Real Free Money Offers - they actually work!

Following is a  list of free money offers that require minimal to no work to make some money -

1. Revolution Money Exchange

Being set up as a competitor to Paypal by a few big name banks. Great offer - sign up and get a $25 bonus. It took me about 2 mins to complete the process, so definitely a great rate of return. While they ask for your SSN, there is no hard pull, only a soft pull to verify your identity. This offer expires May 15.

2. Ebates.com

Get some money back while shopping. The basic premise is simple - go to ebates, open an account, sign in, find your favorite store in their directory, click on the store link and shop as you normally would. Ebates tracks your shopping, then gives a certain percentage as cash back every quarter. Your accumulated cashback is sent to you 45 days after the close of the previous calendar quarter.

Plus - get $5 simply to sign up, see the link below.

Signup with Ebates - get $5

A few precautions to take so that there are no cash back issues -

1. You must sign in to ebates and go through their link

2. Your shopping cart must be empty when you start

Best way to do this - clear all cookies, then start your shopping trip. I have been using ebate for 2 yrs now and it has worked very well for me.

3. Prosper

This is micro finance on the web. Prosper brings individual lenders and borrowers together to make micro finance happen. Prosper does all the heavy lifting for you - they vet the borrowers, check their credit and hire a collection agency if they don't pay. I have been a Prosper lender for over a year now and even factoring in a couple of delinquencies, my return has been around 10% which is far better than what most banks will pay you. Besides, you are not putting in large sums of money - the typical loan I make is $50 - $100, so diversification helps.

Right now, Prosper is giving lenders $25 to sign up while borrowers get $50. To get this money, you need to sign up within 30 days and make your first loan within 90 days from sign up. Click on the button below to get started.

Cut the cost of calling India by half - offer valid till Mon, Apr 28

1. Go to http://www.trueroots.us - this website is managed by VSNL / Tata
2. Sign up as a new customer if you are a new customer or log in to your account if you are an existing customer
3. Purchase / refill any denomination upto $100
4. Get a matching amount into your account within 2 business days courtesy the Buy One Get One offer

The max denomination available is $100 which means you can effectively get $200 calling or a rate of around 3.5 cents per minute out of pocket. You have one year to spend all this money from the time of the first call for new accounts. Recharges only get 90 days.

Offer is valid only until 9 am Eastern time on Mon, Apr 28.

April 2008 I Bonds can yield > 4.4% APY with a 14-mth Investment

Credit for this goes to xerty on FatWallet. This strategy will work if you are comfortable in the world of investments and also have a Treasury Direct account. If you have to ask what these things are, then this investment is not for you.

I bonds issued by the US Government have two interest components - a fixed rate and a floating rates that resets every 6 months based on inflation rates. At this time, the fixed rate is 1.2%. A bond bought now will pay 4.28% for the first 6 months and then 6.07% for the next 6 months thanks to the steadily rising inflation.

Key Steps -

1. Buy the bonds before the end of April to collect interest for all of April (nice, isn't it?) Purchase limit is $5,000 for electronic purchase + $5,000 for paper bonds (can be redeemed at most banks).

2. Hold the bonds for 14 months and a few days.

3. You get interest for 15 months (thanks to the late April purchase) but lose the last 3 months when you redeem early.

4. Effectively get a yield of better than 4.4% once you factor in the various state & local tax breaks.

For additional reading, go to the original post on FW.

If you don't have a Treasury Direct account, apply for one ASAP as they have to physically mail you a security card needed to transact.

Free - 1 lb of Land O Lakes Butter in 8 Half Sticks - valid 04/15 to 10/15

Land O Lakes has a mail in rebate offer on their new packaging of 1 lb butter in 8 half sticks. This is not available in all states, check the form and your local retailer for availability. Buy it, send in the rebate form, get a check within 6 weeks. So essentially, a pound of butter for the price of sales tax and a postage stamp.

 

Rebate Form

4.40% 12-24 mth CD from Alliance Credit Union

Alliant Credit Union is offering Certificates of Deposit of 12 t0 24 month duration with a pretty good yield of 4.4% APY for a minimum deposit of $25,000. For deposits less than that, the yield drops to 4.0% APY.

Membership is available if you live in the Chicago area, are employees of United Airlines or if are a member of the National PTA. Membership to this association is open to all if you pay a fee of $25. You may find lower fees at your local PTA chapter.

New car loans for 3.99% APR at Agriculture FCU, used car loans start at 4.49% APR

Agriculture FCU has new car loans for rates as low as 3.99% APR with used vehicle loans starting at 4.49% APR. You can be eligible for membership by contributing $20 to the CityDance Ensemble.

The credit union makes the process easy by combining the sign-up process for both entities into the application form.

5.0% APY 5-mth CD at Xceed Financial Credit Union - expires Apr 14 (or earlier)

Xceed Financial CU (formerly known as Xerox FCU) has a 5-mth CD with a very attractive 5.0% APY. Membership to this credit union is available by paying $8 and becoming a friend of the Webster Public Library.

