Gift Cards For Christmas? How Much did you Spend?

It becomes harder and harder to buy Christmas presents for family and loved ones.  Tastes change, they get older, and a Fruit Cake just won't cut it.

My wife and I actually resort to gift cards sometimes for their favorite store or shopping destination.  They're not exciting, but that way they get to shop for what they want and I don't have to supply exchange slips with every wrong gift I buy.

As for cost, well, if you're giving a $25, $50, $100 card, you pay full price, right?

Wrong!

I never knew this, but you can get discounts everywhere, according to experts.  They say to save some money, buy at these locations:

• Warehouse Clubs - Costco and Sam's Club routinely offer other retailers' gift cards at less than face value.  Costco has restaurant gift cards available at a 20% discount on purchases of $100, and Sam's Club offers discounted gift cards for a variety of uses.
• While Buying Other Gift Cards - Deals like buying $20 or $25 in gift cards at popular stores means the store will give a $5 gift card on the side, in some cases.
• Auction Sites - Sellers on sites like eBay are constantly looking to get rid of unwanted gifts.  In some cases discounts are as high as 20% (or more).  Just make sure the site offers buyer protection in case the card is fraudulent.

Good luck, and happy shopping!