topic Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees in Personal Finance

How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

Beast26 — Sat, 06 Apr 2024 23:02:34 GMT

How do you guys avoid high maintenance fees with checking accounts have a minimum daily balance of around $5000 when churning multiple bank accounts? Do you actually leave the $5000 tied up on the account for the duration of getting the bonus or is there another way?

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

keekers — Sat, 06 Apr 2024 23:50:39 GMT

I don't churn bank accounts. Unless I misunderstand what you mean.

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

hdporter — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 01:18:10 GMT

You've identified why I don't churn checking acct bonuses. Getting in a d out of credit card accounts is far easier and cleaner.

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

FicoMike0 — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 01:31:42 GMT

I have done 11 in the last 9 months, collected on 8, still waiting on 3. I have one with a monthly dd req., Citizens, and one with $500 sitting, wf. I could do a dd on wells instead, but I'll probably close it this month. Many are no min, no fee. Usb waives if you're old, I am, or if you have their card, I do. You remind me, I have 4 accounts I planned to close this month. My best recent was $500 usb, still available. Paid in about 30 days, too!

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

Horseshoez — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 02:04:35 GMT

@Beast26 wrote:
How do you guys avoid high maintenance fees with checking accounts have a minimum daily balance of around $5000 when churning multiple bank accounts? Do you actually leave the $5000 tied up on the account for the duration of getting the bonus or is there another way?

Many financial institutions have multiple ways of getting free checking; I have two checking accounts, one for 99% of my financial activity and one because it is a requirement to maintain a CD I have with that institution. That said, I have accounts of one form or another with five financial institutions, all of which offer checking accounts and I don't believe a single one has a blanket requirement to leave $5,000 tied up to maintain free checking:

Chase
- Chase Total Checking
  - Free with a minimum of $500 in direct deposits per statement cycle
  - Free with a balance at the beginning of each day of $1,500
  - Free with an average beginning day balance of $5,000
  - Otherwise $12.00 per month
- Chase Secure Checking
  - Free with a minimum of $250 in direct deposits per statement cycle
  - Otherwise $4.95 per month
Capital One
- 360 Checking Account
  - Free, always
Navy Federal
- Active Duty Checking (active duty military with direct deposit)
  - Free when active duty military with direct deposit
  - Otherwise converts to EveryDay Checking
- EveryDay Checking
  - Free, always
- Campus Checking
  - Free when full time student 14-24 years of age
  - Otherwise $10.00 per month
- Flagship Checking
  - Free with a minimum of $1,500 in direct deposits per statement cycle
  - Otherwise $10.00 per month
Pentagon Federal
- Free Checking
  - Free, always
- Access America
  - Free with a minimum of $500 in direct deposits per statement cycle
  - Free with a minimum daily balance of $500
  - Otherwise $10.00 per month
TD Bank
- TD Complete Checking
  - Free with a minimum of $500 in direct deposits per statement cycle
  - Free with a minimum daily balance of $500
  - Free with a daily combined $5,000 balance across deposit accounts
  - Otherwise $15.00 per month
- TD Beyond Checking
  - Free with a minimum of $5,000 in direct deposits per statement cycle
  - Free with a minimum daily balance of $2,500
  - Free with a daily combined $25,000 balance across deposit accounts
  - Otherwise $25.00 per month

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

keekers — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 02:44:00 GMT

@Horseshoez wrote:
Flagship Checking
Free with a minimum of $1,500 i~~n direct deposits~~ average daily balance per statement cycle
Otherwise $10.00 per month

Correction on NFCU's Flagship Checking.

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

Horseshoez — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 02:47:56 GMT

@keekers wrote:
@Horseshoez wrote:
Flagship Checking
Free with a minimum of $1,500 i~~n direct deposits~~ average daily balance per statement cycle
Otherwise $10.00 per month
Correction on NFCU's Flagship Checking.

Thanks, the dreaded "Copy/Paste Error".

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

FicoMike0 — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 03:25:27 GMT

I'll add a few more, since I have so many,

Amex rewards checking no fee no min

Associated no fee no min

Bmo smart advantage no fee no min

Capone no fee no min

Dcu no fee no min

Fidelity investments, I have 3 different accounts, no fee, no min

Fifth third no fee no min

Huntington no fee no min

Penfed no fee no min

Robin hood no fee no min

us bank fee waived for old, young, cc holders, $6.95

Wes Banco no fee no min

Some have other accounts with fees.

