well the chase banker i worked with said if i opened a ?preferred checking account and kept 1500 minimum balance in there i could avoid the service charges and having to do either direct deposit or 5 transaction a month so i did that. there are numerous ways to avoid paying the fees depending on how much relationship you have with chase so the information given you regarding to minimum deposit to avoid fees was not true. they have a nice poster board if you go into a branch outlining all your options.