Tiicker: Shareholder Perks: New $100 Amazon GC Offer

Posted on February 9, 2023 // 2 Comments

Update: Tiicker has added a few new Perks for Real Good Foods, the most direct one being a $100 Amazon gift card for holding 50 shares of RGF with no minimum holding period. There are also other bigger perks for holding a lot more shares for at least a week. The bid/ask spread was about 10 cents, so it cost about $5 to buy/sell 50 shares quickly. You can get this even if you already got the previous $50 gift card from owning RGF (now expired). Limited quantities.

Original post:

TiiCKER is a new app that helps promote certain brands and companies by encouraging people to become shareholders and investors. (They say “ii” stands for individual investor.) In the past, Wrigley used to give out free packs of gum to shareholders, Dial used to give out soap coupons, Colgate-Palmolive gave out discounts on toothpaste, and so on. Shareholder perks are still somewhat popular in Japan, from baseball tickets to bags of rice. Found via DoC. Here are the perks currently available:

  • Link a brokerage with $100 worth of ANY stocks held inside, get $11 Amazon gift card or Visa virtual prepaid debit card.
  • (EXPIRED?) Link a brokerage with $50 worth of Amazon (AMZN) stock held inside (partial shares allowed), get $10 Amazon gift card or Visa virtual prepaid debit card.
  • (EXPIRED) Link a brokerage with $50 worth of Real Good Foods (RGF) held inside, get $50 Instacart gift card. Limited quantities.
  • (There are other perks available, please see Tiicker site for current list.)

Sometimes they require a minimum holding period, but the perks above currently do not. A few screenshots of an expired perk:

In order to prove your ownership, you must link your existing brokerage account via the Plaid service. Plaid says it does not save nor share your username and passwords with anyone, and with many brokerages, you now log in directly on your brokerage website for authentication.

I can report that I was able to sign-up, link my account via Plaid, and grab the first two bonuses in under 5 minutes. Since this is not a brokerage account, no SSN was required. Gift card redemption was instant and easy. You may need to refresh or unlink/relink your brokerage account after buying the shares for it to recognize a new purchase, or possibly wait up to 24 hours. In many cases, the perk is quite valuable compared the cost of buying and selling the shares, although this can get tricky when the holding period is longer. In addition, I have noticed this “RealGood” brand at Whole Foods and may try it now, so hey, this marketing may actually work…

Tiicker has a referral program, although the reward is vague: “Spread the word and help others discover investor perks. Refer 5 friends and receive a free TiiCKER perk!” If you wish, you can use my my referral link. Thanks if you do.

Filed Under: Deals & Offers, Investing //

Alliant Credit Union $400 Banking Bonus ($300 For Existing)

Posted on February 6, 2023 // 10 Comments

Alliant Credit Union has a new FastPass promo worth up to $400 total, broken up as follows:

  • $100 for Savings Account. Open a savings account by March 31, 2023 plus have a minimum $1000 savings average daily balance on April 30, 2023 to earn a $100 bonus.
  • $100 for Checking Account. Open a checking account by March 31, 2023 plus have a minimum $100 checking average daily balance on April 30, 2023 to earn a $100 bonus
  • $100 for Certificate Account. Open a certificate by March 31, 2023 plus maintain a minimum $1000 certificate balance on April 30, 2023 to earn a $100 bonus
  • $100 for $10,000 in total deposits. Deposit a minimum of $10,000 total across any of these three accounts by March 31, 2023 and maintain this minimum balance until April 30, 2023 to earn a $100 bonus.

Useful fine print from the promo FAQ:

Did I open my account(s) correctly to be eligible for the promotion?
If you opened your Alliant account(s) by clicking on the link within a promotional email you received or the myalliant.com/fastpass webpage, you will be eligible for the promotion.

Are current Alliant members eligible for this promotion?
Yes, current Alliant members can still be eligible by opening a checking account and/or certificate and meeting the balance requirements, and/or by incrementally adding $10,000 to their total balance by April 30, 2023.

When is the payout for the promotion?
Accounts will be reviewed after April 30, 2023 to determine eligibility. If all requirements have been met, the bonus payment you earned will automatically be deposited into your savings account within 4-6 weeks after April 30, 2023.

When do I need to make my deposit(s) to qualify for the balance requirement?
For the savings account, the deposit should be made by March 31, 2023 and maintained through April 30, 2023. For Checking and Certificate products, balance should be met by April 30, 2023. Please ensure you allow enough time to open account and receive approval (accounts may be in pending status for 2-5 business days depending on pending reason or documentation needed).

There is a mention later on that “This promotion is for new and existing members of Alliant Credit Union (“Alliant”) who are current or retired employees from one of the many businesses and organizations Alliant partners with in the U.S.” However, this conflicts somewhat with their FAQ, which suggests that as long as you apply through the correct page and use the FASTPASS promo code, you are eligible.

