The success (or failure) of this site will depend largely on us, the community, if we will support it with productive discussions. I believe that the strength of any forum depends on the members. With this said, let’s not rely on others but let it begin with us : )
@mikk1 suggested this thread so we can all share our experiences/plans in case our SSN gets compromised. here’s c&p of my post what I plan to do.
Here’s some notes to myself I’ve written just in case I find a new account opened in my/DH’s name that we did not authorize.
Hopefully, I do not have to write this kind of letter but in case I have to, I know exactly what to do.
I will keep a separate file of all these communications in case I need them in the future.
@tedteddy that’s true. Ripping VGC packages right in front of a cashier is one of the NO-NOs, it’s asking for trouble especially for those stores who require that your name be on the debit card you’re paying with.
I didn’t see this deal posted here, I got the email to activate offer for free eggs up to $2 at Target. You have to activate the offer before you buy them at Target. Offer expires 4/5 so make sure to activate offer, buy the eggs and take a pic of the receipt and submit asap.
You can double dip and submit same receipt to Ibotta for an add’l 0.25 credit.
It’s free to send money via RIA transfer using WM app via Express Pay. This fee free goes on till Sept 30 2017 although it may be extended. I tried to send money to test the service and it’s pretty simple. You go to WM to pay when sending money(cash and/or debit NO credit)To anyone and thereafter, you’ll get a code to send to the recipient which they’ll bring to WM to present the reference code and show their DL to pick up the money. This is another MS venue ; )
We have free supply of wood from a tree company that dumps the tree cuttings in our property. We invested in a wood burning heater and log splitter which were not cheap, but it has lowered our bills during the winter. I also managed to sell the excess wood we have when people stop by offering X amount for Y amount of wood; I take whatever offer knowing supply always gets replenished.
We’ve also maxed out our home insurance deductible to the point we’re “insuring” ourselves for catastrophic events. We came with this decision based on our emergency funds stash. Should there be any damages that need to be repaired that is less than our deductible, we know we can take care of it. Right now, DH does minor repairs here and there to prevent serious damages. It seems costly at times but we’re of the mindset that it’s going to be way more expensive if we don’t make the necessary repairs now.
We may not be like the rest but we pay for our vehicles in cash; the last one we bought brand new from the dealership was in Q4 of 2015. Our style is tell the salesman we’re paying in cash, this is all I’m willing to pay for X vehicle in your lot. We have no trade in and this is the car we want; the color of the car is the only factor negotiable. If you’re not going to lower the MSRP to meet our price, let’s not waste each other’s time. We usually cut the back n forth negotiations to 45 minutes and then I stand up ready to go when the boss comes up and say we have a deal.
We’ve done this twice now and paid no more than what we were willing to part with. For those asking why we buy brand new, the price difference of the certified used were just a few hundreds so I’d rather buy brand new but according to my price which I’ve researched prior to making an offer. We’re well aware that vehicles depreciate as soon as they roll out of the parking lot but we still stick to brand new ones.
@musicloverd I don’t sell on ebay but at least I got $20 amazon GC with my and DH’s accounts. I see some “enterprising” folks try to exchange their cap codes for the flap codes, they may know something others don’t know yet so I’ll keep them for now.
Caveat: those who have the flap codes from Christmases ago with the polar bear design, they came up expired when entered.
MS opportunities at Target to get 5% up to $1500 on your DiscoverIT cards this quarter:
To avoid going around the store looking for $400 Target Visa with $6 fee, ask an associate to look up this DCPI: 290 00 0028. If they have it, you found a goldmine 
UPC of this product is 799366115267. These are NO longer sold online but there are stores that still sell them if you ask.
Ya’ll can call ahead to ask so you don’t go around looking for this “unicorn”.
BTW, these drain at the grocery store easily as long as they accept VGCs for MO.
Here’s another thing I’ve been doing even before this breach came about. I put a verbal PW that is separate from my written PW on each of our accounts. I thought of this years ago so that if anyone called to ask information about my account(s), a prompt on the rep’s screen will come up asking for a PW before they proceed to give information. It’s easy to do this, pick up the phone right now if you have not set a verbal PW on all your accounts; the inconvinience of the rep asking you for it prior to giving info is very minimal, but benefits are priceless. Do it now!
*make sure your PW is a word that’s not commonly used, you can tell it to your SO/spouse/person you trust and NO one else.
