The Money Mustache Community
Learning, Sharing, and Teaching => Ask a Mustachian => Topic started by: Eilonwy on September 12, 2017, 06:37:48 PM
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My husband and I have excellent credit. We usually use a straightforward cashback card. But I want to do a big trip within the next year, so I'm thinking about getting a mileage card, preferably one with the annual fee waved the first year.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred seems to be the most recommended, but I'm leaning towards the simplicity of the Barclay Arrival Plus, because you can use your miles for any form of travel expense and redeem them as a statement credit. But I'm a little perplexed by it because it isn't *really* dealing in miles. This is the offer:
"Earn an unlimited 2 miles per dollar on all purchases. Each mile is worth 1 cent when redeemed for travel or 0.5 cent when redeemed for cash back. Whenever you redeem miles, you get 5% of those miles back toward your next redemption. You can start redeeming for travel with 10,000 miles, or 5,000 miles for cash back."
Assuming you redeem everything for travel, this doesn't seem any different than 2% cashback, other than the extra 5% back. Am I missing something? Would I get more value for a card in which miles actually means miles? Or am I being too literal and they all work this way?
Any advice appreciated.
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Yes, the Arrival+ is a 2.1% cash back card. Remember, though -- it's the $500 signup bonus that matters. It can be used for airline or hotel or airbnb purchases.
The Chase Sapphire is important because the UR points can transfer to several airlines including United. That's often a better deal than using it for the Chase travel portal.
You can then get the United card for an additional 50k miles and then you're flying across the pond for free.
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The travel cards are all about the sign-on/new account bonus, not the regular earn rate. So for the Barclays card, it's spend $3k in 90 days = 50,000 bonus + 6,000 points = 56,000 points @1 cent per mile = $560 in travel expenses or ~18.6% """cash back""".
People who are better at the game than I am have a 'cash value of points' metric that they keep track of for various kinds of points/miles/whatever. Various blogs will talk about it. Part of the issue is that the cash value fluctuates a lot based on the redemption, so if you're working toward a specific trip, figuring out who has the best points for getting where you are going is a thing that you can do (but is not something I have enough experience to really talk about sensibly).
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unless you have huge spending patterns, like a card that is for major business use, the miles/points game is all about the signup bonuses. Get a card, make the minimum spending, go on to the next card. Have your husband do it too, separate accounts so you get it twice, as opposed to being authorized users on one shared account.
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Usually, I will sign up for either a cash bonus or miles/points bonus when I anticipate a big expense coming, so I do not have to manufacture spending to meet the minimum to receive the signup bonus. As others have mentioned, there are 2 factors in play:
1) The signup bonus. This is where the real value of these things lies, since you can accumulate a LOT of points/miles very quickly in addition to the regular earn rate.
2) The "family" the rewards program belongs to (other rewards currencies you can convert the points into, travel partners, etc.)
I have had good luck with the Chase family (Chase, Hyatt, IHG, etc.). Do not have the Sapphire Preferred because I simply don't have the spending bandwidth to meet the minimum on it, but it looks like a great card and would allow you to convert points to the hotels mentioned above seamlessly.
In terms of value, I've had really good luck with the Chase IHG Mastercard. The $49 annual fee is more than covered by the annual bonus night, as long as you use a hotel once a year it pays for itself. Also, the Hyatt one, except that I find their hotels can sometimes be too fancy for regular old me ;-)
I'd recommend taking a look at The Points Guy, they can offer so much more detail about this and related topics. They'll also have links to the rewards cards themselves if you find you're ready to take the leap.
Hope this helps!
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Thanks for all the suggestions. I'm still kind of puzzled, but will check out the points guy.
We use a credit card for just about everything (paid off every month) so I think we can meet the bonus minimums -- though whether we can do it on three cards before the trip, I don't know. :-) Probably at least two.
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I highly recommend this course to really understand how it all works.....
http://www.travelmiles101.com/travel-miles-101-course-index/?ppt=282572b095697f4a7c383cafa26a6aa0
I started about a year ago and haven't gone hard core but have had some great savings so far..... I read about this course somewhere on this site:)
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... I'm leaning towards the simplicity of the Barclay Arrival Plus ...
I've successfully churned the Arrival+ twice (and will make a third
attempt in 6 months), but I'd definitely recommend you start with
the Chase CSR while you're still under the 5/24 rule. You and your
husband can work Chase in "2-player mode" to maximize your
sign-up bonuses and minimize your annual fees.
