I love credit cards so much!

[peel]

now like I'm paying off a loan shark instead of a company...

YES!!!

 

[WVMomof3]

When exactly does your CSR travel credit reset? It looks like I opened my card on 10/23/16 and the fee was charged Nov 1. Will it reset on the 23rd? Where can I verify this? Thanks!

 

[peel]

Ok guys, I am just itching to get into this churning game! I have been following and reading, but I still feel like I am not informed enough to make the plunge entirely. If anyone wouldn't mind taking a look at my situation and possibly give some recommendations, I'd appreciate it!
So here goes... I have a few cards that were opened over 2 years ago...DisneyVisa, Amazon Visa, Old Navy Visa.
In May I opened the southwest plus for the sign up bonus (40,000). Didn't know about companion pass at the time.
End of September I opened up the Southwest Premier and Business to get CP in Jan 2018. Does this mean I am now 3/24? I saw some recent posts that business cards don't count. So could I be 2/24? I am salivating at the thought of the cards I can get, haha!
A few questions I have about all of these southwest cards is should I keep them all open? That's a lot of annual fees and a lot of southwest cards, no? What would the negative effects of canceling be? How do you all decide which to keep open, cancel, or PC?

Welcome! You're right that you're 2/24. Business cards don't count. You need to be under 5/24 to APPLY for a business card, but once you're approved the card doesn't count TOWARD the 5/24 rule. I see no reason to keep all 3 SW cards open, but before you cancel you can ask for retention offers. Most times they'll throw you a few thousand Rapid Rewards for keeping the card another year. Just say you're reevaluating your spending and you find other cards are giving you more value. If they don't bite, then you can cancel. Canceling is going to lower your debt/credit ratio because you'll be lowering the total amount of credit that has been given to you. But being relatively new cards, you shouldn't get dinged too badly over your average age of credit. It's much more important that you keep your oldest cards open to maintain your credit age.

 

[amalone1013]

Ok guys, I am just itching to get into this churning game! I have been following and reading, but I still feel like I am not informed enough to make the plunge entirely. If anyone wouldn't mind taking a look at my situation and possibly give some recommendations, I'd appreciate it!
So here goes... I have a few cards that were opened over 2 years ago...DisneyVisa, Amazon Visa, Old Navy Visa.
In May I opened the southwest plus for the sign up bonus (40,000). Didn't know about companion pass at the time.
End of September I opened up the Southwest Premier and Business to get CP in Jan 2018. Does this mean I am now 3/24? I saw some recent posts that business cards don't count. So could I be 2/24? I am salivating at the thought of the cards I can get, haha!
A few questions I have about all of these southwest cards is should I keep them all open? That's a lot of annual fees and a lot of southwest cards, no? What would the negative effects of canceling be? How do you all decide which to keep open, cancel, or PC?

So now I'm thinking that a card that earns UR points is a great way to go. CSP maybe? The annual fee on the CSR scares me.

Plans I have in the near future...Carnival cruise in May 2018(had a previous credit I'm using up). Disney in December 2018. I'd love to go to Hawaii 2019 while I have companion pass. If I could use points to book a hotel too that would be ideal. What does everyone think about a Hyatt card? Is Marriott better way to go? I'd love to get hubby in on this to double up on points but he has very little credit. He just got his first credit card ( I know, I know) in August, a DiscoverIT.

Any thoughts are appreciated

You should be 2/24 with the business card not counting against you. It didn't for me, and I was even able to get two cards on the same day for my last 5/24 spot.

I just recently did calculations between CSR and CSP for myself. I ended up going with the CSR for him. Since they're both $4k spend for 50k points, you end up with 54k points after at a minimum, more if you spend some of that on dining and travel. At 54k points, the CSR net cost is $15 more than the CSP.

