Promotion has now ended, view more checking promos by clicking here
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount:Â $200
- Availability:Â FL, MA, NJ, NY, VT, must open in branch [Branch locator]
- Direct deposit required:Â Yes, no minimum mentioned. Previously it was full paycheck/benefits
- Additional requirements:Â None
- Hard/soft pull:Â Soft
- Chexsystems: Yes
- Credit card funding: Can’t be funded with a credit card
- Monthly fees:Â None
- Early account termination fee:Â $26 if closed within three months + you forfeit bonus
- Household limit:Â None listed
- Expiration date:Â December 31st, 2019
Contents
The Offer
- Trustco Bank is offering bonuses of up to $200 when you open new accounts. Bonuses are as follows:
- Get $125 when you open a new Town Premier Checking or Home Town Free Checking Account and complete the following requirements:
- Make 5 debit card transactions
- Receive a direct deposit
- Get $200 when you open a new Town Premier Checking or Home Town Free Checking Account and complete the following requirements:
- Receive a direct deposit
- Open a statement savings account with a minimum of $5,000
- Get $125 when you open a new Town Premier Checking or Home Town Free Checking Account and complete the following requirements:
The Fine Print
- Promotional offer valid from 10/3/19 until 12/31/19.
- To receive the $125, you must open a Home Town Premier Checking or Home Town Free Checking Account with Direct Deposit.
- Minimum of $50 to open a Home Town Premier or Home Town Free Checking Account.
- To receive the $200, you must open a Home Town Premier Checking or Home Town Free Checking Account with Direct Deposit and a new Savings Account with a minimum of $5,000 (Club Accounts excluded)
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
They offer a free checking account with no monthly fees to worry about.
Early Account Termination Fee
If the account is closed within three months you have to pay a $26 fee, you also forfeit the bonus.
Our Verdict
Previously the best bonus was $125 + $50 savings, so this is slightly better but I think last time there was no deposit requirement. Not a huge bonus, but likely still worth doing for people that have already done bigger bonuses in the area. I’ll be adding this to our list of the best checking account bonuses.
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
Too many complaints with this bank. Never again.
I filed CFPB complaint as they will not pay out bonus. Branch is saying it had to be a DD every month but the terms do not say that, they say ‘receive a DD within 45 days’. They also haven’t paid the savings bonus, no response to that. Manager stated he would email me the promotion T&C but has failed to do so.
I was also told at opening of the account it was completely fee-free (directly from the branch manager himself) but they are now saying the savings has a $200 minimum daily balance.
I opted out of overdraft protection but was hit with with an overdraft fee anyways. They don’t put credits before debits and instead base their fees on the time the day the request was received. Not understanding they process debits before credits was my misunderstanding but it still doesn’t explain why I was hit with overdraft when I opted out. The request should have been denied but they didn’t do that.
Joey Bag of Doughnuts?
Opened 10/31. Bonus supposed to payout 2/6. After a bunch of back-and-forth with the bank and not getting anywhere, CFPB filed 2/26.
Final decision is that the bank will not pay the bonus because there was only one DD. I asked what exactly had to happen within the 45 days as the terms clearly specify ‘a direct deposit [singular]’ and they said a recurring direct deposit. So at least 2 DDs are needed within 45 days for the bonus.
Sorry that happened to you. At least it wasn’t much money (not even $100 after taxes). I hate when banks scam people like that.
https://www.trustcobank.com/page/news-and-information-88/news/earn-up-to-300-20.html
Did the last one for $150 with slightly different requirements. Waited after 3 months of biweekly DD from employer. Had to call my local branch to check on bonus. Manager said they would check on it and get back to me. Never called me back but the bonus showed up one day.
Do you have to keep the $5000 in the account or can you transfer it out after depositing it?
This still says “full paycheck/benefits” is required. The Direct Deposit requirement is incorrect.
“Direct Deposits must be the entire amount from a recurring Payroll, Social Security, and/or Pension (minimum of $100 monthly Direct Deposit).”
I just read the terms and conditions for the $125 bonus and it’s contradicting. One part of the terms says direct deposit OR 5 debit card transactions. Another part of the terms says you need to do both for the $125 bonus. Does anyone know which is right? Maybe I should just do both to be safe.
I have never seen anything like this before. Per the terms and conditions:
“If Direct Deposit is canceled on the Home Town Premier Checking Account a Monthly Average Collected Balance of $500 is required or $5 Monthly Service Charge applies”
It just means that without a direct deposit, a monthly fee will start to occur. It’s $5. Avoid it by keeping DD going, or put in $500 and don’t touch it.
Was in and out in 10 mins. Not chex sensitive. For the $200 bonus, you need $100 to open accounts ($50 for checking and $50 for savings). The $5000 can be transferred to the savings account within a week of account opening, it is not needed when opening the account. Besides ETF, checking has no fees but savings does if the balance drops below $200.
No branch close to Miami. Opening online would’ve been perfect.
In order to get the $200 bonus, do you have to deposit the $5,000 into a savings account the same day that you open the checking account? It looks like the answer is yes but if anyone has data points stating otherwise please let me know. Thanks
Looks like in-branch only, and I’d be surprised if this bank has the technology to do it online anyway.
I have a business account with this bank, and everything is very low-tech and slow. You’ll probably spend at least an hour opening the account in-branch.
T’is true. Be super nice and tell them you don’t have much time, be ready with ID, etc, in hand and one may whittle it down to 30 min. They just seem to be low energy.
FYI: my experience led to a follow up inquiry for the bonus. Patience (90 days minimum).