zero percent credit card offers are back!

I found a few new 0% credit card offers, after they had all but disappeared for the past few months. Good timing, since soon it will be time to apply for some new cards, in what looks to be yet another year of free money from the Big Banks.

There are some subtleties, but the basic strategy is: 1) get a bunch of credit cards with 0% promotional rates for 12 months; 2) extract funds from each card up to 89% of credit limit; 3) deposit funds in reward checking accounts; 4) make minimum payments every month using on-line bill pay; 5) pay off balances just before 0% period ends; 6) wait 30 days for credit report to show paid off balances; 7) rinse and repeat.

Its so easy I don't know why more people don't do it. But then, probably most people would spend the money from the credit cards, and therefore be totally screwed. Also, the 0% offers with no fees do require a bit of looking around to find.

With interest rates on savings accounts and CDs being so low, reward checking accounts are pretty much the only safe place to keep cash and get a good (5%) yield. These are FDIC insured, completely liquid, and offered by a host of small banks, mostly in the rural south. A pretty good list of these accounts can be found at high yield checking account deals.

Its good to have hobbies!