Spend $500 to get $200 credit
By Lena Kovadlo
@lovebuglena (43191)
Staten Island, New York
August 30, 2021 5:21pm CST
Hubby got a credit card offer in the mail. If you sign up and get approved you get a $200 credit. Thing is you have to spend $500. And you have to do it in three months.
He got approved for the card and we used it yesterday when we went to the mall. We already spent over $100 on it. And what we bought we actually need, so we weren't just splurging left and right. I think we will definitely reach $500 in three month's time.
What's also great about this card is that you get 1.5% cash back on it no matter what you buy and there are no foreign transaction fees. It's about time hubby started using a cash back credit card. He usually just debits but that doesn't give you cash back.
13 people like this
12 responses
@owlwings (43915)
• Cambridge, England
30 Aug 21
Credit cards are only a good idea if you can actually clear the balance each month, regardless of any special offers like lump sums and cash back there are. Most credit cards give you free credit for at least a month - the time between one statement and when the next payment is due - so if you put away the actual amount you spend in an instant-access savings account, you can also earn a little (very tiny amount, I know, these days) before you release it to pay off the credit card.
Borrowing serious amounts is not a good idea with a credit card. It's always better to explore other, cheaper ways through a bank loan, for example.
1 person likes this
@owlwings (43915)
• Cambridge, England
31 Aug 21
@lovebuglena Been there, done that many years ago! Eventually. I managed to pay it off and cut up the card. It was only quite recently that I got another, which I use mostly for online purchases, since it offers protection if there are problems with a transaction.
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
30 Aug 21
He was thinking of opening a new credit card and this is a good one I think. He doesn't have one that offers cash back. He does have one where he earns points that can be used toward things like plane tickets among others. You can also convert it to cash back but that doesn't work in his favor if he were to do that.
This new card is good to use when shopping for groceries as you get 1.5% cash back. Better to do that than just pay with cash or debit card.
1 person likes this
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
30 Aug 21
It is easy to charge up a credit card and then not be able to pay all of it off at the end of the billing cycle. That's one disadvantage for sure.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118800)
• Gainesville, Florida
31 Aug 21
I always take advantage of my credit card offers and cash back rewards. But credit cards are only a great deal if you pay off the balance each month. I use my credit cards as if they're debit cards, meaning I use them to buy everyday purchases like groceries, gas, etc, and then pay the balance when the bill comes in.
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
31 Aug 21
I always pay in full. Hubby has two cards but he has a balance on them. So of course he pays interest. But he was told not to make a payment close to the due date and instead do it as early as possible because that means less interest gets accrued on new purchases or something like that.
He may transfer a balance from one of his two cards to this one. He has 0% interest until end of 2022. If he does that, I hope he will be able to pay all that off before they start charging him interest as his will be around 25%.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118800)
• Gainesville, Florida
1 Sep 21
@lovebuglena 25%? Yikes! There's a very good incentive for NOT running a balance!
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
1 Sep 21
@moffittjc In the offer there was a percentage range you can get. I think it started with 14 something and went as high as about 25. They didn't tell you what you are gonna get because that is determined after you apply and they also run a credit report. He ended up getting the highest lol.
1 person likes this
@Hannihar (129674)
• Israel
31 Aug 21
@lovebuglena
I am glad that you will use the $500 in 3 months and then you will get $200 credit. I am glad that the card will be good in so many ways.
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
31 Aug 21
I wish we had activated the card when we went out Saturday. If we had used it to pay for our dinner out we’d have added another $120 to the total.
1 person likes this
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
31 Aug 21
@Hannihar we just activated it so have plenty of time I think.
1 person likes this
@Hannihar (129674)
• Israel
31 Aug 21
@lovebuglena
Too bad you did not do that but hopefully you will have plenty of time to use the card.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (158582)
• United States
31 Aug 21
We use our credit card for EVERYTHING so we get cash back points. The one we have only credits 1%; and I'd like to get one that credits 1.5% or 2%. Long story; but they are changing our credit card from a Visa to a Master Card; and I"m not thrilled about that; so we will look for another after our vacation. We use the points for Amazon cards which I turn into restaurant gift cards -- this is one of the ways that we eat for free.
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
31 Aug 21
What’s the benefit to having a visa as opposed to a MasterCard?
My mom has a card from Chase. Chase Freedom. She gets 1% cash back but she can get $5% on certain purchases depending on the quarter it is. Like for three months you get 5% for groceries, another three months 5% on gas, etc.
1 person likes this
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
1 Sep 21
@LindaOHio That's awesome.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (158582)
• United States
1 Sep 21
@lovebuglena No benefit. I'm just happy with Visa. We will get more % for hotels and restaurants; so when we're on our trip, we will be able to rack up a lot of points.
1 person likes this
@florelway (23159)
• Cagayan De Oro, Philippines
30 Aug 21
I hope we have that deal on our credit card here. There are rewards points but does not include cash back.
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
31 Aug 21
@florelway that’s good to have.
1 person likes this
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
30 Aug 21
What are rewards points?
1 person likes this
@florelway (23159)
• Cagayan De Oro, Philippines
31 Aug 21
@lovebuglena it's like they give points when you use your card and you can redeem it with products.
1 person likes this
@kaylachan (58906)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
30 Aug 21
Debit cards can give you cash, but you're using your own money. I'm glad he's using something that's going to be helpful for you both.
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
30 Aug 21
You can get say $20 if you use a debit card but that money comes out of your bank account though. The cash back you earn with your credit card doesn't.
@ShyBear88 (59306)
• Sterling, Virginia
30 Aug 21
Just pay attention to how much you are spending and I’m sure you will do just fine and pay it back quickly too. These days when I get those we just toss them in the trash since we currently don’t need any more.
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
30 Aug 21
I know he is not going to spend it left and right.
@ShyBear88 (59306)
• Sterling, Virginia
30 Aug 21
@lovebuglena which is a good thing. We have a card where my husband hardly spends anything on it but gas once a month.
1 person likes this
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
31 Aug 21
If our spending will amount to that anyway—regardless of the deal—then it’s great for sure.
1 person likes this
@JESSY3236 (19057)
• United States
31 Aug 21
I think there is a debit card that does cash back. I don't have a credit card.
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
31 Aug 21
You can get like $20 or even $40 cash back when you use a debit card in some places, however, that money comes out of your bank account. Credit card cash back is money you earn.
1 person likes this
@Ladanger (14582)
• United States
31 Aug 21
I have never tried that. Sounds like something I could try myself.
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
31 Aug 21
The cash back is a great idea. Spending $500 to get a $200 credit is good if you are gonna spend that much anyway. Otherwise makes no sense.
1 person likes this
@lovebuglena (43191)
• Staten Island, New York
1 Sep 21
@Ladanger A big chunk would probably be on groceries...
@Ladanger (14582)
• United States
31 Aug 21
@lovebuglena I agree. I wonder what I would spend $500 on. I don’t even know.
