Author Topic: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized  (Read 439212 times)

therethere

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1350 on: December 14, 2023, 02:43:27 PM »
I'm working on a credit card to get the welcome bonus, wondering if people like to speed things up and use the CC to pay estimated taxes for example and pay the 2.3% fee and get back 1%, to get the welcome bonus sooner than later, even though you could do it with normal spending?

I plan to get a new card every 3-4 months. If I finish a new card pretty fast, and don't have any large expenses coming up, I'll just spread out my purchases to the cards with the highest benefit to try to stay in that timeframe. That being said, I always try to time new cards to coincide with major expenses, mainly taxes and auto insurance.

If you are doing 2 player mode, and utilizing some business cards, this makes it fairly easy to stay under 5/24 permanently. This keeps you eligible for the most lucrative offers.

AnotherEngineer

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1351 on: December 14, 2023, 02:47:58 PM »
I'm working on a credit card to get the welcome bonus, wondering if people like to speed things up and use the CC to pay estimated taxes for example and pay the 2.3% fee and get back 1%, to get the welcome bonus sooner than later, even though you could do it with normal spending?

Go Curry Cracker does this: https://www.gocurrycracker.com/paying-taxes-with-a-credit-card-in-2022/

I also paid my property taxes with a debit card on a new bank account to get a bank signup bonus.

My advice for credit card churning is you can pace yourself and don't have to manufacture spend every which way. For instance, I've run out of cards to apply for that meet my standards (at least 50k points/$500) as I'm over 5/24 on modest spending. I've opened 9 cards just this year as two player. I prioritized cash back and AA points instead of managing 5/24 as carefully as I could have. Also, the Aviator card has no minimum spend. Anyway, I don't have regrets ($4,000 and 120k AA miles for the year), but you don't have to blitz through it. Unless you are using business cards too, then go ahead.


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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1352 on: December 14, 2023, 04:29:38 PM »
I'm working on a credit card to get the welcome bonus, wondering if people like to speed things up and use the CC to pay estimated taxes for example and pay the 2.3% fee and get back 1%, to get the welcome bonus sooner than later, even though you could do it with normal spending?

Financially it's suboptimal, because normal spending is 0% fee vs. the 2.3% fee on taxes.  But it's an easy way to get the SUB spending done, and it's better than not getting the SUB at all.

Another option is to pay ahead on things like utilities and insurance.  You can buy gift cards for future spending, too; I don't do that because I'd be worried about losing the GCs.

sonofsven

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1353 on: December 14, 2023, 04:50:57 PM »
I'm working on a credit card to get the welcome bonus, wondering if people like to speed things up and use the CC to pay estimated taxes for example and pay the 2.3% fee and get back 1%, to get the welcome bonus sooner than later, even though you could do it with normal spending?

Financially it's suboptimal, because normal spending is 0% fee vs. the 2.3% fee on taxes.  But it's an easy way to get the SUB spending done, and it's better than not getting the SUB at all.

Another option is to pay ahead on things like utilities and insurance.  You can buy gift cards for future spending, too; I don't do that because I'd be worried about losing the GCs.

The other problem I have with GC's is they are only good for spending, and that takes away potential spend from a CC.

I have opened a few bank accounts lately using a card to fund the account; that's another way to manufacture spend.

To the OP, I do pay a small % fee sometimes to meet a bonus requirement, even though I agree it is sub-optimal, on either my estimated or property taxes. I'm more likely to do it if the card also offers 0% for a number of months.


tj

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1355 on: December 14, 2023, 06:24:21 PM »

Rusted Rose

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1356 on: December 15, 2023, 07:26:52 AM »
https://www.profitablecontent.com/nasa-federal-credit-union-300-checking-bonus/

Boo to the recurring debit card requirements, I guess it's an easy $300 though.

So annoying. But the ones that have a minimum debit amount are even worse. There must be some reason banks love ridiculous numbers of debits?

Of course, one can automate these for tiny amounts. I think AZ's minimum GC used to be .50 and now it's $1 or something, but that's still reasonable.

ETA: I couldn't quickly find any DPs on what counts for DD yet. Would be good to know!
« Last Edit: December 15, 2023, 07:37:26 AM by Rusted Rose »

jnw

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1357 on: December 15, 2023, 08:32:23 AM »
Of course, one can automate these for tiny amounts. I think AZ's minimum GC used to be .50 and now it's $1 or something, but that's still reasonable.