@meed18 sorry about that, I forgot about those who don’t do manufactured spending and not familiar with abbreviations also read this thread. I’m not sure this site will allow posting links but if you google abbreviations used in manufactured spending, I’m sure you’ll find a lot of great links. If you send me a message, I can tell you a blogger that has a thread on commonly used MS terms.
We are surrounded by trees in our property. We consulted an arborist when we noticed rotting at the base of a huge oak tree in the front yard. Recommendation was to take it down because it cannot stand a strong gush of wind. As much as I wanted to preserve it, the consultant said it cannot be saved. It would’ve cost more if the tree fell towards the main road where vehicles pass that can possibly cause damage to life, limb and properties.
@marcopolomle the only reason I can think of is she wasn’t thinking ahead and just focused on getting a lower premium. the problem is, she wanted to pay less without knowing where she will get the deductible when an accident happens. IMO, as long as one has EF saved they can pull out in case of emergency, opting for high deductible is a smart way to save money.
@christmas if you’re a newbie going to sell precious metals and jewelry on ebay or anywhere online, make sure to take a picture of what you’re selling before you package it, take note of the weight of the item and post details in description of the item so that when a scammer tries to scam you and return a different item (there are many cases reported scammers returned rocks!), you can provide proof that it’s a fraudulent return. ebay often sides with the buyers in most cases that’s why you need to protect yourself as seller.
Bluebird is an amex prepaid, if you want a Visa/MC prepaid, check GoBank prepaid. They sell the starter card at WM with $2.95 fee or you can also register online to dodge the fee and just wait for your permanent card. The maximum load to this card is $3000 and there’s maintenance fees that can be waived if you have a direct deposit to it of at least $500.
Those who are churning bank bonuses, make sure to take note of monthly maintenance fees, if any. If there is a minimum balance needed to waive the fees and you can “park” that amount for at least 180 days before you can close it w/o ETF, do so to save time/effort in “babysitting” such account(s).
For those who got in the MTB bonus bandwagon the past several months, once you see six statements have posted to your account, you can send SM to close it after you transfer funds to your other accounts. If that is the last account left, just pull the funds using your bank hub and once balance is zero, send SM to close account. So far, I’ve closed several accounts painlessly via SM.
For those who are doing split tender on $2K total while using VGCs bought online, it is best to change PIN to something you know because there are WM cashiers who will ask to swipe the cards on their end. If you didn’t change the PIN and do not know the last 4 of the card number, you’ll be in a bind, whereas if you changed the PIN to what you’re familiar with, you can key it on your end when prompted and it’ll be approved. I was in this situation when the cashier didn’t give me back the DC after she swiped it but I was able to key in my PIN to finish transaction.
There are CCs I would like to keep my CLs over $20K since they come in handy for volume purchases of GCs online. Since the purchase limits of some merchants are way below than my CLs, I don’t have to cycle and just pay the full balance before statement cut. I know credit cycling and multiple payments each month are sensitive issues for some CCs so I avoid that with paying once a huge balance I’ve incurred for specific CCs.
I like the benefits of some cards like Citi and Discover where I can freeze them if I rarely use them; but for the rest, I just keep an eye on my accounts regularly. I know I am not responsible for unauthorized charges (IINM, the most that I will be responsible for is $50 and even this is waived if I report unauthorized charges immediately) so that I prefer to keep the high CLs that I have.
@honkinggoose you’re welcome
btw, the offer for regular savings has been extended until 12/18/2017 with a little modification. It’s still $150 bonus on $15K but to get the $200 bonus, total deposit is $25K. New bonus code is SN17. Funds must be received by 01/02/18 to receive the bonus.
Now it’s really over for most…I just read on doc’s site and reddit that VGCs are now hardcoded as credit at the USPS 
This means that even if you have friendly clerk who knows you, they cannot override your payment if it comes up as credit. Better find another way to drain your VGCs if you have any left OR if you can’t find anywhere to drain them, best NOT to keep buying them with intent to hoard because these can easily be hacked by thieves that’s why MSers drain them within 24 hrs after activation to avoid their funds getting stolen.
I saw on Amazon that they’re now selling VGCs and since I have accumulated a stash from previous deals, I thought it would be a good deal to cash out via Visa GC. The highest denomination available is $100 with a $5.95 fee (ouch!), free shipping. I went on to do a test purchase but when it came to pay, it wouldn’t allow me to pay with my GC balance There goes my plan to cash out…
@fivetalents I concur; for those who have a lot of options to build their credit history, they can turn to fee free methods but those who have no other means they have to “pay the price” so to speak.
