topic Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security? in Personal Finance

Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Anonymous — Wed, 12 Feb 2020 14:28:16 GMT

So I was looking at possibly jumping on US Bank's $300 offer but it requires 2 direct deposits totaling $2K by 4/7/2020. The problem with this is Social Security won't actually change the direct deposit until April. How are people with Social Security chasing bank bonuses? It seems odd that all of these offers say you can use Social Security but then Social Security puts a hold on changing your direct deposit.

US Bank is one of the few FIs I could actually move my banking to and get satisfied - they have Zelle support, they don't charge a ton of fees, and it would help me with my goal of getting a Cash+ card later this year but if I'm going to go through the hassle of switching my direct deposit from my bank that I have now, I would like to get a bonus for it. It just doesn't seem like the timeline is going to line up.

So what is the trick here?

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Revelate — Wed, 12 Feb 2020 18:15:05 GMT

I know some (not all) other banks treat ACH's as fufilling the direct deposit requirement.

Would Google for that and if money shuffling would work. Alternatively these offers come up all the time, or maybe do something like ride share for a few weeks would be surprised if that money wasn't electronically deposited from Lyft/ Uber.

Probably a lot of ways to skin this that I'm not even thinking of to be honest.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Anonymous — Wed, 12 Feb 2020 22:10:45 GMT

@Revelate wrote:
I know some (not all) other banks treat ACH's as fufilling the direct deposit requirement.

Would Google for that and if money shuffling would work. Alternatively these offers come up all the time, or maybe do something like ride share for a few weeks would be surprised if that money wasn't electronically deposited from Lyft/ Uber.

Probably a lot of ways to skin this that I'm not even thinking of to be honest.

Yes it does appear that basically any ACH counts as direct deposit for US Bank purposes, I noticed that after I made my post, but US Bank seems to be the easiest. Most don't count ACH.

It just seems odd to say you can use Social Security to meet deposit requirements when Social Security won't update until the month after your next payment.

I don't want to have to Zelle from 1stBank to NFCU and then ACH to US Bank and then Zelle back to 1stBank so I can pay my bills. That's a bit too much.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

DaveInAZ — Wed, 12 Feb 2020 23:57:09 GMT

Yeah, checking Doctor of Credit it does seem US Bank is pretty generous in what the count as a direct deposit.

But for changing your Social Security direct deposit you're talking about changing it online? That does take a long time to take effect, but if you call your local Soc.Sec. office they can change it much more quickly, I've called and got it changed in as little as 2 weeks before the next payment. I'm lucky, my local office is in Douglas, a small city on the border with Mexico, and I usually get a live person within 5 minutes, for Denver prepare for at least a half hour hold or longer. You just need to answer a few security questions - city of birth, mother's maiden name, etc, and the current bank routing & account # and of course the new bank info.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Anonymous — Thu, 13 Feb 2020 04:16:20 GMT

@DaveInAZ wrote:
Yeah, checking Doctor of Credit it does seem US Bank is pretty generous in what the count as a direct deposit.

But for changing your Social Security direct deposit you're talking about changing it online? That does take a long time to take effect, but if you call your local Soc.Sec. office they can change it much more quickly, I've called and got it changed in as little as 2 weeks before the next payment. I'm lucky, my local office is in Douglas, a small city on the border with Mexico, and I usually get a live person within 5 minutes, for Denver prepare for at least a half hour hold or longer. You just need to answer a few security questions - city of birth, mother's maiden name, etc, and the current bank routing & account # and of course the new bank info.

Yeah trying to get ahold of someone from Social Security locally is an exercise in futility... When they sent me my CDR in 2018, I had to sit on hold with my case manager at the county mental health office for an hour waiting for someone to pick up and that was on the number that's only given to case managers!

Good to know it can be done quicker though. I wonder if it's just the online system thinking you got hacked and they'll like send a letter in the mail or something to verify. Thanks for the heads up. I thought about tagging you specifically earlier since I remembered you being on SS and chasing bank bonuses but figured you would see it.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Green456 — Thu, 13 Feb 2020 12:27:49 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
So I was looking at possibly jumping on US Bank's $300 offer but it requires 2 direct deposits totaling $2K by 4/7/2020. The problem with this is Social Security won't actually change the direct deposit until April. How are people with Social Security chasing bank bonuses? It seems odd that all of these offers say you can use Social Security but then Social Security puts a hold on changing your direct deposit.

US Bank is one of the few FIs I could actually move my banking to and get satisfied - they have Zelle support, they don't charge a ton of fees, and it would help me with my goal of getting a Cash+ card later this year but if I'm going to go through the hassle of switching my direct deposit from my bank that I have now, I would like to get a bonus for it. It just doesn't seem like the timeline is going to line up.

So what is the trick here?

They do charge ACH fee.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Anonymous — Thu, 13 Feb 2020 13:59:00 GMT

@Green456 wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
So I was looking at possibly jumping on US Bank's $300 offer but it requires 2 direct deposits totaling $2K by 4/7/2020. The problem with this is Social Security won't actually change the direct deposit until April. How are people with Social Security chasing bank bonuses? It seems odd that all of these offers say you can use Social Security but then Social Security puts a hold on changing your direct deposit.