Alliant CU membership eligibility. Alliant CU is one of the top 10 largest US credit unions by assets and their membership eligibility is very open. If you start the online membership application, it will walk you through their various eligibility options. Here are their membership groups:

Any employee or retiree of a Qualifying Company.
Any member of a Qualifying Organization.
Any immediate family member of an existing Alliant member.
Anyone who lives or works in a Qualifying Chicagoland Community.
Anyone who is a member of the Foster Care to Success charity group.

When I applied previously, I found not only does it only cost $5 to join Foster Care to Success, but Alliant will pay that fee on your behalf.

If you are not eligible through another option you can become a member of Foster Care to Success (FC2S) and become eligible for Alliant membership. FC2S serves thousands of foster teens across the United States, focusing on those who are aging out of the foster care system. FC2S awards grants and scholarships for higher education and provides care packages, mentoring and internships. (Alliant will pay the one-time $5 membership fee to FC2S on the member’s behalf.)

Quick thoughts. This is a solid bonus. $100 for a $1,000 deposit to a certificate is a 10% bonus. Even holding $10,000 there for a couple of months for another $100 is not bad, since it is on top of their interest rates. Their High Yield Savings pays 2.95% APY as of 2/4/23. A 12-month certificate pays 4.60% APY as of 2/4/23.

Filed Under: Banking, Deals & Offers //

Free Investing Book PDF – Two Funds For Life (Merriman and Small Value)

Posted on February 5, 2023 // 2 Comments

Paul Merriman is a long-time financial advisor known for his “Ultimate Buy-and-Hold Portfolio” that utilized a more complex 10-fund version of a low-cost index fund portfolio that includes additional exposure to certain asset classes. Although now retired from advising, he continues to add new content to his website for the Merriman Financial Education Foundation that is geared more towards to DIY investors.

More recently, he has been pushing the idea of a more simple “Two Funds for Life” portfolio that is essentially holding mostly an all-in-one Vanguard Target Retirement Fund (or a similarly low-fee alternative) and the rest in US Small Cap Value ETF or mutual fund. This concept is described in detail in the book 2 Funds for Life: A quest for simple & effective investing strategies by Chris Pedersen, Director of Research at The Merriman Financial Education Foundation. (Amazon links on the website.)

Right now, you can download the PDF for free if you sign up for their free e-mail newsletter. You also get a free PDF download of their other book, We’re Talking Millions!: 12 Simple Ways to Supercharge Your Retirement by Paul Merriman and Richard Buck. I would recommend downloading it now and saving it to read later. Both books also contain a lot of general personal finance advice, but if you want to understand why you hear the term “small cap value” (SCV) a lot in DIY investment circles, this book may be of interest.

2 Funds for Life strategies augment target-date funds to reduce risk with age, increase expected returns, raise safe withdrawal rates, and achieve higher overall survival rates.

Small Cap Value has long periods of severe underperformance, but also many periods of outperformance against the overall total US market and S&P 500. The hard part is to keep holding SCV through those years of consecutive underperformance. Here is a chart of asset class returns by decade that illustrates this point:

Filed Under: Deals & Offers, Investing //

Capital One 360: 11-Month CD at 5.00% APY

Posted on February 2, 2023 // 3 Comments

Capital One 360 has a new special 11-month CD at 5.00% APY. Note that unlike many other 11-month CDs, this one does have an early withdrawal penalty of 3 months of interest, and it looks like they will eat into principal if you withdraw in the first 3 months. There are also no partial withdrawals:

Can I withdraw my money before the CD term is over?

You can always decide to withdraw your money early. However, like with any CD account, there is a penalty for withdrawal prior to the end of your CD term. For 12 month CD accounts (or less), the penalty for withdrawing early is 3 months of interest. For CD accounts longer than 12 months, the penalty for withdrawing early is 6 months of interest. You also cannot make a partial withdrawal during your CD term.

Can I lose money in a CD account?

CD accounts like a 360 CD grow at a fixed rate over a set period of time called a term. This “set it and forget it” approach, and the fact that your money is FDIC-insured up to allowable limits, make CD accounts among the lowest-risk investments and they will not lose value. The only risk of losing money is if you make an early withdrawal from your 360 CD, where you would face a penalty of 3 to 6 months of interest depending on the term of your account.

I don’t know what the future holds for interest rates, up or down, but right now it is a top rate for a CD where you are locked in for about a year. For comparison:

Thanks to the readers that sent this one in. Rates quoted as of 2/2/23.

Filed Under: Banking, Deals & Offers //

$6,000 IRA Contribution Goal 2022 Final Results: $6,259+ in Total Bonuses

Posted on February 1, 2023 // 19 Comments

2022 Year-End Update. Each year, I have a side goal of earning the equivalent of the maximum annual IRA contribution limit ($6,000 for 2022) using the profits from various finance promotions alone. In 2021, I reached $5,592 in bonuses and $2,500+ in extra interest. If you had put $6,000 into your IRA every year for the recent 10 year period (2013-2022) and invested in a simple Target Date retirement fund, you would have turned small, weekly deals into a $87,000+ nest egg.

That’s worth repeating: An extra 87 grand has been the real-world result of regularly investing $500 a month for 10 years! A couple could double these numbers.

