Saying Goodbye

Last week, I said goodbye to another credit card: Delta American Express Gold card.

I got the credit card as part my Delta New Member bonus. By getting the card, I earned close to 55,000 miles:

        45,000 sign-up bonus
         5,000 new member credit
         5,000 from credit card spend

The card did what it needed to do: earn miles.

Now, one year later, the annual fee of $95 was due. Could I justify paying $95 for the card?

  - Do I value Skymiles? No!

  - Will I use the free bag? No, I have flown Delta once in 24 months.

  - Do I want another AMEX card? Yes, but is $95 worth keeping it?

After thinking about it, the decision was easy. I called American Express and cancelled the card.

Goodbye Delta American Express . . . I am sorry that I used you.



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Secondary Benefit of American Express Card: Return Protection

Credit cards have three levels of benefits: initial, primary, and secondary. Most of the time, we only focus on the initial and primary benefits of credit cards.

Initial Benefits: Sign-up bonuses in the form of points, miles, free flights, and nights

Primary Benefits: Miles/Points per $1 spent, threshold bonus (spend $20,000 in a year and earn X)

As one can see, the initial and primary benefits tend to be the ones that get the fancy promotions, the mention by fellow bloggers, and big bold print when the credit card. What gets lost is that many credit cards off valuable secondary benefits.

Secondary Benefits: Rental Car Protection, Travel Insurance, Lost Luggage and Roadside Assistance

Yesterday, I learned that American Express has a great secondary benefit that I might use: Return Protection. As detailed here, American Express will reimburse one up to $300 for any item that a merchant will not accept back up to $1,000 annually. Here are the caveats of the program:

1) Must have made the original purchase with an American Express card

2) Purchase must have been made within the past 90 days

3) Card member must maintain permanent residence in the United States

4) The item trying to be return can't be: animals and living plants; one-of-a-kind items; limited 
     edition items; going-out-of-business sale items; consumable or perishable items with 
     llimited life spans; jewelry; watches; services and additional costs; rare and precious coins; 
     used, altered, rebuilt and refurbished items; custom-built items, cellular phones; pagers; 
     compact discs; digital video discs; mini discs; audiotapes; videotapes; computer 
     software; firmware (such as console games, Nintendo, etc.); maps; books of any kind; 
     health care items; formal wear; tickets of any kind; motorized vehicles and their parts; 
     land and buildings; firearms; ammunition; negotiable instruments (such as promissory notes, 
     stamps and travelers checks); cash and its equivalent; and items permanently affixed to home, 
     office, vehicles, etc.

5) Must return the item to American Express 

This secondary benefit could be very helpful for stores with only 30 and 60 day return policies. I forget to return items often. I tend to buy a lot and return 80% of it. However, sometimes I get burned by 30 and 60 day return policies, because I forgot that I purchased something. Return protection can save me money and may justify a credit card's annual fee.

One question about this benefit, where does all the returned merchandise go? Is there an American Express Return store somewhere?
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Whats in My Wallet & Sock Drawer

The Frequent Miler had an article about which annual fee cards he is planning on keeping. It got me thinking about my own credit cards.

Quite a few are up for their annual fee and its time to make some decisions. Do I keep the credit card and pay the annual fee or singing “na na na, hey hey good-bye,” to it. The decision is not easy, because I deduct credit card annual fees from my travel budget. They are an expense to my travel hobby/addiction. Keep to many and the annual fees can add up quickly.

Here is a list of all the credit cards in my possession and my thinking at the moment of keeping or canceling:

Keeping:

Banana Republic (no annual fee)

Hilton AMEX (no annual fee)

US Airways World Mastercard (no annual fee – oldest credit line)

Capitol One Card (no annual fee)

Chase Hyatt ($79 annual fee – free night on anniversary)

Chase Priority Club ($49 annual fee – free night on anniversary)

US Bank Club Carlson ($75 annual fee - 40,000 point anniversary bonus)

Undecided:

Chase Sapphire ($95 – 7% dividend every January – last years’s: 1500 points)

Chase Southwest – Personal ($99 annual fee, 6,000 miles anniversary bonus)