US Bank is one of the few FIs I could actually move my banking to and get satisfied - they have Zelle support, they don't charge a ton of fees, and it would help me with my goal of getting a Cash+ card later this year but if I'm going to go through the hassle of switching my direct deposit from my bank that I have now, I would like to get a bonus for it. It just doesn't seem like the timeline is going to line up.

So what is the trick here?
They do charge ACH fee.

Yes I know they do. But Zelle is free and NFCU doesn't charge ACH fee so if I need to use ACH, I can Zelle it to NFCU and then ACH from there.

I pretty much have decided I'm going to sit this round out at least because the timing just doesn't work.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Anonymous — Thu, 13 Feb 2020 15:29:22 GMT

In some cases the actual Bank can get you signed up, I would call USB to see if they can help make the process smoother.

This might may or may not be quicker than dealing sirectly with SS, I know it can take forever and a day to get through to them.

I don;t understand why it isn't easiest to just do it online in your account though. It's been a while since I helped a Family member with theirs, but it didn't seem very long for it to deposit.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Anonymous — Thu, 13 Feb 2020 15:57:32 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
In some cases the actual Bank can get you signed up, I would call USB to see if they can help make the process smoother.

This might may or may not be quicker than dealing sirectly with SS, I know it can take forever and a day to get through to them.

I don;t understand why it isn't easiest to just do it online in your account though. It's been a while since I helped a Family member with theirs, but it didn't seem very long for it to deposit.

If you go online, it lets you pick which month you want it to go into effect but my only two options are April and May which would obviously be too late.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Anonymous — Fri, 14 Feb 2020 03:24:16 GMT

I kind of know how you feel. I have the same $300 offer at USB. However, I don't want to rock the boat with my severance pay by switching DD, as my former Employer isn't the best with handling paperwork accurately or in a timely manner.

Pay for my other Employer are going into Chase. And while I'm past the SUB requirements, I don't want to jeopardize anything there as I'd like to continue with them for as long as I can.

I do plan to drop BoA for another Bank once my severance runs out, and USB seems okay. Maybe I should just wait, SUBs come and go and come back again.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Anonymous — Fri, 14 Feb 2020 04:09:15 GMT

I could just pay the $3 twice with my current bank to ACH the money to US Bank. Seems very likely it would count for the SUB. I think I'm just gonna sit this bonus out though because if they offer me a card I'm gonna jump on it and mess up my garden goal.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Revelate — Fri, 14 Feb 2020 17:51:43 GMT

Huh, well if you're driving around for Lyft appears you could do this easily.

It's a bit suck you have to DD into a bank they partner with but they apparently allow outgoing ACH's and Bill Pay and I don't see a fee schedule with it.

Seems like an easy way to game it since you basically get paid immediately so just drive around a bit every so often, build up a little stash, and hop on the bonuses when they come up for various other FI's. It's not enough money for me to do this right now doing two gigs, and while Lyft would be a totally acceptable social analogue even if there's no community integration thing for me, but if I wind up with a bunch of time on my hands again where bonus chasing makes sense I will probably try this route as it's easy to work into virtually any schedule on any time horizon.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

randomguy1 — Fri, 14 Feb 2020 17:52:03 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Revelate wrote:
I know some (not all) other banks treat ACH's as fufilling the direct deposit requirement.

Would Google for that and if money shuffling would work. Alternatively these offers come up all the time, or maybe do something like ride share for a few weeks would be surprised if that money wasn't electronically deposited from Lyft/ Uber.

Probably a lot of ways to skin this that I'm not even thinking of to be honest.
Yes it does appear that basically any ACH counts as direct deposit for US Bank purposes, I noticed that after I made my post, but US Bank seems to be the easiest. Most don't count ACH.

It just seems odd to say you can use Social Security to meet deposit requirements when Social Security won't update until the month after your next payment.

I don't want to have to Zelle from 1stBank to NFCU and then ACH to US Bank and then Zelle back to 1stBank so I can pay my bills. That's a bit too much.

Why would you need to Zelle back to 1st bank? You can use Bill pay from US Bank. That's what I do on all my bank bonuses.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Anonymous — Fri, 14 Feb 2020 19:18:34 GMT

@randomguy1 wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
@Revelate wrote:
I know some (not all) other banks treat ACH's as fufilling the direct deposit requirement.

Would Google for that and if money shuffling would work. Alternatively these offers come up all the time, or maybe do something like ride share for a few weeks would be surprised if that money wasn't electronically deposited from Lyft/ Uber.

Probably a lot of ways to skin this that I'm not even thinking of to be honest.
Yes it does appear that basically any ACH counts as direct deposit for US Bank purposes, I noticed that after I made my post, but US Bank seems to be the easiest. Most don't count ACH.

It just seems odd to say you can use Social Security to meet deposit requirements when Social Security won't update until the month after your next payment.