So the opportunity cost is like 5 cents per each $1 amazon gift card reload.  14 x 5 cents = 70 cents per month opportunity cost.  A couple bucks of opportunity cost for $300 :)

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1358 on: December 15, 2023, 09:04:20 AM »
Of course, one can automate these for tiny amounts. I think AZ's minimum GC used to be .50 and now it's $1 or something, but that's still reasonable.

So the opportunity cost is like 5 cents per each $1 amazon gift card reload.  14 x 5 cents = 70 cents per month opportunity cost.  A couple bucks of opportunity cost for $300 :)
Love this!

jnw

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1359 on: December 15, 2023, 01:58:48 PM »
M1 Finance has a $250+$250 referral bonus deal going on now.
https://m1.com/250-referral/

If someone needs a referral link, shoot me a PM.

I signed up a few months ago to M1 Finance with a friend's referral link and we each got $100 for my $5k investment.  This requirement is $10k but a much sweeter deal.  I put the $5k in SGOV while it was in there.

« Last Edit: December 16, 2023, 01:59:55 PM by jnw »

tj

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1360 on: December 15, 2023, 05:30:51 PM »
M1 Finance has a $250+$250 referral bonus deal going on now.
https://m1.com/250-referral/

If someone needs a referral link, shoot me a PM.  I'll give it to one person.  I'm sure there are others here who could share their referral code as well -- I want to share so that's why I said one person :)

I signed up a few months ago to M1 Finance with a friend's referral link and we each got $100 for my $5k investment.  This requirement is $10k but a much sweeter deal.  I put the $5k in SGOV while it was in there.

$250 for $10k just doesn't seem all that interesting in the current interest rate environment, but I suppose it could be. How long is the holding period?

jnw

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1361 on: December 15, 2023, 07:09:46 PM »
$250 for $10k just doesn't seem all that interesting in the current interest rate environment, but I suppose it could be. How long is the holding period?

Deposit $10k within 30 days, hold for 30 days.  I figure about 45 days total.  365/45 = 8.1.    $250/10000 = 2.5%.  8.1 x 2.5% = 20% effective APY for the 45 days.   This is not including say investing that $10k into SGOV which is over 5%.. let's say the effective APY is 24% or so for that 45 days.   And then your friend also gets 20% effective APY.. so total including your friend is 44% effective APY.. which seems pretty good to me!  Beats the S&P 500 handedly!

Not to mention, after getting an account yourself, you can then also refer a friend and you each get $250 as well.  Seems like a pretty sweet deal to me.

EDIT: when I did this for $100 for $5k investment a few months back they paid me that $100 within a week after depositing that $5k btw.   I invested it into SGOV at earliest opportunity.
« Last Edit: December 15, 2023, 07:13:21 PM by jnw »

tj

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1362 on: December 15, 2023, 07:58:08 PM »
https://www.profitablecontent.com/nasa-federal-credit-union-300-checking-bonus/

Boo to the recurring debit card requirements, I guess it's an easy $300 though.

So annoying. But the ones that have a minimum debit amount are even worse. There must be some reason banks love ridiculous numbers of debits?

Of course, one can automate these for tiny amounts. I think AZ's minimum GC used to be .50 and now it's $1 or something, but that's still reasonable.

ETA: I couldn't quickly find any DPs on what counts for DD yet. Would be good to know!

How do you automate the micro purchases? I would literally buy several Amazon GCs back to back. It was an extremely manual process.

jnw

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1363 on: December 15, 2023, 08:12:33 PM »
How do you automate the micro purchases? I would literally buy several Amazon GCs back to back. It was an extremely manual process.

I did like 3 or so per day.. over some days.  Yeah it takes time.   I also have to do a gnucash transaction entry each time as well.  I do random amounts between 1 and 2 dollars.

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1364 on: December 15, 2023, 08:29:02 PM »
$250 for $10k just doesn't seem all that interesting in the current interest rate environment, but I suppose it could be. How long is the holding period?

Deposit $10k within 30 days, hold for 30 days.  I figure about 45 days total.  365/45 = 8.1.    $250/10000 = 2.5%.  8.1 x 2.5% = 20% effective APY for the 45 days.   This is not including say investing that $10k into SGOV which is over 5%.. let's say the effective APY is 24% or so for that 45 days.   And then your friend also gets 20% effective APY.. so total including your friend is 44% effective APY.. which seems pretty good to me!  Beats the S&P 500 handedly!