CSR = $810 value for 54k points + $300 travel credit - $450 AF = $660
CSP = $675 value for 54k points + AF waived first year = $675

I figured for the first year we'd make that $15 up and more with the CSR points being 3x. I was also scared of the AF After the first year, you could change it to CSP if you don't feel you spend enough on travel/dining to make the fee worth it with no bonus. If I was in your spot with your upcoming travel plans, first if I could meet $8k in 3 months for minimum spend, I'd look into doing the CSR and CSP applications on the same day to get both. There's been some info on this working, but it's a YMMV risk. Otherwise I'd go CSR, and evaluate after one year. If you're interested in Global Entry, they give a $100 credit to offset the cost on CSR, so that's another $100 in value. There's also Priority Pass for lounges, but that depends on what airports you're at. Personally I haven't been able to use mine yet, but will in Dec or Jan.

I haven't played with the Ink business cards. They also earn UR, others can help you more with that.

For the SW cards, I'd personally cancel them when the AF comes due. That's my plan with mine. Whether you get CSP or CSR, you can get 2x or 3x points on your flights same as you would with SW cards. UR can also be transferred to RR points by phone. Before cancelling I'd see if they'll give you extra RR points as @peel suggested. You might be able to 'buy' them cheap enough it's worth it, especially when they'll go twice as far with CP.

 

[Lain]

Hmmnn, a good idea!

Get the black one. No one likes white anymore.

 

[Albort]

Besides, don’t a lot of you have eBay “businesses”?

I consider myself lucky that im in the real estate business. It this business that is letting me churning a lot quicker than i did before... its pretty sweet spot. :]
Speaking of reselling, there has been some talks about reselling big named concert tickets. was quite a discussion haha. they noted it as S***churning...

Longtime lurker on this thread, lots of good info. I have a chase IHG question. Does it seem difficult to use the rewards, or am I doing something wrong? When I go to book, most of the hotels say that rewards night are not available. And if I choose flexible dates, there are usually none available all year! We stay in a lot of Holiday Inns on road trips because they are everywhere, and many have a pullout bed for our 5th person. Seemed like this would be a good choice but I can hardly find any that take the rewards nights (in spite of the "no blackout dates on rewards" that is listed under benefits). I've found amex Hilton to be really easy to book, although I feel like they use a lot more points.

If you dont see anything online, you should call in and ask to book an award night. If its full as well, then something is going on...

When exactly does your CSR travel credit reset? It looks like I opened my card on 10/23/16 and the fee was charged Nov 1. Will it reset on the 23rd? Where can I verify this? Thanks!

i recall it resets after your statement closed... i could be wrong though.

 

[Lain]

Can someone point me in the direction of a good article on this whole plastique thing.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/i-love-credit-cards-so-much.3528202/page-387#post-58236715

 

[gottalovepluto]

Ok guys, I am just itching to get into this churning game! I have been following and reading, but I still feel like I am not informed enough to make the plunge entirely. If anyone wouldn't mind taking a look at my situation and possibly give some recommendations, I'd appreciate it!
So here goes... I have a few cards that were opened over 2 years ago...DisneyVisa, Amazon Visa, Old Navy Visa.
In May I opened the southwest plus for the sign up bonus (40,000). Didn't know about companion pass at the time.
End of September I opened up the Southwest Premier and Business to get CP in Jan 2018. Does this mean I am now 3/24? I saw some recent posts that business cards don't count. So could I be 2/24? I am salivating at the thought of the cards I can get, haha!
A few questions I have about all of these southwest cards is should I keep them all open? That's a lot of annual fees and a lot of southwest cards, no? What would the negative effects of canceling be? How do you all decide which to keep open, cancel, or PC?

So now I'm thinking that a card that earns UR points is a great way to go. CSP maybe? The annual fee on the CSR scares me.

Plans I have in the near future...Carnival cruise in May 2018(had a previous credit I'm using up). Disney in December 2018. I'd love to go to Hawaii 2019 while I have companion pass. If I could use points to book a hotel too that would be ideal. What does everyone think about a Hyatt card? Is Marriott better way to go? I'd love to get hubby in on this to double up on points but he has very little credit. He just got his first credit card ( I know, I know) in August, a DiscoverIT.

