If you're experiencing issues with a current or attempted bank connection, this guide will walk you through common problems and potential fixes.
Common Bank Connection Errors
Blank Screen After Selecting a Bank
This is often a browser-related issue. To resolve:
Enable third-party cookies in your browser.
Restart your browser, then try connecting again.
Instructions by Browser:
Chrome:
Go to
Chrome > Preferences > Advanced > Content Settings > CookiesEnsure “Block third-party cookies” is set to OFF
Safari:
Go to
Safari > Preferences > PrivacySet “Cookies and website data” to Always allow
Successful Connection but No Accounts Found
This means your login credentials were accepted, but additional information is likely missing.
To resolve:
Log in to your bank directly (outside of Stessa).
Verify and update all personal info:
Email
Mailing address
Phone number
Ensure all security and challenge questions are completed.
Log out of your bank, return to Stessa, and try again using the secure connection link.
"Fix It" Errors or No Data Import
If your bank connection shows an error and the "Fix It" process fails:
Try this:
On the connected accounts page, click the gear icon next to the bank name.
Select “Refresh Account.”
Follow prompts and answer security questions if needed.
If the error persists, please note that our third-party data providers (e.g., Yodlee, MoneyKit) are likely working on it. Some fixes may take days or weeks, depending on the complexity and priority level.
If you are still experiencing an issue, reach out to our support team using the messenger in the bottom right corner.
Why Did My Bank Connection Break in the First Place?
The U.S. banking system consists of 10,000+ financial institutions, each with its own security protocols, technology stack, and data formats. Unlike standardized systems such as credit card networks, there is no single universal protocol that all banks follow for third-party data access. This means that:
Banks update their security settings frequently, causing existing connections to break.
Banks change their user-interfaces, often without notice, causing scrapers relied on by the data aggregators to break.
Banks may require, and frequently update, multi-factor authentication (MFA) or additional verification steps that disrupt automated syncing.
Many smaller banks and credit unions lack robust API infrastructures, making their connections less stable and forcing the aggregators to rely on outdated scraping technology.
Third-party data providers must continually adapt to new formats, authentication changes, and evolving security requirements—an ongoing challenge.
Data aggregators are forced to prioritize scarce resources in favor of keeping up with changes made by larger banks that impact a larger number of customers. Smaller regional and local banks are often less of a priority for data aggregators to maintain.
Why Smaller Banks Are More Likely to Experience Issues
If you bank with a major institution like Chase, Bank of America, or Wells Fargo, you’ll likely experience fewer connection problems because these banks invest heavily in digital banking infrastructure. We cannot stress this point about the reliability of larger banks enough. On the other hand, smaller regional banks and credit unions, some of which are favored by rental property owners due to their lending flexibility, tend to be less stable for automated transaction syncing because:
They may not fully support third-party integrations, or may not support them at all!
Their technical teams are smaller, meaning connection issues take longer to resolve.
They might change their security and login requirements more frequently, requiring users to reauthorize access more often.
Maintaining data access for the “long-tail” of the US banking system is often not economically feasible for data aggregators. Continued consolidation in the banking industry means that the ratio of total banking transactions sourced to a relatively small number of ever-bigger banks will likely continue to rise. This creates an incentive for data aggregators to prioritize uptime and reliability for the big players at the expense of many of the local and regional banks that some real estate investors prefer.
If you frequently experience disruptions, consider whether your bank’s infrastructure, size, and brand recognition is likely to be suitable for reliable automated transaction imports over the long run. Stessa does not directly maintain data connections with external banking, mortgage, or credit card institutions. Our model relies on third party aggregators to provide these secure connections. Ultimately, Stessa does not decide how these third party aggregators allocate scarce resources across their backlog of broken connections.
What We’re Doing to Help
We are constantly working with our banking data providers to monitor and flag connection issues. While we have some influence with our data aggregators, we have no control over their prioritization queue. Here’s what we do on our end:
Proactive Monitoring: We track connection stability and escalate issues when we detect significant outages that impact a number of our customers.
Direct Vendor Communication: We work closely with data providers like Yodlee and MoneyKit to advocate for more transparency and faster fixes.
User Alerts & Support: If we detect a major issue with a particular bank, we update our users with status alerts and troubleshooting guidance.
How You Can Help Ensure Reliable Transaction Syncing
At the end of the day, the reliability of your bank connection depends largely on the institution you choose. If seamless syncing is critical to you, selecting a well-supported bank is the obvious decision.
For rental property owners looking for a 100% reliable syncing experience, we recommend opening a Stessa Cash Management account. Since Stessa accounts are natively integrated with our platform, all transactions sync instantly and without interruption—ensuring your rental property finances are always accurate and up-to-date.
Alternatively, if you prefer to use an external bank account, we recommend opening an account with a major financial institution such as Chase, Bank of America, or Wells Fargo. These banks have well-established APIs, making their connections significantly more stable compared to smaller regional banks and credit unions. While not 100% reliable, choosing a large, tech-forward bank can provide a much more reliable syncing experience with fewer disruptions.
If you’re looking for specific bank recommendations, we have found that the following institutions generally seem to deliver stable and reliable data platforms for third-party connections:
USAA
Capital One
American Express
TD Bank
Chase
Wells Fargo
Bank of America
Fidelity
PNC
US Bank
Citi
Navy Federal CU
SoFi
Truist
Vystar CU
Huntington Bank
Delta Community CU
Robins Financial CU
First National Bank of Texas (First Convenience Bank)
State Employees Credit Union (NC)
Woodforest National Bank
Wisely
Chime
We appreciate your patience as we work with our data aggregation partners to improve the reliability of financial data connections for all Stessa customers.