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If you're going to get it, get it soon since the rumor is that the 50,000 point bonus is about to be reduced:
https://www.doctorofcredit.com/barclay-arrival-now-50000-point-bonus-worth-525-travel/
It's a great card and very easy to "erase" travel charges with your points.
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Thanks, have applied.
So... if these rewards aren't actually that much better than a free cashback card, why do people pay large fees to have these cards?
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If you're going to get it, get it soon since the rumor is that the 50,000 point bonus is about to be reduced:
https://www.doctorofcredit.com/barclay-arrival-now-50000-point-bonus-worth-525-travel/
It's a great card and very easy to "erase" travel charges with your points.
Good catch from yesterday's DoC site update. Well, I'm sad I won't get a chance
to churn it a third time, but can't complain as I got $1500 worth of benefit from the
cards.
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Thanks, have applied.
So... if these rewards aren't actually that much better than a free cashback card, why do people pay large fees to have these cards?
Many people churn them, i.e., wait until annual fee is up and cancel. Others who have used a card a lot during the year, call up and threaten to cancel in hopes of getting a retention bonus. Still others find the fee worth paying for other benefits: Many have purchase protection, extended warrenties, free rental car insurance, roadside assistance, etc. Specific brand cards often have free checked baggage, priority boarding, upgraded rooms, etc. This could be worth it if you travel a lot.
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When I applied, there was a section about not abusing or gaming the system, though I'm not sure what measures they can take against people that do.
I'm not really into doing a lot of churning... too complicated, and it annoys my husband to have to frequently change what he's doing. If I can use a couple of cards and get a chunk of my ticket paid for, I'll be pretty happy.
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You might want to consider skipping the airline games and get a citi double cash card. I use it as my go to card. I don't have to fly a certain airline to use....cash. I've done the airline thing in the past (when treasury direct sold US Savings bonds online with no fee for credit card, we bought $120k worth every year, bought tickets to Aruba and used the points to upgrade to first class) but that's way harder and more expensive now. I use the double cash for everything with the exception of the big cash back (freedom and discover) or when I churn in a new card and need the spend for the bonus.
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Thanks, have applied.
So... if these rewards aren't actually that much better than a free cashback card, why do people pay large fees to have these cards?
Because there is a $500 sign up bonus. You end up with $560 toward travel after spending $3k on this card, where a regular 2% back card would take $28,000 of spending to get you the same.
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That's a reason to sign up -- especially if the fee is waived for the first year. That's not a reason to keep the card.
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I also highly recommend doing the free online travelmiles101 course.
You need to know how many cc accounts you already have, and when they were opened. You can use CreditKarma to view this info, (free).
Then you can plan a strategy of which cards you might want to get. My husband isnt into churning, but he lets me get him a few cards per year, and then I manage my own. Some of the Chase cards have great bonuses, and Chase has strict rules about how many cards you can already have when you apply for theirs. So, consider Chase cards first. Then some of the other cash rewards cards. Barclay, Capital One, Discover IT. Travelmiles101 also has a page with the best offers and lots of info on each card.
Last year was our first year, and we earned lots of great perks and rewards. Some of those cards I cancelled, some I will keep, some I will downgrade to a no annual fee card from the same issuer.
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That's a reason to sign up -- especially if the fee is waived for the first year. That's not a reason to keep the card.
Nobody said you need to keep the card. You can downgrade to a no fee card or ask to have the annual fee waived. If they won't waive it, then cancel.
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First up - I would suggest figuring out what u need for your trip. Then figure out what cards will get u what u need. You don't necessarily want 4 cards in 4 different point systems that cannot be consolidated to give u enough points to do what u want.
Eg I knew I wanted to fly my brother and his family from the UK to the US for a family reunion. I took a look and figured out that the only program where I could earn the massive chunk of miles necessary (within a year) was American Airlines. So I figured out how many miles I needed and planned out my strategy.
It involved signing up for the Starwood Amex, an Amex that earned Amex Membership Rewards, and two American Airlines credit cards. I then transferred everything to AA miles and had enough to do what I wanted.
Yes British Airways had a better promo - but I would only have enough for 1+ tickets, not the 3 I needed. So going with AA worked better for me.
And like everyone else said, go for Chase cards first. We have been locked out of those cards since the 5/24 rule and I sure miss them!!
