Archive for the 'Credit Cards' Category
Friday, August 19th, 2011
The Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Card is offering 10,000 Starpoints with your first purchase and another 15,000 points when you spend $5k within 6 months. The annual fee is free the first year, then $65 a year after that.
Starwood is a collection of nicer hotels, and these points are most valuable if you can use them for hotel stays. I’ve used them in a pinch, for example 3,000 points for a $120 a night room at the Vancouver Airport Four Points. I’ve also planned ahead and used 10,000 points for a $450/night room at the majestic Westin Madrid in Spain. So the value of 30,000 points can be easily greater than $500 if you want to plan something a special trip on the cheap.
Starpoints are also convertible to frequent flier miles at various airlines on a 1:1 basis, which is handy to top off a single account to reach an award. Also, if you convert 20k at a time, 20,000 Starpoints = 25,000 miles. I’ve had this card for years now and actually paid the annual fee. This is because instead of an airline-specific card that earns 1 mile per dollar spent, I can use this and get 1.25 miles per dollar spent and have much more flexibility. Finally, as a baseline 9,500 Starpoints = $100 gift card at Amazon.com. For you freelancers, also check out the small business card version.
Compare with other $500+ top credit card bonuses currently available.
Posted in Credit Cards, Deals & Offers | 7 Comments »
Friday, August 19th, 2011
My parents live in area predominantly serviced by Delta Airlines, so they both use the Delta-branded American Express cards that get you miles when you buy things with them. They save $50 per person each roundtrip flight with the free checked bag for you and up to 8 travel companions on the same reservation. Delta recently announced that on September 1st, Gold and Platinum Delta SkyMiles credit card holders will also get free priority boarding for themselves and companions (less dealing with crazy lines and fighting for carry-on space). Finally, there is 20% off in-flight purchases like food, beverages, and movies.
These are nice benefits if you don’t fly enough each year to make an “Elite” level, and can often pay for the card’s annual fee even if just travel once or twice a year. The Gold Delta SkyMiles American Express Card is currently offering a sign-up bonus of 30,000 miles after making just $500 in purchases in the first three months, enough for a free “saver” roundtrip ticket or a flat $300 off any Delta airfare. The annual fee is $95, but is waived for the first year.
A lesser-known perk is that you get a $99 companion ticket with the Gold card (becomes a free companion ticket with the upgraded Platinum Skymiles card). These companion vouchers are actually useable unlike some others, although they do have some restrictions. I’ve used them a few times now when my parents weren’t using theirs, and the paid fare I booked never cost more than about 15% above the lowest priced fare on Expedia. Since the 2nd person travels for $99, after everything the companion tickets usually saved me and my wife at least $100 each time when traveling cross-country. If you live in Hawaii, the companion tickets even work from Hawaii to the mainland US and back. (Unfortunately, it doesn’t work from mainland US to Hawaii or Alaska.) If you travel regularly with someone with Delta, these are actually worthwhile.
Posted in Credit Cards, Deals & Offers | No Comments »
Saturday, August 13th, 2011
The Citi ThankYou Premier Card currently offers 30,000 bonus ThankYou Points after $2,000 in purchases within 3 months of account opening. That is enough to redeem for $300 in gift cards at stores including Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes, and CVS Pharmacy. Alternatively, you can get $399 in airfare or hotels when you redeem through their ThankYou Travel Center (prices match Expedia.com). If you redeemed for Walmart gift cards and exchanged them online at a site like PlasticJungle.com, you would net $270 in cash.
This is their new travel-oriented card, with no foreign transaction fee on purchases and you can also earn points based on the amount of miles you actually fly. The annual fee is free the first year, $125 in later years if you keep it. Alternatively, if you want a card with no annual fee period, the Citi ThankYouSM Preferred Card is offering a $250 gift card when you redeem the 25,000 bonus ThankYou® Points received after $2,000 in purchases within 4 months of account opening.
Also compare with other $500+ top credit card bonuses currently available, although you can apply for more than one.
Posted in Credit Cards, Deals & Offers | 17 Comments »
Friday, August 5th, 2011
Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card from Chase. The Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card is currently offering 25,000 Rapid Rewards points after your first purchase worth a Free Flight. This is based on the fact that a roundtrip $416 Wanna Get Away fares would cost 24,960 points. In reality, the value of the bonus is $416 towards Southwest airfare, and you can use the points as needed for multiple flights.
