MSE News: Savvy MoneySaver plays bank system to make £1,000s

Jennifer_Jane

Just read the article and happy that I'm mainly in line with what he's doing. What takes the time is not moving money each month but trying to keep au fait with the offers. Over the last few years I've made over £2500 through Quidco/TCB; plus several hundred with new bank accounts for rewards + Quidco + cashback. Changed insurers/energy suppliers and so on through comparison sites.

I know I'm not maximising interest levels, but I do well in other areas. Add in bargains via the Grabbit Board, this site has been very beneficial to me, and helped with my fairly modest monthly income.

Add to that the intellectual stimulus of some of the boards, and the amount I've learnt from other posters, I am very grateful to Martin.

PS - I have lots of friends who don't bother with any of this - either they "Can't be arsed", or they are worried about internet banking (!), or poor credit (ie in rented accommodation and have to supply too much information). I just don't understand it. When you think that this is tax-free too.

grumbler

Sensory wrote: »

Applying for a current account and requesting a £0 overdraft is seen as credit hungry?

Many credit searches in the file are considered this way. And searches get recorded regardless of the overdraft your request. Very often people get rejected even for basic accounts.

innovate

Jennifer_Jane wrote: »

When you think that this is tax-free too.

If you are talking about cashback and signup offers, you are right, they are tax free. But any interest, bar ISAs of course, is automatically taxed at the basic rate. I should think it is preferable to pay tax on interest rather than getting no interest.

The_pc_tech

I think the word retired is the key word here.

He doesn't have much to do other than trawl the web looking for offers and filling in applications but if that's your thing then fair play as the founder of this site has made one hell of a living from doing the same.

anon_ymous

Jennifer_Jane wrote: »

Just read the article and happy that I'm mainly in line with what he's doing. What takes the time is not moving money each month but trying to keep au fait with the offers. Over the last few years I've made over £2500 through Quidco/TCB; plus several hundred with new bank accounts for rewards + Quidco + cashback. Changed insurers/energy suppliers and so on through comparison sites.

I know I'm not maximising interest levels, but I do well in other areas. Add in bargains via the Grabbit Board, this site has been very beneficial to me, and helped with my fairly modest monthly income.

Add to that the intellectual stimulus of some of the boards, and the amount I've learnt from other posters, I am very grateful to Martin.

PS - I have lots of friends who don't bother with any of this - either they "Can't be arsed", or they are worried about internet banking (!), or poor credit (ie in rented accommodation and have to supply too much information). I just don't understand it. When you think that this is tax-free too.

I don't get the I CBA, and people have mocked me saying "Oh you get this, but how much effort does it take" When I tell them about the freebies I get at different banks, and how much I transfer

Lots of people don't seem to understand that once you take 10 minutes setting everything up, it's all automated.

I do live in rented accommodation, but I also am "living with parents" so I just put that down

anon_ymous

JohnRo wrote: »

Poor article,

the santander mention makes it sound like 1.25% a month.. dream on. Hopefully he realises all the money in there is losing its buying power at the rate of around 2% a year.

the credit card cash back mention is also a bit of a red herring too, 3% cashback on £100 is a maximum £36 p.a. not bad at all for money you were spending anyway but hardly sensational.

To "make" thousands in cash back you'd have to be spending six and seven figure sums annually on the capital one card.

This. Current RPI is 2.8% You'd have to make a return of just over 2.8% to actually make any money

Pincher

The First Direct 8% Regular Saver ties up a lot of money near the end of the one year period.

What I try to do is to stagger them, e.g. start a First Direct Monthly Regular Saver in January, but start a Nationwide one in July.

One deposit account, one cheque account, those were the days, until greed became an infectious disease, and customers are just meat for sale.

Nitram1

Hi All, first time to log a reply, but I've being doing this for the last couple of years. 2 X Halifax reward accounts, one for me & the wife, min money in and then £500 out a day later to a 123 account, toped up to £3k (for the 3%) First Direct opened 10 months ago for the £150, with £300 for both me & the wife into their saving account, other monies into the best fixed / variable ISA's - 1/2 Years, just opening a Nationwide flex account, cash back credit cards, 0% balance credit cards. This is not new news, just common sense on mirroring what the banks do! Good luck to you all, love the website, saved money hand over fist since 2009!