Any thoughts are appreciated

If the AF will not pay off PC or Close. Your credit takes a hit on a closure because your overall available credit drops and therefore your utilization ratio goes up, therefore PC is preferable to me but it's not always available. NEVER keep a CC and pay an AF out of concern for your credit score. It's NOT worth it. As you get into churning you'll open other cards that will increase your available credit so it won't hit as hard when you close a credit card. As far as credit history goes all cards stay on your credit history for 10 years -EVEN AFTER YOU CLOSE THEM! Most people don't realize that so they hold onto cards paying AFs for a few years because they don't want to shorten their credit history- fail. (The credit score Credit Karma calculates doesn't calculate like this but that's ok because the score CK uses isn't what credit card companies use!)

Chase biz cards don't count towards 5/24 status! As such before going through those last couple 5/24 slots consider other chase biz cards like Ink Preferred and Ink Cash.

Run the math on CSR. Do you already have TSA pre-check ($85) or global entry ($105?) Will you use $300 in travel expenses? If yes to both $450-$385 brings CSR fee for first year to approx $65. If the other benefits of CSR (Priority Pass lounge access, better travel insurance than CSP, primary car rental coverage) aren't worth $65 to you then CSP is the way to go! (I can't say what's worth what to you!) There have been reports that if you apply for CSP and CSR on the same day (get approval for the one you want the most first then apply for the second one) people have been getting both bonuses despite the rules saying only one Sapphire bonus. But, you have to be able to meet 8K in minimum spends in 3 months to hit them at the same time!

 

[gottalovepluto]

When exactly does your CSR travel credit reset? It looks like I opened my card on 10/23/16 and the fee was charged Nov 1. Will it reset on the 23rd? Where can I verify this? Thanks!

No. It will reset for 2018 when your Dec statement closes. (All cards gotten prior to late-May 2017 travel credits reset on the date the statement closes in Dec.) You can verify this to put your mind at ease by SMing Chase and asking on what date your travel credit resets

 

[vanjust14]

If the AF will not pay off PC or Close. Your credit takes a hit on a closure because your overall available credit drops and therefore your utilization ratio goes up, therefore PC is preferable to me but it's not always available. NEVER keep a CC and pay an AF out of concern for your credit score. It's NOT worth it. As you get into churning you'll open other cards that will increase your available credit so it won't hit as hard when you close a credit card. As far as credit history goes all cards stay on your credit history for 10 years -EVEN AFTER YOU CLOSE THEM! Most people don't realize that so they hold onto cards paying AFs for a few years because they don't want to shorten their credit history- fail. (The credit score Credit Karma calculates doesn't calculate like this but that's ok because the score CK uses isn't what credit card companies use!)

Chase biz cards don't count towards 5/24 status! As such before going through those last couple 5/24 slots consider other chase biz cards like Ink Preferred and Ink Cash.

Run the math on CSR. Do you already have TSA pre-check ($85) or global entry ($105?) Will you use $300 in travel expenses? If yes to both $450-$385 brings CSR fee for first year to approx $65. If the other benefits of CSR (Priority Pass lounge access, better travel insurance than CSP, primary car rental coverage) aren't worth $65 to you then CSP is the way to go! (I can't say what's worth what to you!) There have been reports that if you apply for CSP and CSR on the same day (get approval for the one you want the most first then apply for the second one) people have been getting both bonuses despite the rules saying only one Sapphire bonus. But, you have to be able to meet 8K in minimum spends in 3 months to hit them at the same time!

I don't plan on doing the TSA pre-check or global entry because my husband can't do it so I figured there is no sense in me being able to go through if he has to wait in the regular line. The things you are mentioning are not really worth it to me at this time (lounge access, etc.) so I will definitely take that into consideration. Thanks for the tips on the credit score, I was worried about it taking a hit but what you say makes sense. I am nervous about applying for more business cards, as my ebay "business" is pretty minimal. Are the ink cards easy to get?

