I love credit cards so much!

[Albort]

I am my own tax guy - lol! That makes sense if you go out and hire your own crew.

In our case, we paid a roofing company for labor only (the workers were their employees). We simply supplied our own materials.

ahh okay. good to know.

 

[speedyfishy]

Hi all!

I have the Chase Ink Preferred and am currently trying to meet minimum spend. Does anyone know if pin enabled visa gc still work to purchase money orders at Walmart and/or Meijer. I’m planning to buy some Disney gc also to pay off membership dues for rest of year as well as stock up for trips this fall. I still have a month and a half but would like to knock off a large chunk soon. I have plenty of everyday spend in the mix as well.

Open to other suggestions on how to meet spend as well.

Thanks!

It depends on the store and the type of giftcard. Metabank visas should work if the store lets you. Have you considered opening a bank account and funding the intial deposit with a credit card? PNC will let you do 4k and BMO you can do three accounts with 1k each every 30 days.

 

[Albort]

Hi all!

I have the Chase Ink Preferred and am currently trying to meet minimum spend. Does anyone know if pin enabled visa gc still work to purchase money orders at Walmart and/or Meijer. I’m planning to buy some Disney gc also to pay off membership dues for rest of year as well as stock up for trips this fall. I still have a month and a half but would like to knock off a large chunk soon. I have plenty of everyday spend in the mix as well.

Open to other suggestions on how to meet spend as well.

Thanks!

Card must be backed by Meta, US Bank or Sunrise for Walmart. YMMV on it working based on the cashier.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

Can you buy your own shingles at Lowes and use a cc. Then just pay the contractor for labor? We saved quite a bit this way. 10% off Lowes coupons are plentiful.

Hadn’t thought of that. Thanks!

 

[CyndiLouWho]

I think it could be the cashier that doesnt know what they are doing sometimes... did u ask to try it or did they just say no. Try a different BBB?

Got the newbie cashier who didn’t even know how to ring up a gift card, called over a “manager” who saw the gift cards in my hand and said no way. She said it’s compancy policy and someone broke policy if they let me do it before.

Could be a good question to your tax guy in your state.

No tax guy here, just me.

In our case, we paid a roofing company for labor only (the workers were their employees). We simply supplied our own materials.

We’d be paying a licensed insured company, who would be pulling all permits.

 

[jujubiee4]

Last week, Daraius announced that "[he] will no longer be involved with the management and writing of Million Mile Secrets."

Apparently, Daraius got caught with three separate accounts on Ashley Madison (the dating and affairs site for married people) as part of that massive hack back in about August 2015.

In November 2015, Daraius and Emily announced their divorce.

In May 2016, MMS announced their sale to Bankrate.

This is all news to me (but I don't really follow the personal lives of the bloggers I read). I really wouldn't be surprised if selling MMS to Bankrate was precipitated by the divorce. The blog was probably Daraius and Emily's most significant jointly-owned asset, and a sale would've been the easiest way to fix a value and liquidate that asset to distribute in a divorce.

I like million mile secrets. Ohhhh boy I had no idea all that went on.

 

[jujubiee4]

Hit and miss today. Tried to buy Disney GCs with Bed Bath and Beyond GCs today. Had seen people on Disboards posting that it works. Nope.

On the hit side, bought $100 in Disney GCs with 100 in Target GCs, so I guess that is working again, at least here.

I'm able to buy Dis GCs at Bath and Body but I must be the only one who gets knocked down for trying at Target.
I'm pretty ready to start driving out to search other Targets. I want to call first but always afraid that will tip them off
to say no. lol

 

[Disneyonmymind]

It depends on the store and the type of giftcard. Metabank visas should work if the store lets you. Have you considered opening a bank account and funding the intial deposit with a credit card? PNC will let you do 4k and BMO you can do three accounts with 1k each every 30 days.

Does bank account funding only work for Chase, but not good for AMEX? I am trying to plan out my SPG biz MSR. I have some big bills I could pay with Plastiq but I hate to do it because of the fee. I’m trying to minimize my costs lol. Is there any fee associated with bank funding?

 

[Albort]

Does bank account funding only work for Chase, but not good for AMEX? I am trying to plan out my SPG biz MSR. I have some big bills I could pay with Plastiq but I hate to do it because of the fee. I’m trying to minimize my costs lol. Is there any fee associated with bank funding?

its not quite Chase but its more Amex. Most banks dont allow Amex cards, just Visa and Mastercard. there is usually no fees associated with bank fundings but it requires you to float money with the bank for a few months. If you find small regional banks that allows bank fundings with an Amex, it should work just fine. BMO was hit hard during the Amex SPG biz 35k time, so Amex put a stop to it.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

I'm able to buy Dis GCs at Bath and Body but most me the only one who gets knocked down for trying at Target.
I'm pretty ready to start driving out to search other Targets. I want to call first but always afraid that will tip them off
to say no. lol

Target was a no go for a while. The register wouldn’t take a gift card payment if there was any gift card purchase at all. It happened to me and it clearly wasn’t the cashier. However, today it worked. Rumor was that it was a software glitch, seems fixed.