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That's a reason to sign up -- especially if the fee is waived for the first year. That's not a reason to keep the card.
Nobody said you need to keep the card. You can downgrade to a no fee card or ask to have the annual fee waived. If they won't waive it, then cancel.
But that was *exactly* my question -- why does anybody pay the fees.
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Why would you keep a card and pay fees?
Your benefits outweigh the annual fee.
You practice "manufactured spend" and earn thousands and thousands of points a month.
You use the card to sell Authorized User spots
To increase the age of your credit
Some cards offer annual bonus nights free or points.
Sometimes you can have the fee waived.
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I only need one ticket, which makes it considerably simpler. 50,000 "miles" will almost cover it...
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Consider applying asap as the rumor is that card is going away: https://www.reddit.com/r/churning/comments/70y7tf/50k_arrival_supposedly_going_away_tomorrow_morning/
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That's a reason to sign up -- especially if the fee is waived for the first year. That's not a reason to keep the card.
Nobody said you need to keep the card. You can downgrade to a no fee card or ask to have the annual fee waived. If they won't waive it, then cancel.
But that was *exactly* my question -- why does anybody pay the fees.
I pay the fee because the signup bonus far outweighs the fee. Last year my wife and I signed up for the Chase Sapphire Reserve when it was 100K points, which was good for 1,500 dollars of travel. The card also came with a $300 travel credit, in relation to calendar year, so we got two of them in one year of paying for the card. That equates to $2,100 of travel for $450 or $4,200 of travel for $900 because we both did it. We also did the Chase Sapphire Preferred which had no fee for 50K points, good for $625 of travel. So far this year, we have both gotten the Chase Business card which has $800 of travel for 80 bucks. We then cancel all cards before the next year kicks in. paying $450 for $2,100 of travel, or $80 for $800 is a no brainer and makes the fees well worth it.
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Does anyone have any information on cards to use in Germany ( meaning being resident in Germany)?
This all sounds very interesting to me, but I am not seeing any offers here. The best I can see is no annual fee ( for the first year) and 1 cash back point for every two Euros spent and that does not seem worth it.
Any pointers would be appreciated.
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That's a reason to sign up -- especially if the fee is waived for the first year. That's not a reason to keep the card.
Nobody said you need to keep the card. You can downgrade to a no fee card or ask to have the annual fee waived. If they won't waive it, then cancel.
But that was *exactly* my question -- why does anybody pay the fees.
I keep a couple of fee cards for their annual bonus - the Hyatt Visa ($75/yr) and the IHG MC ($49). Both give me an annual free night that I enjoy using in nice hotels and I generally feel they are worth it.
Once in a while I will keep another if it works out but usually only for an extra 1-2 years. Those are the two that I have kept for several years now.
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Last year my wife and I signed up for the Chase Sapphire Reserve when it was 100K points, which was good for 1,500 dollars of travel. The card also came with a $300 travel credit...
Paying $450 for $2,100 of travel makes the fees well worth it...
Could you explain what exactly you mean by the points being "good for $2100 of travel"?
How and where do you redeem these points? Through a Chase travel portal I assume?
What can these points be used for? Hotel, airfare, rental car? Are you limited to which airline/chain you use?
What are the prices in this travel portal? The same as you would get if you booked yourself?
Say you book a weekend trip to Vegas, in which you used points for "$2100 of travel."
Say I book a similar vacation myself...flight with Frontier/Allegiant/Southwest for $200 + nice hotel room on the strip for $300.
Your cost when using your points might have been $2100.
But an equivalent vacation booked separately from the points may only cost $500.
If so, you certainly couldn't claim your points are "good for $2100 of travel."
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Last year my wife and I signed up for the Chase Sapphire Reserve when it was 100K points, which was good for 1,500 dollars of travel. The card also came with a $300 travel credit...
Paying $450 for $2,100 of travel makes the fees well worth it...
Could you explain what exactly you mean by the points being "good for $2100 of travel"?
How and where do you redeem these points? Through a Chase travel portal I assume?
What can these points be used for? Hotel, airfare, rental car? Are you limited to which airline/chain you use?
What are the prices in this travel portal? The same as you would get if you booked yourself?
Say you book a weekend trip to Vegas, in which you used points for "$2100 of travel."
Say I book a similar vacation myself...flight with Frontier/Allegiant/Southwest for $200 + nice hotel room on the strip for $300.
Your cost when using your points might have been $2100.
