Capital One checking 360 questions

[FICOlearner123]

I am looking to open a Capital One checking 360 for the sign up bonus via direct deposit

https://www.capitalone.com/bonus400/

1. Do they do a hard inquiry?

2. Is it advisable to open a checking account just for Sign up Bonus?

3. Would closing the account in the future have any negative impact?

4. Is there a closing fee?

[DaveInAZ]

1. No HP on any credit report, but they do pull EWS (Early Warning Service) to check for any banking problems.

2. Sure. I did 7 bank accounts last year, I still have 4 of them, but will be closing 2 of those next month.

3. No. I did a Cap One Money Market account account just for the bonus in 2018 and closed it a month or so after they paid the bonus, and they welcomed me back for the checking bonus, and I have 4 Cap One CCs.

4. No. You should always check the account terms for any ETF (early termination fee), but Cap One doesn't have any.

[lyTENciL]

The other questions have been answered easily enough, but "Number 2 - is it advisable to open just for the bonus" is very subjective. It's worth it to me, but certainly there are pitfalls to consider, such as:

- Fees to maintain account and conditions for waiving fees. Banks can change fee structures at any time, and generate revenues from unsuspecting customers by assessing fees on previously free accounts.

- Time account must be open. Some will not pay bonus, will claw back bonus, or will assess fees if you close account within a period. I've seen 6 months on a few, and up to 1 year. Factor in maintenance fees and conditions for waiving over this extended period. (CapOne 360 will pay bonus some months out, spelled out in their terms, but once they deposit it you are fine to close).

- Minimum balance to earn bonus and/or waive fees. This is an opportunity cost if you have other means of earning higher returns over the period you will park these funds to earn/keep bonus.

- Taxes. You will pay tax on these. They are treated as dividend earnings, I believe.

- Future banking denials due to EWS and Chex hits. Opening lots of accounts could cause you to be denied at institutions, mainly some small CUs that run those reports and are sensitive to that behavior.

- Special conditions to earn bonus. Things like direct deposits, atm and debit transactions, estatements, are all commonly encountered. You have to decide if it is worth the hassle. This is especially crucial if you are juggling bonuses and jumping through multiple such hoops simultaneously. (CapOne has the DD requirement.)