Investor · Los Angeles County, CA · Member since 2012 · 962 posts · 279 votes
Hey guys I do a lot of large purchases at the big box stores- home depot lowes etc.
I was wondering if there were good rewards programs for them. I know you can go to the pro-desk at home depot when you make a large purchase, but is there a better way?
Any other ways you get discounts would be helfpul!
I saw there was a citibank card for home depot rewards but it doesn't have a very good return.
If you are a member of a REIA one of the national benefits is 2% back at HomeDepot with ANY registered credit or debit card (I think you might be able to register gift cards too).
Not sure if there is a maximum but there is a minimum where is you make even one purchase in a quarter you will get a $25 GC (At some threshold you get it as cash but on lower ones you get a GC).
There have been times in the past where I have made one <$10 purchase and got that so it is worth registering your cards even if you don't do much at all.
I used to use my American Airlines credit card a ton.. I have flown a ton for free.. The last year I've been using my American Express more and more.. Those points can be redeemed for travel, cruises, hotels, gift card, etc.
Thanks guys. I'll look into those. I actually already have an AmericanAirlines reward card, but I was tired of all their black out dates.
I was wondering if there was a Lowes or Home Depot credit card that gives back? I talked briefly to some other investor on the street and he claimed he was getting 5% back from a Home Depot credit card. I couldn't find that online. Online I just found a HD citibank mastercard which gives approximatedly 3% for HD purchases.
Also does anyone know of any contractor or landlord rewards you could get directly from Lowes or HD?
I have a Chase Ink card that gives me 3% cash back at home improvement stores (plus gas stations, restaurants, and office supply stores).....unfortunately I was just looking at their site and the new Ink cards have different categories than mine. It's nice but it maxes out at $2k worth of spending for the 3% per statement (after that it goes to 1%) and I spend that in a week. Take a look at the other companies though because someone might offer something similar.
Chase Freedom gives 5% cashback at lowe's for 3 months (not sure which 3). Also, if you have a checking account with Chase, you get back 10% of your points in rewards at the end of each year.
At Menard's you can register your credit card with them and they give you a percentage back at the end of the year (as a check) based on the amount you spend with them.
Discover also does 5% cashback at certain categories of stores certain times during the year (not sure when home improvement is).
Check out myficoforum(dot)com. There is a wealth of information on that site related to rewards programs. Just type in your question in the search box and I'm sure you'll come up with some responses, or you can join the site and ask your specific question too.
I'm a member of ARPOLA. Through them I signed up for a Lowe's accounts receivable card. 5% off purchases at the store plus 2% off your bill if you pay on time. The discount alone pays for the cost of the ARPOLA membership.
ARPOLA isn't the only trade group that offers this, you can check other companies or organizations.
Maybe @Joshua D. can work some magic and get BP Pros hooked up so members can apply for Lowe's A/R cards too.
I have a Lowe's CC and get 5% off of all purchases. I also have a Home Depot CC. Home Depot doesn't advertise a discount but if you ask for 5% off they will give it to you every time. The trick is to pay it off every month.
This is a bit off the topic of Big Box Credit cards but in case you were interested Pentagon Federal Credit Union has a credit card that gives 5% back for gas purchases. You just need to do a few things to qualify (ie. a one time donation to a charity to qualify for the CU and then open up a Money Market account and put $5 in it)
@Allen Maris - I've been trying to reach out to those guys, but can't break through. I'm not giving up, but it has been frustrating.
If anyone has any connections to the marketing / business development teams at the big box stores - Lowes / Home Depot - I'd love an introduction to get me in the door.
If you are a member of a REIA one of the national benefits is 2% back at HomeDepot with ANY registered credit or debit card (I think you might be able to register gift cards too).
Not sure if there is a maximum but there is a minimum where is you make even one purchase in a quarter you will get a $25 GC (At some threshold you get it as cash but on lower ones you get a GC).
There have been times in the past where I have made one <$10 purchase and got that so it is worth registering your cards even if you don't do much at all.
