Plaid Data Privacy $58M Class Action Settlement (Venmo, Robinhood, Chime, SoFi, Coinbase, Etc)

Posted on March 9, 2022 // 2 Comments

Many online banking, stock trading, crypto, and fintech apps use the Plaid service to provide easy funding via your existing bank accounts. The price of this convenience is that you are providing some very sensitive data to a small, private company. They have your bank login information and can see all your transaction data. (Visa was in an agreement to acquire Plaid for over $5 billion, but it was cancelled to due antitrust concerns.) A recent Plaid class action lawsuit alleges the following improper actions:

The allegations include that Plaid: (1) obtained more financial data than was needed by a user’s app, and (2) obtained log-in credentials (username and password) through its user interface, known as “Plaid Link,” which had the look and feel of the user’s own bank account login screen, when users were actually providing their login credentials directly to Plaid. Plaid denies these allegations and any wrongdoing and maintains that it adequately disclosed and maintained transparency about its practices to consumers.

(You may have gotten an e-mail about this as early as mid-January. Thanks to those who sent it in as well. I still managed to forget about it until writing a post about firewall bank accounts to avoid such data privacy concerns.)

If you connected your financial account(s) to a mobile or web-based app that has used Plaid between January 1, 2013 and November 19, 2021 in the United States, you may be eligible for a payment from this class action Settlement. This might include Venmo, Robinhood, Chime, SoFi, Coinbase, OnJuno, Lili, M1 Finance, or Blockfi just off the top of my head. I don’t have any special insights about the merits of this lawsuit, but the proposed settlement amount is for $58 million with the payout per claim being unknown. The settlement also requires Plaid to:

  • Delete certain data from Plaid systems;
  • Inform Class Members of their ability to use Plaid Portal to manage the connections made between their financial accounts and chosen applications using Plaid and delete data stored in Plaid’s systems;
  • Continue to include certain disclosures and features in Plaid’s standard Link flow;
  • Enhance disclosures about Plaid’s data collection practices, how Plaid uses data, and privacy controls Plaid has made available to uses in Plaid’s End User Privacy Policy;
  • Minimize the data that Plaid stores; and
  • Continue to host a dedicated webpage with detailed information about Plaid’s security practices.

The deadline to submit a claim is April 28, 2022.

Filed Under: Banking, Deals & Offers //

Best Interest Rates on Cash – March 2022 Update

Posted on March 7, 2022 // 4 Comments

Here’s my monthly roundup of the best interest rates on cash as of March 2022, roughly sorted from shortest to longest maturities. I look for lesser-known opportunities available to individuals while still keeping your principal FDIC-insured or equivalent. I use this information for both my cash reserves and as possible bond substitutes. 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 3/7/2022.

Significant changes since last month: Pretty quiet. 7.12% Savings I Bonds still available if you haven’t done it yet. Treasury rates around the 1 and 2 year terms are rising, as with CD rates overall. In general, there still doesn’t seem to be much upside to locking in any length of CD at somewhere around 1% APY when there are so many short-term options nearly as good (or better). I like keeping my options open while waiting to see how much rates rise in 2022.

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.

  • 4% APY on $2,000/$6,000. Current offers 4% APY on up to $2,000 on each of their “savings pods”. Free users get 1 savings pod, while premium users get 3 savings pods. Potential promos include $50 bonus and “Premium free for life”. Please see my Current app review for details.
  • 3% APY on up to $100,000, but requires direct deposit and credit card spend. HM Bradley pay 3% APY if you open both a checking and credit card with them, and maintain $1,500 in total direct deposit each month and make $100 in credit card purchases each month. Please see my updated HM Bradley review for details.
  • 3% APY on 10% of direct deposits + 1% APY on $25,000. One Finance lets you earn 3% APY on “auto-save” deposits (up to 10% of your direct deposit, up to $1,000 per month). Separately, they also pay 1% APY on up to another $25,000 with direct deposit. New customer $50 bonus via referral. See my One Finance review.
  • 3% APY on up to $15,000, requires direct deposit and credit card transactions. Porte requires a one-time direct deposit of $1,000+ to open a savings account. Porte then requires $3,000 in direct deposits and 15 debit card purchases per quarter (average $1,000 direct deposit and 5 debit purchases per month) to receive 3% APY on up to $15,000. New customer bonus via referral. See my Porte review.
  • 1.20% APY on up to $50,000. You must maintain a $500 direct deposit each month for this balance cap, otherwise you’ll still earn 1.20% on up to $5,000. They also pay 4% on USDC stablecoin, but I avoid this as it is not FDIC-insured (and you can get higher rates elsewhere if you did want to hold USDC.) New customer $50 bonus via referral. See my OnJuno review.
  • 1.00% APY on up to $50,000 per account. SoFi is now offering 1% APY on the first $50k each of their checking, savings, and Vault accounts ($150k total possible). You must maintain a direct deposit each month of any amount. Convenient if you already have a relationship with them. $25 new Sofi Money account bonus. See my roundup of current SoFi bonuses.

High-yield savings accounts
Since the huge megabanks 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.

  • T-Mobile Money is still at 1.00% APY with no minimum balance requirements. The main focus is on the 4% APY on your first $3,000 of balances as a qualifying T-mobile customer plus other hoops, but the lesser-known fact is that the 1% APY is available for everyone. Thanks to the readers who helped me understand this. Unfortunately, some readers have reported their applications being denied.
  • AdelFi (formerly ECCU) is offering new members 1.01% APY on up to $25,000 when you bundle a High-Yield Money Market Account & Basic Checking. (Existing members can get 0.75% APY.) To join this credit union, you must attest to their statement of faith.
  • There are several other established high-yield savings accounts at closer to 0.50% APY. Marcus by Goldman Sachs is on that list, and if you open a new account with a Marcus referral link (that’s mine), they will give you and the referrer a 1.00% APY for your first 3 months (a 0.50% boost). You can then extend this by referring others.

