Banks That Don’t Use ChexSystems in Tennessee

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Appalachian Community Federal offers second chance checking for anyone with a ChexSystems checking history. Called Fresh Start, it requires a $50 initial deposit and has a $10 monthly service fee.

To become a member, applicants must live, work, worship, or attend school in Carter, Hawkins, Sullivan, Unicoi, or Washington County. They may also join ACFCU if they are a member of H/Ead, or have a family member who is already an ACFCU member.

They have branch locations in Kingsport, Rogersville, Johnson City, Gray, and Jonesborough.

Cadence Bank offers several checking accounts that don’t use ChexSystems. Minimum opening deposits range from $25 to $1,000. However, for some checking accounts, you can get the monthly fee waived by meeting certain requirements.

The accounts come with the basic features you’d expect, like a free debit card, online banking, and bill pay.

Community doesn’t use ChexSystems but will pull a credit report for each application. Provided you don’t have too many negative marks on your credit report, Community National Bank may open an account for you.

They offer a few different checking products: Money Market Checking, Reward Checking, Community Plus Checking, Community 62 Checking, eChecking, and Click-n-Save Checking.

Click-n-Save comes with free online banking, free bill pay, and free eStatements. It also includes free cell phone protection, roadside assistance, and accidental death insurance, as well as identity protection.

They have locations in Dayton, Soddy-Daisy, and Spring City.

Commercial Bank and Trust checks each applicant’s credit report and credit score before approving their application. A credit score of 600 is needed, provided the credit report doesn’t have too many negative entries on it.

Commercial Bank and Trust offers three checking options: Choice Checking, Fifty Plus Checking, and Simply Free Checking.

Simply Free Checking requires a $50 opening deposit but doesn’t require a minimum balance. It comes with free eStatements, free bill pay, free online and mobile banking (which includes remote deposit), and a free debit card.

Commercial Bank and Trust has locations in Union City, Paris, Memphis, and Jackson.

First South uses a credit report in lieu of running a ChexSystems, Telecheck, or EWS scan on new applications. It offers several types of checking options: k Standard, Student, Savings, @nywhere, and Money Market Account.

Standard Checking comes with free online and mobile banking, free eStatements, free bill pay, a free debit card, as well as overdraft protection options.

There’s a low minimum balance requirement to avoid monthly fees, but for more information, applicants will need to speak with a member representative.

They have locations in Memphis, Bartlett, Cordova, Millington, Collierville, Atoka, Dyersburg, and Nashville.

FSNB offers banking without ChexSystems or credit checks, allowing for easy account opening with a $5 deposit.

Checking account options vary: Advanced Checking has a $10.95 monthly fee; Career Checking and 50+ Checking are free with a monthly direct deposit; Basic Checking incurs a $6.50 fee if the balance drops below $100.

The accounts come with a Visa check card, free online and text banking with bill pay, and an interest-bearing account, conditional on maintaining a minimum balance.

Additional perks include fee-free ATM transactions at FSNB locations, mobile banking, free e-statements, and no charge for cashier checks and money orders. Customers also receive one free box of standard checks every quarter.

Highland Federal doesn’t use ChexSystems, Telecheck, EWS, or a credit report to screen new applications. As long as you can present two forms of ID, one of which must be government issued, and you don’t owe Highland any money, your application may be approved.

Highland offers four checking options: Basic Checking, Free Choice Checking, Smart Choice Club Account, and Golden Choice Club Account. Free Choice Checking doesn’t have any monthly fees, and the first box of checks is free.

It comes with free online banking, free checking, free bill pay, and a free MasterCard Debit card. A minimum deposit of $100 is required, as is an email address.

They have two locations in Crossville.

Hope Credit Union uses ChexSystems, but they aren’t as strict with negative entries as other financial institutions.

As long as the applicant has a credit score of at least 600, and doesn’t owe any money to Hope Community, HCCU is likely to open an account.

Hope CU offers five checking account options. Some of them have a $25 minimum balance requirement and as a $9.95 monthly fee. However, the fee is waived if the account has at least $200 in it.

Checking accounts come with unlimited paperless transactions, free online and mobile banking, free eStatements, and overdraft protection options.

Home Federal Bank offers a second chance checking account called Square One Checking. It requires a minimum opening deposit of $50, as well as a one-time setup fee of $10.

The monthly fee is $19.99 if you don’t sign up for direct deposit, but drops to $12.99 if you do.

The Square One account comes with free online and telephone banking, free eStatements, as well as overdraft protection options. They have locations in New Tazewell, Jacksboro, Harrogate, and Knoxville.

Instead of using ChexSystems, TVA runs a credit report for each application. Membership is available to anyone who lives, works, attends school, owns a business, or worships in the following areas:

• Sullivan
• Johnson City
• Hamblen
• Jefferson
• Knox
• Sevier
• Blount
• Roane
• Loudon

To open an account, you can apply online and make a minimum deposit of $5. Knoxville TVA has numerous locations throughout much of Tennessee.

TVA doesn’t have a monthly service fee unless the account holder opts to have a paper statement instead of an eStatement, in which case it’s $2 a month.

It comes with free mobile and online banking, remote deposit, free bill pay, and free access to over 64,000 ATMs throughout the world.

Republic Bank has a second chance checking account called Checking Builder Account. It requires a $50 deposit, a social security number, and government ID.

If you’re in ChexSystems, you may need to provide documentation that you have satisfied any debt you may have had with a former financial institution.

The monthly fee is $12.95 a month. However, this amount can be reduced if you sign up for direct deposit, or have at least 20 debit transactions a month.

Checking Builder doesn’t require a minimum balance, and comes with free internet banking, free bill pay, and unlimited check writing. You get free ATM transactions with Republic Bank, Presto, Sum, MoneyPass, or Allpoint ATMs.

Renasant Bank uses ChexSystems, but it has built a reputation for being more lenient with negative records than other banks. As long as there isn’t a history of fraud and the applicant does not owe any money to Renasant, you may open an account.

Renasant offers four checking options: Renasant Checking, Student Checking, Rewards Checking, and Rewards Extra.

Checking accounts come with online and mobile banking (including remote deposit), bill pay, a free Visa debit card, and Renasant’s Mobile Wallet.

The mobile wallet currently works with:

• Zelle
• Apple Pay
• Apple Pay Cash
• Google Pay

Staley Credit Union offers a second chance checking account called Renew Checking. It’s designed for anyone looking to repair their checking history.

Renew Checking requires a $50 deposit to get started, and there is a $7 monthly service fee.

Renew Checking comes with free online and mobile banking, free bill pay, a free debit card, and access to over 5,000 free nationwide ATMs. Overdraft protection options are also available to members.

Transferring to a standard checking account is possible if you maintain a positive balance in the account during the first year.

United Southeast Federal uses Telecheck to screen new applicants instead of ChexSystems. Telecheck is less common, so many people who have had difficulty opening a bank account can do so with a Telecheck based financial institution.

They offer Premier Checking. It comes with identity theft protection, accidental death insurance, travel discounts, warranty protection, shopping rewards, and health discount savings.

Keep in mind that all of this is, in addition, to free online and mobile banking (including remote deposit), online bill pay, free eStatements, and one free box of checks a year. The account doesn’t require a minimum balance, but there is a monthly fee of $5.95.

They have locations in Bristol, Johnson City, Abingdon, and Lebanon.