@Shaun Reilly I just noticed that about the REIA 2% program - I was really surprised to get a $25 GC when I'd only had a handful of purchases that quarter.
@Shaun Reilly I just noticed that about the REIA 2% program - I was really surprised to get a $25 GC when I'd only had a handful of purchases that quarter.
When I was first getting started and I joined my first REIA I signed up for this and for a lot of quarters that was the case for me. Really supplemented the membership when I wasn't doing much. :)
Honestly even now the contractors buy most of the materials themselves so I still don't do big volume so I still get the $25 cards for small purchases some quarters.
Lowes has a business American Express that gives you a 5% discount plus 2 points for every dollar you spend at Lowes that can be redeemed for gift cards. I love mine....
@Will F. have you thought about using your card with a platform that give you money back like ebates which you place an order than they would give you confirmation to pick up your items. Sometime is between 3% up to 6% cash back ever 3 months. That might be something you should look into.
Capital One. I use it for all my purchases. I get cash back twice year. You can get it more if you want. I get it in December for Christmas and in July for vacation for family. Works great.
I have a Lowes accounts receivable account, I receive 5% right off the top. I use it to purchase all of my rehab materials. I live near Charlotte NC, it is a hub for U.S. Airways (lots of direct flights to places I go often). So, right before the end of the month I pay my Lowes account off with my U.S. Air credit card. The bang for my buck for airline tickets beats any rebate or discount with other cards.
I use Home Depot Commercial Revolving Charge card. I get 5% off from all the stuff I buy. Once in a while Menards has 11% off on everything. This usually lasts few days, max a week. Home Depot will match that. I got 11% off at Home Depot many times. All you need to do is ask for that 5% or 11% discount using your Home Depot card.
It seems like you want to save money mainly at HD and Lowe's. You can buy HD's or Lowe's $100 gift cards on eBay for $90/each. You combine this with the 10% discount coupon and you save 20% on each purchase.
Every time you acquire a property, Lowe's and HD will typically send you a 10% discount coupon. You can also go to their website to register and get the 10% discount coupon for moving. Unfortunately, these coupons can only be used once so plan your rehab accordingly to save big bucks.
As others have mentioned above, 5% discount every time for a Lowe's card and 3% discount for HD Pro Reward.
- BoA AAA card that gives 5% cash back on gas (got that one back in 2005, so may not be available now)
- AMEX Delta Skymiles Platinum that gives one free domestic companion ticket each year, 1 mile/dollar for everything and bonuses for travel spending, and 10,000 MQM gift after you charge $25,000/year. Fee is $150, but the Gold card is $100, I believe. All of those cards start with 25,000 miles on them. I use this for my international travel.
- Chase Visa Southwest Rapid Rewards card--I use this for domestic travel--it comes with 25,000 points, I believe and I get 1 point/dollar for everything and bonuses for travel purchases. Most flights cost around 10,000 points for me, since I'm on the east coast. Fee on this one is $70-100...I forget which.
I average 4 free tickets per year (this year included free airfare to St. Lucia for our honeymoon via Delta), for a cost of $250 or so (I pay off my balances).
Go to post office- pick up change of address forms, usually you get a moving packet/envelope with 10% off Lowes coupon (along with other moving incentives)take and I use my citi rewards card gain a ton of points and bought a new range with my points for one of my units (got 25 year old stove in one) with the new appliances I just increased rent and the tenant is very happy to pay the increase.
We get a good discount off Behr paint at HD because my husband played piano for the regional rep and he set us up. We also use our Alaska Airlines credit card for the mileage program. We do the matching coupon thing too. If you develop good relationships (schmooze) with the key people at the store, they will clue you in to the special pricing. The thing is, deals are always changing. Can usually get a discount on big ticket items. Good question to ask.... "Is anyone paying less than I am for this same item or service?" "I want that price!"
I just found out IF YOU ASK Home Depot during check out for "the lowes matching discount" when buying with their cc or account card, they give you 5% off as well. But you have to ask. It took me a couple times to realize they hadn't given me the discount after it was too late.