[Expired] [CT, MA, PA & NY only]First Niagara $100 Checking Bonus

[Expired: This deal has expired, you can view current checking bonuses here]

Offer at a glance

• Maximum bonus amount: $100
• Availability: CT, MA, PA & NY
• Direct deposit required: Yes, $250+
• Additional requirements: None
• Hard/soft pull: Soft
• Credit card funding: Up to $1,000 in initial funding, no AmEx cards.
• Monthly fees: $5-$25 waivable
• Early account termination fee: 180 days, $25
• Expiration date: December 31st, 2014

The Offer

Direct link to offer

• Receive a $100 bonus from First Niagara when you open a simple checking account and receive qualifying direct deposits of $250 or more

The Fine Print

• All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
• Direct deposit must be received within 60 days of account opening
• Available on First Niagara Simple Checking, Choice Checking, Pinnacle Checking, and PinnaclePlus Checking accounts
• Qualified direct deposits are paycheck, pension or government benefits (such as Social Security) from your employer or the government. Although in the past other ACH transfers have triggered a similar bonus by First Niagara.

Avoiding Fees

There are four different accounts that can be opened for this bonus.

Simple Checking $5

To avoid the monthly fee you just need to deposit at least 1¢ per month.

Choice Checking $9.95

To avoid the monthly fee you must do one of the following:

• Maintain an average daily balance of at least $300 or
• Maintain direct deposit or
• Complete 10 debit card transactions or
• Maintain at least $5,000 in combined deposits or loans with First Niagra (excluding mortgages)

Pinnacle Checking $15 Monthly Fee

• Maintain an average daily balance of at least $1,000 or
• Maintain at least $25,000 in combined deposits or loans with First Niagra (excluding mortgages)

PinnaclePlus Checking $25 Monthly Fee

• Minimum daily balance of at least $5,000 or
• Maintain at least $50,000 in combined deposits or loans with First Niagra (excluding mortgages)

Early Account Termination Fee $25

If you close your account within 180 days, First Niagara will charge you a $25 early account termination fee. If your account has a balance of $0, it will go into negative and be reported to ChexSystems. This would make it nearly impossible to open bank accounts in the future.

Our Verdict

First Niagara has been lowering their bonus all year, at first it was a $250 bonus available to everybody. Then they downgraded it to a $250 bonus only available to specific states and now it’s a $100 bonus available to specific states. Personally I’d hold off on this offer in the hopes that it went back to $250.

That being said, this new offer allows you to open a simple checking account and it’s must easier to keep this account fee free than the other accounts that First Niagara offers. Make sure you don’t miss out on other great bank bonuses (like the $250 bonus they used to offer) by checking out the best bonuses currently available and by following us on twitter. As always, you can view state specific checking promos here.

Direct link to offer