Jan 3, 2015, 3:13 am
Last edit by: CWAL
Welcome to Manufactured Spending. If you are new here, please spend some time reading before posting. Most likely your questions have already been answered multiple times. Consider deals that you share. These threads are searchable by Google. A volatile deal may be worth holding close to the vest.
Hints
1) On FT, topics are heavily consolidated. Sometimes the title of the thread and first few posts may not properly reflect the broad range of discussion inside the thread. Be sure to visit any thread relating to the product or service you want to learn more about because you might be surprised by how in depth the discussion really is. High "View Count" and "Replies" are good indicators of active "master threads" on a specific topic.
2) Use Google to search FT. It works a lot better than the built-in search.
Important Rules
1) MSing is very YMMV. It varies by store, manager, and right down to the cashier working at the moment. That being said, always be nice and courteous in the face of rejection. The biggest secret for success is to lay low so you can try again.
2) DO NOT spend more than you can afford. START WITH SMALL AMOUNTS TO TEST THE WATER! As an example.. don't start with a $5000 purchase of VGCs if you can't afford to float that much! Instead, buy one and try it, and scale up once you are comfortable with a new method. It's easy to lose track, or get robbed, when you are handling so much money. Getting a refund is NOT always possible.
3) DO NOT ask employees, cashiers, customer service representatives, etc... about how to MS, or about things you read on this forum. The information you read here are very specific, unknown, legal uses of products or services. Most employees, cashiers, and even managers do not know about them. At best you'll get bad information. At worst you'll create a lot of unnecessary misunderstanding.
4) It bears repeating that there are no guarantees. you could easily buy $10,000 in gift cards or some other instrument, only to discover that your method for liquidating them vanishes the very next day. MS is not "normal" financial activity ("normal" being defined by the banks), and thus is often perceived as "suspicious" even if it is legal.
5) never underestimate the risk of criminal activity. gift cards can easily be stolen, loaded onto a compromised account, loaded in a debit card skimmer, or even fraudulent (e.g., an already used card put back on the rack).
If you have a question that does not seem to fit anywhere, or you have not found an appropriate place for it, post it here.
- A helpful note from seat17D about some of the inherent risks of MS
Hints
1) On FT, topics are heavily consolidated. Sometimes the title of the thread and first few posts may not properly reflect the broad range of discussion inside the thread. Be sure to visit any thread relating to the product or service you want to learn more about because you might be surprised by how in depth the discussion really is. High "View Count" and "Replies" are good indicators of active "master threads" on a specific topic.
2) Use Google to search FT. It works a lot better than the built-in search.
Important Rules
1) MSing is very YMMV. It varies by store, manager, and right down to the cashier working at the moment. That being said, always be nice and courteous in the face of rejection. The biggest secret for success is to lay low so you can try again.
2) DO NOT spend more than you can afford. START WITH SMALL AMOUNTS TO TEST THE WATER! As an example.. don't start with a $5000 purchase of VGCs if you can't afford to float that much! Instead, buy one and try it, and scale up once you are comfortable with a new method. It's easy to lose track, or get robbed, when you are handling so much money. Getting a refund is NOT always possible.
3) DO NOT ask employees, cashiers, customer service representatives, etc... about how to MS, or about things you read on this forum. The information you read here are very specific, unknown, legal uses of products or services. Most employees, cashiers, and even managers do not know about them. At best you'll get bad information. At worst you'll create a lot of unnecessary misunderstanding.
4) It bears repeating that there are no guarantees. you could easily buy $10,000 in gift cards or some other instrument, only to discover that your method for liquidating them vanishes the very next day. MS is not "normal" financial activity ("normal" being defined by the banks), and thus is often perceived as "suspicious" even if it is legal.
5) never underestimate the risk of criminal activity. gift cards can easily be stolen, loaded onto a compromised account, loaded in a debit card skimmer, or even fraudulent (e.g., an already used card put back on the rack).
If you have a question that does not seem to fit anywhere, or you have not found an appropriate place for it, post it here.
- A helpful note from seat17D about some of the inherent risks of MS
New to Manufactured Spending? Start Here (2015)
Mar 21, 2015, 11:01 am
#256
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 3,688
check Bluebird thread. as to RC, I sent my cousin an activated temporary RC and she loads it in FL w/o problems. Read the Redcard thread for more details on loading.