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. CFG Bank has a 13-month No Penalty CD at 0.70% APY with a $500 minimum deposit. Ally Bank has a 11-month No Penalty CD at 0.50% APY for all balance tiers. Marcus has a 13-month No Penalty CD at 0.65% APY with a $500 minimum deposit. You may wish to open multiple CDs in smaller increments for more flexibility.
  • Comenity Direct has a 1-year CD at 1.00% APY ($1,500 min). Early withdrawal penalty is 180 days of interest.

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). Unfortunately, money market fund rates are very low across the board right now. Ultra-short bond funds are another possible alternative, but they are NOT FDIC-insured and may experience short-term losses at times. These numbers are just for reference, not a recommendation.

  • The default sweep option is the Vanguard Federal Money Market Fund which has an SEC yield of 0.01%.
  • Vanguard Ultra-Short-Term Bond Fund currently pays 0.97% SEC yield ($3,000 min) and 1.07% SEC Yield ($50,000 min). The average duration is ~1 year, so your principal may vary a little bit.
  • The PIMCO Enhanced Short Maturity Active Bond ETF (MINT) has a 0.85% SEC yield and the iShares Short Maturity Bond ETF (NEAR) has a 0.86% 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. 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. Right now, this section isn’t very interesting as T-Bills are yielding close to zero!

  • 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 3/7/2022, a new 4-week T-Bill had the equivalent of 0.17% annualized interest and a 52-week T-Bill had the equivalent of 1.05% annualized interest.
  • The Goldman Sachs Access Treasury 0-1 Year ETF (GBIL) has a 0.05% SEC yield and the SPDR Bloomberg Barclays 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF (BIL) has a -0.05% (!) SEC yield. GBIL appears to have a slightly longer average maturity than BIL.

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 2021 and April 2022 will earn a 7.12% 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 2022, 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 risk of messing 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.

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.

  • Lafayette Federal Credit Union is offering 2.02% APY on balances up to $25,000 with a $500 minimum monthly direct deposit to their checking account. No debit transaction requirement. They are also offering new members a $100 bonus with certain requirements. Anyone can join this credit union via partner organization ($10 one-time fee).
  • Quontic Bank is offering 1.01% APY on balances up to $150,000. May be useful for those with high balances. You need to make 10 debit card point of sale transactions of $10 or more per statement cycle required to earn this rate.
  • The Bank of Denver pays 2.00% APY on up to $10,000 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. If you meet those qualifications, you can also link a Kasasa savings account that pays 1.00% APY on up to $25k. Thanks to reader Bill for the updated info.
  • Presidential Bank pays 2.25% APY on balances between $500 and up to $25,000, if you maintain a $500+ direct deposit and at least 7 electronic withdrawals per month (ATM, POS, ACH and Billpay counts).
  • Evansville Teachers Federal Credit Union pays 3.30% APY on up to $20,000. You’ll need at least 15 debit transactions and other requirements every month.
  • Lake Michigan Credit Union pays 3.00% APY on up to $15,000. You’ll need at least 10 debit transactions and other requirements every month.
  • 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.

  • NASA Federal Credit Union has a special 49-month Share Certificate at 1.70% APY ($10,000 min of new funds). Early withdrawal penalty is 1 year of interest. They also have a 15-month special at 1.05% APY and 9-month at 0.80% APY.
    Anyone can join this credit union by joining the National Space Society (free). However, NASA FCU will perform a hard credit check as part of new member application.
  • KS StateBank has a 5-year CD at 1.90% APY ($500 min). Early withdrawal penalty is 18 months of interest.
  • 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 see a 5-year CD at 2.00% APY. Be wary of higher rates from callable CDs listed by Fidelity.

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 CD at 2.40% APY vs. 1.77% for a 10-year Treasury. Watch out for higher rates from callable CDs from Fidelity.
  • 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 which is quite low (currently 0.10%). I view this as a huge early withdrawal penalty. But if holding for 20 years isn’t an issue, it can also serve as a hedge against prolonged deflation during that time. Purchase limit is $10,000 each calendar year for each Social Security Number. As of 3/7/2022, the 20-year Treasury Bond rate was 2.29%.

All rates were checked as of 3/7/2022.

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

Problems with TASC Denying Dependent Care Expense Reimbursement With No Reason Provided?

Posted on March 6, 2022 // 20 Comments

My muscles tense up with just the thought of dealing with health insurance claims and flexible spending account reimbursement. I feel they are both incentivized to deny your claims and thus put up layers and layers of bureaucracy in the hopes that you’ll just give up. Sometimes I feel like I’m a customer of Insuricare.

I have actually skipped participating in FSAs for entire years due to bad administrators. At some point, the potential tax savings isn’t worth the added stress and time spent to submit $20 receipts for approval. However, I thought it might be different for the Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account (DCFSA). I can contribute $5,000 and a single preschool tuition alone was easily over that. Just one receipt and done! Right?