Ground rules: Real-world results for one real person only. Following with My Money Blog tradition, this will track my personal, real-world results. It would be quite easy to list a bunch of random promotions that add up to $6,000, but these will be promotions that I personally sign up for and complete the requirements (even though I’ve already opened so many bank accounts, credit cards, and brokerage accounts over the years). I will track my individual results only, although my partner does also participate on a more selective basis. Nearly all of them have been documented in real-time in the Deals and Offers category, Top 10 credit cards list, and brokerage bonus list.

Note: I am also excluding the $900 bonus from Chase Ink Business Cash card, since it is meant for small businesses.

2022 bonuses and promotions list. The 💵 symbol means I have received and/or cashed out the bonus successfully. The ⌛ symbol means the promo is still in progress.

Bonuses that required significant assets to max out (but not necessarily participate)

2022 final results. The total tally for bonuses not requiring significant assets was $6,259 total for 2022, which was 104% of the $6,000 annual IRA contribution limit for 2022. This excludes the three bonuses (Public, SoFi, and Ally) that paid out bigger bonuses for larger asset transfers or cash deposits. I acknowledge not everyone has enough assets to max those out, but they were certainly an efficient use of time if you did. If you add in the $3,500 that I received from those bonuses, the total would be $9,759.

Additional background stuff. This is a personal challenge/game that I like to play. I enjoy trying out new apps and services. I look for the best payoff/effort ratio for my situation; your choices won’t look like my choices. In addition, some things I will skip simply because I’ve already done them. For those new to this hobby, I would first grab the low-hanging fruit like the Chase Sapphire Preferred or the Chase Sapphire Reserve and build up a nice stash of flexible Ultimate Rewards points. After that, I would recommend looking at the Citi Premier (ThankYou points), Capital Venture X (Capital One Miles), and American Express Gold (AmEX Membership Rewards points) to jumpstart your points stashes.

These numbers included fixed bonuses for short-term asset transfers, but ignore higher interest rates overall from buying US Treasury bonds or savings bonds. They also ignore ongoing credit card purchase rewards like 2% to 2.6% cash back on all credit purchases (or airline miles or hotel points) and 5% cash back on specific categories or 1% or better cash back on rent.

This is an enjoyable and profitable hobby for me, but I don’t like to waste my time either. I look for a solid return based on the time commitment required. I tend to avoid speculative bets, bonuses that are hard to convert to real value, and anything that requires driving to stores where things may or may not be in stock. The deals that I post usually last at least a few days, but it’s a bit like value investing where you have to be ready to get off your butt and take decisive action when an opportunity shows up, because they won’t last forever.

Filed Under: Banking, Credit Cards, Deals & Offers, Goals //

Primis Bank: Premium Checking and Saving 4.35% APY (5.03% APY for Grandfathered Customers)

Posted on January 31, 2023 // 28 Comments

Update 2/17/23: Primis announced that new customers will only get 4.35% APY. Existing customers who got in while it was 5.03% APY will be grandfathered in for the time being (duration unknown).

You were one of the first – and you deserve the best.

Thanks for being one of the first customers to take advantage of our Primis Premium Checking. You’re earning the top-notch annual percentage yield (APY) of 5.03% and we’re glad you’re here.

Soon, you may see on our website that our APY is changing to 4.35%. This will not apply to you. As an early adopter of our digital platform, you will continue to earn 5.03% APY. While our rates are always subject to change, we want to currently hold your rate at the highest level possible.

Original post:

Primis Bank is relatively unknown, but is sure to gather some new deposits with their 5.03% APY Premium checking and 5.03% APY Primis savings accounts (rate as of 1/31/23).

Premium Checking details:

  • 5.03% APY as of 1/30/23.
  • No minimum balance requirement.
  • Open with just $1.
  • Must open online.
  • Free cashier’s checks and starter pack of checks.
  • Free ATM rebates.

Primis Savings details:

  • 5.03% APY as of 1/30/23.
  • No minimum balance requirement.
  • Open with just $1.

This is notable as it breaks the 5% barrier as a non-“rewards” checking account and there are no minimum debit card usage requirements. Found via DepositAcccounts. I don’t see any maximum deposit limit on the APY either, but keep in mind that there is no rate guarantee on these checking and savings so the rate can change at any time in the future.

Added: Reader Adam says to make sure to download the “Primis Digital Mobile App” and not the other one which applies to their physical branch accounts (their two systems are currently separate). You may have issues syncing your existing bank (or Personal Capital) with Primis because they try to log into the physical branch account interface and not their online-only accounts.