Another option that came to mind since I’ve done this for close friends and family is to add them as AUs to my CCs with long history and high CL. This is a sure way to build their credit without doing anything. I don’t give them the AU card, but if it’s an amex I put charges on them for sync offers that are moneymakers. They are not responsible for any charges I make, I pay for them and they benefit from my responsible use of credit cards. In fact, I’ve had several offers from enterprising people to pay me a fee to “piggyback on my excellent credit” but I turn them down no matter how enticing the offers are. I know some people make a few hundreds extra doing business with these ‘credit booster’ companies.
I think that would be the best option for OP’s friend w/o costing him/her any money IF he/she knows of anyone willing to make them their AU (they may have to give their SSN to ensure it’ll be recorded by CRAs because without SSN, the CRAs will not be able to associate the CC to the individual). It bears to remind them also to share their SSN only to people they trust.
For those with Synchrony Walmart Mastercard CC in their sock drawers, it’s time to add them to the WM app and do WMPay. You get 3% cashback for all purchases using the app when you pay. You also get 3% CB if you use it to pay at walmartdotcom. On Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday, you get 6% cashback, the 3% CB is a promotional offer from Nov 1 to Dec 31, 2017. Charges on this card can be paid at ANY WM register with VGCs so you can imagine all the possible ways to “abuse” this card; I don’t think there’s a lot of people who has this CC that’s why they’re so linient for overpayments. They sent me a check those times I paid more than I owed them. This card used to be issued by Discover before Synchrony took over and it became “better”, IMO.
Check thread on Deals forum for week of Nov 19 thru Nov 25 at Walgreens. There is a deal on variable vanilla GCs wyb 2 that’ll make the fees lower after the $5 WAG gc. After the first transaction you earn the $5 WAG gc, go buy another set of 2 variable vanillas loaded with $500 each and grab a WAG gc (snowflakes design) from the rack. Make sure to swipe your Balance Rewards card first before the cards are scanned. Tell cashier you want to load $5 on the WAG gc and $500 each on the vanilla GCs. Your total should be $1011.90 and *if you have the $5 GC from the first transaction, swipe that first and you’ll see your balance go down to $1006.90, pay balance with your CC. Rinse and repeat.
*Do NOT ask cashier if you can pay with the $5 GC, most of them don’t know so just swipe it and see if it takes $5 off your total.
For those with the AXP old blue cash, you’ll earn 5% on this purchase if you have already met the $6.5K threshold. Since drugstores have raised the fees on variable vanilla cards to $5.95, this promo will cost only $6.90 per $1000. These Bancorp Vanillas will NOT drain at the USPS so make sure you have plans on how to drain these vanillas.
MSers will be busy starting tomorrow doing the rounds of stores. These should be top 2 on your list that’ll give the most profit/rewards.
*OD/OM - instant $15 discount on Meta VGCs. Don’t 4get to try the “everywhere” cards with $4.95 fees, they qualified for the promo in the past.
*WAG - free $5WAGgc wyb any 2 vanilla GC. Keep in mind these CANNOT be drained at the PO so if that’s the only place you can drain it, stay away from this promo. Best card to use is AXP OBC for 1% RD if you haven’t reached $6.5K threshold but once you do, you’ll start earning 5% on your purchases at gas stations, supermarkets, drugstores up to $50K.
You have to input the name of the payee and if it’s on their list, there’s a dropdown menu that’ll show and click it. If payee is NOT on their list, I don’t know if there’s a generic way to do it but I’d be leery sending a payment if it’s not on the list of payees. There is a screen where you’ll choose CheckFreePay for $1 anytime fees, $1.50 next day and another option I can’t remember right now. I chose $1 and then a screen comes up to enter the amount I’m paying. In your case, input $300 and it will ask you to confirm in the next screen including the fee, let’s say you choose $1 total will be $301. The last screen that’ll come up before you pay says SCAN QR CODE. You can log off and open app when you’re at WM. Just tell cashier you’re doing CheckFreePay to pay a bill and there is a QR code you’ll see on customer’s screen they will ask you to scan with your app. If successful, it’ll say YOU’RE CONNECTED. It will then show the amount you’re paying $300 plus $1 fee which you will confirm and press YES. When it’s time to pay, you can pay $1 in cash and swipe your VGC for the balance of $300. You will not get a paper receipt, it is saved in the app. Wait 3 to 4 days and check if payment posted to your account. Depending on the payee, it may take a while for payment to post especially these holiday season so give it some time and if it has been two weeks and you don’t see it, check with WM and show the receipt on your app.
