Selling Back Un-used Gift Cards

I knew nothing about American Apparel before buying a discounted gift card from Cardpool.com, only that 20% off is a pretty stellar deal for clothing discounts. After a one-minute search on their site I saw they offered maternity clothing--perfect! I'll take one please!

But after my $50 gift card arrived and I started browsing the offerings, it turns out that a leotard is the only item of maternity clothing available. Really? What pregnant chick flounces around in a leotard? I need fabric and lots of it. Accessories were a bit more than I would have liked to spend too. What we could use more of is Home Depot money for the front yard...so 'a selling I will go!

Here's how I did it: 

1. Click on "Sell Gift Cards" at the top of the Gift Card Granny site. Most every card accepted for sell-back is listed with the going rates on sites like GiftCards.com, Gift Card Castle and Card Pool. Ignore the 100% back on Ebay--you probably won't get anywhere near that much back unless you're selling a gas or grocery card. 

2. I selected Gift Card Castle, since that was the highest percentages of return. 61% cash-back is no cause for bragging rights, and I hated to lose money on my transaction. Apparently there are other prego mamas out there who aren't fans of American Apparel either, hence the initial "bargain". 

3. Type in merchant name (American Apparel) and card amount ($50) after being redirected to Gift Card Castle. I can choose between $30.51 cash or $30.83 PayPal. I'll go with cash. 

4. All gift card resale sites require the seller to register before completing the transaction, so I input the boring necessaries like name, email, and physical address. I deselected the "keep me informed of promotions and deals" box. 

5. After I created my account, I had to put in my gift card information again under the "sell" tab. Select to the "I agree to these terms" box and submit on the first page and then on the second page to finalize. That part was really easy! 

6. After the order is finalized, print the packing label and packing slip. Attach the label to a regular envelope and enclose the slip. Within no more than seven days of receiving the card, Gift Card Castle will send a check for the agreed amount. I should expect to see payment between 3-10 days of mailing my card. 

7. After dropping it in the mail, presto! We are done! Off to shop some Home Depot goodies... 

I would definitely make sure the cards you buy will be used, especially if you get a big discount on them. The bigger the discount, the less you get to sell them back. My American Apparel card will put me in the hole $10, but that's better than a $40 setback.  

-Ashley