No. This is light paraphrasing of my recent interaction with TASC (Total Administrative Services Corporation), which is the benefits administration provider for our DCFSA. I wish I had a recording of the call; I really felt that I was in the movie Office Space. Even worse, it wasn’t this person’s fault. The highly-paid people who created this situation made sure they had a layer of low-paid workers shielding them from the actual customers (again, see Insuricare). You can skip to the end if you want the final resolution.

Me: Hi! I am checking in again on why my dependent care expense reimbursement request was denied (again).

TASC: I see that it was denied again. I can’t tell you why it was denied. I can tell you the things we usually look for: name of provider, name of service recipient, date, amount, and description of service.

Me: The receipt that I sent in has all of those things.

TASC: I see. I can tell you the things we usually look for: name of provider, name of service recipient, date, amount, and description of service.

Me: So which of those things was missing in my reimbursement request?

TASC: I can’t tell you that.

Me: Can I talk to the people who denied me?

TASC: No, you can’t talk to them. They are in a separate department. They don’t talk to customers. We talk to the customers.

Me: So I can’t talk to the people who denied my request. They are just allowed to deny my request without providing even the tiniest clue to say WHY they denied my request?

TASC: That is correct.

Me: So can you tell me EXACTLY what I need to do to get my reimbursement approved? I am contributing $5,000 of my paycheck to this Dependent Care FSA this year. It’s a lot of money.

TASC: You need to send in a new reimbursement request. I can tell you the things we usually look for: name of provider, name of service recipient, date, amount, and description of service.

Me: How should it be different than my previous reimbursement request?

TASC: I can’t tell you that.

Me: I must point out that I submitted the exact same documentation in 2020 and it was approved.

TASC: I can’t help you with that. I can tell you the things we usually look for: name of provider, name of service recipient, date, amount, and description of service.

Me: Umm… we don’t seem to be making any progress here. Can I talk to a supervisor?

Stitch Frustration GIFfrom Stitch GIFs

After an additional 15-minute hold time (where I reminded myself of the $1,000 in tax savings at the end of the rainbow) and another discussion with the supervisor, they finally told me about the existence of an alternative method: the TASC Dependent Care Contract. My preschool provider had to fill it out (I felt bad making more work for them), I signed it, scanned it, uploaded it, and it was finally approved. (There may be different versions of the form out there. I wouldn’t put it past them.)

Note that I had talked to three different customer service reps about my denied reimbursement request, and NONE of them mentioned this magical form. Only after escalating to a supervisor was this option finally revealed to me. I hope that some of these keywords will make it into Google and other search engines and help the next parent pulling out their hair.

If you want to cover all your bases, you should also ask your care provider to fill out IRS Form W-10, “Dependent Care Provider’s Identification and Certification” at the same time as the TASC form.

Filed Under: Deals & Offers, Family, Taxes //

Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card Review: 75,000 Bonus Miles + $300 Annual Travel Credit

Posted on March 3, 2022 // Leave a Comment

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Negative changes to lounge access starting February 2026. The card_name is the newest entry into the ultra-premium credit card category. It has a large new-cardholder bonus, loads of perks, and a hefty annual fee. The net result is a first-year value of well over $800! Let’s take a look at what it offers:

  • 75,000 bonus miles (equal to $750 towards travel) when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
  • $300 Annual Travel Credit. $300 annual credit for bookings through Capital One Travel. Book your choice of flights, hotel nights, or car rentals.
  • 10,000 bonus miles (equal to $100 towards travel) every year, starting on your first anniversary.
  • Up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck(R).
  • Airport lounge access. Enjoy access to 1,300+ lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass(TM) lounges, after enrollment.
  • $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection.
  • Annual fee is $395.

Here is the rewards structure on purchases:

  • 10X Miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, where you’ll get Capital One’s best prices on thousands of trip options. They offer a Price Match Guarantee.
  • 5X Miles per dollar on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Travel.
  • 2 Miles per dollar on every purchase, every day.
  • Redeem miles for any airline, any hotel, rental cars, and more.
  • Transfer your miles to your choice of 15+ travel loyalty programs.

Redemption details. Capital One “miles” can be redeemed directly for a cash statement credit on a 1 mile = $0.01 basis when offsetting any travel purchase made on the card within the past 90 days. In other words, 75,000 miles = $750 toward travel. That means you can fly on any airline or stay at any hotel, pay with this card, and then “erase” that purchase using your miles balance later. This even includes AirBNB vacation rentals, car rentals, and Uber rides.

This means that earning 2 miles on on every $1 in purchases essentially makes this a 2% back card when applied towards travel. Earn even higher rewards of 5 miles per $1 spent on on flights booked through Capital One Travel, and 10 miles per $1 spent on on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.

The Capital One Travel portal offers price matching: if you find a better price on another website within 24 hours of booking, they will refund you the difference.

Miles transfer options. Capital One now allows you to transfer your “miles” into select airline miles programs as well. Here are the airline transfer partners:

  • Aeromexico
  • Air France/KLM
  • Air Canada Aeroplan
  • Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
  • Avianca Lifemiles
  • British Airways Avios
  • Emirates Skywards
  • Etihad
  • EVA
  • Finnair
  • Qantas
  • Singapore Airlines Krisflyer
  • TAP Air Portugal
  • Turkish Airlines
  • Virgin Red

Hotel partners

  • Accor Live Limitless
  • Choice Hotels

If you know how to leverage one of these international airline miles programs, this can be a very valuable option. Otherwise, it’s nice to know you can always get a certain level of value by redeeming against any travel purchase.