Mar 21, 2015, 4:14 pm
#257
Join Date: Mar 2015
Posts: 149
new to this. read some but not all of the earlier thread and part of this one.
just need to find the thread or sticky which credit cards are best for buying the vanilla reloads, and which outlets still accept the credit cards for gift card purchase.
3rd which cards give the best point values for gift card purchases.
im not trying to go crazy, im new to the points game and my plan is to sign up with bluebird so I can pay some bills and get some points in the process, probably 3K a month.
thanks in advance
just need to find the thread or sticky which credit cards are best for buying the vanilla reloads, and which outlets still accept the credit cards for gift card purchase.
3rd which cards give the best point values for gift card purchases.
im not trying to go crazy, im new to the points game and my plan is to sign up with bluebird so I can pay some bills and get some points in the process, probably 3K a month.
thanks in advance
Mar 21, 2015, 4:32 pm
#258
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 3,688
new to this. read some but not all of the earlier thread and part of this one.
just need to find the thread or sticky which credit cards are best for buying the vanilla reloads, and which outlets still accept the credit cards for gift card purchase. Any CC can be used to buy VGCs, it all depends on what cards you have and the goals you have for using each one. most VRs are now cash only but you can check stores in your area where registers may not be hard coded and they still accept CC. the same goes for GC purchase which is highly YMMV as to type of payment they accept so you just have to try stores where you're at.
3rd which cards give the best point values for gift card purchases. Cards that give 5% or more bonus on grocery/drugstore/gas stations/office supply stores some of these are amex blue cash,chase ink, amex blue cash preferred, TD CC, Citizen's CC, etc
im not trying to go crazy, im new to the points game and my plan is to sign up with bluebird so I can pay some bills and get some points in the process, probably 3K a month.
thanks in advance
just need to find the thread or sticky which credit cards are best for buying the vanilla reloads, and which outlets still accept the credit cards for gift card purchase. Any CC can be used to buy VGCs, it all depends on what cards you have and the goals you have for using each one. most VRs are now cash only but you can check stores in your area where registers may not be hard coded and they still accept CC. the same goes for GC purchase which is highly YMMV as to type of payment they accept so you just have to try stores where you're at.
3rd which cards give the best point values for gift card purchases. Cards that give 5% or more bonus on grocery/drugstore/gas stations/office supply stores some of these are amex blue cash,chase ink, amex blue cash preferred, TD CC, Citizen's CC, etc
im not trying to go crazy, im new to the points game and my plan is to sign up with bluebird so I can pay some bills and get some points in the process, probably 3K a month.
thanks in advance
Mar 21, 2015, 4:56 pm
#260
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 3,688
correct; consider it as part of doing business. there may be other cheaper modes you can read mentioned in various threads that may have lower fees like Paypower with 3.95 fee but I suggest you read the thread discussion so you know the pitfalls for that card. check also the Simon Mall VGCs with the same fee.
Mar 21, 2015, 5:16 pm
#261
Join Date: Mar 2015
Posts: 149
just found a post... cant use vanilla gift cards to recharge bluebird??
Mar 22, 2015, 10:28 am
#263
Join Date: Mar 2015
Posts: 7
Im pretty new at this but I have some experience of other money making areas that require an understanding of math.
I have spent about 20 hours reading various posts (and reading between the lines) on the various MS methods.
The thing im not sure about are the various cards and what to apply for. It would seem you could make a lot of mistakes.
Two popular ways seem to either churn cards for the sign up bonuses or find a credit/debit card with a high category payback and run lots of MS through it.
Let me state my goals and some information about me so maybe I could get some advice.
I live in the midwest, income is about 60K a year, FICO is about 720 and getting better by the month. Obviously I don't have perfect credit but I have a few cash back cards with various companies (Chase, Amex, BOA, Citi and Discover) to save money on grocery's and gas. I don't carry much of a balance on them. (and only if they are 0% APR)
Looking to get enough points/cash from MS to get two coach class return tickets from US to UK.
I am looking for starting advice on what cards to apply for that will give me the best chance of doing this. Also any strategy advice would be welcome?
Also any advice on setting up a separate bank account away from my normal bank in case I run into problems.
Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.
I have spent about 20 hours reading various posts (and reading between the lines) on the various MS methods.
