damn, chase freedom is now offering $200 cash back for spending $1500 in 6 months

4/14/2011 4:04:44 PM

https://applynowdc2.chase.com/FlexAppWeb/renderApp.do?SPID=DD3V&CELL=6H8X&AFFID=lw9MynSeamY-WneX_ReFZv90AKkTg9wt5A&pvid=u0t0f0fp0dd0c107081s65

[Edited on April 14, 2011 at 4:12 PM. Reason : ]

4/14/2011 4:11:58 PM

Citi has a better deal with similar spending requirements on the AAdvantage card right now. Gives 75k points if you spend $1500 in the first 6 months. You get can get RT Euro flights for 60k (worth $1000+ easily).

[Edited on April 14, 2011 at 5:56 PM. Reason : d]

4/14/2011 5:55:20 PM

Do those 75K pts have cash value or do you have to use them for flights?

4/14/2011 5:56:57 PM

^

4/14/2011 6:39:40 PM

I believe you can redeem them for gift cards... something like 10k points for $100 gift card. Not 100% sure on that. The best value is def flights, and AA's availability is much better than most airlines.

4/14/2011 7:19:41 PM

i seriously doubt they have a better selection or redemption bonuses (up to 200%) than discover...chase's offerings are okay, but nowhere near as extensive

in any case, do they match chase's 1%/5% cash back deal, or is it a set 1% on everything?

4/15/2011 8:01:12 AM

I never said they compared favorably to any other program/card. Just that they are offering a ridiculously good bonus on that card that is relatively easy to get. I got tickets that I would've otherwise paid $1600 for, for 60k points. That's like getting over 100% cashback. Hard to beat that.

My advice: apply for the card, get the bonus, cancel the card. Then use one of the cards that gives 2% cash on everything (FIA Schwab or Fidelity).

As a side note, Discover's rewards are nice but the caps on the bonus 5% make it pretty much useless. I also have a Chase Freedom but don't use it since they neutered the rewards. I keep it around because it's one of my oldest and highest credit line.

[Edited on April 15, 2011 at 9:58 AM. Reason : d]

4/15/2011 9:54:05 AM

Quote :

"apply for the card, get the bonus, cancel the card"

if it doesn't have an annual fee, never cancel

Quote :

"Discover's rewards are nice but the caps on the bonus 5% make it pretty much useless."

isn't the cap $3k? are you really telling me that you charge over $300,000 per year on your credit card? if so,

[Edited on April 15, 2011 at 10:00 AM. Reason : $300k in the rotating categories, no less]

4/15/2011 9:59:31 AM

^it does have an annual fee (waived for 1st year). Cancel. Your advice, while well-intentioned, does not apply to cards you open for churning bonuses.
You should really only keep a card alive if it's one of your oldest, it's your only card with a certain issuer, or it has a particularly high credit line.

the cap for Discover's rotating 5% is something like $400 or $500 of spending per period. Which equates to a whopping $40. Hardly worth the effort.


[Edited on April 15, 2011 at 10:08 AM. Reason : d]

4/15/2011 10:01:20 AM

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2011/pf/1104/gallery.100_best_money_moves.moneymag/4.html

4/18/2011 8:04:34 PM

^I agree with all their picks, except the restaurant card. I'd go with the Citi Forward on that one. Also gives 5% at Amazon, so it's better than the Amazon branded card from Chase.

4/19/2011 9:16:31 AM

Just got credited my 15,000 pts from Chase Freedom for spending $500

4/23/2011 4:25:09 PM

Are there any credit cards out there that people with lower credit scores may be eligible for?

4/25/2011 9:10:05 AM

bad: http://www.cardratings.com/credit-cards/credit/bad
fair: http://www.cardratings.com/credit-cards/credit/fair
good: http://www.cardratings.com/credit-cards/credit/good
excellent: http://www.cardratings.com/credit-cards/credit/excellent

unless your credit is downright awful, you should be able to get a capital one no hassle rewards (mastercard) or a discover student...possibly the citi forward (visa), as well

[Edited on April 25, 2011 at 9:43 AM. Reason : .]