But an equivalent vacation booked separately from the points may only cost $500.
If so, you certainly couldn't claim your points are "good for $2100 of travel."
Chase has their own travel portal, like Expedia or Orbitz, which aggregates the results of what you search. You can redeem 1 Ultimate Reward point for 1.25 cents if you have a Preferred card and for 1.5 cents if you have a Reserve card (or Ink Preferred Biz card). So you get more money out of your points than a 1-for-1 cash back or statement credit.
The real key though is to transfer your Ultimate Rewards points to their travel partners - they have 11 (Southwest, United, British Airways, IHG, Hyatt, etc.). They transfer 1-to-1. So I could transfer over 25,000 points to my Southwest account and use those to book my Southwest flight if it costs 25,000 miles. You can typically hit 2 cents/point that way as long as you aren't booking flights during the big holiday travel days.
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Last year my wife and I signed up for the Chase Sapphire Reserve when it was 100K points, which was good for 1,500 dollars of travel. The card also came with a $300 travel credit...
Paying $450 for $2,100 of travel makes the fees well worth it...
Could you explain what exactly you mean by the points being "good for $2100 of travel"?
How and where do you redeem these points? Through a Chase travel portal I assume?
What can these points be used for? Hotel, airfare, rental car? Are you limited to which airline/chain you use?
What are the prices in this travel portal? The same as you would get if you booked yourself?
Say you book a weekend trip to Vegas, in which you used points for "$2100 of travel."
Say I book a similar vacation myself...flight with Frontier/Allegiant/Southwest for $200 + nice hotel room on the strip for $300.
Your cost when using your points might have been $2100.
But an equivalent vacation booked separately from the points may only cost $500.
If so, you certainly couldn't claim your points are "good for $2100 of travel."
I tend to value my redemptions your way - as in how much I would personally have paid for it vs actual rack rate dollar value redemption.
So I usually "spend" my points on things I would normally spend on. I.e. if I have a choice of spending 50,000 points on a 4-5 star hotel with a $500 rack rate vs spending 20,000 points on a 3 star with a $100 rack rate, I will typically choose the 3 star even if it gives me a lower valuation for my points.
Similarly, I still have not flown 1st class on points because I personally get more value from flying economy on points. Yes, if u are valuing points at a certain dollar rate, 1st class is a better "value". But economy is still more worth it to me.
Anyway, I do agree with u that sometimes there are cheaper ways than using reward points. But there are soooo many ways to use reward points to provide solid value for you. I have earned so many amazing trips and it has stretched my travel budget further than I could have managed just hunting for a good deal.
In the case of the Chase Sapphire, I used those points primarily by transferring it to Southwest, where I got a killer return (especially since it's hard to get much of a discount on flights other than what the carrier is offering).
I would suggest not boxing yourself in to just one method. If a CC sign up gives u what u want at a value u feel is worth it, go for it. If cash works better for another trip, go with cash. That's why I always say it's best to have a trip in mind and then work at it to get the best price possible.
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The Choose FI guys have a page dedicated to travel rewards. I think one of the hosts led a course in travel hacking with credit card rewards. They discuss the credit cards to get and how to do it on some of their podcasts.
http://www.choosefi.com/all-articles/travel-rewards/
Helpful page.
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http://www.travelmiles101.com/ is Brad's site (he has another - Richmond Savers).
Highly recommend the free e-mail course. Very helpful in getting started.
If you want to stay up on offers - Doctor of Credit has a good site and usually will tell you if a sign-up bonus is at a historic high or not.
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We like the Barclay Arrival+ card & Citi DoubleCash card. Both pay 2% back. The reason we keep the Barclay Arrival is that it does not charge a foreign transaction fee while the Citi DoubleCash card does.
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Wow, just getting the Barclay card *activated* was such a nightmare, I feel like cancelling it immediately. :-(
I'm also a little perturbed that none of the info that came with my card says anything about the bonus miles.
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Does anyone have any information on cards to use in Germany ( meaning being resident in Germany)?
This all sounds very interesting to me, but I am not seeing any offers here. The best I can see is no annual fee ( for the first year) and 1 cash back point for every two Euros spent and that does not seem worth it.
Any pointers would be appreciated.
Yeah, deals in Europe are nowhere near their American counterparts. Typically redeeming points on travel is worth more than cashback and gift cards, and the signup bonuses are rather low but still worth it IMO.