 

[pillow]

Hadn’t thought of that. Thanks!

The Lowes site will give a 10% discount if you purchase a certain amount of shingles. You can stack with a coupon from Quik Coupons (Sometimes you can find 20% off coupons there). I used a rebate portal as well (can't recall which) - was surprised it paid out since I had used a coupon.

 

[speedyfishy]

Does bank account funding only work for Chase, but not good for AMEX? I am trying to plan out my SPG biz MSR. I have some big bills I could pay with Plastiq but I hate to do it because of the fee. I’m trying to minimize my costs lol. Is there any fee associated with bank funding?

Amex won’t count BMO funding anymore for MSR. You can do memory bank though with Amex and have it count. It allows $500 they are also offering a $100 bonus now too you can do at the same time.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.do...0-signup-bonus-earnmore-1-6-apy-checking/amp/

 

[jhoannam]

Anyone else having issues with MPX? I tried to buy $25 Amazon Gift Card but it didn't work. Gave me an error.

 

[miztressuz]

Target was a no go for a while. The register wouldn’t take a gift card payment if there was any gift card purchase at all. It happened to me and it clearly wasn’t the cashier. However, today it worked. Rumor was that it was a software glitch, seems fixed.

Yes, the Target system fix happened a couple weeks ago. Most everyone who was able to do it before seem to be able to resume again. I've done it a few times since the fix.

Got the newbie cashier who didn’t even know how to ring up a gift card, called over a “manager” who saw the gift cards in my hand and said no way. She said it’s compancy policy and someone broke policy if they let me do it before.

This is the concerning bit for me, because it wasn't a company policy before. If it was a company policy I'd think they'd block the registers from accepting it. Since they didn't, and based on other reports of regional acceptance, it seemed more an individual store policy. I haven't done Bed Bath and Beyond for GC's in a couple months though. Hopefully it was just a grumpy manager.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

If it was a company policy I'd think they'd block the registers from accepting it.

This was my thought. Her pointing out that “if it happened before” implies the registers allow it thus not likely to be a policy.

 

[Lain]

Anyone else having issues with MPX? I tried to buy $25 Amazon Gift Card but it didn't work. Gave me an error.

Yeah, I’m getting a “System is disabled” error message. The same thing happened to me early last week when it was down for about a day; tried again the next day and it worked. Later in the week, I got a “Transaction declined” error message that prompted me to email MPX, which I did and it was working again the next day (though I doubt it’s because anyone did anything for my account on the other end; they’ve historically taken over a week to even respond).

MPX has been kind of glitchy lately. If you can wait, try again tomorrow.

 

[wendow]

I like million mile secrets. Ohhhh boy I had no idea all that went on.

Same. I love that site and was disappointed when they got a divorce. Didn't know all that background junk.

ETA: read Lain's links. Ick!

 

[Lain]

Hit and miss today. Tried to buy Disney GCs with Bed Bath and Beyond GCs today. Had seen people on Disboards posting that it works. Nope.

Got the newbie cashier who didn’t even know how to ring up a gift card, called over a “manager” who saw the gift cards in my hand and said no way. She said it’s compancy policy and someone broke policy if they let me do it before.

This was my thought. Her pointing out that “if it happened before” implies the registers allow it thus not likely to be a policy.

@CyndiLouWho, it most certainly is not BB&B company policy. Last year, several members in the Disney Gift Card Deals thread tried to use BB&B GCs to buy Disney GCs, were refused, and even accused of money laundering. They contacted BB&B and a district manager reached out to them to confirm that corporate policy is to allow GC>GC (the system already allows it), and contacted their stores to correct the situation. I've quoted several of their posts below. Your cashier and manager are misinformed, and if you want to escalate this further, you can use BB&B's contact form to relay your store experience and dismay.

Personally, this is why I don't try to use BB&B GCs to buy third-party GCs. Even though BB&B GCs are often on sale for $90 for $100 through PPDG (and I believe redeemable through Discover), the DPs suggest most store cashiers and managers are sorely uninformed about company policy and I don't feel like being accused of a federal crime over trying to save a few bucks when there are easier avenues still available.

Ugh! Was just turned down at BB&B trying to use a gift card to buy a Disney gift card. Was told that it was money laundering. This the same store where I was able to do this twice in the past two weeks. She offered to call the manager for confirmation but I told her not to bother. The last thing I need is for the manager to bring it up to all employees at a morning meeting. There's another store not far from work so I'll try there tomorrow. Or I'll wait a bit and try this store again. The employee was very pregnant so maybe she'll be off on maternity leave shortly.

That's good idea. I just sent some feedback about my visit using their online form relaying my experience yesterday and expressing my embarrassment over being falsely accused of money laundering in front of other customers. I leave work in 45 minutes and will head to a different BB&B to give it another try.