Not to mention, after getting an account yourself, you can then also refer a friend and you each get $250 as well.  Seems like a pretty sweet deal to me.

EDIT: when I did this for $100 for $5k investment a few months back they paid me that $100 within a week after depositing that $5k btw.   I invested it into SGOV at earliest opportunity.

[Emphasis added.]

I agree with most of your post except the bolded part.  You can't add your and your friend's percentages together that way ; that's just not how percentages work.  You'd have to average them.

Let's normalize it to $100 for you and $100 for your friend.  Your part is 24%, so your part is $24 on your $100.  Your friend's part is 20%, so their part is $20 on their $100.  Your total is $24 + $20 = $44.  But it's $44 total on $100 + $100 = $200.  $44 / $200 = 22%.

Still looks like a marvelous deal, but not 44% ridiculously marvelous.

Rusted Rose

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1365 on: December 15, 2023, 09:04:16 PM »
https://www.profitablecontent.com/nasa-federal-credit-union-300-checking-bonus/

Boo to the recurring debit card requirements, I guess it's an easy $300 though.

So annoying. But the ones that have a minimum debit amount are even worse. There must be some reason banks love ridiculous numbers of debits?

Of course, one can automate these for tiny amounts. I think AZ's minimum GC used to be .50 and now it's $1 or something, but that's still reasonable.

ETA: I couldn't quickly find any DPs on what counts for DD yet. Would be good to know!

How do you automate the micro purchases? I would literally buy several Amazon GCs back to back. It was an extremely manual process.

I've done that too of course.

Just under the Buy Now button though, there's a link to "Set up Auto-Reload"

I tested it a bit just now and it looks like $5 is the minimum for that process, oh well. But you can set it up for daily buys. Hmm. But then you do have to turn it off manually. :P

Wish they had a better system. Thought it was more sophisticated than this and it may have been when last I looked--or maybe it was just wishful thinking on my part.

So 15 x $5 and mark your calendar to turn it off in 2 weeks, or 15 x $1 manually--I suppose I'm not super averse to manual buys.

jnw

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1366 on: December 15, 2023, 09:44:41 PM »
$250 for $10k just doesn't seem all that interesting in the current interest rate environment, but I suppose it could be. How long is the holding period?

Deposit $10k within 30 days, hold for 30 days.  I figure about 45 days total.  365/45 = 8.1.    $250/10000 = 2.5%.  8.1 x 2.5% = 20% effective APY for the 45 days.   This is not including say investing that $10k into SGOV which is over 5%.. let's say the effective APY is 24% or so for that 45 days.   And then your friend also gets 20% effective APY.. so total including your friend is 44% effective APY.. which seems pretty good to me!  Beats the S&P 500 handedly!

Not to mention, after getting an account yourself, you can then also refer a friend and you each get $250 as well.  Seems like a pretty sweet deal to me.

EDIT: when I did this for $100 for $5k investment a few months back they paid me that $100 within a week after depositing that $5k btw.   I invested it into SGOV at earliest opportunity.

[Emphasis added.]

I agree with most of your post except the bolded part.  You can't add your and your friend's percentages together that way ; that's just not how percentages work.  You'd have to average them.

Let's normalize it to $100 for you and $100 for your friend.  Your part is 24%, so your part is $24 on your $100.  Your friend's part is 20%, so their part is $20 on their $100.  Your total is $24 + $20 = $44.  But it's $44 total on $100 + $100 = $200.  $44 / $200 = 22%.

Still looks like a marvelous deal, but not 44% ridiculously marvelous.

Disregarding the SGOV, 500/10000 =  5% in 45 days.  5% * 8 = 40% effective APY.  Do you agree?

The brokerage is paying out $500 for a $10k investment for 45 days.  The referrer gets $250 for referring and the referee gets $250 for investing $10k.  So $500 total for $10k investment for 45 days.
« Last Edit: December 15, 2023, 09:59:44 PM by jnw »

tj

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1367 on: December 16, 2023, 07:25:14 AM »
How do you automate the micro purchases? I would literally buy several Amazon GCs back to back. It was an extremely manual process.

I did like 3 or so per day.. over some days.  Yeah it takes time.   I also have to do a gnucash transaction entry each time as well.  I do random amounts between 1 and 2 dollars.

Oh, I always knocked out all of them in one day. But sometimes I would vary the gift card price slightly by pennies.

