CHASE FREEDOM AND CHECKING ACCT.

[gettnthere]

ive heard that opening up a CHASE checking acct. will give you more points and rewards when also using the Freedom credit card. So i been trying to sign up for their checking account and just throw some spare cash in there but i keep running into a problem. every time i go to the "open checking account feature" on their website it asks for my zip code and once i enter it, it says a checking account not available? has anyone else run into this problem? is there any way around this so that i can open up a checking account and take advantage of the bonuses?

[trumpet-205]

Where do you live? To open a checking account, Chase must serve where you live.

[gettnthere]

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@trumpet-205 wrote:

Where do you live? To open a checking account, Chase must serve where you live.

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I live in AL.  i dont think theres a single chase branch around me. i figured since they had the option to do it online i might possibly could but apprently im mistaken? is there any way around that or am i just stuck with not being able to get one?

[jsucool76]

I'm pretty sure you need to live in a chase area, at least when you open the account. When I went to college I changed the addresses on my chase accounts (There's no chase here in gainesville), but they didn't do anything to my accounts. There's a few banks that are like that, US bank for instance won't give you a credit card unless you live near them. Chase will give you a card but not a bank account I guess. 

[Revelate]

Are you certain about this?

Banks are regulated on a state-by-state basis in terms of whether they are allowed to do business there or not.  Pretty much everyone has the ability to transact in all states these days, that one was one of the things driving the bank consolidations over the past decade.

You can open an account directly on the Chase website and presumbly fund it through an ACH transaction.  Have people actually been denied going this route?  I'd be pretty stunned if so but I suppose it's possible.  As long as they're allowed to transact in your state of residence, I can't see why they'd care, at all.  Even these days that might be less of an issue with the rise of Internet banking anyway.  Not sure how that factors, but being local to a branch to have a checking account, seems to be pretty silly since all banks would rather you do your business online than in person.

[trumpet-205]

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@gettnthere wrote:

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@trumpet-205 wrote:

Where do you live? To open a checking account, Chase must serve where you live.

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I live in AL.  i dont think theres a single chase branch around me. i figured since they had the option to do it online i might possibly could but apprently im mistaken? is there any way around that or am i just stuck with not being able to get one?

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Yep, Chase does not serve AL (no branch office at all).

[SwiftTone]

I had this issue when I was trying to open a account with them a few months back.

There are no Chase retail branches in my state. However, there are mortgage branches and probably some stuff I don't know about. I have a Chase credit card that I opened with my MA address. But when I tried opening a checking account it wouldn't let me when I used my MA address. Turns out to open a checking account, you have to be within their footprint. I can assume that means there has to be a branch/atm in your state. I ended up opening an account using my friend's address in NY. You can open an account in CT, because they have like 1-2 ATMs in that state.

If you walk into a Chase branch you can open an account no matter where your address is.