Chase Southwest – Business ($99 annual fee, 6,000 miles anniversary bonus)

Alaska Airlines ($75 annual fee, $99 companion pass each anniversary)

US Airways Premier World Mastercard ($89 annual fee, - 10,000 miles anniversary bonus)

Bye Bye

Chase British Airways ($99 annual fee)

Chase United Airways ($95 annual fee)

Delta AMEX ($95 annual fee)

Citi American Airlines ($95 annual fee)

Last weekend, I wrote that one of the keys to a great credit card is a bonus on the anniversary especially if there is an annual fee. As reflected above, those credit cards with annual fees that I am keeping offer me that anniversary bonus. I have great credit, use my credit card frequently and always pay my bills on time, I should be reward for keeping their credit in my rotation. Yes, that sounds spoiled, but every time I swipe their card, they earn money. And I swipe alot!

As stated above, one of the main reasons I let cards go is the hit to my travel budget from the annual fees. If I kept all the cards above, the annual fees would be over $1,000 or 1/3 of my travel budget. Wasting a 1/3 of my travel budget on credit card annual fee is crazy.

The decision to keep or cancel a credit card is an important part of the game. Annual fees are not going away anytime soon. To succeed in this game, one must way the cost associated with having a credit card vs. the benefits that you receive from it.

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Most Recent Credit Card Applications

Important Note: We talk about credit card sign-up bonuses on our blog because they are an important part of the “game.” Any credit card links in this post will be public application links taken from the issuer's direct website. We do not earn income from you applying from the links. Similarly, please take an extra minute or two before applying for credit cards. If you do not pay your credit card balance off every month then you should stay away from this aspect of the game. Credit cards can lead to major long-term problems if not used correctly. I encourage you to read my post on Young People and the Chains of Credit Card Debt for more details.  

This week, I broken one of the golden rules of credit card churning: thou shall only apply for credit cards once every 90 days!

Yes, I applied for credit cards within 90 days of my last churn. Unlike last time, I decided not to churn after midnight. I learned my lesson and my success was the same 2 instant approvals and 1 pending.

The reason why I decided to apply for credit cards prior to my 90 days was simple: need. As I previously mentioned, I am planning on going to Alaska with Cash Back Boy, in July. We still have not booked our tickets and prices have gone up, and up and up. Then I had an idea: the Bank of America Alaska Credit card.

Strangely, the benefit that I want out of this credit card is not the points, but rather the companion ticket. Once approved, the card offers it owner a $99 ($117 with taxes) companion pass. This will reduce the cost of the airline tickets to Alaska dramatically for the two of us. Here is the public link to apply.

Of course, this is the application that I got a Pending Decision. Crossing my fingers as I need this the most.

The second card I applied for is the Chase Priority Club Visa.

I decided to get this because I will be cancelling a few Chase cards in the next month or so. Also, I received an email with an 80,000 offer, which is better the typically 60,000 offer. One can find the normal 60,000 offer here. If you Google, one can find a link to an offer for 80,000 points.

Result: Instant Approval

The final credit card I applied for was the American Express Delta Gold. I decided to do the 45,000 mile offer; instead, of the normal 30,000 mile offer. This will help me clear another section of the my Delta GrandSlam. I have previously written here about American Express Delta Gold section of the GrandSlam and how to get this 45,000 mile offer.

Warning: To get the 45,000 mile offer, one will need to go to a third party site. I had to refresh the
              application page two or three times before the third page appeared.

Result: Instant Approval.

Getting 2 instant approvals out of three is excellent. I just wish one of them was the Alaska Airways card. I am crossing my fingers and toes that I get approval for that card. Otherwise, Cash Back Boy is going to have to apply for his first points card.

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Look What I Got In My Mailbox Yesterday!!

I love coming home to credit card offers in my mail box. Normally its a Discover card, which gets shredded pretty quickly. Today, it was the Delta AMEX Gold Card with a 40,000 mile offer after spending $1,000 in three months. I wrote about this 40,000 point offer here. I find it funny that less than a week ago I post about it and now I have the offer in the mail.

