Ally Bank CD loyalty bonus

[gauss]

I have heard reports that Las Vegas casinos and their loyalty card/rewards programs have taken real-time customer retention to very high levels of sophistication.

 

[jetpack]

Well, I'd recommend brokered CDs instead. Get 2.45% for 5yr, 2.75% for 6yr...


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[Walt34]

I was offered a 0.05% Ally Bank bonus, similar to this person and this person. That would have been an extra $50 per year on $100k. I ultimately went with a secondary market brokered CD with 4 years remaining on the term.

The three month Treasury was sold at 99.996208, which means you earn 37.92 cents on $10,000 for three months, wow, don't spend it all in one place.

.05 times $100,000 is actually $5,000. If you mean you were offered .005%, like the OP, then that equals $500.00, not $50.00.

No, no, no. Y'all are making it so hard on yourselves. It is all explained here...

 

[Ready]

Well, I'd recommend brokered CDs instead. Get 2.45% for 5yr, 2.75% for 6yr...

This topic has come up before on the forum, and I know different members have different opinions. I'm generally not a fan of brokered CDs because they don't have the flexibility of a fixed early termination fee, as the bank CDs do. I am not thrilled about locking up my money in a 5 year CD for 2.31%, but at least I know that if interest rates begin to rise, I have a guaranteed exit of six months simple interest to bail and reinvest at higher rates.

I suppose there is a formula, if one wants to take the time to figure it out, that could analyze exactly how much premium a brokered CD would need to pay to justify the rate sensitivity inherent in the product if you wish to redeem it early and have to sell it at the market value. As an extreme example, if rates increase to 6% tomorrow, the value of a 6 year 2.75% CD would plummet, where a bank CD would simply cost me 1.15% exit fee. Of course rates won't jump that quickly, but someone with a better math background than me could figure out the breakeven point of a brokered CD at 2.75% versus a bank CD at 2.31%.

 

[pb4uski]

Oh boy you hit a nerve. I was a fairly early adopter of Dish Network. Everyone had to buy their own box. After only 3 years, they changed things so much that my box (with apparently a small memory) could not properly handle the guide they were pushing down. So, remote button inputs would take about 30 seconds each.

I called in and they said the only solution was to upgrade. I asked that they help pay for the hardware they broke by the new channel model. No dice. I asked that they lower my monthly charge to the new customer price. No dice.

I told them that Charlie Ergen could kiss my <...> and dropped them right there on that call, and immediately sold my stock in Echostar that day. I was P.O.'d and have never looked back.....

A year ago I called Dish and told them I would upgrade and sign up for another two years, but only if they gave me the same deal as a new customer (which I knew from following the sign up process on the internet). To my surprise (and my installer's surprise), they agreed. I got a $25/month credit on a $95/month bill for the last 12 months. So over the 24 month contract that's ~13% off, just for asking.

 

[JoeWras]

A year ago I called Dish and told them I would upgrade and sign up for another two years, but only if they gave me the same deal as a new customer (which I knew from following the sign up process on the internet). To my surprise (and my installer's surprise), they agreed. I got a $25/month credit on a $95/month bill for the last 12 months. So over the 24 month contract that's ~13% off, just for asking.

You are welcome! It was customers like me that ultimately lead them to change. They thought their stuff didn't stink back in the late 90s. Sorry to say, it did, and they eventually figured that out. Read the history of Charlie Ergen and you can understand why they are who they are. I say "who" since his friends and family run Dish. You have to play poker with him, literally. He can rock a pretty serious bluff.

I'm currently with AT&T and recently went through the dance. I first had to just start yelling "Time Warner" and "Cancel" to the offshore guy. He got me to America. Then I had to say no to 3 offers and firmly remind him I would change to Time Warner. They relented and gave me a deal to match Time Warner's new customer price (about 25% off).

And I do this every year.

Back to banks and CDs. Not sure you can haggle like that? Should I call up Ally tomorrow and tell them I am going to a different on-line bank? Anyone ever try that?

 

[ChicagoGal]

My bank had a tiered savings rate for a while. If I put enough in to get the next tier the rate went up from 0.01% to 0.02% annually. That's from one hundredth of a percent to 2 hundredths of a percent. The tellers must have had a sales contest so I got a pitch to put more money in there and I was so surprised at the ridiculous bonus that I laughed. Sorry, teller, just trying to do your job.

And I bet it was marketed that the rate doubled...

 

[pb4uski]

...Back to banks and CDs. Not sure you can haggle like that? Should I call up Ally tomorrow and tell them I am going to a different on-line bank? Anyone ever try that?

Spend your time trying to push a rope.... it will be more productive than haggling with a bank on a CD rate.

 

[Ready]

Back to banks and CDs. Not sure you can haggle like that? Should I call up Ally tomorrow and tell them I am going to a different on-line bank? Anyone ever try that?

I've been an Ally customer for many years. Their combination of best CD rates, and what previously was a 60 day early termination penalty on all CDs (even the five year CD) made them by far the best option. Over the past couple of years their early termination fees have increase and their rates have decreased.

As for negotiating with them, I'd say it's a complete waste of time. The people who answer the phone at Ally couldn't even explain what a CD is...or for that matter, what a bank is.

 

[jetpack]

Well, I believe we are going to be in long period with continued low rates. Brokered CDs can increase in value, unlike those directly from a bank. If you are holding a 5 year brokered cd, and in 3 years you want to sell it, you're now selling a 2 year cd.


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