Airport lounge access details. Capital One is creating their own lounges within select airports (currently only DFW). Venture X cardholders get unlimited access and can bring 2 free guests per visit. Additional cardholders are also free (no extra annual fee) and have the same benefits of bringing 2 free guests per visit.

As a Visa Infinite card, you also get Priority Pass membership, which includes access to 1,300+ participating VIP lounges, in more than 600 cities and more than 148 countries.

(UPDATE: Starting February 1, 2026, authorized users will no longer receive complimentary access and will need to pay $125 per year for each additional cardholder to retain lounge access. Additionally, guests for primary cardholders will no longer be included for free. Primary cardholders and authorized users will have to pay $35 per guest at Priority Pass lounges. Guest access for Capital One lounges and Landings will cost $25 to $45.)

Various other perks.

  • Cell phone protection. Protect your cell phone every time you pay your bill with your Venture X card. If it’s stolen or damaged, you’ll get reimbursed up to $800 per claim with a $50 deductible.
  • Primary rental car collision-damage waiver insurance.
  • No foreign transaction fees.
  • Complimentary Hertz Five Star® status. Perks include skipping the counter and a wider selection of cars. Note: You must activate this perk by registering through the link in your Capital One account.

Bottom line. The card_name is an ultra-premium rewards card that earns a minimum of 2 Miles per dollar on all purchases, which you can either redeem against any travel purchase or transfer to one of their airline/hotel partners. There is an new-customer offer of 75,000 bonus miles (worth $750 towards travel). If you can take advantage of the $300 annual travel credit, and add the 10,000 miles on every anniversary, then you’ve effectively offset the $395 annual fee in all future years.

Due to the $800+ first-year value, I will be adding this card to my list of Top 10 Best Credit Card Bonus Offers.

Filed Under: Credit Cards, Deals & Offers, General //

Big List of Free Stocks For New Commission-Free Brokerage Apps (Updated)

Posted on March 3, 2022 // 23 Comments

Updated. I have the strange hobby of trying out new fintech apps while also collecting their sign-up incentives. Here are several different brokerage apps that offer some variation of free stock trades, modern user interface, real-time quotes, and social sharing. Many are structured like a free lottery ticket with a minimum payout – the odds are that you’ll get a stock valued on the lower end of the ranges mentioned, but I have gotten a few big shares like AAPL before the recent split. They usually require a referral link, which means I can get some free stocks as well. A couple are offering 2X to 4X their usual bonuses right now.

WeBull 12 Free Fractional Stocks Offer

  • Open a Webull brokerage account Open an account and get 2 free fractional shares. Deposit any amount and get up to 10 free fractional shares..
  • WeBull will also reimburse you for a transfer fee up to $100 if you transfer at least $2,000+ value to WeBull from another brokerage.
  • WeBull offers free stock trades, free options trades, free crypto trades, and a full-featured brokerage account. This is a limited-time offer, the standard offer is only one free share of stock.
  • I have done this deal and gotten my free share of stock as promised without issue. See my WeBull review for more details.

SoFi Invest Free $25 in Stock Offer

  • Open a SoFi Invest account and deposit at least $10 to get $25 worth of stock.
  • SoFi offers free stock trades, free fractional trades, and free crypto trades.
  • I have done this deal and gotten my free share of stock as promised without issue.

TradeUP Free Stocks Offer

  • Open an account for a free stock worth up to $30. Fund your account to draw additional free stocks, depending on how much you deposit. See link for details.
  • TradeUP will also reimburse you for a brokerage transfer fee up to $200 if you meet their requirements.
  • TradeUP is a backed by Marsco Investment Corporation and offers free stock trades, free real-time quotes, and a full-featured brokerage account.
  • I have done this deal and gotten my free stocks as promised without issue.

Public Free Stock Offer

  • Open a Public account via referral download link (open in mobile) and get a free stock slice. No deposit required.
  • Public app offers free fractional stock trades, in additional to the ability to share your portfolio.
  • I have done this deal and gotten my free share of stock as promised without issue. Be sure to open the link in a mobile web browser, which will redirect you to the app download.

Robinhood Free Stock Offer

  • Open a Robinhood account and link a bank account to get a free share of stock (up to $200 value). No deposit required.
  • Robinhood app offers free stock trades, free fractional trades, and free crypto trades.
  • I have done this deal and gotten my free share of stock as promised without issue.
Filed Under: Deals & Offers, Investing //

University of the People: Tuition-Free, Accredited Online Degrees in Computer Science, Business Administration (MBA), Education (M.Ed.)

Posted on February 16, 2022 // 3 Comments

Did you know that there exists a tuition-free, accredited, online university where you can obtain an Bachelor’s degree in Computers Science, MBA, or Masters in Education for a tiny fraction of the cost of traditional universities? The University of the People was recently profiled by the NYT in How Can This University Charge Nothing for Tuition? (gift article).

Is is really free? Not quite, but I think the structure is very fair as it charges a small fee only when you are ready to earn course credit. From the NYT article:

The University of the People, which he founded in 2009, is an online-only institution that charges nothing for tuition. Students don’t have to pay for textbooks because all the educational material is made available for free online, and there’s no room and board because there’s no campus. They do have to pay $120 for each final exam, which they must pass to earn credits. For 40 courses, that adds up to $4,800 for a bachelor’s degree — although for students who face severe financial hardship, even the exam fees can be waived.

Here are the total approximate costs (not per year!) to earn a UoPeople degree:

Associate Degree: $2,460
Bachelor’s Degree: $4,860
Master of Business Administration (MBA): $2,940
Master of Education (M.Ed.): $3,180
Master of Science in Information Technology (MSIT): $3,660

To put this in context, if you assume four years for the BS/BA, that’s $100 a month. That’s less than the average monthly cable and internet bill.

