Meet $1,000 Minimum Spend & Earn $200 Bonus!

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Looking for a way to meet the minimum spending requirements to earn the sign-up bonus on your new credit card?  Via Doctor of Credit, you can open a bank account at Seacoast Bank and fund an initial deposit up to $1,000 with a credit card.

And, you can earn up to a $200 sign-up bonus after meeting certain requirements with the bank through June 30, 2016!

I’ll show you how it works!

What’s the Deal?

Link:   Seacoast Bank $200 Bonus Checking Account

There are 2 parts to make the most of this deal.

1.   Fund a $1,000 deposit to a checking account using a miles and points credit card

Instead of using cash or a check to make an initial deposit to your Seacoast Bank account, you can use a Visa or MasterCard credit card.

But before you do this, it’s a good idea to call your credit card company and set your cash advance limit to $0.  That way, if the funding codes as a cash advance, the transaction won’t go through.  If you can’t set it to $0, try a small number, like $20.

Folks report success using the Bank of America Alaska Airlines and Chase Sapphire Preferred cards.  Others noted Barclaycards did NOT work because the transaction coded as a cash advance.

2.   Earn a $200 bank sign-up bonus

For new bank customers, you can earn the following bonuses through June 30, 2016, although the bank could end the deal early:

• $100 bonus after set-up of a $500 direct deposit within the first 2 months
• $100 bonus after making 15 debit card purchases within the first 2 months

If you don’t want to set-up a direct deposit, it’s possible to move money from AMEX Serve (or another banking account) to Seacoast Bank, which counts towards the direct deposit requirement according to comments on this post.

After meeting the requirements, folks report receiving the bonus in their account within 73 days.

Here are tips to quickly make 15 transactions to help you earn the bonus!

Watch Out for Account Fees

The bank account has a $7 monthly fee unless you receive e-statements and:

• Complete 7 debit card purchases per month OR
• Have $250 per month in direct deposits

There is also a $30 account termination fee if the account is closed within 90 days.

So before you sign-up for an account, see if you can meet the requirements to avoid fees.  Or, the fee might be worth paying for a month or two if you earn miles and points AND a $200 bonus – not to mention complete a minimum spending requirement!

Bottom Line

Seacoast Bank is offering a $200 sign-up bonus for new checking accounts opened through June 30, 2016.  To earn the full bonus, you must set-up $500 in direct deposits AND make 15 debit card purchases within the first 2 months.

You can fund a $1,000 initial deposit using certain Visa or MasterCard credit cards to earn miles and points and meet minimum spending requirements.  Remember to contact your bank to limit the cash advance amount on your card to avoid fees.

If you’re looking for other ways to earn your credit card sign-up bonus, here’s my list of 40+ ways to complete your minimum spending!