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1368 on: December 16, 2023, 07:53:31 AM »
How do you automate the micro purchases? I would literally buy several Amazon GCs back to back. It was an extremely manual process.

I did like 3 or so per day.. over some days.  Yeah it takes time.   I also have to do a gnucash transaction entry each time as well.  I do random amounts between 1 and 2 dollars.

Oh, I always knocked out all of them in one day. But sometimes I would vary the gift card price slightly by pennies.
I've always done 1.01, 1.02, 1.03...  to make it easier to keep track of the number

Rusted Rose

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1369 on: December 16, 2023, 11:06:12 AM »
How do you automate the micro purchases? I would literally buy several Amazon GCs back to back. It was an extremely manual process.

I did like 3 or so per day.. over some days.  Yeah it takes time.   I also have to do a gnucash transaction entry each time as well.  I do random amounts between 1 and 2 dollars.

Oh, I always knocked out all of them in one day. But sometimes I would vary the gift card price slightly by pennies.
I've always done 1.01, 1.02, 1.03...  to make it easier to keep track of the number

Yes me too. I was just looking into automation because of having to do it for X number of months.

secondcor521

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1370 on: December 16, 2023, 12:02:10 PM »
Disregarding the SGOV, 500/10000 =  5% in 45 days.  5% * 8 = 40% effective APY.  Do you agree?

The brokerage is paying out $500 for a $10k investment for 45 days.  The referrer gets $250 for referring and the referee gets $250 for investing $10k.  So $500 total for $10k investment for 45 days.

Only if the referrer and referee are in the same economic unit (married, for example).  If not, then the referrer's return is practically infinite ($250/0) and the referee's return is still ~20% ($250/$10000*365/45).

I thought both parties (referrer and referee) had to invest $10K for 45 days?  If that's so, then it's still $500 total for $20K worth of investment for 45 days.  I didn't look at the deal link though because I'm not interested in the deal personally; I'm just interested in making sure people evaluate the math correctly so they can make smart decisions about how to deploy their money.

kpd905

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1371 on: December 16, 2023, 01:44:02 PM »
For Amazon reloads, I found that bookmarking the page for reloads and having it be one click away helps to speed up the process.  Otherwise you are doing a lot of clicking around to get back to the reload page.

I guess you could also just open 5-10 tabs of the reload page and then close each one when you finish.

jnw

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1372 on: December 16, 2023, 01:57:06 PM »
Disregarding the SGOV, 500/10000 =  5% in 45 days.  5% * 8 = 40% effective APY.  Do you agree?

The brokerage is paying out $500 for a $10k investment for 45 days.  The referrer gets $250 for referring and the referee gets $250 for investing $10k.  So $500 total for $10k investment for 45 days.

Only if the referrer and referee are in the same economic unit (married, for example).  If not, then the referrer's return is practically infinite ($250/0) and the referee's return is still ~20% ($250/$10000*365/45).

I thought both parties (referrer and referee) had to invest $10K for 45 days?  If that's so, then it's still $500 total for $20K worth of investment for 45 days.  I didn't look at the deal link though because I'm not interested in the deal personally; I'm just interested in making sure people evaluate the math correctly so they can make smart decisions about how to deploy their money.

Sorry I guess I could of been more clear.  But the math is right. The new subscriber's $10k is making $500 between the two people, which is effective 40% APY over 45 days.  The referee gets effective 20% APY return on their $10k, and the referrer gets effective 20% APY return on the referee's $10k as well.  The only person investing $10k is the referee.

And yeah this would work out great in a 2P deal as well with a spouse or whatever. Then all the the 40% effective APY return goes to the same economic unit. Or say 44% including SGOV.
« Last Edit: December 16, 2023, 02:29:32 PM by jnw »

secondcor521

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1373 on: December 16, 2023, 03:01:06 PM »
Disregarding the SGOV, 500/10000 =  5% in 45 days.  5% * 8 = 40% effective APY.  Do you agree?

The brokerage is paying out $500 for a $10k investment for 45 days.  The referrer gets $250 for referring and the referee gets $250 for investing $10k.  So $500 total for $10k investment for 45 days.

Only if the referrer and referee are in the same economic unit (married, for example).  If not, then the referrer's return is practically infinite ($250/0) and the referee's return is still ~20% ($250/$10000*365/45).