The card features 2 points per dollar spent on Southwest airlines purchases, 2 points per dollar spent on Southwest hotel and car rental partner purchases, and 1 point per dollar on everything else. Each point is worth 1.67 cents towards Southwest Wanna Get Away fares. The annual fee is $69, and each anniversary you get 3,000 points that are worth another $50 towards Wanna Get Away fares.
In addition to Southwest flights, you can redeem the points on hotel stays, car rentals, international flights, and gift cards. For gift cards in general, 5,000 points = $50 value. Specifically, you can redeem 25,000 points for $250 in gift certificates at Amazon.com, Home Depot, Lowe’s, and Walmart. Useful alternative if you don’t live in a city served by Southwest.
Posted in Credit Cards, Deals & Offers | 28 Comments »
Wednesday, July 27th, 2011
The standard personal finance magazine advice is to apply for as few credit cards as possible, ostensibly to keep your credit score high. However, a recent Consumer Report article which tries to make the same case, actually ends up making a better case for applying for a steady stream of credit cards, especially when they are paying you big bucks to do so. Let’s break down the article section-by-section.
How many cards are too many?
Contrary to popular belief, having a lot of credit cards is not detrimental to your score. That’s because one component of the scoring formula is the ratio of balances to credit-limit utilization. The more available credit you have relative to the amount you charge each month, the higher your score is likely to be.
Here, if you have more cards, or at least higher credit limits, the high your credit score will be. Your credit score will also be more resilient, say, if you make a large purchase or spend more than usual on vacation.
Should I apply for several cards?
Your score can be affected by any new credit issued and the number of recent inquiries on your report resulting from your applications for new credit. FICO usually excludes inquiries that show you’re rate shopping for college loans, auto loans, or mortgages, but not credit cards. Every credit card you apply for will be considered a hard inquiry on your credit record; inquiries remain there for 24 months and could affect your score for the first 12.
If you have a lengthy credit history, such inquiries shouldn’t affect your score much, if at all. But if your credit history includes only one other account and you open a new one, the length of your average credit history will be halved and your score will probably drop.
Again, we see that if you only have a few credit cards, then your score is susceptible to dropping with just one new credit inquiry. However, if you have a bunch, then your score is again more resilient. As for the actual effect, a variety of reports from various credit forums has shown me that the effect of a hard inquiry lastly only for about 6 months, and goes away quickly after that. I personally apply for a round of cards every 6 months in response. Note the article carefully dances around this by saying it “could” affect your score for up to 12 months.
Should I keep my oldest card?
It’s a common belief that you should never close the card you’ve held the longest. (The length of your credit history makes up 15 percent of your score.) But credit bureaus usually leave closed accounts on your file for 10 years, so your long-held cards will still be factored into your score after you ditch them. If you’ve obtained other credit accounts over the years, closing one card shouldn’t have a big impact unless it represents a significant portion of your available credit. In that case, closing your old card could hike your balance-to-credit ratio and lower your score.
Yet again, counter-intuitively, by applying for a lot of cards regularly over the last few years, closing cards does not significantly affect my credit score. My average age will always be pretty long. Of course, I still try to keep my oldest cards open.
When should I ditch a card?
I’ll just override Consumer Reports on this one. You should ditch a card whenever it saves you money. If a card charges an annual fee and you don’t think the benefits attached are worth it, then you should cancel it. If your interest rate is too high and you can do better elsewhere, cancel it. Simple as that. If you applied for a new card with a nice bonus and they denied you saying you have “too many cards with us”, then call them up and offer to close your old card, and chances are they’ll be happy to oblige in order to keep your business.
Posted in Credit Cards | 7 Comments »
Tuesday, July 26th, 2011
If you have a good credit score and the discipline not to get into consumer debt, you can profit from your responsibility by participating in various credit card sign-up incentives. The bonuses are not subject to tax, and by applying for only the best offers, you can add thousands of dollars to your income a year.
$500 in Gift Cards or $500 towards Student Loans, your Mortgage, Airfare or Hotel
The Citi ThankYou Premier Card is competing with a 50,000 ThankYou Point bonus. You get 50,000 bonus ThankYou Points after $2,500 in purchases within 3 months of account opening. 50,000 points is worth $500 in gift cards, airfare, or a check towards your student loan or mortgage. No annual fee. See this post for details.