It is best to try this with small amounts first until your payment goes through successfully within a reasonable amount of time.
@ritholtz
If you try it and get another bonus on the regular savings, please let us know.
Earn $3.00 extra cash back: November 20th - 22nd
As an early Black Friday treat, we are offering a cash back bonus! Get $3.00 extra cash back* when you spend over $10.00, on one transaction.
Simply activate the promotion via the link below. Once you’ve made your transaction the bonus will appear in your account. When it’s payable, your bonus will be too.
Ends November 22nd at 23:59 PT.
*Make sure to activate the offer BEFORE you proceed with transaction to ensure it’s properly tracked.
Check your offers at WM, Hershey’s Forto coffee shots 2 oz single bottle @ $1.98, free after Ibotta rebate.
UPC:8 5347100401 1
Found this at the coffee aisle, middle shelf.
I was a member of a private app group but I left when I noticed that only a few of us contributed our “unicorn sightings” while many would just try it and report results. I was looking for discussion that was productive also for me, not looking for reports whether something reported worked for them or not. On the other hand, there are also groups that pressure members to come up with something “useful” to everyone or they will get locked out soon. I decided I’ll just monitor reddit/FW/DoC and be in control of what I’d like to share.
I have not been posting at FW for years now but have continued to lurk and read discussions. I’m glad there’s a new set up where FWR can hang out to continue discussions.
Here’s some notes to myself I’ve written just in case I find a new account opened in my/DH’s name that we did not authorize.
Hopefully, I do not have to write this kind of letter but in case I have to, I know exactly what to do.
I will keep a separate file of all these communications in case I need them in the future.
@dangeruss yes, that’s what I mean because I can see mine so I was concerned if it’s visible to everyone, even lurkers. if emails are accessible to everyone, they can spam your inbox for any reason. I’m glad to know emails are not visible to all except admin.
@principalmember said in Amex Offers - one per account now?:
BTW - note that if you have multiple cards for one account, when you redeem the offer against one card, Amex automatically hides the offer against the other cards.
even if it’s a bit inconvinient, I created separate online accounts for our AUs. One card has 10 accounts (axp keeps on telling me to add up to 99…lol), other cards have more, others less but all have their SEPARATE log ins. The advantage of this for me is I have always received multiples of the great offers ($10/$10 amazon, $25/$200BBY, $5/$5 Dollar Shave, 10% off cable/cellphone bill, etc). I know the issue of ‘losing offers’ when multiple accounts are in one log in and do tab switching.
@mikk1 yes, the gutter guards at Lowe’s are not that expensive but for us who have a lot of trees, the benefits far outweigh the cost even if one has to pay someone to install them in case you can’t do it yourself. We have saved thousands of dollars because DH is an all around handyman.
sellers who sell fragile items MUST make sure they are wrapped and protected in a bunch of bubble wrap. You can take pics of these before you put them in a box/ USPS priority envie.
I bought 14K gold jewelry and it was just wrapped in tissue and sent via first class mail; the item was mangled when it arrived, I took pics and filed a dispute on ebay immediately. seller refused to admit she did not pack it securely but ebay took my side. I was expecting ebay to tell me to send it back which I was willing to do if they gave me a free shipping code. ebay told me to keep item and gave me full refund.
@skaterringo I’m not sure if it’s okay to recommend a site that provides a lot of discussions on banks including the ones that give sign up bonuses. Feel free to send me a PM so I don’t violate any rules. If the mods read this and it’s allowed, I will post it here for all to see. I can say I’ve used that site and have received thousands of $ in bank sign up bonuses juggling the same funds for DH and me for the past year.
@marcopolomle I have several accounts opened and when I see there’s six statements, I transfer whatever balance is in that particular account to another account. Once there’s zero balance, I send SM to close it; so far, so good. I have already closed several, but there’s a bunch more to close. I’ve read that if you can’t go to the branch to close, they require a notarized letter sent to them plus a $10 closure fee. I won’t know until I close the last.
@ma-barker said in Discover AAA Savings account $150/$200 Bonus with $15,000/$20,000 Deposit at Discover Card:
DH opened his first savings a week later than I did and he hasn’t received his bonus, he might get his on the next batch
the $200 bonus on his savings account posted today. Those who didn’t get their bonus on the 5th, check it now
I remember another trick reported on MyFico to get a CC to build one’s credit was to apply for a store CC. They called it the shopping cart trick done like this:
1. Go to the website of the store you want a card for.
2. Join their loyalty program (some people find more success skipping this step and just checking out as a guest). Add some items to your shopping cart.