I don't want to have to Zelle from 1stBank to NFCU and then ACH to US Bank and then Zelle back to 1stBank so I can pay my bills. That's a bit too much.
Why would you need to Zelle back to 1st bank? You can use Bill pay from US Bank. That's what I do on all my bank bonuses.

I would have to test US Bank to see if they're viable long term and in the mean time, I would continue to do the bulk of my banking through 1stBank rather than change all of my accounts to draw from a new bank account or push payments from a new account. I move deposit accounts very slowly. I opened checking accounts with both NFCU and DCU with the intention of switching to them and found things with both that were too much to deal with for me to switch.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Anonymous — Fri, 14 Feb 2020 22:02:56 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I opened checking accounts with both NFCU and DCU with the intention of switching to them and found things with both that were too much to deal with for me to switch.

Oh boy I can relate! Been with them since 18 and it's always been a process to get Money to them the way i want to do it. Have to transfer funds from my NFCU CC to share savings so that I can put Money in my IRA and ESA, then use an outside account to pay the CC. And try to do it before they assess the interest.

So i eventually opened a checking account just this month to hopefully make that smoother/easier. Nope. I still cannot transfer from outside accounts unless i push from the outside!

Don't get me wrong, i really like them and several of their products. But sheesh can they be slightly annoying at times, so now I've got two accounts with them that cannot transfer funds the way i want.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Anonymous — Fri, 14 Feb 2020 22:37:51 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
I opened checking accounts with both NFCU and DCU with the intention of switching to them and found things with both that were too much to deal with for me to switch.
Oh boy I can relate! Been with them since 18 and it's always been a process to get Money to them the way i want to do it. Have to transfer funds from my NFCU CC to share savings so that I can put Money in my IRA and ESA, then use an outside account to pay the CC. And try to do it before they assess the interest.

So i eventually opened a checking account just this month to hopefully make that smoother/easier. Nope. I still cannot transfer from outside accounts unless i push from the outside!

Don't get me wrong, i really like them and several of their products. But sheesh can they be slightly annoying at times, so now I've got two accounts with them that cannot transfer funds the way i want.

Yep that's one of the things that bothered me. I was having to write myself checks from 1stBank or use Zelle.

DCU lets me pull to my savings and checking and I just learned yesterday that I can push for free using their P2P system but their systems are inferior and I can't ever get someone on the phone without waiting over an hour so I can't make them my primary either.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

DaveInAZ — Mon, 17 Feb 2020 14:23:06 GMT

So I decided to go for this SUB and opened an account online yesterday, process fairly painless. But the confirmation email said that to enroll in online banking I'll need my new debit card # and PIN. Figure at least 2 weeks for that to arrive by snail mail, so that makes this pretty much impossible to do $2k in direct deposits within 60 days with Social Security even calling your local office to change DD more quickly then online. Even payroll would be tight for me to make the 60 days, my employer pays biweekly and uses ADP which I can change online but their policy is that the first payday for a new bank account is a printed check mailed to me while they do a pre-note to verify the account is mine.

Fortunately according to Doctor of Credit DPs US Bank pretty much counts any ACH deposit as a direct deposit. I made just under $1500 in bank account SUBs in 2019, this one will have me at $700 already for 2020.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

Anonymous — Mon, 17 Feb 2020 15:08:03 GMT

@DaveInAZ wrote:
So I decided to go for this SUB and opened an account online yesterday, process fairly painless. But the confirmation email said that to enroll in online banking I'll need my new debit card # and PIN. Figure at least 2 weeks for that to arrive by snail mail, so that makes this pretty much impossible to do $2k in direct deposits within 60 days with Social Security even calling your local office to change DD more quickly then online. Even payroll would be tight for me to make the 60 days, my employer pays biweekly and uses ADP which I can change online but their policy is that the first payday for a new bank account is a printed check mailed to me while they do a pre-note to verify the account is mine.
Fortunately according to Doctor of Credit DPs US Bank pretty much counts any ACH deposit as a direct deposit. I made just under $1500 in bank account SUBs in 2019, this one will have me at $700 already for 2020.

Yeah I opened an account with Alliant to use as a hub. I don't plan on going for a ton of bonuses but I might grab one or two this year.

That online banking wait sounds very extra. I imagine quite a few people are going to get screwed out of their bonus.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

randomguy1 — Mon, 17 Feb 2020 15:23:54 GMT

Both Alliant and Chase ACH pushes worked for me as recently as this month FYI.

Re: Bank account bonuses with Social Security?

randomguy1 — Mon, 17 Feb 2020 17:02:16 GMT

A little bit more data:

The "DD" will show up in US bank as Electronic Deposit <lender name>

At the beginning of your statement cycle you will get a Monthly Maintenance Fee followed by a Monthly Maintenance Fee waived ($6.95) if you meet your monthly direct deposit of $1000.

US Bank appears to pay their bonuses in batches at the first Thursday or Friday each month. I'm expecting my bonus to be paid out at the beginning of March and opened my account at the beginning of November.