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Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $300
- Availability: DE, PA and NJ only
- Direct deposit required: Yes, $1,000-$5,000 depending on bonus
- Additional requirements: Yes, 1-3 bill pays depending on bonus
- Hard/soft pull:Â Soft
- ChexSystems: Yes
- Credit card funding: $550
- Monthly fees: None
- Early account termination fee: None
- Expiration date: July 31st, 2015
The Offer
- Receive a sign up bonus of up to $300 when you open a Sun East Free Checking Account in branch or online. There are three different bonuses for $100, $200 and $300. They each have different requirements which we’ve outlined below:
- $100: Establish a qualifying direct deposit of $1,000 or more and make at least one online bill payment using SunPay
- $200: Establish a qualifying direct deposit of $2,500 or more and make at least two online bill payments using SunPay
- $300: Establish a qualifying direct deposit of $5,000 or more and make at least three online bill payments using SunPay
The Fine Print
- Valid for customers who open a new primary checking account, not valid for current customers who have a primary or joint checking account. Also not valid for previous customers that have closed their account within past five years
- Bonus requirements must be completed within 90 days of account opening
- Bonus will post within 30 days after the completion of the program
- Qualifying direct deposits are defined as:Â recurring Direct Deposit of a paycheck, pension, Social Security or other regular monthly income electronically deposited by an employer or an outside agency into your Sun East checkin
- Account must remain open to receive bonus
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
There are no monthly fees on this account and as far as I am aware there is no early account termination fee, but you must keep your account open until the bonus posts. You will need to deposit $5 into the Share Savings account when you become a member as well (this can be withdrawn when the accounts are closed)
Eligibility
To become a member of this credit union, you have a few free options and one paid option. We’ll discuss the paid option first because it’ll be applicable to the majority of people. Anybody can simply make a $10 donation to the Sun East Charitable Foundation to become a member.
In addition if you live, attend school, volunteer, work or worship in any of the following locations you can join for free:
- Nottingham, Pennsylvania
- Oxford, Pennsylvania
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Newark, Delaware
- Wilmington, Delaware
If an immediate family member is a member, you can also join for free. There are also 4,000 affiliate businesses, groups within DE, PA & NJ  and if you’re part of one of them you can also join for free.
Our Verdict
The biggest problem with this bonus is that we’re unsure if it’s a hard or soft pull, I don’t live within the service area otherwise I would just go into a branch to find out. Thankfully other writers for Doctor of Credit do live within the service (and both are getting addicted to bank bonuses, just like me) so I’m sure they’ll find out this important information in due time.
I think almost any ACH deposit will trigger the direct deposit requirement despite what the fine print says, but we won’t know for sure until after the promotion has ended. Obviously it’s best if you can easily change your employer payroll, but this isn’t possible for everybody.
If you have any experience with this bonus, please share with us in the comments below.
Direct link to offer | Screenshot of offer
Hat tip to Maximizing Money
