Okay these bank bonuses.....switching my DD from work is a PITA. So I don't want to do that. I do have $20k sitting in savings I could play around with to meet these minimum balance reqs. But I'm confused as to the work arounds on the DD. I see some people saying they are doing it with credit cards. How?
I'd love to get in on this "free" money since every little bit helps as a single mom. But I don't wanna have to keep changing up how I'm depositing my paycheck to do it.
Also when an account requires XXX of debit card transactions, are you guys doing anything special for that? Obv we want to put every dollar we can on our CC's to meet MSR or points/etc. So are you just doing stuff like a pack of gum? Or are you "scamming" some other way (like PP, etc). Oh and I did read the DOC list on ways that DD's have worked but it has my head spinning as some say things like PP work, and others say it doesn't. I'd rather hear from people what has worked.
For bank bonuses there are two separate components that get a lot of attention, the first is the direct deposit requirements but the second is in bank account funding with a credit card. In 99.99% of cases these are completely separate topics. Fortunately/unfortunately there's a little confusion popping up because PNC has for some months been counting your credit card funding as part of your DD requirements. So "Yea!" less money needed to DD, but "boo" very confusing when it doesn't work and nearly any other bank. I'd try to just keep them as separate concepts so as to not get confused later (at least that's what I'm doing
)
Other than being able to use your credit card to fund some bank accounts at opening, CCs and Bank Bonuses are pretty separate. However, when you can find a bank that lets you fund an account with your CC and it codes as a purchase, it's a win-win as you'll earn free points/free MSR spend on top of the bank bonus. If it works out right it's fee-free manufactured spending
But it's very important to make sure it's not going to code as a Cash Advance as not only will you not earn CC points for it, or count towards your MSR, you'll pay additional fees to the CC company which eats into the bonus. This is also where everyone putting DP's on DoC comes in handy so it's a pretty comprehensive resource for all aspects of bank bonus chasing.
As for the DD's, mostly it's trial and error to see what makes it past the automated systems and triggers the bonus for each particular bank. Again, where DoC comments and posts are very helpful since each bank is going to be different - what works for PNC doesn't necessarily work for Citizens, etc etc. Out of the gate though you could look for accounts that don't require DD's to get a feel for the amount of time and effort you want to put into it. Discover savings is a quick hit, doesn't require you to hold the money in the account for any length of time and posts the bonus super quick once you meet the deposit requirement. Since this is a savings account, no DD required, just deposit the amount for the bonus you want. 15k will get you $150, but 25k will get $200. They are also nice in that cumulative deposits works - so even though you only have 20k to play with, you can deposit the 20k and get the $150 bonus, withdrawal some (5-10k say) and then redeposit it for the last $50. Just have to time it well so it makes by the deadline. (
https://www.doctorofcredit.com/discover-savings-150200-bonus-1500020000-deposit-new-exp-103117/) I had a local credit union checking account over the summer that only required debit card transactions for their bonus. I've seen less of those but they exist, can look at stuff like that while researching. Also while researching, look into hub accounts and see if there are any with current bonuses to work on. We've had CapOne360 for years and it's not been very useful until lately when it codes as DD for several bank accounts I've completed this year
Speaking of the debit transactions, for most banks just doing a small
Amazon reload works. Or buying a single banana at the grocery store. Or pump a dollar of gas at self-serve stations (personally I have no time for that, but it's one of the things I've seen recommended) Or anything small that your CC rewards aren't going to matter much. Just check to see if there is any minimums to the transactions. The ones I've done so far haven't had any so I put as little as 42 cents on one to meet the requirements. If you look at it as earning $300 for $10 (or even $20) in spend, that's puts losing out on the CC rewards for those purchases in perspective; at least that helped me.
At least the phone call was easy, new card being expedited.
THANKS!!!