4/25/2011 9:37:59 AM

Citi Forward is the obvious answer.

4/25/2011 11:29:20 AM

it's only the obvious answer if your credit is good enough, as it has the highest requirement of the three i mentioned...i'd say the capital one is second choice and the discover is third

none of them are "bad" as long as you don't carry balance and pay your bills on time

4/25/2011 12:03:47 PM

the student version of the Forward card has a very low barrier for entry. Basically, you'll get it as long as you don't have delinquencies on your report.

Capital One does kinda screw you over in the way they report to credit bureaus, and I think it's an intentional practice on their part.



[Edited on April 25, 2011 at 1:00 PM. Reason : df]

4/25/2011 12:59:29 PM

^what do you mean?

4/25/2011 1:11:11 PM

They report your highest balance as your credit limit, rather than reporting your true credit limit. This effectively can make it look like you've got your card maxed out, or close to it. In any case, it hurts your overall available credit (which bumps up your usage ratio, both bad things).

They are basically in the lowest tier of credit issuers, and a last resort for a lot of people. My conspiracy theory is that they do this on purpose, to make it that much harder for someone to get another card once they've got a Cap One.



[Edited on April 25, 2011 at 1:24 PM. Reason : d]

4/25/2011 1:23:46 PM

Yeah, I'll never use a Capital One card. I would only recommend it to people who can't get a card anywhere else.

4/25/2011 1:29:31 PM

I've had too many cards to count over the last 6-7 years from every single issuer except Capital One.

They almost sucked me in with that Venture "Match My Miles" program, but then I saw it was limited to 1 Billion miles (or something like that) total and it had already been running 2 weeks when I found out about it. Pretty sure some of the late comers are already getting shot down (once they've already applied and own the card, mind you. Nice, Cap One!)

Oh well, probably for the best.

[Edited on April 25, 2011 at 1:50 PM. Reason : f]

4/25/2011 1:49:31 PM

Yeah. Cap one blows. My limit on that card is $1500 vs 7/10/12 for my chase cards.

4/25/2011 2:31:48 PM

I have a Capital One card, but only because they don't have the foreign transaction fee. I only use it whenever I travel out-of-country.

4/25/2011 2:32:41 PM

FIA Schwab card doesn't have int'l fee, and gives 2% flat cashback to boot.

4/25/2011 2:34:50 PM

Amex apparently came out with two new Blue Cash cards today.

Blue Cash Preferred: $75 Annual Fee, 6% back at Grocery Stores, 3% back at gas stations and department stores, 1% everything else - http://www201.americanexpress.com/getthecard/learn-about/BlueCash-Preferred

and

Blue Cash Everyday: $0 Annual Fee, 3% back at Grocery Stores, 2% back at gas stations and department stores, 1% everything else - http://www201.americanexpress.com/getthecard/learn-about/BlueCash-Everyday

I think I'll be signing up for one of them later today.

edit: By my admittedly questionable math if you look at just the grocery aspect of it, it seems like if you spend more than $36.54 a week on groceries, you're better off going for the Preferred.

[Edited on April 26, 2011 at 5:12 PM. Reason : .]

4/26/2011 5:05:50 PM

^from Amex's site:

Quote :

"Annual fee pays for itself. With 6% cash back at supermarkets, if you spend just $25 weekly at your supermarket, you can receive over $75 cash back from these purchases alone. "

4/26/2011 5:46:39 PM

annual fees are retarded...there's no excuse for them

it's not like they charge the merchants any less

4/26/2011 5:59:26 PM

^^ Yeah, but that's a bit misleading, because it doesn't factor in the potential earnings that you would've gotten if you'd used the 3% card instead, it only factors in the $75 cost.

So basically if you spend $25 a week on groceries for 52 weeks, you've spent $1,300.