Filed Under: Banking, Deals & Offers //

CreditUnion1 High Yield Savings Plus $1,000 Deposit Bonus

Posted on January 24, 2023 // Leave a Comment

CreditUnion1 is offering a $1,000 bonus on its High Yield Savings Plus account. This promo requires a $100,000 minimum deposit held for 12 months, so it has a limited audience, but it does provide an opportunity to understand why some of these flat deposit bonuses aren’t as great as they might seem. Thanks to the readers that sent it in. Let’s start with the fine print:

2 This is a limited time offer available only from 1.17.23 to 3.15.23 and cannot be combined with any other offers. The $1,000 bonus (Bonus) will be deposited into your CU1 High Yield Savings Plus (HYS+) account at the end of the business day on the day you open the HYS+ account by making a minimum $100,000 deposit balance of new money from a competitor financial institution to earn dividends. The $1,000 bonus will start earning interest immediately but not be eligible for withdrawal until the account has a balance of $100,000 or greater for twelve (12) consecutive calendar months from the date of opening of the HYS+ account. Bonus is considered interest and will be reported on 1099-INT. Offer may be cancelled at any time without notice. Account Closure: If the HYS+ account is closed by the member or Credit Union1 or balance drops below $100,000 within 12 months after opening, Credit Union1 will deduct the Bonus from the HYS+ account at closing.

You must deposit a minimum of $100,000 in new money and keep it there for at least 12 months. If you go below $100,000 at any time during those 12 months, you lose the entire $1,000 bonus. Therefore, this is in effect a 12-month certificate with a early withdrawal penalty.

Separately, the base interest rate of 3.75% APY currently is not guaranteed or fixed, as it is a savings account. The rate can change at any time at their sole discretion. What if the Fed lowers rates or CU1 goes through some financial struggles and they decide to make it non-competitive a few months from now? They could drop it to 0% or 1%, but you’ll still be stuck there for 12 months if you want the $1,000 bonus. Note also that the High Yield Savings Plus account is a special account that has a minimum balance of $100,000. It’s different from their “High Yield Savings” account, so they could drop one rate and not affect the others. Not saying they will, but they could.

If the savings account rate does stay at 3.75% APY and you do get the $1,000 bonus on $100,000 held for 12 months, that is the equivalent of a 1-year CD paying 4.75% APY. That is a good rate, but many other banks and credit unions have similar term CDs at similar APYs that are guaranteed. Technically, if rates rise, you could even get more, but you could also easily get less. Personally, if I’m going to be locked in, I want a guaranteed payoff in return. I would rather have a straight-up 12-month CD paying 4.75% APY.

In the end, this is not a bad offer if the term length and deposit size fits your needs, I would personally put my money elsewhere given current options due to the way the promo is structured. Hopefully it is useful as an example of the different variables that go into comparing these offers. I have been a happy CU1 customer so far and look forward to see what other special offers they come up with.

Filed Under: Banking, Deals & Offers //

Better Future: Free Background Check Powered by Checkr

Posted on January 17, 2023 // 2 Comments

(Update 2023: Better Future suspended their free background checks during the pandemic, but I just noticed that they are back up and running, An inaccurate background check can prevent you from getting a job, so it is better to check now and start the process to dispute any incorrect information immediately.)

While updating my posts on free Consumer Data Reports, I noticed that Checkr offered a free background check via the BetterFuture.com website. No credit card required, no trials. Checkr is a legitimate company that provides background checks for Uber, Lyft, Postmates, and Instacart, so I valued their results more than most other “free lookup” sites.

The benefit of knowing what is on your background check is that you can fix any inaccuracies before applying for employment. In return, Checkr makes money by trying to connect you with relevant job opportunities based on your unique information.

Better Future takes your basic information (name, address, SSN) and pulls data from federal databases and public records from over 3,200 local counties. The sections of the background check report are:

  • Address History
  • SSN Trace
  • Sex Offender Search
  • Global Watchlist Search (International crime databases)
  • National Criminal Search
  • County Criminal Searches

I decided to run a free background check on myself, and it only took about an hour even though it said it might take up to 3 days. The information shown was all correct to my knowledge. Here’s a redacted screenshot of my report:

The background check does not include Employment History, Driving Records, or Civil Records. Here is the disclaimer that comes with the report:

This background check is for the named individual only. Better Future searched the sources listed below based on the information you provided. Failure to provide accurate or complete information may affect results. Third parties, such as potential employers, may search other databases for information about you. This is not a “consumer report” as defined by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and may not be used for determining any person’s eligibility for credit, insurance, employment, housing, or for any other purposes covered under the FCRA.

Bottom line. Checkr offers a free background check via BetterFuture.com. No credit cards, no trials. In return, they can match you up with job opportunities (optional). I signed up for a free report and I found no errors in the information.

Filed Under: Career, Deals & Offers, Tools & Calculators //

Public App Treasury Account Review: 6-Month T-Bill Interest With The Ease of a Savings Account?

Posted on January 12, 2023 // Leave a Comment

Investing app Public just announced a Treasury Account which basically lets you buy and hold 6-month US Treasury Bills in a more convenient wrapper (press release). You can invest as little as $100 and they will buy the T-Bills for you (and sell them for you if you choose to withdraw).

This is done via a partnership with Jiko. From their site:

Investments in T-bills are made in $100 increments. […] T-bills are held in custody at The Bank of New York Mellon. Proceeds are automatically reinvested (i.e., T-bills are “rolled”) at maturity. When funds are needed, T-bills are liquidated on-demand.

