Deal has expired, view the best current checking bonuses by clicking here.
Update 10/27/18: Bonus is back and valid until November 16th, 2018.
Warning: They offered a bonus last year and it was mostly a disaster due to out of state applications being allowed and then automatically declined. I’d recommend reading through that thread to know what you’re getting yourself into.
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount:Â $100
- Availability:Â Ohio residents only
- Direct deposit required:Â Yes, or recurring ACH debit/credit
- Additional requirements:Â Open with at least $250
- Hard/soft pull:Â Soft according to CSR
- ChexSystems: Yes, report of being sensitive
- Credit card funding:Â Up to $500. Can fund with American Express, Discover, Mastercard & Visa.
- Monthly fees:Â None
- Early account termination fee:Â 180 days, bonus forfeit
- Household limit:Â One
- Expiration date:Â
September 8th, 2018November 16th, 2018
Contents
The Offer
- Westfield Bank is offering a bonus of $100 when you open a new Dream Big, Reserve, Simply, Reserve or 50+ Checking account and complete the following requirements:
- Open with at least $250 in new money
- A direct deposit or recurring ACH debit/credit must be established
The Fine Print
- To obtain the $100 (bonus), a new Dream Big, Reserve, Simply, or 50+ Checking account must be opened with an initial deposit of at least $250 on or before September 8, 2018.
- The new account must be opened with money not currently on deposit at Westfield Bank, FSB, and a direct deposit or recurring ACH debit/credit must be established.
- We will pay the bonus by crediting $100 to your new Westfield Bank checking account as interest within 10 days of account opening and after the required minimum opening deposit is made.
- There is a limit of one bonus per household (same address).
- The bonus will be reported to the IRS as interest income.
- Your account must remain open for 180 calendar days, or the amount of the bonus will be deducted from the account at closing.
- Offer available to Ohio residents only.
- Individual account terms and conditions apply.
- This offer is not available to individuals who have received a bonus from Westfield Bank in the last 12 months.
- Variable rates may change at any time without notice. Fees could reduce earnings on this account.
- This invitation is subject to change or cancellation at any time without notice.
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
Dream Big checking account has no monthly fees to worry about
Early Account Termination Fee
Account needs to be kept open for 180 days otherwise bonus will be forfeit.
Our Verdict
Ok so last year the bonus was obviously handled poorly and ended up causing all sorts of issues. Now that the fine print says Ohio residents only, it should go smoother. The credit card funding is nice and the requirements for the bonus are easy to meet. Assuming everything goes smoothly this is a good bonus. That’s a big assumption to make, I’ll let readers decide if this deal is for them or not. Once we get some confirmations it’s working as advertised I’ll consider adding it to the best bank bonuses.
Big thanks to reader, Curmudgeon who let us know. Learn how to find bonuses and contribute to the site here.
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
Alternate offer for $100 for customers between the ages of 18 and 25, or to customers between ages 16 and 17 with a parent or guardian co-owner https://www.westfieldbank.com/wb1625-a
Has anyone received the bonus yet? Funded on 10/30 w/ 500 dollars, recurring schwab bank ach debit posted on the 3rd, no bonus yet.
update: sm’d after ACH debit, bonus posted, EZ clap
Can confirm they do pull Chex
ChexSensitive. Got immediately notified my app was declined with a score of 0558
How many accounts in last 12/24 months?
Thanks, added DP.
roommate was denied due to chex w/ a total of 4 recent chex accounts -i was accepted at ~12-15
somethings not right here.
Hmm interesting, thanks for the DP.
Opened 8/6
$500 Credit card deposit posted 8/8
Ally Deposit – P2P – 8/16 – 17.64
Ally Deposit – P2P – 8/16 – 19.45
Bonus Posted 8/24
Have not activated debit card.
Had to call in to get this bonus to post. Quite the pain.
Did you the CC funding trigger the bonus?
I assume so, I did end up doing a 250 transfer from my Chase account but I don’t think that mattered. When I called they seemed more concerned about the recurring ACH or direct deposit requirement and I had to confirm that my Direct Deposit was from my employer and would be monthly. Might help to do a few transfers, or set up DD, but definitely a case where calling wouldn’t hurt either.
I sent a secure message. Yeah it appears they are looking for a recurring DD. I am going to transfer money in a couple times to see what happens.
DP: Signed up 8/8 and botched the CC funding – either AmEx Hilton Biz not eligible, or I mis-typed card info 5 times. Went with $250 opening deposit from PNC checking. Bonus posted 8/14 with zero other input.
Did this post without receiving and activating your debit card?
Yep. Got the debit card after bonus posted (not sure of the exact date), and I haven’t activated it yet.
Hmmm, I opened my account on 8/9 with $500 CC funding and still no bonus.
Same here (opened 8/5), my guess is CC funding doesn’t trigger the funding requirement.
Does anyone know if CC funding codes as purchase or CA?
I can only confirm that my Chase Freedom funding coded as a purchase
Upromise mastercard also coded as a purchase.
Some additional points you will hopefully find useful:
1. The total cc deposit across a checking & savings can only be $500, so no point in opening a savings.
2. The non-activity fee shouldn’t be an issue if you shut down at 12 months, since you’ll have a month of leeway from your opening activities.
3. They have the LONGEST application I can remember filling out for an online checking account! And the most security questions I recall also (7 or 8).
PSA – their fee schedule also says accounts closed within 12 months of opening date also incur a $50 charge.
I see this also. And there is a non activity fee if no deposit in a year.
Application was declined, even though very close to a branch.