That $1,300 on groceries nets you $39 when doing 3% cashback, so you need your spending at 6% to cover both the $75 annual fee and the $39 you gave up by not using the Everyday card.

So to cover the $114, you have to spend $1900 on groceries (or ~$36.54 per week).

[Edited on April 26, 2011 at 6:00 PM. Reason : .]

4/26/2011 5:59:57 PM

we don't spend $36/week on groceries

4/26/2011 6:04:38 PM

Then don't get the Preferred Card?

4/26/2011 6:49:39 PM

Then have your baller status revoked before they bust you for fraud.

4/26/2011 7:22:12 PM

$36/week isn't a lot of money if you have a family. In my case, I spend like $15/week. I shouldn't eat out so much.

4/26/2011 7:37:15 PM

I spend $36 a week easily at the grocery store.

4/26/2011 8:53:45 PM

I seriously go to the grocery store like everyday.

4/26/2011 10:06:44 PM

hmmm. interesting. I really miss my 5% at the grocery store. I wonder what they consider a "department store".

4/27/2011 7:42:51 AM

The other thing I forgot to roll into the estimations (which makes the Preferred even better) is $100 back for spending $500 on the card within the first 60 days. Basically, it's in your best interest to get the Preferred at least for a year, then when your renewal period comes up, just bitch about the annual fee and get it rolled back to an Everyday.

4/27/2011 9:15:18 AM

hehe. You guys are funny. Its a good week if we dont spend $200 on groceries

4/27/2011 11:21:28 AM

200/wk? Are you raising an entire basketball team?

4/27/2011 11:26:52 AM

The wife's and my monthly grocery budget is $350. That is also mostly an organic/whole food pescatarian diet. (in other words I would expect it to be slightly more expensive than buying a lot of more standard stuff).

I guess I could look at the 3% cash back for groceries just as another card for my wife. Right now we get 5% cash back for 1 quarter a year and 1% the other quarters with the Freedom which averages out to about 2% cashback on groceries over the course of the year.

I don't think I would do the annual fee card even though it would "pay for itself." I don't feel like dealing with the hassle when/if the benefits change down the road causing it not to be worth it anymore.

[Edited on April 27, 2011 at 11:49 AM. Reason : .]

4/27/2011 11:33:20 AM

Quote :

"is $100 back for spending $500 on the card within the first 60 days"

Could not find this on the website linked......Also, exluding that, you'd need to spend $2500 per year ($6.85 a day) at the grocery store to make up the $75 fee going from 3% (no fee) to 6% ($75 fee). $2500 x (6% - 3%) = 75, right?

4/27/2011 12:28:50 PM

Quote :

"200/wk? Are you raising an entire basketball team?"

Before I got married, I'd be lucky to spend $100 a month in groceries. After marriage, things have changed. My main enemy is the fruit section.

It does seem to get much worse at Kroger. My wife likes Kroger, but her trips there always manage to set us back another $20 over Harris Teeter. I dont like Kroger as a result.

[Edited on April 27, 2011 at 1:03 PM. Reason : .]

4/27/2011 1:01:54 PM

Quote :

"Could not find this on the website linked......Also, exluding that, you'd need to spend $2500 per year ($6.85 a day) at the grocery store to make up the $75 fee going from 3% (no fee) to 6% ($75 fee). $2500 x (6% - 3%) = 75, right?"

I did this math already earlier in the thread:

Quote :

"Yeah, but that's a bit misleading, because it doesn't factor in the potential earnings that you would've gotten if you'd used the 3% card instead, it only factors in the $75 cost. So basically if you spend $25 a week on groceries for 52 weeks, you've spent $1,300. That $1,300 on groceries nets you $39 when doing 3% cashback, so you need your spending at 6% to cover both the $75 annual fee and the $39 you gave up by not using the Everyday card. So to cover the $114, you have to spend $1900 on groceries (or ~$36.54 per week)."