Check out the German credit cards on http://meilenoptimieren.com (http://meilenoptimieren.com/).
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I keep the Marriott card ( which might be up to 95- hmmm should evaluate again) because I get a free night in a category 1-5 hotel, which is usually more than 95. I have also had it the longest. I am Marriott Platinum, so when I stay at a Marriott brand and use the card, I get a lot of points. I got a 50,000 point bonus when I got this card.
Holiday Inn IHG 60,000 bonus. $49 annual fee . One night at any IHG property. Easily worth more than $49. Also status which doesn't do much- but free internet, bonus points at hotel.
United- $99- but can pay the fee with points. This may be my last year. Marriott and United have an arrangement so right now I get the lowest level of status on United. I get free bag (which I get anyway) for me as well as a companion. Also if I buy a reward ticket for me and companion, my status transfers for upgrades only I have their credit card. It is also one of the few credit cards where insurance is primary for rental cars. Plus the two lounge passes.
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That IHG one sounds pretty good.
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That IHG one sounds pretty good.
https://www.uscreditcardguide.com/chase-ihg-credit-card/
IHG points are typically the least valuable (about 0.7 cents per point), so it's generally more advantageous to go through the Chase Gauntlet first.
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Sorry for the late reply but dark and stormy pretty much nailed it on the head. When I say "good for 2,100 of travel, I mean exactly that. This past summer I used the chase portal to book a flight for two to the northwest and all around alaska plus a hotel for a few nights in seattle. I then used more points to book other vacations-flights, hotels, rental cars, you name it. Some people like to spend points on super fancy rooms or flights but we just like to make them stretch as far as possible by doing same ole flights with normal hotel rooms. Recently paid for flights and hotels include: Seattle, Alaska, Boston, Florida, Colorado. One thing people really start looking at when accumulating points is how many cents per point are you getting. if you take the cash back version, one normally gets 1 cent per point: $1,000 for 100,000 points. If I transfer my points to Southwest and book flights, I can calculate the cents per point by looking at the price in points: say 7,000 versus the price in money: say $210. In that scenario, I would be getting 3 cents per point, stretching my points a lot further than just taking the cash back option.
Happy churning!
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Does anyone have any information on cards to use in Germany ( meaning being resident in Germany)?
This all sounds very interesting to me, but I am not seeing any offers here. The best I can see is no annual fee ( for the first year) and 1 cash back point for every two Euros spent and that does not seem worth it.
Any pointers would be appreciated.
Yeah, deals in Europe are nowhere near their American counterparts. Typically redeeming points on travel is worth more than cashback and gift cards, and the signup bonuses are rather low but still worth it IMO.
Check out the German credit cards on http://meilenoptimieren.com (http://meilenoptimieren.com/).
The other option (not mentioned on that website) is adding the credit card function to your BahnCard if you have one. The fee is steep enough (and they increased it last year - €19 in 2015, €34 in 2016), and the number of points you get seems to go down all the time. That's on top of paying for the actual BahnCard itself (€255 for BC50 or, I think, €62 for a BC25). If you travel by train at all though, it can still be worth it. When I got the credit card bit added, I also got a fairly big sign-up bonus. I do keep track and do come out ahead by several hundred euro per year. A large part of that is from the savings on train tickets, though, so if you don't travel much, it might not be worth it. Between the savings and getting at least one free return ticket every year, so far it is still worth it for me.
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Thanks everyone!
Very helpful, I am looking through the mentioned link and db now👍
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Hmm. My husband just applied for the Chase card and was told he'd get an answer by mail within 30 days. I've never applied for a card online and not been approved immediately. I hope this isn't a bad sign.
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Hmm. My husband just applied for the Chase card and was told he'd get an answer by mail within 30 days. I've never applied for a card online and not been approved immediately. I hope this isn't a bad sign.
Call recon. line. Should be able to get approved if he's under 5/24 and 0/30 with a good credit score.
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Hmm. My husband just applied for the Chase card and was told he'd get an answer by mail within 30 days. I've never applied for a card online and not been approved immediately. I hope this isn't a bad sign.
Call recon. line. Should be able to get approved if he's under 5/24 and 0/30 with a good credit score.
Definitely call recon line. I was able to get approved for a Chase card when at 4/24 and 2/30 already, but only for a low limit ($1500).
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This thread should've ended after the CSR recommendation. Best signup offer ever.
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This thread should've ended after the CSR recommendation. Best signup offer ever.