Right now, T-Bills yield more than most online savings accounts, and their interest is also exempt from state and local income taxes. As of 1/12/23, the rate on a 6-month T-Bill is 4.80%. This number changes every minute when the market is open like a stock, unlike the usually slower pace of weekly to monthly changes for savings accounts.

Fees. I was initially somewhat excited about this account, but what was not mentioned at all in the press release, and also put at the bottom of their fine print is the fact that they charge a fee of 0.05% per month (0.60% annualized) for this service:

In exchange for the management, trading, and custody of Treasury services, Jiko charges a flat management fee of 5 basis points per month based on the average daily balance of your Treasury account. This amount will be deducted from your Treasury account on a monthly basis. Public receives a portion of that management fee as a referral fee.

I like the idea of making T-bill purchases and sales more simple and hassle-free, but 0.60% annually is a pretty significant haircut that brings the net rate much closer to the top online savings accounts. They should really include the net interest on their rate comparison charts. I know there will also be a bid/ask spread paid if you bought the T-Bills yourself on the secondary market, but you can also buy T-Bills as new issues and hold to maturity. You could also buy shorter 4-week T-Bills.

In the end, the fees basically make this comparable to a relatively-expensive short-term Treasury mutual fund or ETF. The iShares 0-3 month T-Bill ETF (ticker SGOV) only has a 0.05% expense ratio, and you can buy that ETF from any brokerage account.

The Treasury Accounts are not live yet, but some of you may already have joined Public last year for their account transfer bonus (tiers have gotten worse since initial offering).

New customer to Public? Their referral program offers “free stock” worth between $3 and $300 if you open with a referral code and deposit $20+ (referrer also gets whatever you get). My referral code is mymoneyblog which you can enter on the second page of the transfer promo link above. Thanks if you use it! Alternatively, the shopping portal Swagbucks is offering $16 worth of Swagbucks points right now.

Filed Under: Banking, Deals & Offers //

Paper Savings Bonds: Pay w/ Credit Card by 1/17, Use Tax Refund To Increase Purchase Limit by $5,000

Posted on January 11, 2023 // 2 Comments

As inflation spiked, so did interest in purchasing inflation-linked Series I Savings bonds. Some folks have been going to extra lengths to increase their ability to purchase them, buying savings bonds for kids, trusts, LLCs, corporations, and so on. One of the more direct ways to increase your annual purchase limits is to use IRS Form 8888 when filing your taxes this year, which allows you to use your tax refund to purchase up to $5,000 in paper Savings Bonds each year. This is on top of the $10,000 annual limit on electronic savings bonds per person at TreasuryDirect.

Of course, that means you need to have a refund when you file your taxes. You’ll need to estimate your tax liability, and if needed, you can make an overpayment on your federal tax withholding to ensure you have the refund size you want. The deadline for 2022 4th Quarter estimated tax payments is Tuesday, January 17th, 2023.

You can make a direct payment via credit or debit card via various official processors. The processing fee starts at just 1.85%, which means that as long as you have 2% cash back rewards card or better, you can actually come out slightly ahead. Even better, paying $4,000 in taxes would satisfy most of the spending hurdles on big credit card bonuses worth well over $500. Two birds, one stone.

You can also make a direct payment via your bank account at EFTPS.gov or IRS DirectPay.

Right now is the best window, as it minimizes the time between paying the taxes and receiving your paper savings bonds. Filing your taxes earlier will also shorten that window. If you wish, you can later convert those paper savings bonds to electronic form at TreasuryDirect.

Filed Under: Banking, Credit Cards, Deals & Offers, Savings Bonds //

Best Interest Rates on Cash – January 2023

Posted on January 10, 2023 // 3 Comments

Here’s my monthly roundup of the best interest rates on cash as of January 2023, roughly sorted from shortest to longest maturities. We all need some safe assets for cash reserves or portfolio stability, and there are often lesser-known opportunities available to individual investors. Check out my Ultimate Rate-Chaser Calculator to see how much extra interest you’d earn by moving money between accounts. Rates listed are available to everyone nationwide. Rates checked as of 1/9/2023.

TL;DR: 5% on up to $25,000 from fintech. Short-term rates up a little. 4.35% APY available on liquid savings. 4.60% to 5% APY available on short-term CDs Compare against Treasury bills and bonds at every maturity (12-month near 4.70%). 6.89% Savings I Bonds can be bought with 2023 annual limits now.

Fintech accounts
Available only to individual investors, fintech companies often pay higher-than-market rates in order to achieve fast short-term growth (often using venture capital). “Fintech” is usually a software layer on top of a partner bank’s FDIC insurance.

  • 5% on up to $25,000. Juno now pays 5% on all cash deposits up to $25,000 and 3% on cash deposits from $25,001 up to $250,000. No direct deposits required. If you set up direct deposit and qualify for their Metal tier, you may be able to upgrade to 5.5% interest. Please see my Juno review for details.
  • 4.00% APY on $6,000. Current offers 4% APY on up to $6,000 total ($2,000 each on three savings pods). Must maintain a direct deposit of $200+ every 35 days. $50 referral bonus for new members with $200+ direct deposit with promo code JENNIFEP185. Please see my Current app review for details.
  • 4.00% APY on up to $250,000, but requires direct deposit and credit card spend. Now again accepting new applicants. The top tier requires you to maintain positive cashflow in the checking account each month, $500 in total monthly direct deposits, and $500 in credit card purchases each month. Existing customers will get up to 4% APY through April 2023, with requirements waived through March 2023. Please see my HM Bradley review for details.

