How to meet minimum number of debit transactions

[travelover]

My credit union is offering 2.25% interest on my checking account. I normally keep about $10K there so it worth playing their game.


Requirements: How to earn 2.25% APY:

• Conduct 12 debit card transactions per month
• Direct Deposit of at least $100 or more per month
• Sign up for and receive eStatements
• Log into Online Banking at least once per month

My question is how to painlessly generate the 12 debit card transactions a month. Someone said you can buy Amazon gift cards in $1 increments, which I have yet to investigate.



Any clever ideas?

 

[calmloki]

I've heard of doing amazon tiny purchases - like $00.25 each. haven't done so, but there you go.

 

[MissMolly]

Well, I just looked and I have 12 monthly bills on autopay set to my debit card. Can you do something like that? Or find 12 people who pay the .99 to iTunes each month for the extra data storage and switch them all over to your debit card.

 

[calmloki]

just tried a reload of our gift card - it said the minimum was $0.50.

 

[COcheesehead]

Not sure I would do this. Every debit transaction puts your entire bank balance at risk if fraud happens. 144X a year only increases your risk.

 

[Cobra9777]

Park the $10K at Ally instead. The difference between your CU's 2.25% and Ally's 1.75% is $50/yr. To play their game, you will have to do 144 meaningless debit card transaction throughout the year. IMO, that's a complete waste of time for $50. But... whatever floats your boat.

 

[trumpeting_angel]

Don’t the terms on these high interest bank accounts usually change after a year goes by? IIRC, the debits have to be individual, not automated. I investigated one of these and decided that the return wasn’t worth all the bother. Not to mention screwing up one time and blowing the requirements, which would definitely be me.

 

[Texas Proud]

Not sure I would do this. Every debit transaction puts your entire bank balance at risk if fraud happens. 144X a year only increases your risk.

+1.... I hate debit cards and do not have any...


DW has one but only for her account... so it is her money....

 

[RobbieB]

I'll leave it up to you to figure out how to best get that 35 cents per debit.

I gave up after required e-statements.

 

[97guns]

Not sure I would do this. Every debit transaction puts your entire bank balance at risk if fraud happens. 144X a year only increases your risk.

Yep don’t trust debit cards, my mom’s friend got withdrawed on

 

[IxianArafel]

We just use it for small transactions (yesterday I used it for a $1.12 postage at the post office) and also tack it on at the grocery store. I ask the checker to split the transaction across the debit and credit cards and do a small amount for the debit. It adds up across the month.

 

[audreyh1]

My credit union is offering 2.25% interest on my checking account. I normally keep about $10K there so it worth playing their game.


Requirements: How to earn 2.25% APY:

• Conduct 12 debit card transactions per month
• Direct Deposit of at least $100 or more per month
• Sign up for and receive eStatements
• Log into Online Banking at least once per month

My question is how to painlessly generate the 12 debit card transactions a month. Someone said you can buy Amazon gift cards in $1 increments, which I have yet to investigate.



Any clever ideas?

I don’t bother - no way! What an annoying thing to have to do. And I don’t use a debit card for POS purchases anyway - too risky.

I’ll use my credit cards and get the 2% to 5% cash rewards rather than messing with debit card transactions.

PS - I just bought a 9 month CD earning 2.75%.

 

[lwp2017]

My credit union has a similar deal but allows use as a VISA credit card on the account, not debit.

2.25% interest up to $20,000. Balance over $20K earns reduced rate.

I keep the minimum at $20k and keep my spending cash above that value.

I know I can use the $20K at any time without penalty so more flexibility than a CD. Making over $450 a year interest, deposited monthly into my account.

Tonight we had dinner out, stopped after and bought gas, went inside for a carton of milk. Paid with card, 3 transactions tonight.

Wife volunteers weekly at the hospital and buys a sandwich for lunch, she now uses the Visa card. Minimum of ten transactions a month are easy.

 

[mamadogmamacat]

I would check those requirements again. if it is like most CUs the requirement is for xx uses of debit and credit cards, combined. So, one can use only the credit card for safety's sake and still meet the requirements. And yes, paying bills on the credit card will count. however, direct ACH transfers out of the account will not.

 

[gayl]

I have 10 monthly bills & 1 auto transfer a month. How do you set it to your debit card instead of checking account?

 

[mamadogmamacat]

First of all, i would not use a debit card at all for this, too much risk of losing your entire balance due to fraud, as others have also mentioned. Only use credit cards myself

But with either debit or credit, you would have to contact each merchant or agency whose bill is being paid and have them charge it to your card rather than an ACH transfer from your account. probably can do this online with most if not all of them.

 

[gayl]

Nah. Not for me. I want to control it on my end as I want everything paid on the 1st as pension hits on the 30th and that leaves me free to spend on whatevers. I don't want others determining when it's paid

 

[sengsational]

TL, I don't think online transactions count. In other words, you have to get 12 in person transactions. I played the game when 50K was in play. Only a fraction of the 50 was in the account linked to the fake POC Visa debit card, so risk was low.