Welcome! You're right that you're 2/24. Business cards don't count. You need to be under 5/24 to APPLY for a business card, but once you're approved the card doesn't count TOWARD the 5/24 rule. I see no reason to keep all 3 SW cards open, but before you cancel you can ask for retention offers. Most times they'll throw you a few thousand Rapid Rewards for keeping the card another year. Just say you're reevaluating your spending and you find other cards are giving you more value. If they don't bite, then you can cancel. Canceling is going to lower your debt/credit ratio because you'll be lowering the total amount of credit that has been given to you. But being relatively new cards, you shouldn't get dinged too badly over your average age of credit. It's much more important that you keep your oldest cards open to maintain your credit age.

Thanks for the tip on asking for retention offers!

You should be 2/24 with the business card not counting against you. It didn't for me, and I was even able to get two cards on the same day for my last 5/24 spot.

I just recently did calculations between CSR and CSP for myself. I ended up going with the CSR for him. Since they're both $4k spend for 50k points, you end up with 54k points after at a minimum, more if you spend some of that on dining and travel. At 54k points, the CSR net cost is $15 more than the CSP.

CSR = $810 value for 54k points + $300 travel credit - $450 AF = $660
CSP = $675 value for 54k points + AF waived first year = $675

I figured for the first year we'd make that $15 up and more with the CSR points being 3x. I was also scared of the AF After the first year, you could change it to CSP if you don't feel you spend enough on travel/dining to make the fee worth it with no bonus. If I was in your spot with your upcoming travel plans, first if I could meet $8k in 3 months for minimum spend, I'd look into doing the CSR and CSP applications on the same day to get both. There's been some info on this working, but it's a YMMV risk. Otherwise I'd go CSR, and evaluate after one year. If you're interested in Global Entry, they give a $100 credit to offset the cost on CSR, so that's another $100 in value. There's also Priority Pass for lounges, but that depends on what airports you're at. Personally I haven't been able to use mine yet, but will in Dec or Jan.

I haven't played with the Ink business cards. They also earn UR, others can help you more with that.

For the SW cards, I'd personally cancel them when the AF comes due. That's my plan with mine. Whether you get CSP or CSR, you can get 2x or 3x points on your flights same as you would with SW cards. UR can also be transferred to RR points by phone. Before cancelling I'd see if they'll give you extra RR points as @peel suggested. You might be able to 'buy' them cheap enough it's worth it, especially when they'll go twice as far with CP.

This is great, I like seeing the math done out. Makes the AF not seem as "scary". I could probably meet 8k in spend but it would have to be after I'm done meeting this 5k spend for CP. Yeah, my airport is tiny so no lounge for me. This doesn't seem to be something I would use but once I start traveling more I could see it being useful. I didn't know you could transfer UR to RR by phone, thanks.

Thanks for all the help!

 

[wendow]

Are the ink cards easy to get?

No, they are not easy to get. Plenty of people with legitimate businesses are turned down and just as many with ebay 'businesses' are approved. So, it seems to be anyone's guess as to who will be approved and who won't. You will take a HP on your credit report for trying but it's worth it imo for the potential of the signup bonus.

 

[Alexle2007]

I don't plan on doing the TSA pre-check or global entry because my husband can't do it so I figured there is no sense in me being able to go through if he has to wait in the regular line. The things you are mentioning are not really worth it to me at this time (lounge access, etc.) so I will definitely take that into consideration. Thanks for the tips on the credit score, I was worried about it taking a hit but what you say makes sense. I am nervous about applying for more business cards, as my ebay "business" is pretty minimal. Are the ink cards easy to get?

Thanks for the tip on asking for retention offers!



