trading/selling gift cards

[mudflap81]

Apologies if this thread exists over here, but I couldn't find it.

I found an old gift card to J Crew for $150, and couldn't find anything that I liked. Gave it to my wife and the only thing she found was a single sweater....... priced at $158. We'd like to either sell or trade it, because the money would buy a lot more clothes at target, old navy, etc.

What are some reputable sites we can go to offload this card?

Thanks!!

[Deleted]

I've heard that you can do this, but you'd probably only get a fraction of its worth. Also, have you checked that it still has valued? I think gift cards are now no longer allowed to expire, but it may have expired before that law took effect.

You might try posting it on CraigsList. I see gift cards and store credits on there sometimes.

[2kids10horses]

I'll ask my SO, she buys cards on the Internet. We often can get cards for a 10 to 20% discount. Some popular ones, like WalMart cards only go for a 5% discount.

[mudflap81]

Southernsusana - I checked it, still has its full value for some amazing reason. Even if we got 50% of the value, $75 can go a long way towards clothing at the right store.

[mudflap81]

2kids10horses - thanks! $120-$135 (10-20% discount) would be AWESOME! We didn't think about getting cash, just a trade.

[bobosensei]

Jcrew often has sales for 20-40% off. It is one of my favorite stores and I make it a habit to check every few weeks to see what is on sale and what sort of deals they offer. I would never pay full price for their clothes, but they last a long time and are worth every penny.

[8 Bit WWBG]

A google search for "sell gift cards online" seems to turn up some sites, but who knows what value you'll actually get.

Personally, I might stake out the store after the holidays and try to ambush someone paying in cash and make a deal. DF thinks this is "embarrassing" but the store is not going to make it easy for you to get the money.

I think it would be neat if malls set up areas or corrals around the holidays for people to exchange gift cards.

Otherwise, is there anyone else who you can buy clothes for and make that a gift for next year?

[Deleted]

Plastic jungle and cardpool buy giftcards.

[8 Bit WWBG]

I heard of some site called "gift card granny" or something, but it didn't come up during my search.

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Jan 1, 2011 11:40:58 GMT -5 bobosensei said:

Jcrew often has sales for 20-40% off. It is one of my favorite stores and I make it a habit to check every few weeks to see what is on sale and what sort of deals they offer. I would never pay full price for their clothes, but they last a long time and are worth every penny.

I absolutely agree with this, but you do have like the style of their clothes.

I would be willing to accept the JCrew card as a Happy New Year gift. ;D

[Deleted]

Try CraigsList. I saw someone trying to get $80 for a $100 Macy's card she got as a Christmas present. I was actually tempted, but one of my New Year's resolution is less clutter this year.

[973beachbum]

I have used Gift card Granny to buy gift cards and they do also buy them from people to sell. Here is the link

www.giftcardgranny.com/

Have fun!

[973beachbum]

there was a whole thread and article about this on the old MSN Smart Spending board. You might be able to look it up for a few more days.

[973beachbum]

I found the article for you, here is the link
articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SavingandDebt/Advice/freedman-gift-shop-with-gift-cards-and-save.aspx

[Deleted]

I laughed when I went to the granny thread. There are $15 Itune cards on there for $14.95 with free shipping. Ok, and the point of saving 5 cents is . . . ?

I did actually bid on a gift card while I was there. But that wouldn't be my first choice of places to shop. Basically, it seems that it is a listing of what's on Ebay. Maybe Granny is the seller, but stil . . .

[Deleted]

Ok, update on my Ebay bid. I was just notifed that I did NOT win the $10 Itune gift card that I bid $5.52 for. The winning bid was . . . $9.95.

That is quite simply SILLY. I am sure that Phil could tell us that .05 times 30 years is worth at least a dollar (just kidding, Phil, and you know it), but it isn't worth it.

What on earth was that final bid about?

[mudflap81]

I went with Giftcard Castle, it offered the highest return at $109.50 for them to mail me a check. The other sites were $101-$105. I printed out a free address label and am sending it in today. I could have had $116 if I wanted to trade it in, but there weren't any cards I wanted.

[Deleted]

I had a $100 Crate & Barrel gift card a few years back that I didn't need, and listed it on E-Bay. For some bizarre reason I still can't fathom, someone jumped in at the last minute and bought it for $98. I mean, I listed free shipping, but I still don't get it. Much the same thing happened with a $50 Nordstrom card.

[mithrin]

Possible explanations of the ebay prices:
1. Sometimes overseas customers will purchase gift cards off eBay because they cannot buy them direct in their country, but if they have a US card, they can buy things online. This especially applies to prepaid Visa/MC/Amex, and stores that offer digital goods like iTunes.

2. Specifically for iTunes, people will buy iTunes cards for other regions, and then be able to shop at the US iTunes from Europe or Asia, or vice versa. The selections and release dates do vary somewhat by region.

3. Sometimes high prices are offered by scammers. Either they are scamming the seller and plan to file a reversal with Paypal, or they are using a stolen credit card and are trying to convert the credit line into hard to trace gift cards before the card is shut down.

4. Sometimes they are doing it for the cash back. There are some sites that still offer cash back bonuses for shopping via eBay (though none as generous as Bing used to be). Add to that eBay bucks and credit card cash back, and they might be getting 10% back in addition to the little bit they saved off face value.