The extra $60 is from the $60 application fee. You can also obtain transfer credit from your previous coursework and/or other free and low-cost educational sites like Saylor Academy, Sophia.org and Coursera to both speed up your progress and lower your total cost even further.

How is this possible?

How is it possible to make a degree so cheap? The instructors and many of the administrators, including Reshef, work for no pay. The chair of the President’s Council is John Sexton, president emeritus of New York University. Professors from top universities volunteer as deans. The instructors tend to be retired professors or recently minted Ph.D.s who are looking for teaching experience. Foundations and individual benefactors have also chipped in. “The amount of people who are willing to do good for the world is shockingly high,” Reshef told me recently.

This reminds of the intro for book Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink (same author as Power of Regret), where the author reminds us that in 1996 there would two options for an encyclopedia:

  • Microsoft Encarta, run by a huge and profitable company and written by paid experts.
  • Wikipedia, run by a lean non-profit and written entirely by unpaid volunteers.

Today, I probably check Wikipedia once a day and Encarta has been gone for over a decade. People are not solely motivated by money. We like to be part of a greater purpose. (Although I have tried to contribute to Wikipedia and gotten deleted unceremoniously.)

UoPeople won’t work for everyone, but I find it very fascinating. I wonder if they incorporate volunteer tutors or “TAs” as well to help the students along.

See also: 2020 follow-up article on Georgia Tech Online Master in Computer Science, first mentioned in 2013. Total tuition about $7,000.

Filed Under: College & Education, Deals & Offers //

Gemini Exchange: Bitcoin Bonus

Posted on February 14, 2022 // 25 Comments

(Update: After a incorrect trademark infringement claim and takedown request, Gemini has followed up and taken it back. I’ve brought back an edited version of the original post.)

Gemini is a crypto exchange offering a $150 bonus in Bitcoin if you open a new account and invest $1,000+ in crypto within the first 30 days. Buying the Gemini dollar (GUSD) stablecoin worked for me.

To find it, enter “gemini $150 bitcoin bonus” into Google.com. It should be the first result. I am not affiliated with this promotion. If you open a Gemini account through this promotion, I get nothing.

Here were the overall steps that I took:

  • Use the promo link above to start your application as a new customer. You may need to submit a driver’s license photo.
  • Link a bank account via Plaid.
  • Fund Gemini account via ACH. The daily max is $1,000.
  • Purchase $1,000 in crypto. The most conservative choice is GUSD, which is a stablecoin that is (supposed to be) backed 1:1 with US dollars and trades at a stable $1.00 value.
  • This should trigger the bonus, which arrived within 24 hours for me. You get $150 in Bitcoin, which can quickly go up or down in value.
  • I have kept my BTC and GUSD for now, but you can sell it for USD if you want. There are some transaction fees, roughly $3 for a $150 trade with the basic trading structure but possibly less with their ActiveTrader option.

Filed Under: Deals & Offers, Investing //

Best Interest Rates on Cash – February 2022 Update

Posted on February 6, 2022 // 5 Comments

Here’s my monthly roundup of the best interest rates on cash as of January 2022, roughly sorted from shortest to longest maturities. I look for lesser-known opportunities earning more than most “high-yield” savings accounts and money market funds while still keeping your principal FDIC-insured or equivalent. 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 2/6/2022.

Significant changes since last month: 7.12% Savings I Bonds still a good idea if you haven’t done it yet, $100 Marcus new deposit bonus is a good deal (details), HM Bradley 3% APY requirements relaxed a bit, new LFCU 2% APY account opening review. In general, there doesn’t seem to be much upside to locking in a 5-year CD at 1.50% when there are so many short-term options nearly as good (or better) while waiting to see how much rates rise in 2022.

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.

  • 4% APY on $2,000/$6,000. Current offers 4% APY on up to $2,000 on each of their “savings pods”. Free users get 1 savings pod, while premium users get 3 savings pods. Potential promos include $50 bonus and “Premium free for life”. Please see my Current app review for details.
  • 3% APY on up to $100,000, but requires direct deposit and credit card spend. HM Bradley pay 3% APY if you open both a checking and credit card with them, and maintain $1,500 in total direct deposit each month and $100 in credit card purchases each month. Please see my updated HM Bradley review for details.
  • 3% APY on 10% of direct deposits + 1% APY on $25,000. One Finance lets you earn 3% APY on “auto-save” deposits (up to 10% of your direct deposit, up to $1,000 per month). Separately, they also pay 1% APY on up to another $25,000 with direct deposit. New customer $50 bonus via referral. See my One Finance review.
  • 3% APY on up to $15,000, requires direct deposit and credit card transactions. Porte requires a one-time direct deposit of $1,000+ to open a savings account. Porte then requires $3,000 in direct deposits and 15 debit card purchases per quarter (average $1,000 direct deposit and 5 debit purchases per month) to receive 3% APY on up to $15,000. New customer bonus via referral. See my Porte review.
  • 1.20% APY on up to $50,000. You must maintain a $500 direct deposit each month for this balance cap, otherwise you’ll still earn 1.20% on up to $5,000. They also pay 4% on USDC stablecoin, but I avoid this as it is not FDIC-insured (and you can get higher rates elsewhere if you did want to hold USDC.) New customer $50 bonus via referral. See my OnJuno review.

High-yield savings accounts
Since the huge megabanks 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.