At the time of the OP, the 100K was no longer the signup offer....so, yes the thread should have gone on because there was room for debate.
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Hmm. My husband just applied for the Chase card and was told he'd get an answer by mail within 30 days. I've never applied for a card online and not been approved immediately. I hope this isn't a bad sign.
Call recon. line. Should be able to get approved if he's under 5/24 and 0/30 with a good credit score.
Yep, call recon line. If he already has several Chase cards he may need to move credit lines around (e.g., lower credit limit on a current card and move it to the new one.)
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How do I transfer ultimate reward points to southwest?
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So, the consensus is the "informed by mail" does means a rejection?
I'm not familiar with the 0/30, what is that?
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in my experience
instant online approval = approved
and
we need time to review and send a letter = denied
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in my experience
instant online approval = approved
and
we need time to review and send a letter = denied
I applied in-branch and was able to find out at the time that I was denied (5/24, right on the edge). I'm under 5/24 now and applied online today - approved instantly.
I'd agree that review/letter is likely a denial.
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I've been doing this for almost two years, made over a million points on sign ups and spend. I have two facebook groups dedicated to travel hacks and manufactured spend. easy to do and you can make some $ as well.
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in my experience
instant online approval = approved
and
we need time to review and send a letter = denied
after a few CC apps, it's inevitable to get reviewed and not get instant approval. My DH calls the next day and generally always gets approved (until this stupid stupid 5/24 rule).
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So, the consensus is the "informed by mail" does means a rejection?
I'm not familiar with the 0/30, what is that?
If you're talking the automated line, call recon!! If you're under 5/24 with a good credit score you should get approved. They might just need to move some credit limit around. Always call!
0/30 is number of credit card applications in the last 30 days. Chase limits you to 2 in the last 30 days for personal cards and 1 (or maybe it's none?) for business cards. If they see you applied for 2 other credit cards in the last month you'll be auto-denied.
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I've been doing this for almost two years, made over a million points on sign ups and spend. I have two facebook groups dedicated to travel hacks and manufactured spend. easy to do and you can make some $ as well.
Would love to hear more about MS. We've been doing everything organically and stretching a bit like volunteering to book the AirBNB house for a group trip and then everyone paid us back via paypal/venmo. But that's not really MS.
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0/30 is number of credit card applications in the last 30 days. Chase limits you to 2 in the last 30 days for personal cards and 1 (or maybe it's none?) for business cards. If they see you applied for 2 other credit cards in the last month you'll be auto-denied.
This is true as a rule, but I was able to get three personal cards approved on the same day, first two approved instantly online, and calling recon for the third and getting a low CL ($1500) after a lot of grilling. It can be done.
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I can't see my husband making that call. :-( I suppose I could try applying, but I thought he would have a better shot, since I'm usually the one who applies. Unless they lump us together because we share cards, he should certainly be 0/30 and I would think less than 5/24. I think I am too, but maybe not.
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I can't see my husband making that call.
? It's 10-15 minutes and could potentially net you ~$1k in travel.
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How do I transfer ultimate reward points to southwest?
You need to have a CSP, CSR, or Ink Preferred. Go to the Ultimate Rewards page, which can be found in the bottom left of your home page on Chase's site.
Click CSP, CSR, or Ink Preferred. Use Points -> Transfer to Travel Partners. Find Southwest and click transfer points.
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I can't see my husband making that call. :-( I suppose I could try applying, but I thought he would have a better shot, since I'm usually the one who applies. Unless they lump us together because we share cards, he should certainly be 0/30 and I would think less than 5/24. I think I am too, but maybe not.
Not to say that I would ever do this, but I've heard some people use their spouse's phone and call in pretending to be the spouse. Customer service reps are careful not to challenge a caller just because their voice sounds like a different gender...or so I've heard. But use the phone that tracks with the application.
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I can't see my husband making that call. :-( I suppose I could try applying, but I thought he would have a better shot, since I'm usually the one who applies. Unless they lump us together because we share cards, he should certainly be 0/30 and I would think less than 5/24. I think I am too, but maybe not.
Not to say that I would ever do this, but I've heard some people use their spouse's phone and call in pretending to be the spouse. Customer service reps are careful not to challenge a caller just because their voice sounds like a different gender...or so I've heard. But use the phone that tracks with the application.
An easier way to do this is have your spouse call and get through the
verification stage, then say, "I'd like for my wife to handle this.", then
have him hand over the phone to you.
