Genius PhD Student Paid His Tuition With Mail-In-Rebates

[WoodysGirl]

By Mandi Woodruff | Business Insider – 12 hours ago

You could say Jonathan Hood's mail-in-rebate addiction began before he was even old enough to drive.

Ten years ago, at age 15, Hood tagged along with his father on a mission to score Black Friday deals on a few video games.

"My dad kind of got me hooked," he told Business Insider. "We stood in line early in the morning and I found out then I could get the games I wanted for either really cheap or for free [with mail-in-rebates]."

Over the next eight years, he would perfect the craft to the point where he could cover his $95/month cell phone bill exclusively with rebates.

Most companies send rebates in the form of prepaid debit cards, while about a third use cash or checks, he said. Almost all the rebates Hood uses are "free-after-rebate" offers, which means he's refunded the full amount.

"I haven't made a payment on my T-Mobile bill without using a rebate debit card for probably two years now."

Read the rest: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/genius-phd-student-paid-tuition-232906757.html

 

[Hoofbite]

Kind of cool, I guess.

Although rebates don't come without a purchase all that often.....if ever.

 

[WoodysGirl]

Kind of cool, I guess.

Although rebates don't come without a purchase all that often.....if ever.

I can't imagine what a person could buy consistently that could gain that amount of rebates on a regular basis.

 

[Hoofbite]

I can't imagine what a person could buy consistently that could gain that amount of rebates on a regular basis.

Looks like he buys stuff, collects the rebate and sells the item on ebay.

Guess if you have the time and are willing to wait 6-8 months for your rebate to come back it's a neat little system.

Suppose he views it as more of a hobby than anything so it's a win-win for him.

 

[WoodysGirl]

Looks like he buys stuff, collects the rebate and sells the item on ebay.

Guess if you have the time and are willing to wait 6-8 months for your rebate to come back it's a neat little system.

Suppose he views it as more of a hobby than anything so it's a win-win for him.

Yeah, I read that he sells the stuff on e-bay. He's a student, so he has the time to do all of that.

I'm one of those people who hunt down the mailman just looking for one rebate. I applaud the guy for putting in the work. I couldn't do it.

 

[theogt]

Guy works hard at something. Makes money in process. Okey doke.