  • T-Mobile Money is still at 1.00% APY with no minimum balance requirements. The main focus is on the 4% APY on your first $3,000 of balances as a qualifying T-mobile customer plus other hoops, but the lesser-known fact is that the 1% APY is available for everyone. Thanks to the readers who helped me understand this. Unfortunately, some readers have reported their applications being denied.
  • Evangelical Christian Credit Union (ECCU) is offering new members 1.01% APY on up to $25,000 when you bundle a High-Yield Money Market Account & Basic Checking. (Existing members can get 0.75% APY.) To join this credit union, you must attest to their statement of faith.
  • There are several other established high-yield savings accounts at closer to 0.50% APY. Marcus by Goldman Sachs is on that list, and if you open a new account with a Marcus referral link (that’s mine), they will give you and the referrer a 1.00% APY for your first 3 months (a 0.50% boost). You can then extend this by referring others to the same offer. They are also offering a $100 new deposit bonus if you move over $10,000 in new money.

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. CFG Bank has a 13-month No Penalty CD at 0.62% APY with a $500 minimum deposit. Ally Bank has a 11-month No Penalty CD at 0.50% APY for all balance tiers. Marcus has a 7-month No Penalty CD at 0.45% APY with a $500 minimum deposit. You may wish to open multiple CDs in smaller increments for more flexibility.
  • Poppy Bank has a 1-year CD at 1.00% APY ($1,000 min). According to DepositAccounts, early withdrawal penalty is 90 days of interest.

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). Unfortunately, money market fund rates are very low across the board right now. Ultra-short bond funds are another possible alternative, but they are NOT FDIC-insured and may experience short-term losses at times. These numbers are just for reference, not a recommendation.

  • The default sweep option is the Vanguard Federal Money Market Fund which has an SEC yield of 0.01%.
  • Vanguard Ultra-Short-Term Bond Fund currently pays 0.68% SEC yield ($3,000 min) and 0.78% SEC Yield ($50,000 min). The average duration is ~1 year, so your principal may vary a little bit.
  • The PIMCO Enhanced Short Maturity Active Bond ETF (MINT) has a 0.60% SEC yield and the iShares Short Maturity Bond ETF (NEAR) has a 0.64% 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. 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. Right now, this section isn’t very interesting as T-Bills are yielding close to zero!

  • 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 2/4/2022, a new 4-week T-Bill had the equivalent of 0.05% annualized interest and a 52-week T-Bill had the equivalent of 0.88% annualized interest.
  • The Goldman Sachs Access Treasury 0-1 Year ETF (GBIL) has a -0.02% SEC yield and the SPDR Bloomberg Barclays 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF (BIL) has a -0.09% (!) SEC yield. GBIL appears to have a slightly longer average maturity than BIL.

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 2021 and April 2022 will earn a 7.12% 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 2022, 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 risk of messing 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.

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.

  • Lafayette Federal Credit Union is offering 2.02% APY on balances up to $25,000 with a $500 minimum monthly direct deposit to their checking account. No debit transaction requirement. They are also offering new members a $100 bonus with certain requirements. Anyone can join this credit union via partner organization ($10 one-time fee).
  • Quontic Bank is offering 1.01% APY on balances up to $150,000. May be useful for those with high balances. You need to make 10 debit card point of sale transactions of $10 or more per statement cycle required to earn this rate.
  • The Bank of Denver pays 2.00% APY on up to $10,000 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. If you meet those qualifications, you can also link a Kasasa savings account that pays 1.00% APY on up to $25k. Thanks to reader Bill for the updated info.
  • Presidential Bank pays 2.25% APY on balances between $500 and up to $25,000, if you maintain a $500+ direct deposit and at least 7 electronic withdrawals per month (ATM, POS, ACH and Billpay counts).
  • Evansville Teachers Federal Credit Union pays 3.30% APY on up to $20,000. You’ll need at least 15 debit transactions and other requirements every month.
  • Lake Michigan Credit Union pays 3.00% APY on up to $15,000. You’ll need at least 10 debit transactions and other requirements every month.
  • 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.

  • NASA Federal Credit Union has a special 49-month Share Certificate at 1.70% APY ($10,000 min of new funds). Early withdrawal penalty is 1 year of interest. They also have a 15-month special at 1.05% APY and 9-month at 0.80% APY.
    Anyone can join this credit union by joining the National Space Society (free). However, NASA FCU will perform a hard credit check as part of new member application.
  • American Heritage Credit Union has a 5-year CD at 1.50% APY ($1,000 min). Early withdrawal penalty is 12 months of interest. Anyone can join this credit union via partner organization (free).
  • 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 see a 5-year CD at 1.70% APY. Be wary of higher rates from callable CDs listed by Fidelity.

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 CD at 2.10% APY vs. 1.87% for a 10-year Treasury. Watch out for higher rates from callable CDs from Fidelity.
  • 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 which is quite low (currently 0.10%). I view this as a huge early withdrawal penalty. But if holding for 20 years isn’t an issue, it can also serve as a hedge against prolonged deflation during that time. Purchase limit is $10,000 each calendar year for each Social Security Number. As of 2/4/2022, the 20-year Treasury Bond rate was 2.29%.

All rates were checked as of 2/6/2022.