I thought both parties (referrer and referee) had to invest $10K for 45 days?  If that's so, then it's still $500 total for $20K worth of investment for 45 days.  I didn't look at the deal link though because I'm not interested in the deal personally; I'm just interested in making sure people evaluate the math correctly so they can make smart decisions about how to deploy their money.

Sorry I guess I could of been more clear.  But the math is right. The new subscriber's $10k is making $500 between the two people, which is effective 40% APY over 45 days.  The referee gets effective 20% APY return on their $10k, and the referrer gets effective 20% APY return on the referee's $10k as well.  The only person investing $10k is the referee.

And yeah this would work out great in a 2P deal as well with a spouse or whatever. Then all the the 40% effective APY return goes to the same economic unit. Or say 44% including SGOV.

Understood.

jnw

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1374 on: December 23, 2023, 03:31:03 AM »

tj

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1375 on: December 23, 2023, 08:01:04 AM »

jnw

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1376 on: December 23, 2023, 08:48:24 AM »
Yeah.. I dunno about this one.

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1377 on: December 27, 2023, 09:41:13 AM »
Year End Reporting: $5,475 and 60k AA miles this year

Perhaps we should change the name of the board? ;) This was my first year of bank bonus churning after doing credit cards for years. Granted, I know churning rules will slow this down next year and I am doing some two player mode. However, I kept my standards high and opened "only" 16 accounts:
  • all bonuses were $300 or more except two BoA $200 bonuses (opened to access Premium Rewards points as cash)
  • my only savings bonuses were two Chase big accounts. I wasn't moving arounds $50k for instance
  • I didn't do any brokerage accounts, business accounts, or banks I hadn't heard of
  • I did some two player, but only 4 of my accounts are P2. I either didn't have the DD cash flow or my P2 wasn't approved 
  • While I can change my DD easily, I didn't fully optimize it nor did I have $10k/month to allocate. I used transfers to simulate DD only once or twice. 
  • I use Doctor of Credit (try searching the page by your state's initials). I check Profitable Content for alerts, but have wasted hours from his inaccurate info   
  • I haven't yet run into any Chex barriers. 

All this to say that this has been a great side gig and even exceeded my credit card churning. Two player helps, but not required. You don't have to pursue convoluted requirements for low returns. And you don't have to have a ton of cash or income. Develop your criteria that works for you. While this may go away in a downturn and we've seen savings bonuses return fall due to rising interest rates, there is a lot to get while the getting is good.

How was your year?

tj

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1378 on: December 27, 2023, 09:54:46 AM »
Year End Reporting: $5,475 and 60k AA miles this year

Perhaps we should change the name of the board? ;) This was my first year of bank bonus churning after doing credit cards for years. Granted, I know churning rules will slow this down next year and I am doing some two player mode. However, I kept my standards high and opened "only" 16 accounts:
  • all bonuses were $300 or more except two BoA $200 bonuses (opened to access Premium Rewards points as cash)
  • my only savings bonuses were two Chase big accounts. I wasn't moving arounds $50k for instance
  • I didn't do any brokerage accounts, business accounts, or banks I hadn't heard of
  • I did some two player, but only 4 of my accounts are P2. I either didn't have the DD cash flow or my P2 wasn't approved 
  • While I can change my DD easily, I didn't fully optimize it nor did I have $10k/month to allocate. I used transfers to simulate DD only once or twice. 
  • I use Doctor of Credit (try searching the page by your state's initials). I check Profitable Content for alerts, but have wasted hours from his inaccurate info   
  • I haven't yet run into any Chex barriers. 

All this to say that this has been a great side gig and even exceeded my credit card churning. Two player helps, but not required. You don't have to pursue convoluted requirements for low returns. And you don't have to have a ton of cash or income. Develop your criteria that works for you. While this may go away in a downturn and we've seen savings bonuses return fall due to rising interest rates, there is a lot to get while the getting is good.

How was your year?


I'd say it's pretty sustainable. I've been playing this game for over a decade at this point, 2023 was another solid year, right up there with my glory days from 2019/2020. And no "Player 2" for me.

Here is my historical 1099-INT data from my tax returns going back to the year that I graduated college:


2023: $3075
2022: $1057
2021: $1815
2020: $3558
2019: $3498
2018: $1123
2017: $563
2016: $2235
2015: $1365
2014: $671
2013: $409
2012: $815
2011: $582
2010: $396
2009: $202

Turtle

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1379 on: December 28, 2023, 10:50:57 AM »
I haven't been playing this game much, but the place where I get my insurance just offered an easy $200 for signing up for a checking account, so that was an easy win.  They already had all my info on file, so applying for the account was relatively hassle free.