Again . . . I probably won't get this offer due to being in the middle of offers, but those participating in the Delta Grandslam with me, should consider this offer.

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Delta GrandSlam Update: Delta AMEX Gold

Important Note: We talk about credit card sign-up bonuses on our blog because they are an important part of the “game.” Any credit card links in this post will be public application links taken from the issuer's direct website. We do not earn income from you applying from the links. Similarly, please take an extra minute or two before applying for credit cards. If you do not pay your credit card balance off every month then you should stay away from this aspect of the game. Credit cards can lead to major long-term problems if not used correctly. I encourage you to read my post on Young People and the Chains of Credit Card Debt for more details.  

I have been pretty silent on my Delta Grandslam, as of late. I have completed 8 of the 10 partner offers, so there is at least 1,000 Skymiles on the table. You can read more about the Delta Grand Slam here, here, and here.

Moving to another section of the Delta GrandSlam: Getting the Delta Amex Gold

The official section reads:

           "Not already a SkyMiles Credit Cardmember? Get up to 30,000 bonus miles 
           with the Gold Delta SkyMiles® Credit Card from American Express. That's 
           up to 25,000 miles for getting the Card, plus an additional 5,000 miles now 
           as a new SkyMiles member. On top of that, earn one mile for eligible everyday 
           purchases and double miles for Delta purchases. Plus, get a free checked bag on
           every Delta flight"

However, the terms and condition state:

             "Credit Card Partners: 5,000 bonus miles earned for signing up for the           
              Gold Delta SkyMiles® Credit Card. Only approved accounts are eligible                     
              for bonus miles."

I bring the terms and conditions up, because it only states that you have to be approved for Gold Delta Skymiles Credit Card. Therefore, one can earn points for any offer out there, not just the 25,000 mile offer.

With that said, a few days a go, I received an offer via email for a 40,000 Delta SkyMiles AMEXCard. The offer requires you to spend $1,000 miles in 3 months. A link to the direct site is here. The $95 annual fee is waived the first year. The offer is good until April 28, 2013.

If you get apply and get approved by this offer, you would have 45,000 SkyMiles (40,000 from card + 5,000 from the new member bonus). There is a risk that you might not get the 5,000 bonus. However, I feel like you would have a great argument to fight them not giving them to you.

On the other hand, I have read from bloggers about a 45,000 mile offer. It takes some time, but if you go to the Hustler Money Blog he will walk you through the steps. I just tried this steps and the offer is there, as of 11pm 3/27/13. The offer is slightly harder than the one above: 25,000 miles after the first purchase, 20,000 additional after spending $5,000 in 6 months. If you get this offer, you would then have 50,000 miles (45,000 from the credit card sign-up bonus + 5,000 new member bonus).

As a friendly reminder, take a screen shot of the landing page with the offer. This will be your proof, if you need to fight it later on.

Unfortunately, I am unable to apply for this card now, because I just got some new credit cards last month. It always seems the best offers come out in the middle of my wait periods. My Delta anniversary is coming up in July, so I better get with flying with Delta, earning my last two partner rewards, and getting the AMEX card...otherwise, I am leaving valuable miles on the table . . .


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Delta New Member Bonus (Delta GrandSlam) Still Live

In September, I wrote about a new member bonus being offered by Delta. If you have never had an account or opened an account within the past 30 days. I learned that the promotion is still available.

The gist of the promotion is that you can earn up to 40,000 SkyMiles by doing various things with Delta.To sign up for the bonus, go to this website and enter your SkyMiles account number.

I have written about the Delta GrandSlam, here, here, here and here.

After signing up, you have 12 months to complete the various part of the promotions and earn points. This promotion is an easy way to earn points by doing things that you are already doing.

Happy Points Earning!!!

Credit Cards for People with Limited Budgets

Last week, I wrote a blog post entitled, Young People and the Chains of Credit Debt that urged young people to be careful with obtaining credit cards. After I wrote the article, I heard from some friends that the article might possible scary people from getting credit cards. That was not my intention.

As much as having credit card debt can hurt your credit score, not having credit cards can hurt your credit even more. Many young people, I work with obtaining their first mortgage, are under the assumption that the less credit cards one has will translate into a higher credit score. Most of the time, people who have one or two credit cards have low credit scores. This is not a stead fast rule, but more of a professional observation.

