of Illinois
- Direct deposit required: Yes, complete 2 or more direct deposits totaling $500 or more
- Additional requirements: See below
- Hard/soft pull: Soft pull
- ChexSystems: Unknown
- Credit card funding: None
- Monthly fees: $3.95, waivable
- Early account termination fee: $25, 90 days
- Household limit: One
- Expiration date: December 31st, 2020
Contents
The Offer
- Old Second Bank is offering a $150 checking & $150 savings bonus. Bonus is broken down as follows:
- Get $50 when you – Open a new checking account online with promo code EM3 (or open in-branch and mention this ad), get a debit card, and enroll in eStatements.
- Get $100 when you meet the previous requirement and – Complete 2 or more direct deposits totaling $500 or more
- Get up to $150 when you open a Money Builder Savings account: $50 for balances of $5,000-$9,999; $100 for balances of $10,000-$14,999; and $150 for balances of $15,000 and up!
The Fine Print
- An account is not eligible to receive a cash bonus under this offer if 1) the primary account holder currently has an existing personal checking account (Basic Checking, Convenience Checking, Interest Checking, Interest Plus Checking, Military Checking, Minimum Balance Checking, Premier Checking, O2 Checking, Premier Plus Checking, Convenience Plus Checking and Prime Time Checking (“existing personal checking account”) at Old Second National Bank, 2) has had an existing personal checking account open in the 12 months prior to the date of account opening, or 3) the primary account holder has received a personal checking account-related bonus in the twenty-four months prior to the date of account opening.
- The bonuses described in this ad are limited per primary account holder, regardless of the number of accounts opened.
- The new “personal checking account” (02 Checking, Premier Plus Checking, Convenience Plus Checking, Military Checking, and Prime Time Checking) must be opened during the promotion period with the code and must have a positive balance on the 90th calendar day from the date the new personal checking account was opened in accordance with the bank’s procedures.
Offers are only available on personal checking accounts and the Money Builder Savings account; business accounts, trusts accounts with EINs, Health Savings Accounts, employee accounts and estate accounts are excluded from this offer. - To receive the first $50 cash bonus, 1) provide the offer code and open a new personal checking account, subject to approval, 2) apply for, and be issued, a debit card tied to the personal checking account within 90 calendar days of account opening and 3) enroll in e-Statements within 90 calendar days of account opening.
- To receive $100 cash bonus, 1) you must first meet the requirements of the first $50 cash bonus and 2) receive two or more direct deposits totaling at least $500 in the personal checking account within 90 calendar days of account opening. For purposes of this bonus offer, a direct deposit is defined as any payment made by a government agency, employer, or other third-party organization that is made via an electronic deposit. A direct deposit does not include teller, ATM, mobile, remote deposits, or transfers between accounts at Old Second National Bank.
- To receive the “savings” bonus, you must open a Money Builder Savings account, which requires a minimum opening deposit of $1,000; The bonus received will be based on the following balances on the 90th calendar day from the date you opened the Money Builder Savings account: bonus of $50 for balances of $5,000-$9,999; bonus of $100 for balances of $10,000-$14,999; bonus of $150 for balances of $15,000 and up. There is no bonus for balances below $5,000.
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
Money connection account has a $3.95 fee if you opt for paper statements, this is waived with paperless statements enabled.
Early Account Termination Fee
According to this comment there is an early account termination fee of $25 if closed within 90 days.
Our Verdict
So previously the checking bonus was the same, but you could get the savings bonus of $50 without any minimum required. Savings bonus is obviously bigger at $150 if you can afford to deposit $15,000, looks like you only need the funds in there on the 90th day. Because the balance is only required for a short period this is actually a great savings bonus. We will add this to our list of the best checking & savings bonuses.
Hat tip to reader Matt
Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:
- A Beginners Guide To Bank Account Bonuses
- Bank Account Quick Reference Table (Spreadsheet) (very useful for sorting bonuses by different parameters)
- PSA: Don’t Call The Bank
- Introduction To ChexSystems
- Banks & Credit Unions That Are ChexSystems Inquiry Sensitive
- What Banks & Credit Unions Do/Don’t Pull ChexSystems?
- How To Use Our Direct Deposit Page For Bank Bonuses Page
- Common Bank Bonus Misconceptions + Why You Should Give Them A Go
- How Many Bank Accounts Can I Safely Open Within A Year For Bank Bonus Purposes?
- Affiliate Links & Bank Bonuses – We Won’t Be Using Them
- Complete List Of Ways To Close Bank Accounts At Each Bank
- Banks That Allow/Don’t Allow Out Of State Checking Applications
- Bank Bonus Posting Times
Another datapoint for CapitalOne ACH coding as direct deposit:
Opened: 2/14
DD1 ($502): 3/13
DD1 ($501): 3/13
Bonus ($150): 5/12
i got all the way thru the process, and submitted the application. Just got a call (4:45pm) telling me “sorry, you have to be an existing customer, or a resident of IL” (I’m just across the river in STL, but no dice)
STL is not in Illinois….
anyone know if household bonus is enforced? I had done previous bonus in April and am thinking of signing up P2.
Thanks
P1 & P2 are able to open this account from out of sate at the same time today. We’ll confirm the eligibility of bonus with the CSR later and report back.