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I can't see my husband making that call.
? It's 10-15 minutes and could potentially net you ~$1k in travel.
Like making $6000/hr!!
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This thread should've ended after the CSR recommendation. Best signup offer ever.
At the time of the OP, the 100K was no longer the signup offer....so, yes the thread should have gone on because there was room for debate.
50,000 points equal to $750 in travel redemption, $300 travel reimbursement, free TSA Precheck/Global Entry ($100 value), among other benefits, less $450 fee. But hey, I don't want to get in the way of your referral links to inferior cards.
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I can't see my husband making that call. :-( I suppose I could try applying, but I thought he would have a better shot, since I'm usually the one who applies. Unless they lump us together because we share cards, he should certainly be 0/30 and I would think less than 5/24. I think I am too, but maybe not.
Not to say that I would ever do this, but I've heard some people use their spouse's phone and call in pretending to be the spouse. Customer service reps are careful not to challenge a caller just because their voice sounds like a different gender...or so I've heard. But use the phone that tracks with the application.
Absolutely. I talked to a T-mobile CSR on the phone as my girlfriend while setting up our account (in her name). She has a very obviously feminine name. I have a very obviously dude voice. They didn't question it, and kept calling me by her name like it was nothing.
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This thread should've ended after the CSR recommendation. Best signup offer ever.
At the time of the OP, the 100K was no longer the signup offer....so, yes the thread should have gone on because there was room for debate.
50,000 points equal to $750 in travel redemption, $300 travel reimbursement, free TSA Precheck/Global Entry ($100 value), among other benefits, less $450 fee. But hey, I don't want to get in the way of your referral links to inferior cards.
CSP has the same Ultimate Rewards sign-up bonus with no Annual Fee in the first year, $95 after that. The "travel redemption" piece only makes sense if you use the Ultimate Rewards to book travel...but URs are worth more when transferring them to travel partners.
So, pay $0 hit min. spend and get 50k URs.
CSR - pay $450, hit min. spend get 50k URs get $300 in travel credit and access to TSA Precheck (who cares?). You're paying $150 with the CSR and if TSA Precheck is a must for you, you're still out of pocket $50 more than with a CSP.
If you are only applying to get the most URs for the minimal cost (and don't care about Priority Pass or TSA Precheck) then CSP > CSR.
Also, thank you for your conceited dig. I applied for the CSP and a few weeks before getting ready to apply for the CSR, Chase came out with their new "family rules" on the Sapphire cards.
As an fyi, they are data points out there of people double applying for the CSP and CSR on the same day and getting both bonuses. If you can handle $8k spending in 3 months, 100K URs could be yours.
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This thread should've ended after the CSR recommendation. Best signup offer ever.
At the time of the OP, the 100K was no longer the signup offer....so, yes the thread should have gone on because there was room for debate.
50,000 points equal to $750 in travel redemption, $300 travel reimbursement, free TSA Precheck/Global Entry ($100 value), among other benefits, less $450 fee. But hey, I don't want to get in the way of your referral links to inferior cards.
CSP has the same Ultimate Rewards sign-up bonus with no Annual Fee in the first year, $95 after that. The "travel redemption" piece only makes sense if you use the Ultimate Rewards to book travel...but URs are worth more when transferring them to travel partners.
So, pay $0 hit min. spend and get 50k URs.
CSR - pay $450, hit min. spend get 50k URs get $300 in travel credit and access to TSA Precheck (who cares?). You're paying $150 with the CSR and if TSA Precheck is a must for you, you're still out of pocket $50 more than with a CSP.
If you are only applying to get the most URs for the minimal cost (and don't care about Priority Pass or TSA Precheck) then CSP > CSR.
Also, thank you for your conceited dig. I applied for the CSP and a few weeks before getting ready to apply for the CSR, Chase came out with their new "family rules" on the Sapphire cards.
As an fyi, they are data points out there of people double applying for the CSP and CSR on the same day and getting both bonuses. If you can handle $8k spending in 3 months, 100K URs could be yours.
Since August?
https://thepointsguy.com/2017/08/chase-limiting-sapphire-signups/
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This thread should've ended after the CSR recommendation. Best signup offer ever.
At the time of the OP, the 100K was no longer the signup offer....so, yes the thread should have gone on because there was room for debate.
