3rd Quarter 2022 update. Each year, I have a side goal of earning the equivalent of the maximum annual IRA contribution limit ($6,000 for 2022) using the profits from various finance promotions alone. In 2021, I reached $5,592 in bonuses and $2,500+ in extra interest. If you had put $6,000 into your IRA every year for the recent 10 year period (2011-2020) and invested in a simple Target Date retirement fund, you would have turned small, weekly deals into a $100,000+ nest egg.
That’s worth repeating: An extra hundred grand has been the real-world result of regularly investing $500 a month for 10 years! A couple could double these numbers.
Ground rules: Real-world results for one real person only. Following with My Money Blog tradition, this will track my personal, real-world results. It would be quite easy to list a bunch of random promotions that add up to $6,000, but these will be promotions that I personally sign up for and complete the requirements (even though I’ve already opened so many bank accounts, credit cards, and brokerage accounts over the years). I will track my individual results only, although my partner does also participate on a more selective basis. Nearly all of them have been documented in real-time in the Deals and Offers category, Top 10 credit cards list, and brokerage bonus list.
The symbol means I have received and/or cashed out the bonus successfully. The
symbol means the promo is still in progress.
2022 bonuses and promotions (so far)
- SoFi Checking $300 Direct Deposit Bonus (still live)
- Current fintech app $50 Bonus (still live)
- Amazon “Pay With Points” offers from American Express, Discover, Chase, Citibank (check if targeted)
- Schwab Brokerage $101 Starter Kit Promo (still live)
- Lafayette Federal Credit Union $100 Bonus (still live)
- Capital One Venture X $200 AirBnB Credit + $100 Global Entry (offer changed but still $600+ first year value)
- Gemini $150 Bitcoin bonus (expired)
- Chase Aeroplan Credit Card 100k Bonus + $100 Global Entry (offer changed but still $600+ first year value)
- CIT Bank Free Year of Amazon Prime (still live)
- M1 Spend Checking Account $100 bonus (expired)
- Marcus Bank $100 Deposit Bonus (expired)
- Citi Premier Credit Card 80,000 points worth $800 in gift cards or travel like airfare booked via their travel portal + $100 Global Entry (still live)
- Axos Invest Brokerage $150 bonus (still live)
- Axos Bank $100 bonus (still live)
- SoFi Personal Loan $600 bonus (still live, now $300)
- Fidelity Bloom App $86 bonus (still live)
- Target Deal Days 2022: 5% Off $500 in Gift Cards (expired)
- Amazon Prime Day 2022: $10 stampcard, $12.50 gift card promo (expired)
- Plynk brokerage app $50 Learn & Earn bonus (still live)
- CreditUnion 1 $500 checking account promo (still live)
- Public ACAT transfer bonus (Up to $10k, I did the $2,000 tier) (still live)
- SoFi $1,000 deposit bonus (expired)
- Amazon “Pay With Points” offers (see above; got another $40 of easy savings during October Prime Day)
- Ally Bank $500 deposit bonus (still live)
The total tally is currently $6,227 in cashed-out bonuses, which is 104% of the $6,000 annual IRA contribution limit. There are still another $2,000 in pending bonuses that are in progress but haven’t posted yet.
I can’t do every deal that I post because I’ve already had many of credit cards out there too recently. In addition, I’m sure there are many opportunities that might be valuable to you, that wouldn’t work for my travel patterns or personal preferences. For those new to this hobby, I would first grab the low-hanging fruit like the Chase Sapphire Preferred or the Chase Sapphire Reserve and build up a nice stash of flexible Ultimate Rewards points. After that, the Citi Premier and Capital Venture X are probably the juiciest low-hanging fruit.
These numbers included fixed bonuses for short-term asset transfers, but ignore higher interest rates overall from buying US Treasury bonds or savings bonds. They also ignore ongoing credit card purchase rewards like 2% to 2.6% cash back on all credit purchases (or airline miles or hotel points) and 5% cash back on specific categories.
This is an enjoyable and profitable hobby for me, but I don’t like to waste my time either. I look for a solid return based on the time commitment required. I tend to avoid speculative bets, bonuses that are hard to convert to real value, and anything that requires driving to stores where things may or may not be in stock. The deals that I post usually last at least a few days, but it’s a bit like value investing where you have to be ready to get off your butt and take decisive action when an opportunity shows up, because they won’t last forever.
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Free Fully-Funded IRA 2022 Q3 Update: $6,227 in Bonuses So Far! from My Money Blog.
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