The thing im not sure about are the various cards and what to apply for. It would seem you could make a lot of mistakes.
Two popular ways seem to either churn cards for the sign up bonuses or find a credit/debit card with a high category payback and run lots of MS through it.
Let me state my goals and some information about me so maybe I could get some advice.
I live in the midwest, income is about 60K a year, FICO is about 720 and getting better by the month. Obviously I don't have perfect credit but I have a few cash back cards with various companies (Chase, Amex, BOA, Citi and Discover) to save money on grocery's and gas. I don't carry much of a balance on them. (and only if they are 0% APR)
Looking to get enough points/cash from MS to get two coach class return tickets from US to UK.
I am looking for starting advice on what cards to apply for that will give me the best chance of doing this. Also any strategy advice would be welcome?
Also any advice on setting up a separate bank account away from my normal bank in case I run into problems.
Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.
Mar 22, 2015, 7:24 pm
#264
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 74
pdelgardo, to get two coach tickets is very easy. I don't know where in the Midwest you are, but availability from ORD-LHR is going to be better on American than United, though availability on United isn't bad.
If you want to do it on American, hurry and get the US Airways card while you still can. This is probably only possible for another few days and will certainly be gone by mid-April. Go to usairways.com and click on the card, which comes with an $89 annual fee, but you get the miles with one purchase and payment of the AF. These 50,000 miles will be AA miles in a month or less. Then go to Citi and get the 50,000 American miles card: https://www.citi.com/credit-cards/cr...ds/CitiHome.do Then you'll have to do $3,000 of real or manufactured spending to get the 50,000 bonus on that card. Now, you have 103,000 AA miles and only need 17,000 more to get to Europe anytime from May 15 to October 15. If you didn't mind going earlier or later than that, you'd already have enough, as off-peak AA economy rewards are only 40,000 miles each. If you want to go in the summer, then you can try to also get the 50,000 miles for the Citi American Business Card, or you can try to get the 30,000 miles you can get from Citi for opening a certain checking account (go to www.doctorofcredit.com and click on best bank accounts). You could also get AA points from getting the SPG card and transferring.
If United is really a better option for you, then you can do this their way by getting the Chase Ink Plus and transferring the 50,000 points to United miles and doing the same thing with the 45,000 you get for the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card. Add the United card or the business card and you are there.
So, you don't have to do a whole lot of MS or churning to get your two tickets to Europe. It isn't going to be hard at all. Is there a Target in your area?
And, by the way, the key to your FICO isn't about carrying a balance. You want to show a low credit utilization, so you want your statement balance to be zero or near zero, meaning that you want to pay the cards off before the statement closes.
If you want to do it on American, hurry and get the US Airways card while you still can. This is probably only possible for another few days and will certainly be gone by mid-April. Go to usairways.com and click on the card, which comes with an $89 annual fee, but you get the miles with one purchase and payment of the AF. These 50,000 miles will be AA miles in a month or less. Then go to Citi and get the 50,000 American miles card: https://www.citi.com/credit-cards/cr...ds/CitiHome.do Then you'll have to do $3,000 of real or manufactured spending to get the 50,000 bonus on that card. Now, you have 103,000 AA miles and only need 17,000 more to get to Europe anytime from May 15 to October 15. If you didn't mind going earlier or later than that, you'd already have enough, as off-peak AA economy rewards are only 40,000 miles each. If you want to go in the summer, then you can try to also get the 50,000 miles for the Citi American Business Card, or you can try to get the 30,000 miles you can get from Citi for opening a certain checking account (go to www.doctorofcredit.com and click on best bank accounts). You could also get AA points from getting the SPG card and transferring.
If United is really a better option for you, then you can do this their way by getting the Chase Ink Plus and transferring the 50,000 points to United miles and doing the same thing with the 45,000 you get for the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card. Add the United card or the business card and you are there.
So, you don't have to do a whole lot of MS or churning to get your two tickets to Europe. It isn't going to be hard at all. Is there a Target in your area?
And, by the way, the key to your FICO isn't about carrying a balance. You want to show a low credit utilization, so you want your statement balance to be zero or near zero, meaning that you want to pay the cards off before the statement closes.
