A warning if you buy gift cards this season

If you're planning to buy gift cards as presents this holiday season, you want to keep some warnings in mind.

Money magazine has a list of stores that you might want to avoid buying gift cards from because they're closing locations.  They include Kmart, Sears, and some restaurants that might be shutting their doors.

You should also avoid buying from stores that have recently filed for bankruptcy.  Aeropostale, American Apparel and Golfsmith were on that list.  If you have gift card from companies going through that process you can't use them if the stores close, and you usually can't use them while the store is liquidating either.

Lastly, there are cards that have a lot of restrictions, including Ace and AutoZone cards.  Ebay also got a thumbs down from Money Magazine because you need a PayPal account to use the card.