Chase Business Rebate Card

3% Cash Back** for purchases
1% Cash Back on all other purchases
0% Intro FIXED APR for up to 12 billing cycles on purchases*
No Annual Fee
FREE additional cards
Up to $35,000 credit for your business


MAKE YOUR BUSINESS EVEN MORE REWARDING

Apply Now for the

Chase Business Rebate Card

• 3% Cash Back2,3 for purchases at restaurants, gas stations, office supply stores, building supply stores, hardware and home improvement stores
  
• 1% Cash Back on all other purchases
  
• 0% APR for up to 12 Months1 on purchases and balance transfers
  
• No Annual Fee
  
• FREE additional cards for your employees, FREE quarterly reports, and other online account management tools to help you keep track of your business expenses
  

DID YOU KNOW?

	When it comes to mortgages, many people tend to look at points and interest rates as to separate issues. In fact, they can almost always be used as leverage against each other. Points and Interest Rates Two critical components of a home loan are the interest rate and points charged at the outset. The interest rate is simply the cost of borrowing the money and applies to the total amount borrowed, to wit, six percent for example. The points on a home loan are an up-front fee that equates to a percentage of the loan. For instance, one point equates to an up-front fee equal to one percent of the total loan value. Paying one point on a $300,000 loan would equate to a fee of $3,000. Many people jump to the conclusion that points are bad and should be avoided at all costs. While this may seem like common sense, it is not true in all situations. From the lender’s view point, points and interest rates work hand in hand. If you have a unique cash situation, you may be able to save a ton of interest over the life of a loan by paying increased points at the outset of the loan. Generally, the more you pay in points, the lower the interest rate on the loan. If you intend to hold onto your property for a long time, paying maximum points on the mortgage makes sense if you have the cash. The reason for this is the money spent on the points will be easily recovered if you can reduce the interest rate by a full percentage point or more. Saving even one percent on an interest rate will save you tens of thousands of dollars in interest payments on a thirty year loan. In such a situation, it makes sense to pay $6,000 or so in point to save $30,000 or $40,000 in future interest payments. Of course, you have to have the cash available to do it. If you intend to hold onto a home for a short period of time, the same issues need to be considered. In this case, however, you will not have time to recover any money paid in points because you intend to sell in a few years. As a result, you want to shop for a loan that requires no points be paid. Yes, you will have to accept a higher interest rate on the loan, but this should be somewhat immaterial if you are only buying for the short term. The bigger point is points and interest rates should be viewed as connected parts of a mortgage. As a borrower, you can negotiate with lenders to raise or lower either one by tweaking the other.

I recently replaced my business phone system to accommodate an increase in the volume of calls I was receiving. I own a car rental franchise and needed to have new lines and new phones installed to go along with the new customer service representative I needed to hire. By taking care of my customers and keeping my vehicles clean and available, I was able to build my business and force the closure of one of my two nearby competitors. The resulting influx of customers meant I needed to act fast in order to capitalize on my good fortune. Like most people would, I gave little thought to my phone system and just decided to go with the cheapest solution I could find.

I purchased a new system that I was told would handle my volume. At first, I was more than satisfied as everything was working great and I had no problems. Shortly after I put the new phone system in place, I reduced our rental rates in order to try and get as many customers to switch over to my company from my now defunct competition instead of to my one remaining competitor. Even though I was operating at a loss for two months, my strategy was successful and my business increased yet again. The problem was that the phone system I purchased was designed to only handle a small amount of lines, and I was already at full capacity. While it was an improvement over my first system, it had limitations that I hadn't considered. I ended up having to replace it all over again, but this time I had the sense to go with a system that could grow with my business. Luckily, I was able to get some credit for returning the second phone system, which went toward the newest system.

Still, I lost money, and had I only been less concerned with the bottom line and more concerned with getting what I really needed, I would have been better off. When buying a phone system for your company, make sure you purchase one that you won't outgrow if business starts booming. I wish someone had told me that before I made the mistake of trying to save a few bucks.