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

Amazon Prime Price Hike 2022: Save Money With Gift of Prime Membership

Posted on February 3, 2022 // 12 Comments

amazon200Amazon Prime has announced the following price increases (note that some links will show up if you are viewing this via e-mail newsletter, please read online):

  • Starting February 18th, 2022, new members will be charged $139/year for an annual Prime membership and $69/year for an annual Prime Student membership.
  • Starting March 25th, 2022, existing Prime members with an annual membership will renew at a rate of $139/year. Prime Student members with an annual membership will renew at a rate of $69/year.

You can still buy a Gift of Prime Membership for $119 (plus applicable taxes). It is unknown when this will increase in price. Here’s the rundown.

  • You can cancel the auto-renewal of your Amazon Prime membership in your account. You may have to go through a lot of “Are you sure?” prompts. They make it feel like you’re canceling your membership right then and there, but again you’re just canceling your auto-renewal. Your Prime membership will still continue through your anniversary date.
  • Buy a Gift of Prime Membership for $119 (plus applicable taxes) and send it to yourself or alternative e-mail. Note that if you try to apply the Amazon Gift of Prime when you have an active membership, it won’t work. You just get the exact value paid (including any taxes) in the form of an Amazon gift card. The goods news it that you can’t ever lose any value.
  • Set a calendar reminder of when your Amazon Prime year expires, and keep that e-mail with the gift membership link (perhaps in a special folder). If you apply the Amazon Gift of Prime the day after your current membership expires, then it will renew you with one year of Amazon Prime. You don’t need to start a new Amazon account or change your e-mail, everything will carry over from before. You’ll simply not have Prime for a day or less. Easy.

You can also choose to buy multiple years of Gift of Prime membership. Again, the worst case it that you redeem it for Amazon credit in the exact amount paid initially.

I also did this when Amazon hiked the price of Prime in 2018:

az_gift

Note that if you have an older grandfathered Amazon Prime that lets you have 5 household members share the benefits, you may not want that to expire.

Amazon Prime has a bunch of features beyond the faster shipping that are useful to me, including the Amazon Video and Amazon Music apps. There are also Prime-only deals throughout the year that try to take advantage of in order to offset the annual membership cost. On the other hand, it has been almost too easy at times to buy things on impulse.

Filed Under: Deals & Offers //

Lafayette Federal Credit Union Review: 2.02% APY on $25,000, $100 Bonus

Posted on February 1, 2022 // 48 Comments

Update: $100 bonus is expired. Wanted to report that I am had a bad experience with LFCU after being locked out of my account for over a week. Phone hold times were very long, I got routed to a service that promised to call me back, and then never called me back. E-mails also went unreturned. Maybe it’s just me.

Original post, may be outdated:

Lafayette Federal Credit Union (LFCU) has a respectable history of offering competitively-priced banking products. I recently joined and here is a quick review of their current promotions and the application process. Highlights:

  • 2.02% APY Checking account on up to $25,000 balance (details below).
  • $100 bonus for new members (details below)
  • Competitive CD rates: 7-month at 0.70% APY, 3-year at 1.01% APY, 5-year at 1.26% APY

Membership eligibility. You can view your membership eligibility options here, including working/living in the Washington, DC area. Anyone nationwide can join LFCU by joining the Home Ownership Financial Literacy Council (HOFLC) for a one-time $10 fee.

Account opening process. I went to the HOFLC.org website and paid my $10 to join. (I hope to spend more time exploring their resources later.) I had to attach a screenshot of my membership approval e-mail as part of my LFCU application. The LFCU application was finished completely online. I also had to upload a photo scan of my drivers license. My application was approved after a couple of days.

During the application, I was able to charge my initial opening deposit up to $750. This was classified as a purchase on my credit card (worth $15 at 2% cash back). Note that you must keep $50 that is “untouchable” in your Share Savings account as long as you are a member, which is a bit higher than that of other credit unions (usually around $10 to $25).

I applied through this $100 bonus page which includes promo code DD2022. (Update: I honestly can’t remember where I entered the code. You can however secure online message them directly through the membership application portal and confirm that you are signed up for this promotion. I received such a confirmation message promptly.) I must open a checking account and set up a $500+ direct deposit, and I can’t close the account within the first 6 months. Details:

Members who open a checking account and initiate a qualified direct deposit to Lafayette Federal Credit Union will receive a $50 deposit to their savings account. An additional $50 will be awarded after first direct deposit which must be deposited no later than 45 days after account opening. Cannot be combined with any other new member offers. Qualified direct deposit is a recurring direct deposit of a paycheck, pension, Social Security or other periodic payment of at least $500 into a checking account on a month-to-month basis made by an outside organization or agency. Must be eligible for membership. If account is closed within first 6 months, initial $50 promotional deposit will be deducted from account.

The first $50 showed up quickly:

Checking account 2.02% APY details. With the Checking account, they have “2% for ’22” promotion which pays 2.02% APY with a qualified monthly direct deposit of $500 or more on balances up to $25,000. The checking account otherwise has no minimum balance requirements or monthly maintenance fees.

To earn the 2.02% APY3 bonus rate, member must maintain at least one (1) qualified direct deposit of at least $500 per month. 2Qualified direct deposit is a recurring direct deposit of a paycheck, pension, or Social Security periodic payment of at least $500 into a checking account on a month-to-month basis made by an outside organization or agency.

If I keep $25,000 in there at 2% APY, that’s $500 of interest over a year. That’s also $275 more than it would earn in a 0.5% APY savings account. You can use that metric to judge if it is worth your additional efforts. That rough calculation also assumes both those rates stay constant over the next year.

So far, LFCU has been pleasant to work with and my questions were answered quickly and courteously. I hope that they continue to be aggressive in their banking products.

