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Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount:Â $150
- Availability:Â WA only
- Direct deposit required:Â Yes, $500+
- Additional requirements:Â None
- Hard/soft pull:Â Soft
- ChexSystems: Unknown (inquiry sensitive)
- Credit card funding:Â Yes, you have to use Paypal but you can use a credit card up to $3,000
- Monthly fees:Â None
- Early account termination fee:Â 180 days, bonus forfeit
- Household limit:Â None
- Expiration date:Â December 31, 2020
Contents
The Offer
- Sound Credit Union is offering a bonus of $150 when you open a new checking account and complete the following requirements:
- Set up recurring direct deposit of at least $500 per month
The Fine Print
- You must open a Sound Checking Account by December 31, 2020 and make at least one direct deposit to your new Sound Checking Account of $500 or more within 90 days after account opening to qualify for the $150.
- Normal account service charges and balance requirements apply to these accounts.
- Direct deposit transactions are limited to: payroll, Social Security, pension and government benefits. Accounts titled as Trust Accounts, Estate, and No Access are excluded from eligibility.
- Employees of Sound Credit Union are not eligible for this offer.
- Limit one $150 bonus per qualifying account.
- Limit one $150 bonus per individual.
- The bonus will be deposited into your account within 90 days of meeting requirements. If you close your account within 180 days of account opening, the $150 bonus will be forfeited. Other miscellaneous charges may apply. Offer not available to individuals who have had a Sound Checking Account in the last 12 months. Accounts overdrawn or closed at the time of bonus payment are not eligible. Offer is subject to cancellation without notice and cannot be combined with any other offer. Sound is not responsible for and will not honor promotional offers that appear on third-party websites that are not authorized by Sound. Visit soundcu.com/rates for current fees.
- 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
Bonus is forfeit if you close your account within 180 days of account opening.
Our Verdict
There is also a $100 bonus offered in the past without a direct deposit requirement and a $50 referral bonus and apparently those stacked. I’m not sure if that will be the case this time or not, my guess is no (please do not share your referrals for now). Account might be worth it for the nice amount of credit card funding as well.
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
Has anyone gotten their bonus yet? Mine was due 7 days ago (per terms “The bonus will be deposited into your account within 90 days of meeting requirements.”), and nothing yet
I’m still waiting for the bonus too. SO and I both met the requirements more than 90 days ago.
FYI they credited me 1 business day after contacting them with a screenshot of the terms through secure message.
“Thank you for choosing Sound Credit Union. Your application number xxxxxx has been forwarded for review. An eBranch representative will contact you via email within two business days with next steps.”
Argh, what a hassle!
I received an email about Sound CU’s new checking account types being introduced on February 1, 2021. The email has odd language, which leaves me wondering if they are auto-upgrading me to a Cashback Checking account (which has a monthly fee). YMMV, but keep watch.
“Based on our analysis, we believe you would benefit by moving your Free Checking to our new Cash Back Checking. Your account will automatically change on February 1 – no action is required by you; your account will continue to function as usual with no interruptions in service. ”
The website (not linked in the email) says Free Checking accounts will remain Free Checking accounts: https://www.soundcu.com/checking-2021/
Yep. My account transitioned to the non-free Cash Back Checking account.
My SO’s got transitioned to the Free Checking one. So double check that to avoid any fees.
Cancelled due to credit freeze.
Assuming a hard pull…
Denied due to 7/12 chex
I applied on Sunday. I was declined due to Chex. I checked out my Chex Report.
Last 12/24/36 months: 10 inquiries (including Sound CU). These inquiries were only from 7 banks (including Sound CU). So I’d say it is pretty Chex sensitive. I only started this bank bonus game in Nov 19 so the exact same number of inquires over 24 and 36 months.
Last 6 months: 7 inquires (including Sound CU) from a total of 6 banks.
Applied a few weeks back, denied due to Chex.
DPs from old bonuses say that paypal charges fees for funding with a credit card.
Thanks for the heads up about this. I found that it wasn’t an automatic process and I am not even sure if they are going to open the account at this point. If they do, I will tell them not to do the paypal funding and I will fund later via other means (ACH).
One thing I noticed is that if you have a direct relative in WA you qualify, or if you work for a select # of employers, you also qualify. I appear to meet the employer criteria even though I don’t work or live in WA. My employer is headquartered in WA and has a big presence there.
Also, Chase Freedom via Paypal Key would provide a nice 5% bonus for the first $1.5k. I might give this one a try.
Chase may charge cash advance fee.
Well, I actually didn’t use Paypal key because I was not thinking and that would be like credit card funding. Instead if I get that far, I will do a regular purchase via Paypal with Chase Freedom as the preferring funding source for the charge. That should avoid a cash advance fee right? Also I have set my cash advance limit so that the transaction would fail instead since the purchase would be above that limit.