AnotherEngineer

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1380 on: December 28, 2023, 12:28:54 PM »
I haven't been playing this game much, but the place where I get my insurance just offered an easy $200 for signing up for a checking account, so that was an easy win.  They already had all my info on file, so applying for the account was relatively hassle free.

It is all about return on effort, which includes searching, deciding, applying, tracking, transferring, and closing. If you can cut out a few steps, more power to you. While I don't appreciate marketing mail, I do enjoy that banks will send me new offers when I'm clearly churning the accounts I already have. 

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1381 on: December 31, 2023, 06:21:01 PM »
Just wondering what others ended the year with.  I ended up with $14,020 in 2 player mode from bank/brokerage bonuses (thanks to $4200 from Moomoo sign ups and referrals).

I moved our IRAs to Webull a few weeks ago and we should get $3600 sometime around August or September for those, so I already have a good start on our total for 2024.

AnotherEngineer

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1382 on: January 02, 2024, 09:22:16 AM »
Just wondering what others ended the year with.  I ended up with $14,020 in 2 player mode from bank/brokerage bonuses (thanks to $4200 from Moomoo sign ups and referrals).

I moved our IRAs to Webull a few weeks ago and we should get $3600 sometime around August or September for those, so I already have a good start on our total for 2024.

Thanks, a few of us have chimed in already. Could you provide a little more detail on your impressive number? It sounds like moving investments around was a big part of your strategy.

I'm curious about other people's criteria in particular. I posted mine.

sonofsven

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1383 on: January 28, 2024, 04:48:37 AM »
If anyone hasn't done the $900 Chase checking/savings bonus, it's been extrnded into April.
Lucky for me as my 24 month wait since my previous Chase account coupon enrollment just finished, so I applied and was instantly approved for new accounts.

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1384 on: January 28, 2024, 07:55:46 AM »
If anyone hasn't done the $900 Chase checking/savings bonus, it's been extrnded into April.
Lucky for me as my 24 month wait since my previous Chase account coupon enrollment just finished, so I applied and was instantly approved for new accounts.

Lucky you. September 2022 for me. I'm not sure how good the deal is though with the higher interest rates.

sonofsven

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1385 on: January 28, 2024, 09:00:19 AM »
If anyone hasn't done the $900 Chase checking/savings bonus, it's been extrnded into April.
Lucky for me as my 24 month wait since my previous Chase account coupon enrollment just finished, so I applied and was instantly approved for new accounts.

Lucky you. September 2022 for me. I'm not sure how good the deal is though with the higher interest rates.

Still good I think. The savings is the only part that requires much money, $15k. Four months interest at five percent is around $250.

halfling

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1386 on: January 28, 2024, 11:35:33 AM »
If anyone hasn't done the $900 Chase checking/savings bonus, it's been extrnded into April.
Lucky for me as my 24 month wait since my previous Chase account coupon enrollment just finished, so I applied and was instantly approved for new accounts.

Lucky you. September 2022 for me. I'm not sure how good the deal is though with the higher interest rates.

Not eligible until October myself, but I do quick mental math on the required deposits and holding periods (for near-0% accounts). I can get >$300 in 6 months on $20,000 just leaving it in my 4.5% HYSA.

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1387 on: January 29, 2024, 08:19:19 AM »
If anyone hasn't done the $900 Chase checking/savings bonus, it's been extrnded into April.
Lucky for me as my 24 month wait since my previous Chase account coupon enrollment just finished, so I applied and was instantly approved for new accounts.

Lucky you. September 2022 for me. I'm not sure how good the deal is though with the higher interest rates.

Not eligible until October myself, but I do quick mental math on the required deposits and holding periods (for near-0% accounts). I can get >$300 in 6 months on $20,000 just leaving it in my 4.5% HYSA.

It is still a good deal as the checking doesn't require a specific DD amount and it is then $600 for the checking. I will share to be very careful that your code is entered and it shows up in the bonus tracker on the app. I thought I had it set up for my P2, but some life events kept me from checking. So instead of a $900 payday I actually lost ~$150 in HYSA interest. Well, it is my first failure like this, live and learn, still up $4500 for 2023.

