Comments on: $434.86 in Absolutely Free Money

By: Jay

Jay — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 04:27:53 +0000

Dave Ramsey talked about this on his show a few days ago and his reasoning was based on studies that say people shopping with a credit card spend x% more than people paying with cash. (I think his percentage was 18% but I hate to quote when I’m not exactly sure). Anyway, even if they just spend 3% extra than it wouldn’t justify the 2% cash back they get. Only the truly disciplined can “win” playing the credit card company’s game.

I have one reward card I’m still using, but I’m only charging monthly expenses I have to pay anyway (cell phone, auto insurance, and Satellite) to it and then paying off the card each month. It’ll take a while to earn rewards, but at least I won’t be tempted to overspend just to get the reward check earlier…

By: Livingalmostlarge

Livingalmostlarge — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 16:12:41 +0000

Considering I earned about $500 in less than 2 month from cash back rewards CC, I can’t argue that it’s great.

By: Vinayak Kulkarni

Vinayak Kulkarni — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 05:00:16 +0000

Nice try trashing Dave Ramsey for no reasons. I sincerely request to think twice before you trash him again. He is not preaching to cut plastic or get out of debt for normal people like me and you who manage debt prudently. His target audience is way over the head in credit card debt and their finance charges for one month is greater than your annual cash back from Amex Blue. For people like these it makes perfect sense to not use credit card. Think about it before you cash in your rebate check next time – Amex/Discover charge about 3% for gas station operator, you are paid 5% rebate for charge the gas expense to their card – guess what – the rest of 2% is paid to you from the 29% interest rate and insane finance charges and cruel penalties these credit card companies charge to people who are already in deep trouble. Pick up the documentary “In debt we trust” from the local library and open your eyes.

By: Cindy

Cindy — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 17:46:55 +0000

I’ve been playing the rewards card game for years now and have racked up thousands of dollars of free money. The deals aren’t as good as they used to be, and to get optimum rewards sometimes you need several cards (most have a limit). For instance, I have the Discover open road card which gives 5% on gas purchases (but only up to $100/month; whose gas bill does that cover anymore?) so I always charge my first hundred on that card, then the rest of the months on the Chase Freedom (get 3%). If you have good credit you really can reap some great extra cash!

By: Jim

Jim — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 22:14:18 +0000

Hey Kevin – I couldn’t agree more. It’s a person’s discipline that’s the problem, not the piece of plastic.

Last year I earned $840.40 in cash back on credit cards, including the Amex Blue Cash and the Chase Freedom cards. I earned even more free money than that when you factor in the interest earned in my savings account for an extra 30 days on the money that would have otherwise been gone immediately from my checking account with a debit card.

By: Kym

Kym — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 20:50:57 +0000

Hey Kevin, I’m one of your readers who comes every day but doesn’t comment! I only comment when I really have something to say, so don’t feel bad if you don’t get as many comments as you would like.

I got the Chase Freedom card back in Feb (the one with the 3% cash back on the 3 categories you spend the most in that month and 1% for everything else). Since then I’ve racked up $143.13 in rewards. I got that based on my regular purchases, charging a business trip that my employer reimbursed, and buying a new mattress set, which is out of the norm but was badly needed. I’m waiting to hit $200 now because they give you $250 instead if you wait to cash out. I love rewards cards!