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

CYBERSAM — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 03:34:46 GMT

"How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees"?? Open a checking account with Credit Union. 🤑👍

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

SouthJamaica — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 12:21:38 GMT

Bear in mind that banks keep changing their requirements for waiving maintenance fees.

One of the reasons I prefer credit unions to banks.

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

FicoMike0 — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 14:42:13 GMT

There's also the issue of early closing fee or penalty. Most don't have them, some have 6 months. It's generally considered poor form to close after less than 6 months anyway. The only one I have a special note on is associated, they claw back bonus if closed less than a year. They offer $600 sub, I'll put up with them for a year with no fee no min. Who knows, I might decide I like them.

my strategy is close single account banks first, get their app off my phone. Since I have both a cc and attractive savings at capone, I have to force myself to close checking there.

I should close amex, but I kinda like them. Everyone has a visa or mc debit card, amex, not so much. Only rewards debit card I have too, but I never spend with debit, lol. Irrational.

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

CorpCrMgr1 — Wed, 17 Apr 2024 04:42:34 GMT

Having a CU for my main financial institution, another for certain expenses, and a major bank, I don't play the SUB any longer. Did it a couple of times and it wasn't fun. Just my experience.

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

Anonymous — Wed, 17 Apr 2024 18:41:43 GMT

I believe OP isn't really looking for free checking per se, they presumably are targetting accounts with good SUBs, and then wondering how to avoid fees on those. But since that can be hard, going for lower SUBs on accounts without minimums (or otherwise easily waivable fees) may make more sense

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

Horseshoez — Wed, 17 Apr 2024 19:30:24 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I believe OP isn't really looking for free checking per se, they presumably are targetting accounts with good SUBs, and then wondering how to avoid fees on those. But since that can be hard, going for lower SUBs on accounts without minimums (or otherwise easily waivable fees) may make more sense

To be a really good sub chaser you need to be in an Alula-class sub.

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

FicoMike0 — Wed, 17 Apr 2024 21:57:33 GMT

@Horseshoez that brings up the triva question, what is the most powerful fighting vehicle in history?

The Ohio class sub! Worldwide unrefueled range, carries 24 trident slbms each of which carries 8 reentry vehicles, allowing it to attack 192 targets. Each rv delivers a 400 kt warhead, more than 10 x the yield of the Hiroshima or Nagasaki devices.

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

Beast26 — Thu, 18 Apr 2024 23:14:14 GMT

Yes this is right. I saw some people on doctor of credit comments saying they get the monthly fee on some banks waived sometimes if the bonus takes a while to hit. I know BMO bank right now requires a $10,000 daily balance to keep the highest account free. I've also seen where some have downgraded and upgraded their accounts before the bonus hit also.

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

Anonymalous — Thu, 18 Apr 2024 23:56:09 GMT

Transfering over some money 1/month frequently works, because their systems can't always tell the difference between a random ACH transfer and a direct deposit, and DDs are usually one of the ways to bypass the monthly charges. But that requires some research and luck, because banks often exclude ACH transfers from other popular institutions, and the only way to tell is crowd-sourced DPs. Some like Chase are very restrictive, though many smaller financial institutions will see almost any ACH as a DD. The only real guarantees are if you use a real direct deposit from your employer (works best if you can just login and switch it), or if you have a subscription to one of the online payroll systems.

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

FicoMike0 — Fri, 19 Apr 2024 14:16:28 GMT

Right about bmo and the fee is $25. However, their 2nd tier account is no fee, no min. Their bonus timeline is long, 120 days. I went with the 2nd tier account for a lesser sub, to avoid fee. Opened in December, just collected the $400!

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

ptatohed — Fri, 19 Apr 2024 21:29:24 GMT

@Beast26 wrote:
How do you guys avoid high maintenance fees with checking accounts have a minimum daily balance of around $5000 when churning multiple bank accounts? Do you actually leave the $5000 tied up on the account for the duration of getting the bonus or is there another way?

Oftentimes, it is $5,000 collectively among all deposit accounts and this can include savings and even CDs.

Re: How to Avoid Checking Account Maintenance Fees

FicoMike0 — Sat, 20 Apr 2024 00:00:02 GMT

I think $5000 is often mostly with chase. Even the wells cargo highwaymen only ask for $500. And that can be gotten around by smirfing a dd monthly. Amex, CapOne, Fidelity all are no fee, no min. USB is if your young, old or have their cc.