Mar 24, 2015, 1:41 pm
#265
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Champaign, IL
Programs: Total Rewards Diamond, Wyndham Diamond, Marriott Gold, AA Gold
Posts: 564
Ideally, you want 1 card to report $2 and the rest of your cards to report $0.
Mar 24, 2015, 2:29 pm
#266
Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 1,435
I have a Citi Exec Card and a Barclay US Air card.
Both of them now have a free Credit Score link. I clicked on Barclays and it showed 780, and Citi's showed 830. Is a 50-point discrepancy normal, and how can I tell which is more accurate?
Both of them now have a free Credit Score link. I clicked on Barclays and it showed 780, and Citi's showed 830. Is a 50-point discrepancy normal, and how can I tell which is more accurate?
Mar 24, 2015, 3:35 pm
#267
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 10,904
As for "more accurate"... a more accurate measure of what? Your actual creditworthiness? Or what a lender thinks your creditworthiness is?
Mar 24, 2015, 10:13 pm
#268
Join Date: Mar 2015
Posts: 184
I am new to MS and FT. Got a Serve card from CVS and the actual Serve card is in the mail. I was able to use my SPG for the initial load.
In the (Serve Thread) wiki does VR mean Visa Reloadable? and MP is Mastercard Prepaid?
I was staring at the GC rack at CVS which has a bunch of Amex cards and also Vanilla VGC debit cards and had no idea what to get. Then i went over to the prepaid section that had bunch of reloadable vanilla VGC's along with serve cards. Got more confused.
I should be able to do a CC load using my usairways card, no point in using my SPG since i will not get any points.
Which debit card should i get? the reloadable ones? or just plain vanilla VGC? both has debit written on top of it.
In the (Serve Thread) wiki does VR mean Visa Reloadable? and MP is Mastercard Prepaid?
I was staring at the GC rack at CVS which has a bunch of Amex cards and also Vanilla VGC debit cards and had no idea what to get. Then i went over to the prepaid section that had bunch of reloadable vanilla VGC's along with serve cards. Got more confused.
I should be able to do a CC load using my usairways card, no point in using my SPG since i will not get any points.
Which debit card should i get? the reloadable ones? or just plain vanilla VGC? both has debit written on top of it.
Last edited by ChrisFlyer66; Mar 24, 2015 at 11:40 pm Reason: clarify it is the "serve thread" wiki
Mar 24, 2015, 11:39 pm
#269
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: SAN
Programs: Delta Gold. Hilton Diamond. Hyatt Explorist.
Posts: 1,674
I am new to MS and FT. Got a Serve card from CVS and the actual Serve card is in the mail. I was able to use my SPG for the initial load.
In the (Serve Thread) wiki does VR mean Visa Reloadable? and MP is Mastercard Prepaid?
I was staring at the GC rack at CVS which has a bunch of Amex cards and also Vanilla VGC debit cards and had no idea what to get. Then i went over to the prepaid section that had bunch of reloadable vanilla VGC's along with serve cards. Got more confused.
I should be able to do a CC load using my usairways card, no point in using my SPG since i will not get any points.
Which debit card should i get? the reloadable ones? or just plain vanilla VGC? both has debit written on top of it.
In the (Serve Thread) wiki does VR mean Visa Reloadable? and MP is Mastercard Prepaid?
I was staring at the GC rack at CVS which has a bunch of Amex cards and also Vanilla VGC debit cards and had no idea what to get. Then i went over to the prepaid section that had bunch of reloadable vanilla VGC's along with serve cards. Got more confused.
I should be able to do a CC load using my usairways card, no point in using my SPG since i will not get any points.
Which debit card should i get? the reloadable ones? or just plain vanilla VGC? both has debit written on top of it.
Mar 25, 2015, 7:03 am
#270
Join Date: Mar 2015
Posts: 184
For the online loads, you'll need to use a debit card linked to your bank account. At some Walmarts you can load your Serve/Bluebird card using a visa or mastercard gift card, but unfortunately Vanilla cards from CVS no longer work there. A visa/mastercard gift card issued by US Bank or Metabank should work at Walmart. These are typically sold at grocery stores or at Staples.
Does this mean that all Vanilla GC, including debit & reloadable will not work?
What about Amex GC? There were a whole bunch of them at my CVS.
Last edited by spidy1; Mar 25, 2015 at 8:27 am