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1388 on: February 12, 2024, 10:04:21 AM »
I am considering this Chase $900 bonus offer for opening checking and savings accounts

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/best-bank-account-bonuses/#Chase_900_CheckingSavings_Bonus

The problem is that Im not currently receiving a salary or any other direct debits. I do get paid occasionally for my side hustle but most of it is through Zelle etc. Does anyone have any recent experience "manufacturing" direct debit transactions with Chase? What did you use? DoC collects stats on what qualifies as DD but it looks like all the methods mentioned in it work for some people and don't work for others. 

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1389 on: February 12, 2024, 10:48:50 AM »
Citi Bank keeps coming back every year with a new offer.  This time for $500 on $30,000 for 60 days.  Works out to 10% for 60 days.  Wash, rinse, repeat.  I make sure to close the account after I get the bonus.  This is like the fourth time, they are not making money on these offers, at least not with me.

katsiki

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1390 on: February 12, 2024, 11:10:34 AM »
I am considering this Chase $900 bonus offer for opening checking and savings accounts

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/best-bank-account-bonuses/#Chase_900_CheckingSavings_Bonus

The problem is that Im not currently receiving a salary or any other direct debits. I do get paid occasionally for my side hustle but most of it is through Zelle etc. Does anyone have any recent experience "manufacturing" direct debit transactions with Chase? What did you use? DoC collects stats on what qualifies as DD but it looks like all the methods mentioned in it work for some people and don't work for others.

Not recent but one of the gift card sites worked for me 1-2 years ago.

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1391 on: February 12, 2024, 11:26:45 AM »
The problem is that Im not currently receiving a salary or any other direct debits. I do get paid occasionally for my side hustle but most of it is through Zelle etc. Does anyone have any recent experience "manufacturing" direct debit transactions with Chase? What did you use? DoC collects stats on what qualifies as DD but it looks like all the methods mentioned in it work for some people and don't work for others.

The DOC data points often are inconsistent.  Who knows why.

I think you just have to decide if the bonus is worth it given the risk of going through the hassle and maybe not getting it.  The other thing that sometimes works, depending on particulars, is to have multiple DD options at your disposal and then try them in succession or all at once.  You might do three different DD methods but you only need one of them to trigger the bonus.

Padonak

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1392 on: February 12, 2024, 11:32:03 AM »
I am considering this Chase $900 bonus offer for opening checking and savings accounts

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/best-bank-account-bonuses/#Chase_900_CheckingSavings_Bonus

The problem is that Im not currently receiving a salary or any other direct debits. I do get paid occasionally for my side hustle but most of it is through Zelle etc. Does anyone have any recent experience "manufacturing" direct debit transactions with Chase? What did you use? DoC collects stats on what qualifies as DD but it looks like all the methods mentioned in it work for some people and don't work for others.

Not recent but one of the gift card sites worked for me 1-2 years ago.

Do you remember which site? How exactly does it work with gift cards?

sonofsven

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1393 on: February 12, 2024, 11:48:13 AM »
I am considering this Chase $900 bonus offer for opening checking and savings accounts

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/best-bank-account-bonuses/#Chase_900_CheckingSavings_Bonus

The problem is that Im not currently receiving a salary or any other direct debits. I do get paid occasionally for my side hustle but most of it is through Zelle etc. Does anyone have any recent experience "manufacturing" direct debit transactions with Chase? What did you use? DoC collects stats on what qualifies as DD but it looks like all the methods mentioned in it work for some people and don't work for others.

I opened an account at Elements Financial (who also has a current SUB), based on successful DOC data.
As far as "knowing" which ones work, sometimes you don't know and you have to just try and see.
I'll often do multiple pushes from different accounts to increase my chances.

ETA: make sure to read the DOC comments for each bonus you're attempting. I subscribe to the comment threads to make sure I'm up to date, then unsub once my bonus posts. Then I'll post my data, success or failure, for others.
« Last Edit: February 12, 2024, 11:50:24 AM by sonofsven »

AnotherEngineer

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1394 on: February 14, 2024, 07:06:44 AM »
How are those 1099-INTs coming? I got a number via mail the first week of February as I believe they have to be complete by Jan 31. However, I'm still missing four from closed accounts that I can't log into online and haven't gotten via email or mail. Any advice? Do I just need to call them?