50,000 points equal to $750 in travel redemption, $300 travel reimbursement, free TSA Precheck/Global Entry ($100 value), among other benefits, less $450 fee. But hey, I don't want to get in the way of your referral links to inferior cards.
CSP has the same Ultimate Rewards sign-up bonus with no Annual Fee in the first year, $95 after that. The "travel redemption" piece only makes sense if you use the Ultimate Rewards to book travel...but URs are worth more when transferring them to travel partners.
So, pay $0 hit min. spend and get 50k URs.
CSR - pay $450, hit min. spend get 50k URs get $300 in travel credit and access to TSA Precheck (who cares?). You're paying $150 with the CSR and if TSA Precheck is a must for you, you're still out of pocket $50 more than with a CSP.
If you are only applying to get the most URs for the minimal cost (and don't care about Priority Pass or TSA Precheck) then CSP > CSR.
Also, thank you for your conceited dig. I applied for the CSP and a few weeks before getting ready to apply for the CSR, Chase came out with their new "family rules" on the Sapphire cards.
As an fyi, they are data points out there of people double applying for the CSP and CSR on the same day and getting both bonuses. If you can handle $8k spending in 3 months, 100K URs could be yours.
Since August?
https://thepointsguy.com/2017/08/chase-limiting-sapphire-signups/
https://www.reddit.com/r/churning/comments/6v3whv/chase_sapphire_reserve_megathread/
Some people here say yes.
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An easier way to do this is have your spouse call and get through the
verification stage, then say, "I'd like for my wife to handle this.", then
have him hand over the phone to you.
That I could see working. Thanks.
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So we earned the Barclay bonus and I'm pretty sure we've earned the Chase bonus at this point. I'm wondering now if I should go back to our regular cards or keep using the Chase. The Barclay miles setup isn't as straightforward as it seemed, and I haven't had the opportunity to use the Chase yet .
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We just got into the sign up bonus game a couple months ago, so I'm sure there's a lot of info out there that I haven't even seen yet. We just earned and redeemed the reward on a pair Capital One Venture cards ($500 each) and I should be getting the miles from one Barclay Red Aviator AAdvatage card at the next statement close (60,500 miles), and I'm trying to decide what to sign up for next.
We are traveling to Hawaii next summer and hopefully using the AA miles (they had flights available for reward travel one way a couple weeks ago) and hotel is already covered, but no particular travel in mind beyond that. We seem to fly AA, United, and Delta somewhat evenly, though Southwest and Jetblue also have airports nearby. We generally just fly whatever is cheapest between the two airports with an hour of the house.
I have held off on the Chase Sapphire cards to see if the bonus goes back up to 100k, but maybe its worth jumping on at the lower 50k level before we are signed up for too many cards to get approved. No idea how frequently the 100k bonus is offered or if its even likely to come back. Anyone with more experience have any insight here?
Also looks like the sign up bonus for the Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select World EliteTM MasterCard is higher than usual at 60k miles now, but is it a bit silly to sign up for another card that provides the same AA benefits we are already getting from a different AA branded card?
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I have held off on the Chase Sapphire cards to see if the bonus goes back up to 100k, but maybe its worth jumping on at the lower 50k level before we are signed up for too many cards to get approved. No idea how frequently the 100k bonus is offered or if its even likely to come back. Anyone with more experience have any insight here?
The 100k was a limited time offer when the Sapphire Reserve was rolled out initially.
http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2017/07/28/chase-worried-theyre-losing-money-sapphire-reserve/
https://www.uscreditcardguide.com/chase-sapphire-reserve-credit-card/
https://www.uscreditcardguide.com/chase-sapphire-preferred-credit-card/
The offers haven't changed in awhile on the Sapphire cards.
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Thanks DarkandStormy, that may change our approach. It might be time to pull that trigger before we are waiting years to fall with in the 5/24 rule again.
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Rats, I'm very tempted by that Citi card but my husband's at 5/24 and I'm at 6/24. I'm annoyed at the cards I fell for before getting more educated by you folks.
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The Chase Ink Business Preferred card seems to be the best thing going. 80k points for $5k spend. $95 annual fee.
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The Chase Ink Business Preferred card seems to be the best thing going. 80k points for $5k spend. $95 annual fee.
100K if you apply via BRM.
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BRM??
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BRM??
Business Relationship Manager
http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2017/05/04/chase-ink-business-preferred-100000-point-signup-bonus-offer-saturday/
The 100k offer might be dead now, but worth a shot.