High-yield savings accounts
Since the huge megabanks STILL pay essentially no interest, I think every should have a separate, no-fee online savings account to accompany your existing checking account. The interest rates on savings accounts can drop at any time, so I list the top rates as well as competitive rates from banks with a history of competitive rates. Some banks will bait you with a temporary top rate and then lower the rates in the hopes that you are too lazy to leave.

  • The leapfrogging to be the temporary “top” rate continues. MySavingsDirect at 4.35% APY. All America/Redneck Bank is at 4.25% APY for balances up to $75,000 ($500 to open, no min balance).
  • SoFi Bank is now up to 3.75% APY + up to $275 new account bonus with direct deposit. You must maintain a direct deposit of any amount each month for the higher APY. SoFi has their own bank charter now so no longer a fintech by my definition. See details at $25 + $250 SoFi Money new account and deposit bonus.
  • There are several other established high-yield savings accounts at 3.30%+ APY that aren’t the absolute top rate, but historically do keep it relatively competitive for those that don’t want to keep switching banks.

Short-term guaranteed rates (1 year and under)
A common question is what to do with a big pile of cash that you’re waiting to deploy shortly (plan to buy a house soon, just sold your house, just sold your business, legal settlement, inheritance). My usual advice is to keep things simple and take your time. If not a savings account, then put it in a flexible short-term CD under the FDIC limits until you have a plan.

  • No Penalty CDs offer a fixed interest rate that can never go down, but you can still take out your money (once) without any fees if you want to use it elsewhere. CIT Bank has a 11-month No Penalty CD at 4.10% APY with a $1,000 minimum deposit. Ally Bank has a 11-month No Penalty CD at 3.50% APY for all balance tiers. Marcus has a 13-month No Penalty CD at 3.50% APY with a $500 minimum deposit. You may wish to open multiple CDs in smaller increments for more flexibility.
  • INSBANK has a 12-month certificate at 4.85% APY. $2,500 minimum. Early withdrawal penalty is 90 days of interest.
  • NASA FCU has a special 9-month certificate at 4.60% APY. $10,000 min, new money required. Anyone can join this credit union via partner organization membership.

Money market mutual funds + Ultra-short bond ETFs*
Many brokerage firms that pay out very little interest on their default cash sweep funds (and keep the difference for themselves). * Money market mutual funds are regulated, but ultimately not FDIC-insured, so I would still stick with highly reputable firms. I am including a few ultra-short bond ETFs as they may be your best cash alternative in a brokerage account, but they may experience short-term losses.

  • Vanguard Federal Money Market Fund is the default sweep option for Vanguard brokerage accounts, which has an SEC yield of 4.22%. Odds are this is much higher than your own broker’s default cash sweep interest rate.
  • Vanguard Ultra-Short-Term Bond Fund currently pays 4.36% SEC yield ($3,000 min) and 4.46% SEC Yield ($50,000 min). The average duration is ~1 year, so there is some term interest rate risk.
  • The PIMCO Enhanced Short Maturity Active Bond ETF (MINT) has a 4.57% SEC yield and the iShares Short Maturity Bond ETF (NEAR) has a 4.51% SEC yield while holding a portfolio of investment-grade bonds with an average duration of ~6 months.

Treasury Bills and Ultra-short Treasury ETFs
Another option is to buy individual Treasury bills which come in a variety of maturities from 4-weeks to 52-weeks and are fully backed by the US government. You can also invest in ETFs that hold a rotating basket of short-term Treasury Bills for you, while charging a small management fee for doing so. T-bill interest is exempt from state and local income taxes.

  • You can build your own T-Bill ladder at TreasuryDirect.gov or via a brokerage account with a bond desk like Vanguard and Fidelity. Here are the current Treasury Bill rates. As of 1/9/23, a new 4-week T-Bill had the equivalent of 4.24% annualized interest and a 52-week T-Bill had the equivalent of 4.70% annualized interest.
  • The iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF (SGOV) has a 3.94% SEC yield and effective duration of 0.10 years. SPDR Bloomberg Barclays 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF (BIL) has a 3.87% SEC yield and effective duration of 0.08 years.

US Savings Bonds
Series I Savings Bonds offer rates that are linked to inflation and backed by the US government. You must hold them for at least a year. If you redeem them within 5 years there is a penalty of the last 3 months of interest. The annual purchase limit for electronic I bonds is $10,000 per Social Security Number, available online at TreasuryDirect.gov. You can also buy an additional $5,000 in paper I bonds using your tax refund with IRS Form 8888.