$500 in Cash or $625 towards Airfare or Hotel
The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is a rewards credit card offering new cardholders 50,000 bonus points after you spend $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. 50,000 points can be redeemed for $500 cash or two airplane tickets worth up to $312.50 each since they offer a 25% boost towards airfare and hotels. No annual fee for the first year, $95 in future years. They also offer 2 points per dollar spent on dining & 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases. Additional details here.
(This card is the “big brother” of the regular Chase Sapphire Card, where you can get 25,000 points ($250 cash) after you spend $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months, and there is no annual fee in the first year or subsequent years.
This is their new travel-oriented card, with no foreign transaction fee on purchases and you can also earn points based on the amount of miles you actually fly. The annual fee is free the first year, $125 in later years if you keep it. Alternatively, if you want a card with no annual fee period, the Citi ThankYouSM Preferred Card is offering 25,000 bonus points after $2,000 in purchases within 4 months.
Posted in Credit Cards, Deals & Offers | 16 Comments »
Wednesday, July 20th, 2011
As the next step into the merger of United and Continental Airlines, the respective affiliated credit cards have announced some improved benefits that also bring them much closer together. Replacing the ole’ gray United MileagePlus Signature card is the new United MileagePlus Explorer Card.
Here are the perk highlights for the card (application link):
- 30,000 Bonus Miles. Earn 25,000 bonus miles after first use and 5,000 additional bonus miles after adding an authorized user within two months of opening your account. Adding a user is free, and you can destroy the 2nd card if you don’t want it actually used. 25,000 miles is enough for a roundtrip flight within continental US.
- Additional 10,000 Bonus Miles for spending $25,000 on the card in a year. This last part is a rather high hurdle, but is available every year for high spenders.
- First Checked Bag Free. Cardholders and one companion will receive their first checked bag free on United and Continental. This usually costs $25 per bag each way, that’s $100 for a couple roundtrip.
- Priority Boarding – Cardholders get to board right behind First Class and Elite, before the rest of Economy. This should allow you to avoid the lines and grab a nice overhead bin on the plane.
- Miles Never Expire. Right now, Continental miles never expire but United miles do. After the merger, miles will expire after a period of inactivity, but if you have this card they won’t no matter what.
- Primary Rental Car Insurance. Almost all personal credit cards only offer secondary rental car insurance, which means you have to file a claim with your own auto insurance first, which means you have to pay the deductible and possibly face higher future premiums. With primary collision damage waiver (CDW) even for personal use, you get coverage for damage or theft without having to make a claim. Also includes trip cancellation insurance, trip delay coverage, and roadside assistance.
- Earn 2 miles per $1 spent on tickets purchased from United or Continental and 1 mile per $1 for everything else.
- Two complimentary passes every year to the United Club lounges.
- Elite members can now get free upgrades to business/first on award tickets as well as paid tickets.
- $95 annual fee, waived for the first year for new cardholders.
Current Chase United cardholder?
The old Chase United Signature card lacks some of the nicer perks above, but has a lower $60 annual fee. If you want to keep it, don’t do anything and Chase will not upgrade you automatically. If you do want to upgrade, simply call the number on your card and it will be converted without changing your card number.
This card does offer unique features, yet be sure to compare with the other ways to rack up $500+ in credit card bonuses…
Posted in Credit Cards, Deals & Offers | 15 Comments »
Monday, July 4th, 2011
Rewards credit cards are very popular, with more folks trying to stretch every dollar. Besides, who doesn’t like cash back? The following credit cards offer a hefty 5% back, but only in certain categories that rotate each quarter. Even though this may not seem like much, by keeping track of their promotions and using different cards smartly, I can easily rack up hundreds of dollars in additional rewards per year. None of these have an annual fee. My analogy is that I use them like Swiss army knives, as needed.
Here’s an update for the offers during the third quarter of 2011. It’s summertime, so travel-related items like gas, airfare, hotels, and car rentals are the overall theme. You can usually also see the rewards for the rest of the year on the applications. New cardholders can also get up to $200 bonus cash back as a sign-up bonus.
Chase Freedom Visa – $100 Bonus Cash Back
Reward categories change quarterly.
From April 1st to June 3oth, you can earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 spent in the following categories:
- Grocery Stores
- Movie Theaters
You must enroll at ChaseBonus.com. All other purchases do earn a standard 1%, with no tiers or expiration of rewards. Currently, the Chase Freedom Visa – $100 Bonus Cash Back has a promotion offering a $100 bonus cashback if you sign up and make $500 in purchases in your first three months.
