Keep in mind that they are ChexSystems sensitive.
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $100
- Availability: Downtown Fort Collins, CO and Main street Wellington, CO
- Direct deposit required: No
- Additional requirements: None
- Hard/soft pull: Soft
- ChexSystems: Yes. They are also sensitive
- Credit card funding: Up to $3,000+
- Monthly fees: None
- Early account termination fee: Unknown
- Expiration date: First 300 only
The Offer
- The first 300 people to open new checking accounts at Downtown Fort Collins and Wellington Main Street Blue Federal Credit Union locations will receive a $100 bonus. No other requirements apply.
The Fine Print
- New members only. $100 new member bonus limited to first 300 people and available only in-person at Boardwalk, Old Town and Wellington Blue FCU locations.
- $100 will be deposited into member’s checking at account opening.
- Not transferrable. Limit one per person.
- No substitutions. Limited time promotion.
- Person must qualify for membership. Membership is easy, just ask.
- Federally insured by NCUA. *Annual percentage yield. See Rewards For Life page for full details and requirements.
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
None of the accounts we recommend have any monthly fees, not sure if any early account termination fee is charged or not but given they earn high APYs and have no monthly fees I’m not sure why you’d want to close them.
Our Verdict
Blue Federal has two accounts that we’ve covered before:
- Blue Federal Credit Union 4% APY Account (Up To $15,000)
- Blue Federal Credit Union 4.99% APY Account (Up To $1,000)
Both would qualify for this bonus. Not sure if credit card funding will work in branch or not. Still I’d definitely sign up for one of these accounts if I lived close to either of those branches. Worth calling to make sure the promo still live before heading in. If you find out it isn’t, let us know in the comments. I won’t add this to our best bonus list because it’s so limited.
Hat tip to Maximizing Money
Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:
- A Beginners Guide To Bank Account Bonuses
- 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
Denied with 4 inquiries in 7 months
I was denied today with the “Houston” message. Too many ChexSystem inquiries, I’m assuming. I’ve opened eight new accounts this year. Probably worth adding that Blue FCU is pretty sensitive to inquiries.
Will do, thanks.
Also denied for too many Chex inquiries, got the same “Houston…” message. Opened instead for my son. Funded account with $4999 from Chase BA credit card (codes as purchase, not cash advance). Initially denied for $5000, got immediate fraud email from Chase, then denied for duplicate transaction. 3rd attempt with $4999 worked. Highly possible that you could go bigger. Next time… By the way, if a family member already has an account, the $5 membership fee is waived.
So, if a transaction is declined, does it give you the option to retry right away, or do you have to call them?
Got this bonus this weekend. Was told I was about the 80th account they’ve opened under this promo, so there are still plenty left. Couldn’t fund with a CC in branch, was told their machine was broken.
These guys are very sensitive to the number of inquiries on your chex system report – they denied me and I only had a handful. Now I have one more. :/
Did they specifically state that?
Yes, they did. I kept a screenshot. This is the text:
“Houston. We have a problem…
We apologize, but your application cannot be processed at this time do to the following reason:
Blue runs all member applications through ChexSystems. Based on the personal information you provided, we are unable to process your account online at this time.”
Nice and folksy (and with a grammatical error, “do to…”). First and only denial like this I’ve ever had (which prompted me to get a copy of my Chex report).
How many inquiries did you have? Would like to add it to our list of issuers that are inquiry sensitive.
I had 5 in the past 24 months.
You’re sure it’s inquiries and not a derogatory mark?
(Not trying to be rude, it’s just hard to tell based on their text.)
Yes, I’m 100% sure. This prompted me to get a copy of my chex report. Nothing negative in there at all, just a list of accounts I had opened. I have stellar credit (800-ish) high income, never a ding for anything. Other than having a lot of credit cards – and now a half dozen chex inquiries – i have a superb credit history and profile. Long, perfect history (30+ years), never a late payment, all managed well, super-squeaky clean, etc. It’s clearly the Chex inquiries – they even said so.
https://www.doctorofcredit.com/blue-federal-credit-union-4-apy-account-15000/
I’m in NY and I previously opened up a checking account for my mom, funded with CC $3000 coded as purchase, not sure if it will also work for Chase CSR holder. I saw this deal on their web last week but realized it’s in branch only and has a limit. I like their earn five checking and the fact that you can fund with CC 3K, that was $60 bonus from CC for me already. Earn five checking can give you at most of $25 per month.