A Few Thoughts about Rebates

This week some rebates came in the mail-- $6.99 for buying Organix shampoo and $12.00 for something else I can't remember. That added $18.99 to our budget, a much needed boost to our dwindling pot of money.

Balance of budget $122.26

Spent up to date:$77.74

Savings up to date:$780.16


Here are just a few thoughts I have about rebates and deciding which ones are "right" for you...

• If you don't already know, rebates are actually cash back (in the form of a check) that a company gives you just for buying a product. Sometimes companies will reimburse you for the WHOLE COST... which makes the product FREE. You can use coupons, gift cards and other other forms of discount or coupon to purchase the item in question, but it is up to the discretion of the company how much to reimburse you. I've had rebates come back in the amount of the cost of the product minus the coupons I used, I've had some come back in the amount of the entire cost of the product even though I used coupons to buy it at a cheaper price.

• If this is not ringing any bells in your head yet, then let me emphasize that in the latter case, you would be getting the product free and making money off of buying it in the first place. These are the jewels of rebates, but are also few and far between. To see if your rebate is a "jewel" just check the fine print to see if your rebate excludes reimbursement of coupons. This is the case for the Organix shampoo I bought a while back. I used in-store coupons to purchase it, but still got the entire amount back, in cash.

• Even though you usually won't see the money for 6-8 weeks, if you have the budget to invest the initial money to buy the product and it is a product or similar product you would already buy (like a different brand of shampoo than the one you normally buy), then in my opinion it is well worth the wait and the few minutes it takes to fill out the little form and address an envelop.

• While rebates might seem like too much hassle or a waste of time, the fact is that we all have a few minutes every other day to do a certain relaxing activity. Some of us read, some take a long hot bath, some watch TV. Why not take a few of those minutes to fill out some rebate forms or check out a blog or two on grocery deals for the week? Personally, I like to use those 5 minutes (usually I set aside the time for right after I make the purchase) to fill out rebate forms. This is not to say that I just sit around filling out rebate forms for fun and all the time. I just look around online when I have nothing to do and check tags in a store I'm already in to see if there are any rebates on products or similar products I already purchase.

• Some rebates I would not recommend you try to get are those for less than $1 back, as an envelop, a stamp and the time it takes to fill out the form might not be worth it. Also, try to stay away from rebates of products you would not normally buy, unless you can get all your money back, or make money off of it. In that case, I'm sure you can find a friend, family member or charity that could use the item. This is usually what I do when I can get a product for free. I will get as many as I can, even if neither my husband nor I can use it, because for us this is a way of giving back to the community and creating a budget for donation.

Here is a list of just some of the products you can usually find a rebate for, either in store/on the product, or online/printable:

• Shampoo
• Office supplies
• Tech gadgets (cell phones, printers, etc.)
• Wine
• Frozen pizzas
• Product paring - ex., beer & snacks, popcorn & candy, cheese & crackers
  

Some seasonal rebates include batteries (holidays), produce, certain crackers/chips (summer time).

Want to try a rebate now? Organix is still offering "FREE after rebate." They are on clearance at most Walgreens right now, too! *Be sure to check expiration date*