Perkstreet Financial Review

You’ve probably seen a few ads and articles about Perkstreet Financial. Even Dave Ramsey recommends Perkstreet. So what’s all the hype about? Well I did a little research and even opened my own account so that I could find out myself that Perkstreet is legit.

If you’re just finding out about Perkstreet, you might have all kinds of questions.

Is Perkstreet Financial a scam? (No, I use the account myself.)
Why are they just online?
How do the perks work?
How can I access my money?

Don’t worry – I’ll answer all of these. But first, here’s a brief summary of Perkstreet and a few quick facts about it.

Just The Facts about Perkstreet

Perkstreet Financial is an online bank that rewards its customers with ‘perks’ they can redeem for gift cards, cash, or even donate to charity. The cool part about Perkstreet is that you earn perks by using your debit card. That’s right, no credit card needed here. As long as you use your debit card in non-pin transactions, you get perks (i.e. don’t use your pin, hit ‘cancel’ or ‘credit’ just like you would for any other debit card).

Perkstreet is a regular bank with out the regular problems we’ve been hearing about in the news. If you’re tired of hearing about outrageous bank fees and charges, you’ll be glad to see these features over at Perkstreet:

Free Checks
No account maintenance fees
Nation’s largest free-ATM network (over 37,000)
Free online banking and bill-pay
No minimum balance required
Ability to transfer money electronically
Set up automatic deposits from your employer
24/7 customer support
Fraud protection

The Perks

Remember those perks I mentioned earlier? Here’s how you earn them:

1% cash back on all non-PIN purchases as long as your checking balance is less than $5,000 at the start of the day.
2% cash back on all non-PIN purchases if your checking balance is $5,000 or more at the start of the day.
5% cash back on all non-PIN purchases when you shop at select retailers announced on PerkStreet’s blog, Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Redeeming Your Perks

You can choose from a number of different options when you redeem your rewards. If you want cash, select the MasterCard gift card. If you’re a coffee addict, choose the Starbucks gift cards. They even have an Amazon.com gift card option that you get via email.

Most perks will come in the mail as gift cards for you to use as you choose. Pretty sweet if you ask me!

So how much can you earn in perks?

Perkstreet estimates that the average family can see about $600 a year in perks. That’s like getting a free $50 gift card every month. Now that’s a nice bonus just for using your own money.

Why can Perkstreet Give These Perks?

Perkstreet doesn’t have branch offices, which means they have very limited overhead expenses. They money they save by being an online bank gets translated into perks for us. With their overhead being so low, they can afford to treat their customers well – a win for us and a win for them.

Since Perkstreet is a Bank, Is My Money Insured?

Yes, FDIC insures your account up to $250,000.

How Do You Make Deposits?

You ‘re able to mail the checks with a postage paid envelope to Perkstreet via standard mail.

You can also use their free overnight delivery option. UPS Stores® or Mailboxes Etc.® will allow you to send your checks overnight.

If you want to deposit cash, you can use MoneyGram® ExpressPayment℠ or you can fund it from outside accounts via ACH.

How to Open a Perkstreet Financial Account

If you have 5 minutes, you can open up an account right away. That’s all it took me and I was able to set everything up online.

I know a lot of people who use Perkstreet as their primary checking account. This is definitely a good way to build up perks quickly! We use it as a secondary checking account, which is nice because it allows us to keep our finances organized.

Whether you’re a college student looking for a way to earn few extra bucks each month or a family that could use a few extra perks to the tune of an average $600 per month, check out Perkstreet. Don’t just take my word (or Dave Ramsey’s for that matter), check it out for yourself.

Are you earning rewards for debit card purchases already? What would you do with an extra $600 a year?