Casino credit v. front money
medgirl
to know what the options are with casino credit and front money. My mom
plays VP/slots and my dad plays mostly table games/craps. They are
concerned with not wanting to bring a large amount of cash with them. Are
there advantages/disadvantages to casino credit and front money? Is there a
difference in expected comps? Is there a chance of getting better comps
because you have credit/front money? How much would be a minimum amount to
place in each? Would my mom be able to take out money at the cage for
slot/VP play? Does front money involve actual markers the way credit does?
Can you take out money and use it elsewhere, or only at the casino where you
have credit? How about simply cashing a check at the casino cage and
avoiding the whole credit issue? This will only be the 2nd trip to Vegas
for my parents. My husband and I have been many times, but don't generally
have as much money to burn, so I'm not sure what to recommend to them.
Thanks for any recommendations!
m
D M
similarly to markers. Once the money is at the casino, you can go to the
cashier, or more simply, sign a paper at the tables. Usually you would get
chips, but can get cash, especially if you play machines. You would make
arrangements in advance, and wire the money from your bank to the casino. I
would wire at least 5,000 and hopefully more. The casino will give you the
wiring instructions to give to your bank. The Casino can wire the remaining
balance at your trip's end back to your bank. (you could take a Bank
Cashiers Check with you to vegas, but some of them have been counterfeited,
and they may delay you while checking)
You could also arrange for a line of credit (markers). Call the casino, and
they'll fax you an application. Fill it in and fax it back. Leave at least
a week to have it approved. Then when you get to the casino, depending on
where, you can draw against the line. When you win, you can turn back chips
at the cashier and have the line replenished. Everywhere I have a line,
they bill you, and you have 30 days from first borrowing to repay. All of
the Casinos in Vegas (and elsewhere) have access to this info, so be sure to
pay on time! The Mirage casinos use your bank account information to print
a check payable to them to access the money. If you displease them, they
will deposit it, and invoke the very strict laws against bad checks. Stay
on their good side, and they are wonderful. Cross them, and all hell breaks
loose.
Ask for a line much larger than you would consider gambling away. Minimum
$15,000
I know others who have lines equal to 3 or 4 years income, but they are
great impressers of people :) They can really throw the bull! The casino
knows that there will be significant defaults, but would rather give a line
in hopes of it getting paid.
You could do both, front money wire and line of credit. I've never tried to
use a line/front money at a casino other than the one i've arranged it for,
but if the new casino has the same owner as the old, the new will call the
old and get you a new line of credit at the new one. I have a line at many
of the Mirage hotels, just this way, even though I dislike them. Go Figure.
In most cases, you cannot just 'cash a check' at a casino. Why, I'll never
know, but you can't. If you have a line of credit with unused dollars, you
can cash a check then, but they'll encourage you to borrow instead.
As to Comps and otherwise impressing the casinos, you will impress them most
with a 5 or 6 figure wire in, than a line of credit. However, play is
tracked in a computerized manner, and they will know if you draw down your
front money and, instead of gambling, take it away. They know how many
minutes you play and your approximate average bet. Comps are given based
on this, although if you impress them as wealthy, they may give you more on
faith.
I suppose that money wired in is more likely to be gambled with, and
impresses the casino but don't know for sure.
Since your parents go rarely, a wire in of a large amount, in combination
with arranging large amounts of comps in advance, could work. The casino
would realize later that it had been had, but then you wouldn't care.
Comps are given based on expected or actual dollars of play over time.
Multiply the amount bet per hand or roll X hours played X hands/rolls per
hour X house edge. Comps are supposed to be 30% of this total, but there is
wide latitude for the hosts and pit critters. The edge has been discussed
on the group http://www.thewizardofodds.com/ If you play $50 roulette for
6 hours, it gets you more comps than $5 blackjack for 1 hour. I've seen
some of the internal reports and they know!!
I wish I could get my parents to Vegas, so they would lighten up!! Tell me
how it goes!
"medgirl" <medgi...@nospamhotmail.com> wrote in message
news:ComcnTT95OV...@giganews.com...
Smiley
deposit something like $5000 against which you will take markers. The
casinos usually have ATM machines located very conveniently. There is a
hecfty charge to use cash advance, but for a normal ATM cash card
withdrawal, I recently paid $2.50 per transaction right in the casino. A
friend who was there with me used travelers checks and cashing them at the
casino cage was extremely easy and fast. You just need a signature and ID.
Either of the above beats the risk of losing a large wad of cash.
Peter
"medgirl" <medgi...@nospamhotmail.com> wrote in message
news:ComcnTT95OV...@giganews.com...
Eric Simandl
SMathai825
>casinos usually have ATM machines located very conveniently. There is a
>hecfty charge to use cash advance, but for a normal ATM cash card
>withdrawal, I recently paid $2.50 per transaction right in the casino. A
Thats what I do! I'll deposit enough money into my BOFA checking account before
I leave for Vegas and then I'll just take it out as I need it all in the
privacy and security of the casino without anyone else knowing my bizness!