Webster Public Library

Xceed Financial CU 5-mth CD

The CSR told me that the CD offer is expected to last at least another week but definitely not beyond April 14, 2008. It all depends on the response they get.

Update: looks like the deadline has been extended to April 30. They have also placed a maximum deposit limit of $25,000.

British Airways BOGO offer if you apply for their Visa card

BA has a very interesting offer for those who apply for their Visa credit card. As per the offer page on their website, new customers of their Visa card will get one companion ticket free when they buy another.

More details and fare booking classes are given on their website, but this is pretty good if you are looking to buy an international ticket wherever BA flies.

Schwab High Yield Checking Account 3.01% APY with a lot of features

Charles Schwab Bank offers a High Yield Checking Account that has a very good set of features.

• 3.01% APY
• Free standard checks
• Zero ATM fees - they refund whatever fees the ATM owner may charge
• No minimum balance requirement
• No monthly service fee
• No direct deposit requirement
• Free online bill pay
• FDIC insured about $100,000

So what's not to like? Nothing much, really. This is very similar to the Fidelity's mySmartCash Account I had covered earlier but pays a bit more in interest. The only hiccup - you are also forced to open a Schwab One Brokerage Account that is linked to this checking account. You will also see a hard pull on your credit report.

5.00% APY 5-mth CD at Xerox Credit Union

Xerox FCU is offering a 5.0% APY 5-mth CD on its website. With interest rates falling every other week, this is a very good rate in today's environment. Minimum balance is only $500.

Membership in this credit union is available to anybody if you become a member of one of the various societies listed on their membership page.

$50 prepaid cellphone cards for $43 at Target from March 2 - March 8

All $50 prepaid cards from AT&T, Virgin, Verizon, Boost and Tracfone are being sold for $43 at Target from March 2 until March 8.

Nokia 2610 + T-Mobile $100 Airtime card for $88 only - 02/24 to 03/01 at Target

Target store will have the Nokia 2610 + T-Mobile $100 airtime card for only $88 for a week starting Feb 24, 2008. This offer is a part of their weekly circular for this week (pg 6, I think...) and is available in store only.

If you already are a T-Mobile pre-paid customer, then sell the phone on eBay or Craigslist and keep the card to top up your account cheaply.  Make a few bucks more selling the phone by unlocking it - go to Unlock Nokia or the Nokia forums.

Travelling for work

Since I have a regular day job which requires some travel, I couldn't update my blog for about 2 weeks. Sorry!

Energizer Instant Cellphone Recharger for ~$4 at CircuitCity

CircuitCity has the Energizer Instant Cellphone Recharger for just $4.17 + tax. There are two types, so pick the right one for your phone. The unit runs off a couple of standard lithium AA batteries.

Western Digital Passport 250GB Portable External Hard Drive - $90 at BestBuy after coupon

BestBuy has the Western Digital Passport 250GB portable external hard drive on sale for $99. Use the USPS Mover's Guide coupon to get another 10% off in store pushing the final price down to about $90 + tax. The drive is available in various colors - black, white and pink. This is one of the newer drives do not require any external power supply and run off a standard, powered USB port.

The actual drive inside is a SATA drive, so a pretty cheap upgrade for your laptop if you want to open it up.

Associated Bank Credit Card - 0% APR for 12 months on balance transfers + no BT fees

Something of a rarity, but there still exists a card with no balance transfer fees if you apply through the offer link below. Don't forget to take screen shots of the offer for added protection in case there are issues later.

Offer link

Card is issued and managed by Citibank.

Cut your gas bills - Kenwood oil-filled electric heater for $12 at Home Depot

Several Home Depot stores have these on sale / clearance for only $12. These heaters are ideal for homes when you need to heat only a relatively small area at night. They are pretty silent, with the only noise being that of the relay. Note that they also take some time to heat up, so there is no instant heat.

I use a similar one made by DeLonghi in the bedroom and my gas bill is down by around $30-$40 per month.

Civilization IV Gold Edition for $20 on Amazon - Jan 30 only

Amazon has the Civilization IV Gold Edition for just $19.99 on Jan 30. While it qualifies for free shipping, its actually not free since it is below $25. Buy something else you need priced at least $5.01 to get free shipping.

W Hotels Bed @ 40% off until Feb 29

If you have stayed in W or Starwood hotels and loved their beds, here is your chance to get them at a 40% discount. Go to the W Hotels Store and once you are done shopping for a W bed, featherbeds, pillows, comforters and sheets, use code Q96TE. This is an employee code that gives you the discount.

Please do not call for this deal as its an employee discount code, its for online use only!

Kingston 4Gb 133x Compact Flash card Free after rebate + shipping at Norman Camera

Norman Camera has the Kingston 4Gb 133x Compact Flash card free after rebate but you still pay shipping. Their website only carries a $15 rebate form instead of the $40 purchase price. However, you can find the correct rebate at this link.