Citi® Dividend Platinum Select® Visa® Card
Reward categories change quarterly. From October 1st to December 31st, you can earn 5% cash back on
- Department Stores
- Clothing Stores
- Electronics Stores
- Toy Stores
After you get your card, you must enroll by logging into your account online or calling 1-800-231-0891. There is no cap on the 5% back, except for the $300 overall cap on all dividend rewards annually. All other purchases do earn a standard 1% with no tiers, and rewards do not expire as long as you have activity once every 12 months. Currently, the Citi® Dividend Platinum Select® Visa® Card card has a promotion offering a $100 bonus cashback if you sign up and make $500 in purchases in your first three months.
Discover More Card
Reward categories change quarterly. From July 1 to September 30, you can earn 5% cash back on up to $300 spent in the following categories:
- Gas
- Hotels
- Movies
- Theme Parks
You must enroll online to activate the rewards each quarter. Discover card has a tiered cashback rate (1% unlimited Cashback Bonus on purchases after your total annual purchases exceed $3000; purchases that are part of your first $3000 earn .25%.).
The Discover More Card has 0% APR for 15 months on both purchases and balance transfers, with a 3% balance transfer fee (no minimum).
PenFed Platinum Cashback Rewards Card
Bonus categories appear and change regularly for this card, but currently I don’t see anything available. However, the best feature remains – the year-round rewards structure of 5% cash back on gas purchases pay at pump), and 1% cash back on everything else. Rewards are credited monthly on your next statement.
Note: To get this card, you must also have membership to the Pentagon Federal Credit Union (you can apply for both at the same time). In general, membership is open to the military, US government employees, or the family or household of existing members. However, anyone can become eligible by joining the Voices for America’s Troops for a $15 one-time fee or by being a Red Cross donor.
Posted in Credit Cards, Deals & Offers | 10 Comments »
Tuesday, June 28th, 2011
If you have a good credit score and the discipline not to get into consumer debt, you can profit from your responsibility by participating in various credit card promos where their ad dollars go into your pocket. There have been some exceptionally nice deals lately to choose from, one of which expires soon. Here’s a brief summary:
$500 in Gift Cards or $500 towards Student Loans, your Mortgage, Airfare or Hotel
The Citi ThankYou Premier Card is competing with a 50,000 ThankYou Point bonus. You get 50,000 bonus ThankYou Points after $2,500 in purchases within 3 months of account opening. 50,000 points is worth $500 in gift cards, airfare, or a check towards your student loan or mortgage. No annual fee. See this post for details.
$500 in Cash or $625 towards Airfare or Hotel
The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is a rewards credit card offering new cardholders 50,000 bonus points after you spend $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. 50,000 points can be redeemed for $500 cash or two airplane tickets worth up to $312.50 each since they offer a 25% boost towards airfare and hotels. No annual fee for the first year, $95 in future years. They also offer 2 points per dollar spent on dining & 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases. Additional details here.
(This card is the “big brother” of the regular Chase Sapphire Card, where you can get 25,000 points ($250 cash) after you spend $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months, and there is no annual fee in the first year or subsequent years.
This is their new travel-oriented card, with no foreign transaction fee on purchases and you can also earn points based on the amount of miles you actually fly. The annual fee is free the first year, $125 in later years if you keep it. Alternatively, if you want a card with no annual fee period, the Citi ThankYouSM Preferred Card is offering 25,000 bonus points after $2,000 in purchases within 4 months.
Posted in Credit Cards, Deals & Offers | 7 Comments »
Tuesday, June 21st, 2011
This is a follow-up on the previously mentioned 40,000 bonus points offer (converts to $400 cash) for the getting the Chase Sapphire Preferred(SM) Card. Thanks to readers Paolo and AT, they shared a way to get double those points, even if you’ve already applied.
Apparently, some people were recently mailed targeted offers for the same card, but with 100,000 points (converts to $1,000) instead. The problem was, you needed a special invitation code so there was no public application link. However, some clever folks who already applied for the 50k offer asked nicely for Chase to match with the offer code S6V, and many success stories have been reported on FW.
I was just able to successfully get 50K applied to mine and my wife’s accounts (just applied this past Sat. night in fact) and it was really painless, took 5 minutes. 200,000 total!