Missing 1099s from US Bank, Excite, Truist, and Citi
Received from via mail: Chase, Wells Fargo, Regions, Capital One (closed), and Bank of America
Accessed online: Fifth Third (long closed), Capital One (open)

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1395 on: February 14, 2024, 08:31:56 AM »
How are those 1099-INTs coming? I got a number via mail the first week of February as I believe they have to be complete by Jan 31. However, I'm still missing four from closed accounts that I can't log into online and haven't gotten via email or mail. Any advice? Do I just need to call them?

Missing 1099s from US Bank, Excite, Truist, and Citi
Received from via mail: Chase, Wells Fargo, Regions, Capital One (closed), and Bank of America
Accessed online: Fifth Third (long closed), Capital One (open)

I have a few missing, too. I'll make a good faith effort to get them but, otherwise, I'll add what I can (name of bank and amount) to the tax forms.

I did receive the US Bank 1099-INT by snail mail.

AnotherEngineer

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1396 on: February 15, 2024, 05:19:56 AM »
How are those 1099-INTs coming? I got a number via mail the first week of February as I believe they have to be complete by Jan 31. However, I'm still missing four from closed accounts that I can't log into online and haven't gotten via email or mail. Any advice? Do I just need to call them?

Missing 1099s from US Bank, Excite, Truist, and Citi
Received from via mail: Chase, Wells Fargo, Regions, Capital One (closed), and Bank of America
Accessed online: Fifth Third (long closed), Capital One (open)

I have a few missing, too. I'll make a good faith effort to get them but, otherwise, I'll add what I can (name of bank and amount) to the tax forms.

I did receive the US Bank 1099-INT by snail mail.


Further complicating is the Citi bonus was 60k AA miles, which I believe is still taxable at some conversion rate.

katsiki

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1397 on: February 16, 2024, 02:48:39 PM »
I am considering this Chase $900 bonus offer for opening checking and savings accounts

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/best-bank-account-bonuses/#Chase_900_CheckingSavings_Bonus

The problem is that Im not currently receiving a salary or any other direct debits. I do get paid occasionally for my side hustle but most of it is through Zelle etc. Does anyone have any recent experience "manufacturing" direct debit transactions with Chase? What did you use? DoC collects stats on what qualifies as DD but it looks like all the methods mentioned in it work for some people and don't work for others.

Not recent but one of the gift card sites worked for me 1-2 years ago.

Do you remember which site? How exactly does it work with gift cards?

It was ABC Gift Cards.  It worked as described here: https://www.doctorofcredit.com/knowledge-base/list-methods-banks-count-direct-deposits/#comment-489083

I sold them a gift card and they paid me for it.  That payment was the "DD" that Chase honored.

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1398 on: March 01, 2024, 03:28:54 AM »
Chase has a pretty nice deal going on with Business Checking accounts.  $400 sign up bonus for $2k deposit.  (This is better than what I got last year, I only got $300 for $2k deposit.)

Details are in the following Profitible Blog entry -- I really like the way he has his pages laid out.  Gives you all the info you need in  standard consistent short format.  https://www.profitablecontent.com/chase-750-business-checking-offer/

(They also have a $750 sign up bonus for $30k deposit, if you have that kind of cash.)


Padonak

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Re: Bank account churning: how to make $1600 in a year by being organized
« Reply #1399 on: March 01, 2024, 09:28:19 AM »
Chase has a pretty nice deal going on with Business Checking accounts.  $400 sign up bonus for $2k deposit.  (This is better than what I got last year, I only got $300 for $2k deposit.)

Details are in the following Profitible Blog entry -- I really like the way he has his pages laid out.  Gives you all the info you need in  standard consistent short format.  https://www.profitablecontent.com/chase-750-business-checking-offer/

(They also have a $750 sign up bonus for $30k deposit, if you have that kind of cash.)

Tried to apply as a sole prop and received a message saying "we can't open your account online. you have to go to a branch"

I don't have a branch near me unfortunately

ETA
Several people on Doctor of Credit also reported the same problem
https://www.doctorofcredit.com/chase-business-total-checking-300-bonus-no-direct-deposit-required/

Someone on DoC also mentioned this:

"Also turns out that if you want to use a sole prop for the business bonus then their system is double checking it against their standard personal checking bonus. Since I was already on the $900 checking/savings bonus, I had to walk out with no bonus and an extra bank account that I now have to cancel."

I  just opened personal accounts a few days ago to get the 900 bonus, and I have a sole prop, so looks like i wouldn't qualify for the business acct bonus anyway.
« Last Edit: March 01, 2024, 06:05:05 PM by Padonak »

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!