If YOU want to take advantage of the $100 offer, you must be a new Citibank customer, and USE THIS LINK.

Well, less than 12 hours later, when I was checking the Morning Deals on Consumerist, I found another promotion for the exact same Citibank savings account, this one with a $100 sign up bonus!! (Link: Citibank $100 sign up bonus) D’OH!

So by signing up last night, I made $50, but if I had waited until this morning, I could have made $100! What a cruel, cruel world. I sent Citibank a nice email telling them about my dilemma and asking if I was eligible for the $100 sign up bonus. Maybe I’ll get lucky and get another $50. Fingers are crossed.

My only concern is the number of accounts I have open right now. Currently, a checking and savings account at ING and two more checking and another savings over at WaMu. I think that’s even a little overboard.

So my question, then, is having too many banking accounts dangerous? Is there a magic number? Anybody know?

Then again, fifty bucks is fifty bucks, and I guess I could always close the account once I get the bonus.

I hadn’t heard of these regulations either, until a few months ago. This is not something the banks do a good job of letting customers know about. I’ve had to be especially careful when shuffling money around between my different accounts to avoid penalties myself. Consider yourself warned!!!

My Mint has a couple other banking regulations you should know about, including Check 21 and reporting bank errors.

If you’ve missed anything in the past two months, here’s what I’ve done to help myself out financially:

• Saved $75 using coupons
• Saved $300 canceling my gym membership
• Opened up an interest earning checking account at ING
• Lowered my credit card interest rates and increased my credit limits
• Started earning interest borrowing $16,800 from credit card companies for FREE, taking advantage of 0% balance transfers
• Checked my free credit report
• Opened a ROTH IRA and maxed out my 2006 contribution
• Opened a Washington Mutual Savings Account earning 5% interest
• Will save $500 a year by driving slower
• Participated in my first Blog Carnival
• Will save about $400 a year by shopping around for car insurance
• Managed to grow my net worth by 33%

I’d say I’m off to a pretty good start. So thank you all for reading and commenting, and here’s to many months to come!

The next day, after my balance transfer checks cleared, I moved the $16,800 into the new savings account and started earning some interest. I had originally planned to move the money to my ING savings account, but after some thought, opened the wamu account instead. One reason was the interest rate. The extra half percent over ING will work out to about $85 extra throughout the year. Also, after the headache trying to cash the checks, I figured it would be easier and quicker to transfer within Washington Mutual accounts. The transfer from checking to savings was immediate, where if I transferred to ING, it would have taken 2-3 days. Not a huge deal, but it would have cost me another $5-$8 in interest waiting for the transfer to take place. I really enjoy my ING accounts, but it just made more sense to stick with Washington Mutual.

WaMu: It’s our policy to hold credit card checks for 11 days because most of them bounce due to insufficient funds. It’s also an out of state check so we have to hold it for 11 days. The best I can do is release $4,900 tomorrow, and the rest of it in 11 days.
Me: That’s not good enough. Let me talk to your manager.
WaMu: Hi sir, as a courtesy to you, I can release $2,000 right now, $5,000 tomorrow, and the rest in 11 days.
Me: That’s not a courtesy. I don’t want any courtesies. I gave you two checks for $16,800, and I want my money.
WaMu: Well, how much to you want right now?
Me: I want all of it right now.
WaMu: I’m sorry I can’t do that.
Me: You’re holding my money hostage. Please stop treating me like a criminal and assuming my checks won’t cash. I’ve been a customer for 8 years and never had a problem.
WaMu: I can try and call the credit card company to check the funds. Do you have a copy of the check?
Me: No, I don’t have a copy of the checks, I gave them to YOU to cash!
WaMu: Hold on a second, let me talk to the teller.
(On hold for 5 Minutes)
WaMu: I found a copy of your check, I’ll call them and then call you right back.
Me: Thank you.
(15 minutes later)
WaMu: I got a hold of the credit card company and the checks are OK. You’re money is available.
Me: THANK YOU!

And just like that, all $16,800 was available immediately. It’s important to note I never got mad or yelled at the supervisor, that wouldn’t have gotten me anywhere. I stayed calm and they eventually were able to help me out. My faith is now restored in Washington Mutual. I can now rest a little easier knowing my money isn’t in limbo and I’m finally earning some interest.

They gave me a whole list of reasons for this: the balance of my account (I only had $150 or so since I switched over to ING checking), I’d never deposited this much money before, the checks were out of state (Citi is based in South Dakota), all checks over $5,000 have to be put on hold. Needless to say, I was a bit upset. I could maybe understand a 48 hour delay while they check with Citi Bank, but 11 days?? This is 2007, is it not?? I felt like they were treating me like a criminal trying to cash bogus checks.

I talked to a supervisor at the branch, and then called their customer service line when I got home, but both gave me the same story. The only hope I have to getting the money any earlier is to plead with the branch manager. They told me to call back in 2 days to check on the status of the checks, and then they could possibly expedite things.

I think my mistake was trying to go through Washington Mutual. I should have just mailed the checks direct to ING to cash. Even if they had to hold the checks, the money would be in the right place. I guess that is the problem with an online bank: there’s no easy way to deposit money. By my calculations, I’m losing just over $2.00 a day waiting for the checks to clear.

Simply put, credit card arbitrage is borrowing money from a credit card company using a 0% balance transfer offer, putting that money into a high yield savings account for the length of the 0% promotion, then paying off the original loan and pocketing the interest. Taking out $10,000 with 0% interest for a year and putting that into an account earning 4.5% APY, you’ll earn (before taxes) about $450. Now, there are a TON of issues to consider, and this scheme is NOT FOR EVERYBODY.

First, for the length of the 0% promotion, you must still pay your minimum payments every month. If you miss a payment or are late, you can kiss the 0% APR goodbye and you’ll start paying around a 30% APR. It’s VERY important to stay on top of payments. It’s also important to pay off the entire balance before the end of your promotional terms. Any interest you gain could quickly get eaten up with finance charges at a regular interest rate. Also, the other major drawback is your credit score. Opening up the cards, plus maxing out your limits will put a strain on your credit score that could potentially impact any loans in the near future. In my case, I’m not looking to take out any new loans in the next 12-18 months, so it’s not an issue.

That said, if you’re on top of your finances and don’t mind a dent in your credit score, there’s a pretty easy way to earn some free money. I’ve applied for a couple cards and have requested some balance transfers already, so please stay tuned as I’ll give you all the details along the way.