So the plan of attack would be:
1) Apply for the 40k offer. That’s the best available offer, and even by itself is a great offer worth $400 in cash or $500 in airfare. If you’ve already applied, skip ahead to:
2) Ask politely for a match of the new 100k offer. After getting your card, use the Chase website to send an online secure message requesting a match of the new, improved offer. There are no guarantees on this – you should be prepared to be happy with the $400 bonus – but it’s definitely worth a shot and I’d do it sooner than later. Use this helpful script from Paolo:
Dear Chase Representative,
I just this past weekend applied for my new Chase Sapphire Preferred card with a 40,000 sign up bonus of 40,000 points after spending $3,000.
Today, I learned of a new offer S6V which promises 100,000 bonus points. I would be very grateful if you would extend the 100,000 bonus point offer S6V to me as well since I just applied for the Chase Sapphire Preferred card.
I have been a long time customer of Chase, and have had my primary checking and credit card accounts with Chase for many years and hope to maintain them for many more years to come!
Kind Regards,
[Your Name]
I would customize this to your personal situation, mentioning your length or size of relationship with Chase if applicable. Update: Some people are reported that this window of opportunity has been closed.
Posted in Credit Cards, Deals & Offers | 70 Comments »
Wednesday, June 15th, 2011
Another new website, Credit Sesame, now offers you free credit scores and updates based on your Experian credit report. No credit card required, no trial required. This is not a real FICO score, but an estimate of the FICO formula that uses the same range of 300-850. To avoid repeating myself too much, you can learn more about FICO vs. FAKO credit scores here.
Sign-up Process
The sign-up process was quick and relatively painless. They ask you for your home address and household income, but this is primarily to see if they can save you money on a mortgage refinance. (This is one way they make money.) You’ll also need to answer three questions based on your Experian credit report data to verify your identity.
Online Security
To get your credit score, you will need to give them your Social Security number. You’ll have to decide for yourself if you feel comfortable doing this. They do claim all of the usual security measures, including 128-bit SSL encryption, password encoding, and working with Experian to test their systems. They also do not sell personal information, but will use it to target potential offers to you.
The information that you provide – including name, date of birth, email, real estate ownership, home address, social security, and any information about your finances (income, assets, debt, credit) – is not sold to third parties.
My Credit Scores
Here’s a screenshot of my current credit score according to CreditSesame:
My score of 696 is actually kind of low for me. Compare this with my score from CreditKarma, which is a similar company but uses the TransUnion bureau credit report:
Why the big difference? After some research, I finally remembered why my Experian score may be lower. Over 2 years ago, I found out my old library sent me to collections over a $40 overdue book that I returned. This annoying ding only shows up on my Experian report. To be honest, I haven’t bothered to dispute it because now live in another state and I’ve been approved for every single credit card since finding out. Another reason is that when you apply for a credit card, they usually only check one out of the three bureaus (Experian, Equifax, TransUnion).
This brings up the primary benefit of these free FAKO scores. Having three independent credit bureaus means we all have three different credit scores. These regular updates can show you the effects if different bureaus have different data. They are also handy for checking if there is a big change in your credit score, including someone using your identity or simply an erroneous debt assigned to your name.
You can use CreditSesame for Experian, CreditKarma for TransUnion, and Equifax Score Card for Equifax. All free.
Posted in Credit Cards, Debt | 7 Comments »
Friday, June 3rd, 2011
Speaking of household debt, Citibank is currently offering 0% APR interest on purchases and balance transfers for 18 months on its Citi Platinum Select MasterCard. Notice they are not allowed to say “up to” anymore with the new credit card laws. If you get approved – this card requires good to excellent credit – then you’ll get the full 18 months. No annual fee.
Length of your introductory period will be 0% for 18 months from the date of account opening when balance transfers are completed within 4 months from date of account opening and 0% for 18 months on purchases from date of account opening.
Don’t use this card to build up more debt, use it to lower your interest rate so you can pay down your principal faster. The balance transfer fee is 3% ($5 minimum) so it’s not totally free money, but a one-time 3% fee spread out over 1 3/4 years is the equivalent of paying an annual interest rate of 1.7% per year. Compare that with your current interest rate – the national average is over 14%. Also compare to what P2P lenders like Prosper and LendingClub can offer, although their term lengths are over 3 to 5 years.
Take advantage of the flexibility as well. The 18 months applies to both purchases and balance transfers, and with Citi you can transfer your credit limit directly to your checking account or simply request a paper check. If you’ve already got this card, check out this list of low-fee 0% APR balance transfer offers for similar offers.
Posted in Credit Cards | 11 Comments »