This is great, I like seeing the math done out. Makes the AF not seem as "scary". I could probably meet 8k in spend but it would have to be after I'm done meeting this 5k spend for CP. Yeah, my airport is tiny so no lounge for me. This doesn't seem to be something I would use but once I start traveling more I could see it being useful. I didn't know you could transfer UR to RR by phone, thanks.

Thanks for all the help!

While it’s nice to go through together, when my ticket didn’t have my pre-check on it, it was convenient to give DH and DS my carry-on and not have to take my electronics and liquids out.

I always transfer my UR points electronically to SW RR through the UR portal. No phone call needed. It usually takes about 5 minutes for them to arrive.

 

[vanjust14]

No, they are not easy to get. Plenty of people with legitimate businesses are turned down and just as many with ebay 'businesses' are approved. So, it seems to be anyone's guess as to who will be approved and who won't. You will take a HP on your credit report for trying but it's worth it imo for the potential of the signup bonus.

Ok, thanks for the info. Good to know beforehand what I might be up against.

 

[mom2elal]

If I'm at 5/24 and I got the oldest card of those 5 on 4/19/16, what date am I eligible to get another Chase card? 4/20/18? Or is it the beginning of the next month?

DH and I are both sitting on the sidelines until spring, because we're trying to get two SW companion passes, and it's KILLING ME.

 

[Lain]

Plastiq is having some technical issues; not accepting payment from Amex cards right now.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

If I'm at 5/24 and I got the oldest card of those 5 on 4/19/16, what date am I eligible to get another Chase card? 4/20/18? Or is it the beginning of the next month?

DH and I are both sitting on the sidelines until spring, because we're trying to get two SW companion passes, and it's KILLING ME.

There are mixed datapoints on this. Some would suggest you'd be ok on April 1st, 2018. Others would suggest May 1st, 2018.

There was a datapoint of DoC as recently as April of 2017 suggesting that the BEGINNING of the month you are under 5/24 is how it works (so that would be for you 4/1/18). There is a counter datapoint from May of 2017 suggesting the opposite - that you would have to wait until 5/1/18.

I've also seen DPs where somebody applied a month too early, but then was able to recon once the calendar changed to the next month. So you'll have to take all of this into consideration. If I were in your shoes I'd wait until May 1, 2018 and just hit AMEX Biz cards until then, lol.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Please add me, same user name.

You've been added - welcome to the group!

 

[gottalovepluto]

I don't plan on doing the TSA pre-check or global entry because my husband can't do it so I figured there is no sense in me being able to go through if he has to wait in the regular line. The things you are mentioning are not really worth it to me at this time (lounge access, etc.) so I will definitely take that into consideration. Thanks for the tips on the credit score, I was worried about it taking a hit but what you say makes sense. I am nervous about applying for more business cards, as my ebay "business" is pretty minimal. Are the ink cards easy to get?

Yeah, I can see why CSR isn't really in the running for you! FWIW then the only plus is 50,000 UR but with what's basically a $150 AF that turns your total profit on the CSR to $350 if you redeem for cash (500 bonus - 150 AF) or $450 if you redeem for travel at 1.5x (500*1.5 - 150). CSP will net you $625 without any monkeying around

As far as are the ink cards easy to get- sometimes. Some people get it with their ebay "business" and some people struggle with their real business. Many people get a 30 day message or a message asking them to call in but if they just wait it out for a couple weeks they get approved (or denied) without having to talk to anyone. If you get denied and don't want to deal with explaining your "business" to recon move on to the next CC. (Chase Biz recon is known for being very tough to deal with, but nothing says you have to recon if you get denied!)

 

[gottalovepluto]

A very handy chart and primer on all the basics (and current offers) of Chase Ultimate Rewards Credit Cards from Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/churning/comments/77narp/faq_different_ways_to_use_chase_ultimate_rewards/

 

[Albort]

Plastiq is having some technical issues; not accepting payment from Amex cards right now.

nooooooooo.... I need that for msr for spg biz!!!