Since you need credit cards to maintain a good credit score and the easiest way to travel for free is points, here is a list of 5 credit cards that I think are great for people with limited monthly budgets.  Each of these are public links, I do not get commission for you clicking on them. I would recommend taking a screen shot of landing page for your records, just in case something happens later on.


1) US Airways Mastercard - This credit card offer gives you 40,000 miles after your first use of the card. In addition, the card gives you a 5,000 mile discount on award travel. Therefore, your first use will give you the ability for two tickets in the USA. The annual fee is waived for the first year -  $89 fee after your first year. This offer says for Preferred Chairmen only, but many people, including me have used it without status.

2) Delta Gold AMEX - This credit card offers you 30,000 miles after your spend $500 in the first three months. If you are participating in the Delta Grandslam (see here), you will earn a bonus of 5,000 miles for getting the card.

3) Chase Hyatt - This credit card gives you two (2) nights at any Hyatt Hotel worldwide after spending $1,000 in three months. I used my two nights at the Park Hyatt Tokyo, normally $500+ a night. On your card anniversary, you will receive a free night certificate good at Calgary 1-4 hotels.

4) Chase Priority Club  - This card gives you 60,000 points after spending $1,000 in the first three months. The card comes with platinum status. The $49 annual fee is waived for the first year. What makes this card a keeper is that on your card anniversary, you receive a free night certificate good worldwide, well worth the $49 fee.

5) Hilton AMEX - This card gives you 50,000 points after spending $750 in the first three months. The card has no annual fee.

I would highly recommend the Hilton AMEX, as one of your first cards. One of the criteria for credit is the length of time that one has credit. Therefore, it is important to keep your oldest card open.  Since the card has no annual fee, the card can be kept for indefinitely making this a great first credit card.

I hope this list helps you start on your path of traveling for free. As I stated in my post last week, please only charge what you can pay off monthly. Please only bite what you can chew, because no amount of points is worth long term credit card debt.

Happy Hump Day!

Grand Slam Update // 2012 Q4 CC Applications

After finally getting my body back on the Eastern time zone, I wanted to write a few things about my points related things:

Delta Grand Slam Update

I have completed 8 partner rewards out of the 10 possible. The last three reward credits were from my Hilton Mattress runs, at the end of December.

The interesting part about this is that all three of the stays triggered the 500 mile bonus. It was my understanding that you only received the bonus for the first reward with a particular partner. At first, I thought Delta was treating Doubletree and Hilton has two separate partners, but the third Hilton partner award was at a Hilton. This may be a flaw in the computer system or how the program is set-up. The reason I write this to give a heads-up to anyone participating the Grandslam with me!


2012 Last Credit Card Applications

This may be a non-story for many, but I feel the need to share anyway. I decided not to get any more credit cards in 2012 and skip my credit card applications. The last time I applied for credit cards was late July, so December would have been the earliest for me to apply safely. 

However, there were not three cards the excited me. I need to apply for at least 3 credit cards, at one time, to justify the inquiry on my credit. I looked at the credit card offer out there and I could not find three that I needed. Yes, I said need. I am strategic in which credit cards to get. Should I get the Frontier credit card? No, I have no need for the Frontier points, so why get the card. 

Over my time in this game, I have seen two thoughts to earn points: those who get every point out there and those who are strategic. I fall into the strategic category. The points I earn must get to one step closer to completing my goals. Is the first category (point hording) bad? No,just make sure you use the points: expire points = many tears.

Back to the point of this part of this post. I did not see credit cards the excited me, so I passed this churn. No real loss, but possible bigger gain: longer time since my last credit inquires. Time can only make my credit stronger. January might be a churn month. I am looking at the following cards:

  1) US Bank Club Carlson
  2) Delta AMEX (only if I get a 40,000 point offer - result in 45,000 due to the Delta GrandSlam)
  3) Chase Priority Club

What happens between now and the churn, only a crystal ball will tell. What I do know is Q1 of 2013 will result in new cards entering my wallet.