Filed Under: Banking, Deals & Offers //

Health Insurance Required to Cover Free At-Home COVID Tests Starting 1/15

Posted on January 11, 2022 // 4 Comments

If you’ve been facing the prospect of spending hundreds of dollars on at-home COVID tests so that you and/or your kids can go back to work/school after an exposure event, please note that starting Saturday, January 15th, health insurance companies will be required to cover 8 free At-Home COVID tests per person, per month. From NPR:

Insurance companies and health plans will be required to cover eight free over-the-counter at-home tests per covered individual per month, according to White House officials. For instance, a family of four all on the same plan would be able to get up to 32 of these tests covered by their health plan per month.

There is more information in this CMS.gov FAQ.

Starting January 15, most people with a health plan can go online, or to a pharmacy or store to purchase an at-home over-the-counter COVID-19 diagnostic test authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) at no cost, either through reimbursement or free of charge through their insurance. This applies whether you purchased your health plan on your own or whether you get health insurance through your job.

The test will either be free directly at the point of sale, if your health plan provides for direct coverage, or by reimbursement if you are charged for your test. Be sure to keep your receipt if you need to submit a claim to your insurance company for reimbursement. If your plan has set up a network of preferred providers at which you can obtain a test with no out-of-pocket expense, you can still obtain tests from other retailers outside that network. Insurance companies are required to reimburse you at a rate of up to $12 per individual test (or the cost of the test, if less than $12).

The actionable advice here is to perhaps not stock up on these COVID tests until January 15th. At that time, hopefully you’ll just be able to pick them up for free at the local pharmacy or health provider, but at the minimum you should save your receipts to be reimbursed. Given how much hassle reimbursement usually is, I’ll probably try to wait until I can have the pharmacy to deal with the insurance paperwork.

I say wait until 1/15 if you can, because of this:

Plans and insurers are required to cover at-home over-the-counter COVID-19 tests purchased on or after January 15, 2022. Plans or issuers may, but are not required by federal law to, provide such coverage for at-home over-the-counter COVID-19 tests purchased before January 15. Contact your health plan to inquire about getting reimbursed for tests purchased before January 15, 2022. Some states may have existing requirements related to coverage of at-home over-the-counter COVID-19 tests.

I’ve already bought several of these iHealth Antigen Rapid Tests (FDA-authorized) from Amazon and they have come a little faster than promised.

Filed Under: Deals & Offers //

Chase Freedom Flex® Credit Card Review: $200 Bonus, 5% Rotating Categories, 3% Back on Dining Out, No Annual Fee

Posted on January 10, 2022 // 6 Comments

The Chase Freedom Flex® Card is the new 5% cash back rotating category card for Chase, with the notable addition of 3% cash back on dining out and drugstore purchases. All of the popular features from the old Freedom remain as well: Up to 5% cash back on select categories throughout the year, no annual fee, and the ability to earn Ultimate Rewards points (useful in combination with Chase Sapphire cards). Highlights:

  • $200 cash bonus (20,000 Ultimate Rewards points) after $500 in purchases in your first 3 months.
  • 0% Intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases and balance transfers. 3% intro balance transfer fee when you transfer a balance during the first 60 days your account is open, with a minimum of $5. After that, the fee for future balance transfers is 5% of the amount transferred, with a minimum of $5.

Here are the ongoing features of the Freedom Flex:

  • 5X points (5% cash back) on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in rotating categories each quarter you activate.
  • 5X points (5% cash back) on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards(R).
  • 3X points on dining out, take-out, and eligible delivery services.
  • 3X points on drugstore purchases.
  • 1X points on all other purchases.
  • Cell phone insurance is one of the noteworthy World Elite Mastercard benefits. “Up to $800 per claim and $1,000 per year in cell phone protection against theft or damage for phones listed on cardmembers’ monthly bill.”
  • No annual fee.

Enroll after logging into your online account (look on the right-hand side). 5% rewards won’t apply until after you activate your rewards, so it is best to activate now before you forget. No annual fee.

Remember that these cards earn Ultimate Rewards (UR) points, which can then be redeemed for cash at 1 UR point = $0.01. Therefore, you can either view a category as 3X points per dollar points, or 3% cash back. When UR points are transferred to a Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Sapphire Reserve card, they can become much more valuable when converted to frequent flier miles or hotel points. For example, if you have the Chase Sapphire Reserve, 5x points = 5 United miles per dollar spent, 5 Hyatt points per dollar spent, or 7.5% value back towards travel redeemed at the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal.

This is a new card (different than the regular Chase Freedom Visa), so everyone should be eligible for the bonus, but Chase does have an unofficial rule that they will automatically deny approval on new credit cards if you have 5 or more new credit cards from any issuer on your credit report within the past 2 years (aka the 5/24 rule). This rule is designed to discourage folks that apply for high numbers of sign-up bonuses. This rule applies on a per-person basis, so in our household one applies to Chase while the other applies at other card issuers.

If you have an existing Chase card like the original Freedom card, you may be able to convert to this card by calling them directly. You won’t get the sign-up offer, but you will get the new ongoing features.

Bottom line. The Chase Freedom Flex® Card is a unique rewards card that lets you earn 5% cash back on select categories each quarter, in addition to a constant 3% cash back on dining out and drugstore purchases. If you have a Chase Sapphire card, this card is a great way to earn Ultimate Rewards points while using the additional redemption options of the Sapphire (hotel points, airline miles, and travel redemptions).

Filed Under: Credit Cards, Deals & Offers //
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