And to quote the Preferred link: "Earn a $100 cash back with $500 in eligible purchases in the first 60 days of Cardmembership on your Blue Cash PreferredSM Card.1"

[Edited on April 27, 2011 at 2:31 PM. Reason : Oh, and Approved!]

4/27/2011 2:12:31 PM

Don't know if anyone posted this deal yet or not so if someone has, sorry!

Chase has a deal on a British Airways card right now that gives 50,000 "miles" after your first purchase. 50,000 gets you one round-trip ticket to Europe; 25,000 gets you one round-trip ticket throughout continental US; 35,000 for Hawaii and Caribbean.

Additionally, if you spend $2500 on the card in the 1st 3 months, you get an additional 50,000 miles. Has an annual fee of $95 that I hear is getting waived for the 1st year for many people.

Fine print: http://www.mychasecreditcards.com/ba/100/?CELL=6H8X&AFFID=lw9MynSeamY-TGICoGtjEUPt8Od37eKCpQ&pvid=u0t0f0fp0dd0c0s65


*Forgot to mention, carrier is American Airlines in the US.

[Edited on April 27, 2011 at 4:10 PM. Reason : *]

4/27/2011 4:09:19 PM

for two "free" tickets to europe, i could probably spend $2500 in 3 months

4/27/2011 8:02:21 PM

If you're interested in the card for domestic flights, get the AA card I linked to at the top of this page, no annual fee for 1st year and spending requirement is lower ($1500). If you plan to use it for int'l flights, be aware that Taxes and Fees are unusually high on the 'free' tix (looking at ~$200-$300 in fees for a flight to Europe, IIRC). For reference, I booked a RT tix to Paris/Rome this summer on AA and paid only $60 in fees.

I'm usually all over these kinds of deals, but I've passed on that one (so far, at least).



[Edited on April 28, 2011 at 8:02 AM. Reason : d]

4/28/2011 7:53:24 AM

i'm still somewhat uncomfortable applying for boatloads of cards to get the rewards...it just goes against (what i consider to be) common sense, though i get that as long as you pay off any balance and your card isn't compromised, then it SHOULD be okay

the problem with these annual fee cards is that you can't just use it for the initial rewards and then quit...i mean, you CAN, but then you either have to pay an annual fee regardless of use or cancel it...i'm not sure how much of a hit your credit score would take if you were to cancel a card after getting the rewards (6 months after opening, i guess?)

4/28/2011 9:11:56 AM

yeah that's one reason I just avoid annual fee cards.

4/28/2011 9:17:58 AM

The credit hit is negligible, as long as you keep your oldest cards and those with the highest limits open. I wouldn't recommend dabbling in it too much if you don't have an established credit history.
You're really only taking a hit for the credit inquiry, which is 5-10 points maybe? I'd rather have a free vacation than worry about something so insignificant.

My strategy is to get them to consolidate the credit limit of the card I'm canceling with my oldest card with that issuer. As a result, I've got a handful of "keepers" that have astronomical credit limits and give my credit history / age a boost. Both good things.

FWIW, I've been applying for and canceling card with impunity for the past 7 years, and qualified for the best mortgage rate (4.5% fixed) 2 years ago when I bought my house. Last I checked, my credit score is in the highest tier.

Applying for business versions of cards as a sole proprietorship is also a good way to cash in on sign up bonuses and avoid it affecting your personal credit altogether (won't even show up on your report).


[Edited on April 28, 2011 at 9:23 AM. Reason : d]

4/28/2011 9:19:28 AM

The other thing is that many credit card companies will let you roll a card with an annual fee down to a card without one if you say that's the reason you want to cancel or that that's what you want to do.

A friend of mine just got his Amex Delta Reserve ($450 AF) to a Blue Sky Preferred ($75 AF) when he told them he wanted out. He could've gone to the normal Blue Sky without the annual fee, but he likes the incidentals perk of the BSP.

[Edited on April 28, 2011 at 11:23 AM. Reason : I'd imagine that doesn't affect your credit either.]

4/28/2011 11:22:36 AM