Prospective bank customers in Syracuse, NY may be lured by some pretty hefty cash offers for opening a checking account.  We haven’t seen many offers above $50, so when M&T Bank offers new members $150 to open a Power Checking account, we take notice.  Select checking accounts get $100 and basic checking with interest gets $50.  Incentives, however, can boost the $150 to as high as $250 for Power Checking.  You must enroll in certain M&T programs like overdraft protection or use BillPay to take advantage of this extra bounty.  The total for regular checking could get you as high as $125.  It’s easiest to take full advantage of these offers if you have your checking account elsewhere, but your mortgage is at M&T.

There is no better offer right now than the debit card reward offer from PerkStreet.  Those opening a checking account with PerkStreet and maintaining a $5,000 balance get 2% cash back on debt card purchases.  You get 1% if your balance falls below the $5,000 mark.  The company ever offers free checks, free mailing of all deposits and is part of the huge (37,000+) STARsf ATM network.  This is a great offer considering an overwhelming number of banks do not offer any rewards what so ever on debit card purchases.  The company claims that this cash back offer will not go away, but you must always be wary of that when switching for an offer like this one.

Looking for the best bank offers in North Carolina?  You can still find regional deals.  Take a look at the following financial instituions below.

Small business banking:

First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company, Raleigh, NC

Best credit union:

State Employees Credit Union, Charlotte, NC

Best regional bank:

First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company, Raleigh, NC

Who is offering the best bank offers on interest rates?  Well, by and large as we enter 2010, we’re seeing competitive interest rates for savings accounts at around 1.5%, with most below 1%.  Incredible Bank, an online bank, is now offering over 2% on its checking accounts, but it’s unlikely that this will last.  Maybe just long enough to get you to switch your bank account (not worth it).

Shore Bank seems to be intent on keeping its reign as the best paying savings account that I could find.  This in spite of the fact it dropped its interest rate significantly to 1.70%.

E-Trade (NASDAQ: ETFC) currently offers a pretty good deal when compared to my favorite, Schwab Bank (NASDAQ: SCHW), for those checking account holders carrying $5,000 or more in their accounts.  With an average daily balance of $5,000 you can earn 3.25% which blows away the 2.01% offered by Schwab.  Both banks offer no ATM fees and free bill pay.  Another benefit of E-Trade, as well, is its much cheaper brokerage fees, if you decide to use that feature as well.  However, Schwab generally has a better reputation for customer service and a stronger financial base.