3.Start to check out
4.Enter in your address, make sure this matches your address listed in your credit reports exactly
5.Continue going through the check out process until you get to the final payment page. You should receive your offer before this page, if you haven’t then either the shopping cart trick isn’t working or you need to try again.
6.Choose to accept your offer
7.Complete the application
I remember stores like Dillards, Victoria’s Secret, Overstockdotcom, were the easiest ones to get approved and there was no HP. You’ll know if it’ll be HP if you’re asked for the full SSN, but if it’s only the last 4 digits, it’s a soft pull. I’ve read a DP where Overstockdotcom asked for the full SSN but still a soft pull.
If one makes small purchases using their store CCs and pay them in full before statement cuts, that’ll build one’s credit history in no time. As long as one uses these CCs responsibly, you’ll have a great credit history in no time.
Heads up on a $10/$20 coupon from Staples. It says YOUR $10 off coupon has arrived. This coupon is NON transferable and attached to your Staples rewards card.
This is the fine print:
†$10 OFF $20: Valid online at staples.com®, by phone at 1-800-333-3330 or in Staples® U.S. stores. Cannot be combined with any other discount or coupon. Excludes Daily Deals and Auto Restock orders. Limit one coupon per customer, nontransferable. Minimum purchase requirement must be met with purchases to which no other coupon or instant savings offer applies. Tax and shipping not included in calculating the minimum purchase. Not valid on desktop or laptop computers, tablets, netbooks, streaming devices, Amazon products, Apple®, Bose®, Ink & Toner, Epson® EcoTank™ printers, HP Instant Ink, Home Automation, JBL®, SquareTrade® warranties, Staples® EasyTech(sm), Steelcase®, Ultimate Ears®, Wacom®, computer workstation, direct mail services, faxing, gift cards, mobile phones and services, outsourced print, phone cards, postage stamps, purchases on staplespromotionalproducts.com, scanning, self-service print or shredding services. Each item purchased can only be discounted by one coupon, applied by cashier in the order received. Coupon not valid if purchased or sold and must be surrendered. Not valid on prior purchases or purchases made with Staples® Procurement or Convenience Cards. No cash/credit back. Coupon value applied pre-tax. Expires 11/4/17.
*Mods, if this doesn’t belong here, feel free to move this post. TY!
this type of product reminds me of a colleague who is the DIY type, he was able to get over 50 channels with a paper clip contraption. he lives in a major city and that is what I think makes a lot of difference.
for those who are interested in this device, make sure to check the 1 star comments before you buy.
@my4mainecoons I have no experience reselling both eGcs and the plastics but I caution you in selling them to the GC buyers online. Many of them have gone under and I’ve read it took a long time for them to pay, some have not been paid. If you travel a lot and use hotelsdotcom, they exchange other merchants GCs for their GCs, some GCs like walmart command a high price the last time I looked. There may be reliable GC buyers online but make sure to do your research before you sell to them.
@fivetalents I can only speak for those I’ve helped using this technique which I got from the credit booster experts. I’d like to emphasize I DO NOT like their business model, it’s too risky for anyone to put their CCs for rent for monetary compensation. One requirement that turned me off was when he said I have to give him the PW on my credit karma so he will see my credit history aside from my CK Fako score. He11 NO!!! even if I can change my PW immediately after he makes his assessment whether I qualify or not to be his ‘business partner’. The ones I’ve helped have told me their credit scores went up just a few months after I added them as AU.
On my part, the benefit I get is to use the AU cards for sync offers that I like to get more credits. as stated…WIN-WIN. To add, I am not affected by all their other activities outside of this AU card issued to them which is IN MY POSSESSION at all times and I’ve tested the CCs if they’ll send the AU cards to other addresses and all said NO, the AU cards are sent only to primary card holder who’ll give the AU cards to their respective owners. That gives me confidence they can’t take hold of AU cards w/o my knowledge.
For those high yield checking accts from CUs, this trick worked for me in the past to get the high rate where they required ten swipes of the DC. I did SCO at WM adding a few cents to a WMgc to fulfill the ten swipes requirement in just one trip. I just got the high interest rate and when they lowered their rates, I just pulled all my funds from there.
Whenever swipes are required to fulfill bank terms in getting bonuses, this trick still works well for me w/o the need for cashier intervention.