---"I gave you a glittering Las Vegas and you've turned it into a skanky
Atlantic City!"--Homer Simpson
Freaky Guy
Have always used travelers checks work great, No body has ever batted an
eye.
Best idea IMO
Sam D.
I have never got any flack from the casino cashier where I had established
credit when I have cashed a check, such as you mentioned. I never had anyone
try to persuade me to borrow against my credit line instead of simply
cashing my check.
"D M" <som...@microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:fvQda.131926$eG2.17482@sccrnsc03...
medgirl
news:22394-3E7...@storefull-2216.public.lawson.webtv.net...
> I've been to vegas 4 times this past year.
> Have always used travelers checks work great, No body has ever batted an
> eye.
That's what my husband and I do, and have never had any problems with it,
but my parents were interested in what the other options are.
m
medgirl
> similarly to markers. Once the money is at the casino, you can go to the
> cashier, or more simply, sign a paper at the tables. Usually you would
get
> chips, but can get cash, especially if you play machines. You would make
> arrangements in advance, and wire the money from your bank to the casino.
I
> would wire at least 5,000 and hopefully more. The casino will give you
the
> wiring instructions to give to your bank. The Casino can wire the
remaining
> balance at your trip's end back to your bank. (you could take a Bank
> Cashiers Check with you to vegas, but some of them have been
counterfeited,
> and they may delay you while checking)
Thanks for this very informative post. I have one question, as you
mentioned the MGM-Mirage casinos. We will be at the Golden Nugget for a
couple of nights and then the Bellagio. If they establish a line of credit
or front money at one casino can it be transferred to the other? Or is it
necessary to go through the process for each place?
m
Burtcohen1
>In most cases, you cannot just 'cash a check' at a casino. Why, I'll never
>know, but you can't.
I've cashed personal checks for hundreds of dollars at many casinos around town
without a problem, and I don't have a credit line with any of them.
You will need a credit card however as they use that for backup if the check is
bad.
-Burt
StefnFloyd
traveler checks, ATM withdrawals or
plain ol' cash is not always felt on the "front" end; with a cashier check,
you call the cage ahead of time, and fax it to them,
say 3 or 4 business days in advance. Once they've verified it, they can let
you know by phone or fax, so that when you
do arrive, you need only present the original check with some appropriate
ID, and start gaming. This affords you not only
the ability to draw markers on your total, as has been described, but it
also provides a convenient and safe source for money
that's been won to be deposited on your account at any time.
What's important here is that they actually don't cash your check until
you've left!
This means that if you break even, you get your actual check back --
avoiding the hassle of carrying so much cash back home.
If heaven forbid you actually manage to double your money (!), they'll cut
you a check for the amount equal to what you have
on deposit. So, for example if you have 5K on deposit, and you manage to
turn that into 12K, they'll give you back your original
cashier check, an additional check for 5K from their bank, and the remaining
2K in cash, which you can either take,
or leave with them should you have an impromptu return engagement scheduled.
Regards to all,
Stef.
D M
My first line was at Golden Nugget :) Yes, you will need a different line
at each casino as each is independently licensed. Once you establish
yourself at GN, it will be extremely easy to get a line at another Mirage
Casino. I went to the MGM one night and asked to get a line there. They
gave me a short application to fill out, and by the time I completed it,
they had called GN, and I had my line (at twice the amount of the GN one).
I'm sure that your front money could be transferred to the Bellagio simply
and for free, but don't know for sure whether they will do it for you. I'd
call a host now, who could certainly arrange it. You could always take
remaining front money in chips when you are leaving gn and take them to
Bellagio for deposit with cashier. Enormous sums fit into very few chips.
(I've had $500 chips on Very good days, and I'm sure they have $10,000 on
up) Casinos deal with other casinos chips all the time.
Definitely call a host at bellagio and make arrangements. You may have
found a way to impress them!!
(I remember the Mirage Chain when Steve Wynn owned it, so it seems horribly
flawed now, but maybe that's me.) Golden Nugget was my first favorite
hotel, and I stayed there hundreds of nights. The coffee shop is always
good (reuben Sandwich, mmmmmmmmm). The pool is great. Hope it's open when
you go.
"medgirl" <medgi...@nospamhotmail.com> wrote in message
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billb
> turn that into 12K, they'll give you back your original
> cashier check, an additional check for 5K from their bank, and the
remaining
> 2K in cash, which you can either take,
> or leave with them should you have an impromptu return engagement
scheduled.
>
Wouldn't that be just cool! Not in my life. The fucking chance gods
hate me that's fur sher.
--
billb
"StefnFloyd" <stef...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:%e0ea.2$sh3...@news.oracle.com...
> on deposit.> Regards to all,
>
> Stef.
>
>