Free Money w/ Keep the Change…Almost!
1st let me say that my husband works for Bank of America, but I promise that my opinion about this program is completely unbiased.
Bank of America offers a program called Keep the Change which has to be the easiest way EVER to save money. It basically functions as your electronic penny jar. I remember reading awhile ago, when people were using cash,that change is to be saved and not used to purchase items. It stated that at the end of the day, all leftover change should be placed in a jar and used in emergency situations or for things like birthday and Christmas shopping. Times have changed and most people use a debit/check card for purchases. Some even use credit cards. I don’t have anything against using credit cards as long as the purchases fit into your monthly budget and you are able to pay off the balance to avoid interest charges. Bank of America has taken that ‘save your change’ concept and modernized it.
Here is what Bank of America has to say:
Save automatically with every Check Card purchase you make. Saving is a whole lot simpler when you don’t have to think about it. That’s the idea behind Keep the Change. When you enroll, each time you buy something with your Bank of America Check Card, we’ll round up your purchase to the nearest dollar amount and transfer the difference from your checking account to your savings account. You get to keep the change – so every cup of coffee, tank of gas, or bag of groceries adds up to more savings for you. What could be easier?
We’ll even match your savings1
We’ll match your Keep the Change savings for the first 3 months, to the penny. After that, we’ll continue matching 5% a year. The maximum total match is $250 per year.
I am enrolled in this program, I love it, and have saved over $200 since January. My husband and I take advantage of this program when buying gas and tipping by going over the amount by $.01 instead of rounding to the nearest dollar. Meaning, we always fill up the tank so the total amount is $40.01 or give a tip to make our restaurant bill $33.01. That way, BOA will transfer $1.98 into our account. It does not sound like much, but a little bit here and there adds up.
I have been soooo tempted to spend the money, but I plan on using it for Christmas shopping. I will not spend the money until they have matched my savings for the year. I plan to use this money for Christmas shopping, but it can also be used towards building an emergency fund, paying off debt, or spending money on a vacation. I don’t think this should be your only means of saving money, but it is definitely another thought-less avenue for doing so.
I did read at www.wisebread.com a few minor cons about this program:
- If you overdraw your account for a day, you won’t get matched for that day. Only Bank of America checkcards count, so you won’t get it with a regular co-branded Visa.
- You have to report the promotional matching funds to the IRS (form 1099).
- They don’t start matching right away. According to the CSR, they will match your funds at the end of your anniversary
- You don’t get great interest rates on savings.
- You only make a good deal of money on this if you spend on tons of little items.
The enrollment in this program is not automatic. If you already have a Bank of America account, it is worth the 15 minutes you will spend at the branch or you can enroll online.
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Save Money: How I saved $216 at Macy’s
For the past two years, I have been doing the bulk of my summer shopping for the children, especially the older boys, at Macy’s. When my boys were babies and toddlers, I would shop at Once Upon A Child, a thrift store for children’s items only. I love this store and cannot say enough good things about them. But anyone who has boys knows that they are rough on their clothes, therefore, I could no longer find good, quality clothes and had to explore other options.
I used to shop Old Navy until they put a Macy’s up the street from me and I discovered how much I could save when they have a BIG sale. But, of course, that is not enough, I also have to utilize coupons. So I patiently waited for Macy’s One Day Sale AND they had a $10 off coupon for every $25 spend; I printed out six coupons!!! The catch was the coupon did not apply to all items and the sale and the coupon ended at 1pm. But that was OK, because I knew that the only way I could buy good clothes within my budget was to wait for a sale and use coupons (rules everyone, especially frugal shoppers, must follow).
I packed up the twins and the boys, because my husband had to work that day, and got to the store at 10am. I did not even feed the twins at home; I had my oldest son feed them when we got to the store.
I loaded up the cart with clearance items and sale items for my oldest boys, tried them on and headed for the register. Because I knew it was going to take some time at the register, I let several people go ahead of me in line. Finally, it was my turn at the register; the cashier was very patient with me in dividing up the clothes into the items that could be used with the $10 off coupon and those that could not be used with the coupon. Thirty minutes later, I had 3 transactions that totaled $250 and I purchased 29 items, which came to $8.62 per item. My receipts indicated that I saved $216…AMAZING!!!
But as my friend at www.frugalchick.net stated, it does not stop there. She has the same plan as I do to sell the clothes when they become too small. Since I am done having children and no longer have to save clothes for the next baby, I can start selling the twins clothes. Now, I separate their clothes into what I will sell and what I will give away. I usually don’t get that much money, about $20 for clothes only. But, every penny counts, right?