6 replies to this topic

[markber]

Below is a copy of cowboyBill's post on FW:

Here's the info I got in the newspaper
1800-347-0320 - Reward Card
0% APR for LIFE - When you make 2 purchases monthly
Up to 5% Cash Back
-You have to sign up for it ... I called and forgot to ask about that.
Invitation #FMBB

1800-633-4111 - Miles Card
0% APR for LIFE
10,000 miles when you make a transaction by 2/16/06
#FMBF



"Updated 9/18/05 with information from EugeneV:

1-800-767-8466

Invitation #FKVP - 5% Cash Back on "Get More" purchases in popular categories all year
Invitation #FKVQ - 5% Cash Back on the first $1500 in gas purchases (merchant codes 5541 and 5542)
Invitation #FKVR - 10,000 bonus miles after first purchase

All offers include 0% APR on transferred balances until April 2006 and 0% APR for life on transferred balances if you make two purchases a month after April 2006. All offers ends September 29.

End of 9/18/05 update
------------------------------------------------------------------------------





Several people have been asking how to get the 0% for life deal from Discover.
I found an ad in the August 8 issue of U.S. News and World Report for the
0% APR for Life.

This is a phone only offer 1-800-347-3575 during business hours Monday-Saturday.
The invitation code is FJQH.

It is 0% interest on transferred balances (max fee $29 per transfer) until
March 2006. 0% offer is extended with 2 purchases each month (any amount)."

source: fatwallet.com/t/52/506220/

[jrr7]

All offers include 0% APR on transferred balances until April 2006 and 0% APR for life on transferred balances if you make two purchases a month after April 2006. All offers ends September 29.

Not a great deal. Each time you make a purchase, you increase the amount of your balance that is "stuck" at 12.99% or whatever the APY is.

[markber]

All offers include 0% APR on transferred balances until April 2006 and 0% APR for life on transferred balances if you make two purchases a month after April 2006. All offers ends September 29.

Not a great deal. Each time you make a purchase, you increase the amount of your balance that is "stuck" at 12.99% or whatever the APY is.

Great observation! I guess the trick is to figure out how to make (1) two very small purchases every month and (2) how to do them automatically.

Does anybody have an idea?

[jrr7]

Great observation! I guess the trick is to figure out how to make (1) two very small purchases every month and (2) how to do them automatically.

Does anybody have an idea?

The best way would be to pay a recurring bill like 'net access fees, Netflix membership, or the like. It would be better to carry around the card to buy sticks of gum, single postage stamps, etc. but that's just asking for trouble since you won't remember whether you've made 0, 1, or 2 purchases this month, and you might accidentally buy something expensive with the card.

You would have to make a minimum payment of 4% of the total balance, all of which would reduce the balance at 0%. And then the amount of balance at 15% (or whatever) goes up.

Say you borrowed $10,000 at 0%, and each month you make a $10 and a $35 purchase. You make the minimum payment each month.

Your effective interest rate starts at 0% but goes up pretty smoothly. At the end of year ... your balance is ... and the effective interest rate is:

1 6568 1.23%
2 4465 3.63%
3 3177 7.65%
4 2387 13.57%

Shortly after year 5 begins, your original balance (at 0%) is paid off. So it wasn't "for life", it was for 4+ years, and you wind up with a several-thousand-dollar balance at a high interest rate (unless you can transfer the balance elsewhere).

[pangya88]

You could (1) make two very small donations every month and (2) do them automatically online. Help can't wait. Follow these links for more information:

Friends of the World Food Program
https://www.kintera....JgLNKSPzFlIWIaK

America's Second Harvest — The Nation's Food Bank Network
https://www.kintera....SK0OUG&b=667535
For every dollar you donate, we are able to help distribute 20 pounds of food to hungry Americans!

Mercy Corps
http://www2.mercycor...nthlygiving/faq
The minimum pledge is $5 per month.

Relief Web
http://www.reliefweb...doc100?OpenForm

[markber]

Thanks a lot for the links, pangya88!


Mark

[markber]

Thanks for posting your thorough analsysis, jrr7! I think it shows that we need to look for ways to make automatic purchases much smaller than $45 per month to benefit from the Discover 0% offer for many years. I have not explored the charities that pangya88 posted links to in this thread because I do not have the card. But may be donating $2-$5 per month ($24 - $60 per year =>~ 0.2 - 0.6% APR for a $10000 balance) as pangya88 suggested would keep APR low for quite a while.


Mark