  • “I Bonds” bought between November 2022 and April 2023 will earn a 6.89% rate for the first six months. The rate of the subsequent 6-month period will be based on inflation again. More on Savings Bonds here.
  • In mid-April 2023, the CPI will be announced and you will have a short period where you will have a very close estimate of the rate for the next 12 months. I will have another post up at that time.
  • See below about EE Bonds as a potential long-term bond alternative.

Prepaid Cards with Attached Savings Accounts
A small subset of prepaid debit cards have an “attached” FDIC-insured savings account with exceptionally high interest rates. The negatives are that balances are severely capped, and there are many fees that you must be careful to avoid (lest they eat up your interest). There is a long list of previous offers that have already disappeared with little notice. I don’t personally recommend nor use any of these anymore, as I feel the work required and the fees charged if you mess up exceeds any small potential benefit.

  • Mango Money pays 6% APY on up to $2,500, if you manage to jump through several hoops. Requirements include $1,500+ in “signature” purchases and a minimum balance of $25.00 at the end of the month.
  • NetSpend Prepaid pays 5% APY on up to $1,000 but be warned that there is also a $5.95 monthly maintenance fee if you don’t maintain regular monthly activity.

Rewards checking accounts
These unique checking accounts pay above-average interest rates, but with unique risks. You have to jump through certain hoops which usually involve 10+ debit card purchases each cycle, a certain number of ACH/direct deposits, and/or a certain number of logins per month. If you make a mistake (or they judge that you did) you risk earning zero interest for that month. Some folks don’t mind the extra work and attention required, while others would rather not bother. Rates can also drop suddenly, leaving a “bait-and-switch” feeling.

  • Pelican State Credi Union pays 5.11% APY on up to $10,000 if you make 15 debit card purchases, opt into receive only online statements, and make at least 1 direct deposit, online bill payment, or automatic payment (ACH) per statement cycle. Anyone can join this credit union via partner organization membership.
  • All America/Redneck Bank pays 4.50% APY on up to $15,000 if you make 10 debit card purchases each monthly cycle with online statements.
  • The Bank of Denver pays 4.00% APY on up to $15,000 if you make 12 debit card purchases of $5+ each, receive only online statements, and make at least 1 ACH credit or debit transaction per statement cycle. Thanks to reader Bill for the updated info.
  • Presidential Bank pays 4.00% APY on balances between $500 and up to $25,000 (3.00% APY above that) if you maintain a $500+ direct deposit and at least 7 electronic withdrawals per month (ATM, POS, ACH and Billpay counts).
  • Find a locally-restricted rewards checking account at DepositAccounts.

Certificates of deposit (greater than 1 year)
CDs offer higher rates, but come with an early withdrawal penalty. By finding a bank CD with a reasonable early withdrawal penalty, you can enjoy higher rates but maintain access in a true emergency. Alternatively, consider building a CD ladder of different maturity lengths (ex. 1/2/3/4/5-years) such that you have access to part of the ladder each year, but your blended interest rate is higher than a savings account. When one CD matures, use that money to buy another 5-year CD to keep the ladder going. Some CDs also offer “add-ons” where you can deposit more funds if rates drop.

  • Navy Federal Credit Union has a special 15-month CD at 5% APY. Open now with just $50, but you can still add on more deposits later. You must have a military relationship to join NavyFed.
  • Lafayette Federal Credit Union has a 5-year certificate at 4.63% APY ($500 min), 4-year at 4.58% APY, 3-year at 4.52% APY, 2-year at 4.47% APY, and 1-year at 4.42% APY. They also have jumbo certificates with $100,000 minimums at even higher rates. These are competitive rates to build a CD ladder, but know that the early withdrawal penalty for the 5-year is very high at 600 days of interest. Anyone can join this credit union via partner organization ($10 one-time fee).
  • You can buy certificates of deposit via the bond desks of Vanguard and Fidelity. You may need an account to see the rates. These “brokered CDs” offer FDIC insurance and easy laddering, but they don’t come with predictable early withdrawal penalties. Right now, I don’t see any 5-year non-callable CDs. Be wary of higher rates from callable CDs, which means they can call back your CD if rates drop later.

Longer-term Instruments
I’d use these with caution due to increased interest rate risk, but I still track them to see the rest of the current yield curve.

  • Willing to lock up your money for 10 years? You can buy long-term certificates of deposit via the bond desks of Vanguard and Fidelity. These “brokered CDs” offer FDIC insurance, but they don’t come with predictable early withdrawal penalties. You might find something that pays more than your other brokerage cash and Treasury options. Right now, I see a 10-year CDs at (none available, non-callable) vs. 3.60% for a 10-year Treasury. Watch out for higher rates from callable CDs where they can call your CD back if interest rates drop.
  • How about two decades? Series EE Savings Bonds are not indexed to inflation, but they have a unique guarantee that the value will double in value in 20 years, which equals a guaranteed return of 3.5% a year. However, if you don’t hold for that long, you’ll be stuck with the normal rate, currently 2.10%. As of 1/9/23, the 20-year Treasury Bond rate was 3.83%.

All rates were checked as of 1/9/2023.

