@Anonymous wrote:
I was going for the Anywhere Checking account but then read the fee schedule and they will charge $10/yr for the debit card! No thank you!
Here is what Firstbank doesn't really tell you....the Premier Checking account waives the annual fee on both the Visa debit and overdraft line of credit (if you have one). (Yes, I know the bonus is on Anywhere Account, keep reading).
They like to promote the fact that if you keep at least $2,500 in the Premier account, you will earn interest. It creates an illusion that you HAVE to keep $2,500.00 in the account to avoid fees. You don't. As long as you have a $1,000 direct deposit each statement period, the account is fee-free. You won't earn interest if the balance falls below $2,500 (which, currently is a paltry 0.01%) but more importantly, the fees are waived with direct deposit.
Yes, I know the sign up bonus is on the Anywhere Account. My point: open the Anywhere Account, use it, discover how good Firstbank can be, and then when you get close to the 1 year anniversary, you can go online and upgrade your account to the Premier Checking. With direct deposit of at least $1,000 per statement period, there are no monthly fees and the annual debit card and line of credit fee are waived.
I learned this last year after banking with them for 13 years.....ugh. That has been my biggest complaint with Firstbank...I spoke to several employees about the ridiculousness of the debit card fee over the years and not one of them ever mentioned the Premier Checking to me. Not even when I called to close my debit card to avoid the fee. But overall they are a good bank. It has saddened me in recent years that they have "de-Colorado-ized" the bank ever since they made the very strange decision to move into the Phoenix area. I also really, really hate their new vertical debit and credit cards. But that's just me being picky.
I am also disappointed in myself for stopping by MyFico today and logging in for the first time in a few months just so I could tell you this.