No luck at the only other BB&B in a convenient radius. I was told it is illegal to buy a gift card with a gift card. I asked her if she was sure about that because several major retailers allow it, such as Target, Walmart, Best Buy, etc. She called her manager, who confirmed no GC to GC. I asked to talk with the manager, although I wasn't hopeful. The manager came up and confirmed her earlier stance against it. I told her i was confused because I didn't see anything on the website or the back of the gift card that prohibited the purchase of gift cards, and that I knew their system allowed it because I had no problems in the past. She picked up a BB&B gift card and read off to me that it is redeemable for merchandise only and said that gift cards aren't considered merchandise because they are from a third party. What she didn't read is the rest of the statement on the back of the card which says, "...and may not be redeemed for cash." To me, this means the gift card can't be cashed out for money, but it should be good for anything they sell in the store. She disagreed. There was no point in pursuing it any further so I left.

I've received two emails in response to my message sent via their website. One was an automated message and the second email said that the store manager or district manager will be contacting me in 24-48 hours.

About a hour ago I received an email from the District Customer Service Manager at BB&B, apologizing and asking me to give him a call so we can resolve this gift card issue. When I called he apologized again and confirmed that you can purchase gift cards with BB&B gift cards. The only ones you can't purchase are the open loop cards, i.e. Visa, MasterCard, AMEX. He said they used to not allow any GC to GC transactions, but the policy changed a couple of years ago.

He said he had been in contact with the store manager about this. He also wanted to know if the associate actually said "money laundering" and I confirmed that she did. He chuckled in disbelief and said sometimes their associates get over zealous. He said he wanted to make it right and if I was willing to give them another chance he would call whichever store I preferred to let them know I was coming in. The Tanasbourne store is really close, so I told him I could go in right away.

At the store, I handed my BB&B gift cards to the cashier and she hesitated before telling me that she didn't think I could buy a GC with GC. I politely asked her if she would mind checking with a manager. She called for the MOD. While we waited, the cashier at the next register looked over and asked my cashier if there was a problem. My cashier explained what I was trying to do and the other cashier very emphatically told her that they don't allow it. At that moment the manager walked up and said that it's fine. He said to both cashiers that buying Disney gift cards is fine, it's the Visa and MasterCard gift cards that aren't allowed. I made sure to thank him. The cashier finished my transaction and we chatted about Disney briefly.

I didn't see my nemesis, the pregnant lady. i'm hoping word gets around to all the associates so that this isn't a problem in the future. I don't plan to do this regularly, but it's a nice way to use my Discover rewards.

I read about everyone's issues with converting BB&B gift cards to Disney a few weeks back and had concerns that I would have challenges converting the physical BB&B gift cards that I have. Today I was shut down when trying to convert BB&B gift cards to Disney.

I'm away visiting family in Seattle, WA and thought I'd try my luck converting $250 worth of BB&B gift cards that I had been holding on to for a while to Disney gift cards, since the stores near me in Riverside, CA do not carry the Disney gift cards. I went into a BB&B in Tukwila, WA to convert physical BB&B gift cards and to also pick up other items. The sales associate scanned one of the two store cards I had and then halfway through the transaction decided to confirm with the manager that it was okay. The manager came over and voided the transaction stating it was a federal offense to use gift cards to purchase gift cards. I told her that she was wrong about it being a federal offense and that the terms of the gift card only state that it can't be redeemed for cash and they can't be redeemed for open loop cards like Visa and Mastercard gift cards, but she was adamant that she was right. I just left the cards and items there and walked out. It looks like the associates and managers are still unaware of the gift card policy and are still claiming it's illegal. I'm going to try my luck at another location this week. I'm going to avoid this route for gift card conversion in the future. I just wanted to add my experience to the list of data points.

I just got off the phone with the store District manager, who emailed me this morning, and she apologized profusely about the way I was treated and even mentioned that retraining would happen. She agreed that it is definitely not a federal crime. She mentioned that she read my complaint in disbelief and it will not happen again to any customer. I asked her to clarify the policy since it was my understanding that only the cash cards aren't allowed for purchase with gift card and she replied that they can be used to purchase merchandise, and since most stores don't carry third party cards it's not clear whether they're considered merchandise so they say no.

She said she wanted to make it up to me and would call and notify the manager at whichever store I wanted to go into, and they would work around this and have the gift cards ready for me to purchase with store gift cards at customer service. I'm very satisfied with the outcome, but my takeaway from this is that it's still very YMMV. Thank you Lain for encouraging me to pursue this further and Eighty8Keys and others for sharing your experience.

 

[Disneyonmymind]

Amex won’t count BMO funding anymore for MSR. You can do memory bank though with Amex and have it count. It allows $500 they are also offering a $100 bonus now too you can do at the same time.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.do...0-signup-bonus-earnmore-1-6-apy-checking/amp/

Thanks! I am going to try this tomorrow! I have been planning to start going for bank bonuses anyway. This seems like a good place to start, and it will help meet my MSR while I’m at it. Win-win

 

[Albort]

Thanks! I am going to try this tomorrow! I have been planning to start going for bank bonuses anyway. This seems like a good place to start, and it will help meet my MSR while I’m at it. Win-win

heh, im starting to see a big change in people starting to MS a lot more than usual.