Filed Under: Banking, Deals & Offers, Investing //

Citi Premier Card: 60,000 ThankYou Points (Worth $600 in Gift Cards, 60,000 Miles, $600 Airfare Offset, $480 at Amazon, More)

Posted on January 8, 2023 // 13 Comments

The Citi Premier Card is an improved rewards credit card with the ability to transfer points to airlines miles as well as an added $100 annual hotel savings benefit. Right now, they have a sign-up bonus offer of 60,000 bonus points (redeemable for $600 in gift cards at thankyou.com, as well as a variety of other options) Here are the highlights:

  • 60,000 bonus ThankYou points after $4,000 in purchases in the first 3 months
  • Plus, for a limited time, earn a total of 10 ThankYou® Points per $1 spent on hotel, car rentals, and attractions (excluding air travel) booked on the Citi TravelSM portal through June 30, 2024.
  • 3X points at Supermarkets
  • 3X points at Restaurants
  • 3X points on Gas Stations, Air Travel, and Hotels
  • 1X points on all other purchases
  • $100 Annual Hotel Savings Benefit
  • Points Transfer allows you to transfer points to participating airline and hotel loyalty programs
  • No foreign transaction fees
  • $95 annual fee.

Citi has added a handy tracker that lets you know if you’ve satisfied the spending hurdle to qualify for the bonus points. Look for it in your online account in the ThankYou points section (click on “View/Redeem” ThankYou points and then scroll down a bit). Here’s mine:

Note the following fine print which mentions other ThankYou-related Citi cards:

Bonus ThankYou® Points are not available if you received a new cardmember bonus for Citi Rewards+®, Citi ThankYou® Preferred, Citi ThankYou® Premier/Citi Premier® or Citi Prestige®, or if you have closed any of these accounts, in the past 24 months.

$100 Annual Hotel Savings Benefit details.

Once per calendar year, enjoy $100 off a single hotel stay of $500 or more, excluding taxes and fees, when booked through thankyou.com or 1-800-THANKYOU (powered by cxLoyalty) and subject to the additional requirements stated below. For speech or hearing impaired TTY: Use 711 or other relay service. To receive the $100 annual hotel savings, you must pre-pay for your complete stay with your Citi Premier Card, ThankYou Points, or a combination thereof. If you choose to use the benefit, the $100 annual hotel savings will be applied at the time of booking.

60,000 ThankYou points = $600 in gift cards. You can view your redemption options at ThankYou.com. I took a quick look and it takes 10,000 ThankYou (TY) points to redeem for a $100 gift card to retailers like Target, Starbucks, TJ Maxx, Lowe’s, Home Depot, Gap, Banana Republic, Barnes & Noble, Bath and Body Works, Bed Bath & Beyond, Cabelas, Kohl’s, Land’s End, LL Bean, Sears, and Zappos. So with 60,000 TY points, you could get 6 x $100 gift cards (or 24 x $25 gift cards) from different stores (handy for gifts), or all from the same store. You may also be able to find options to send a check towards your mortgage payment and/or student loan payment.

Personally, my default redemption is for Home Depot and/or Lowe’s. As an owner of an older house, there is always an appliance or home-improvement purchase around the corner. Target is another useful option.

Hotel points and airline miles transfer options. Citi ThankYou points are also now available to transfer to certain airline mileage programs on a 1:1 basis including JetBlue TrueBlue, Virgin Atlantic, Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, EVA Air, Etihad, Flying Blue by Air France and KLM, and Thai Airways.

For example, 60,000 ThankYou points can be transferred to 60,000 JetBlue TrueBlue points, which can then be redeemed free airfare at a ratio that varies between 1.1 cents per point and 1.6 cents per point. Even if you are conservative, this still works out to over $660 in JetBlue airfare.

Alternatively, 60,000 TY points can also get you 60,000 Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles. If you know how to redeem these points wisely and like to fly in international business class, you can get a lot of value. For example, Singapore Airlines has some very nice award options and great customer service.

Amazon and Best Buy. You can also use the “Pay with Points” features at Amazon and Best Buy, but you will only get 0.8 cents per ThankYou points in value at Amazon. For example, 60,000 ThankYou points will offset $480 in Amazon.com purchases.

Airfare booked through Citi ThankYou Travel Center. You can also redeem ThankYou points for 1 cent per points value towards airfare booked through the Citi ThankYou Travel Center at ThankYou.com. For example, 60,000 ThankYou points will offset $600 in airfare booked through the Citi ThankYou Travel Center at ThankYou.com. This is a travel portal similar to other airfare comparison sites, so you can book basically any seat on any airline using this method and still earn frequent flier miles on the flight.

Bottom line. The Citi Premier Card is a rewards travel card with 3X points on restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations, air travel and hotels, along with a $95 annual fee. Currently, new cardholders can get a sign-up bonus of 60,000 ThankYou point that can be redeemed in a variety of ways.

I have applied for this account as part of my Free IRA Goal for 2022. I will be adding this to the Top 10 Best Credit Card Bonus Offers.

Filed Under: Credit Cards, Deals & Offers //
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