I usually let it go until about the 25th, then ran out and bought gas, groceries, the dollar store, etc. I usually got 5 or so "naturally", but the next 7 had to be manufactured. Then they cut the max to 25K. I still played. Then they cut the rate. I begrudgingly kept playing. Then they sat on a transaction an extra day without posting, which cost me that months interest. So I made sure I had an extra day. That wasn't easy because the end date for qualifying transactions moved around. Then they sat on a transaction for 2 extra days and I wrote a check to my other bank for almost the entire balance. I was done.


Search this forum for "Kasasa Cash" for more on playing the teaser interest game.


Quitting the teaser interest game allows me to play the credit card rebate game. I get 2.2% on travel and restaurants and 2% on everything else. DW, who does the grocery shopping gets 6% but pays an annual fee. But CC stuff is OT.


Check to make sure online transactions count, because getting 12 of those would be trivial.

 

[mamadogmamacat]

In person?? Charges to credit card counts with my CU, whether they are set up on line or inserted in the machine at the store/restaurant. makes no difference to the CU. Only the total number of them matters, 15 per month in my case. This is the easiest of the requirements for me to comply with.

The only one that can trip me up is in a month when the pension ACH posts in the prior month due to the first of the month falling on a weekend or holiday. Then I have to remember to do a small transfer from a brokerage account for that month (unless of course i get "lucky" and a cap gain/dividend happens to post that month)

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

I would check those requirements again. if it is like most CUs the requirement is for xx uses of debit and credit cards, combined. So, one can use only the credit card for safety's sake and still meet the requirements. And yes, paying bills on the credit card will count. however, direct ACH transfers out of the account will not.

I don't think there are enough "safeguards" for ANY card that is tied to YOUR MONEY. When you use a TRUE credit card, you are using the BANK'S MONEY...when it's tied to a checking account, it's YOUR money.

While it is true that in the case of fraud, you will most likely get your money back. But, I don't want the hassle of dealing with the bank and waiting for MY money back. In the last 5 years, we have had no less than 5 fraudulent charges on our credit cards. Had *any* of those occurred with MY money, I would have been freaking the hell out.

So, no way am I doing debit transactions with MY money. I don't care if you offered 5 or 6%.

 

[OldShooter]

... it worth playing their game. ...

Just curious: How much more interest do you earn for playing the game? 0.5% on $10K is $50/year. For me that's about one tank of gas, my standard for an amount that I really don't worry about very much.

Re debit card risk, it is true that our legal protection using debit cards is very minimal compared to credit cards. But my experience (2 banks) is that the bank completely indemnifies the card holder, regardless of legal requirements. Those worried about this might benefit from checking with their card issuers; my guess is that competitive pressure has probably made this kind of indemnification at least common if not universal.

Schwab: " ... we offer you this simple guarantee: Schwab will cover 100% of any losses in any of your Schwab accounts due to unauthorized activity."

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Schwab: " ... we offer you this simple guarantee: Schwab will cover 100% of any losses in any of your Schwab accounts due to unauthorized activity."

I have seen this type of guarantee in a couple of other threads and was curious if there is a website/list/etc that compares the protections available with larger banks/brokerages? I was curious as to what USAA's protections are, but can't find the specifics (at least easily).

Looks like TD Ameritrade offers a similar protection as Schwab. https://www.tdameritrade.com/security/asset-protection-guarantee.page

And VG. https://personal.vanguard.com/us/help/SecurityOnlineFraudPledgeContent.jsp

 

[JoeWras]

My CU plays this game too. I've let a board member or two know of my displeasure with it. The feedback they give is people like it. (I suspect, the all High and Mighty "Millenial".)

So I took out my major cash reserve and put it in Ally.

Still like the CU and have a CD and small reserve there, but the bulk of my fast cash reserve is now elsewhere.

I don't like games.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

I've had some bonus kind of games where I had to do a minimum of transactions in each month. Supermarkets with self checkout during the slow times can be your friend. I could scan and pay for every item in my cart separately.

 

[audreyh1]

My credit union has a similar deal but allows use as a VISA credit card on the account, not debit.

2.25% interest up to $20,000. Balance over $20K earns reduced rate.

I keep the minimum at $20k and keep my spending cash above that value.

I know I can use the $20K at any time without penalty so more flexibility than a CD. Making over $450 a year interest, deposited monthly into my account.

Tonight we had dinner out, stopped after and bought gas, went inside for a carton of milk. Paid with card, 3 transactions tonight.

Wife volunteers weekly at the hospital and buys a sandwich for lunch, she now uses the Visa card. Minimum of ten transactions a month are easy.

Well if it were a credit card I’d have no problem!