I love credit cards so much!

[Ngwira]

you may want to "build relations" with plastiq now as people are getting coded as cash advanced without one.
what is your choice of airline/hotels?

I'm not sold on plastiq. I am not loyal to any particular hotel brand but the "lowest" tier we will go to is Hampton Inn. We tried Country Inn and Suites and were not impressed. We love Sheraton (both 4 points and actual Sheratons). I am looking forward to trying Hyatt and Marriott is a good brand, as well. Not interested in Choice hotels or Wyndham. So it's looking like IHG, Fairmont, Hyatt or Marriott or Hilton. We also love Kimpton, which I believe is owned by IHG now.

We don't fly much at all, but I'm planning a trip to Europe in 2018 with my 100k UR points and 50k MR points. I think that will get us decent flights and maybe a few hotel nights. I'm giving myself plenty of time to plan this trip. When should I start looking for award flights? Trip will be in July 2018.

 

[peel]

Other than prepaying bills, how else is everyone meeting minimum spend thresholds? I'm looking at plastiq but I'm a little nervous.

I have a big bill (summer camp payment) coming up in February. Trying to figure out which card to apply for. I don't want the ink plus. So far I have the csr, freedom, Disney visa and Amex prg and blue cash everyday. Any suggestions?

I used Plastiq twice recently to pay my mortgage to reach minimum spends. My mortgage is through a huge company and the payments transmitted electronically within a day. AFAIK, as long as your recipient has a prior relationship with Plastiq you're fine. I think it's when Plastiq doesn't have previous dealings with the payee that they cut a paper check and have recently started coding those transactions as cash advances. YMMV.

 

[wendow]

So, I wanted to come back and update as a DP for others regarding Chase's 5/24 rule and the CSR. I was approved but my dh was denied based on "too many credit cards opened in the last 2 years". I knew he was not at 5/24 and @calypso726 had pointed out that they might be counting cards he is an AU on. So, I looked at his Experian report and sure enough, he was only at 3/24 and is an AU on two of my cards. He called recon twice (which is a lot for my dh cause he hates calling) and was unable to get them to reverse their decision. They claim there is no 5/24 rule lol. So, moral of the story is don't put your spouse as an AU unless you absolutely have to.

 

[GPC0321]

This is what I'm trying to do but I need an address to set it up. Once my statement comes I will have the address but I'd like to submit a payment before that point. Just wondering if the business cards have the same address as the personal.

I switched from doing Bill Pay from my credit union to setting up my Chase account so I can pay it there instead. Link your bank account to Chase (through Chase's site), and then you can pay whenever you want right there on your Chase page. I like having all of my cards and their respective balances and due dates right there, and I can pay them as I please without ever logging into my credit union's site.

 

[Ngwira]

I used Plastiq twice recently to pay my mortgage to reach minimum spends. My mortgage is through a huge company and the payments transmitted electronically within a day. AFAIK, as long as your recipient has a prior relationship with Plastiq you're fine. I think it's when Plastiq doesn't have previous dealings with the payee that they cut a paper check and have recently started coding those transactions as cash advances. YMMV.

My mortgage company is a small Michigan bank.

 

[Albort]

I'm not sold on plastiq. I am not loyal to any particular hotel brand but the "lowest" tier we will go to is Hampton Inn. We tried Country Inn and Suites and were not impressed. We love Sheraton (both 4 points and actual Sheratons). I am looking forward to trying Hyatt and Marriott is a good brand, as well. Not interested in Choice hotels or Wyndham. So it's looking like IHG, Fairmont, Hyatt or Marriott or Hilton. We also love Kimpton, which I believe is owned by IHG now.

We don't fly much at all, but I'm planning a trip to Europe in 2018 with my 100k UR points and 50k MR points. I think that will get us decent flights and maybe a few hotel nights. I'm giving myself plenty of time to plan this trip. When should I start looking for award flights? Trip will be in July 2018.

spending habits? Seems like a decent cash back card would be nice for you. Do you have a emergency fund? perhaps an account that can help you earn more interest back for your bank account?

So, I wanted to come back and update as a DP for others regarding Chase's 5/24 rule and the CSR. I was approved but my dh was denied based on "too many credit cards opened in the last 2 years". I knew he was not at 5/24 and @calypso726 had pointed out that they might be counting cards he is an AU on. So, I looked at his Experian report and sure enough, he was only at 3/24 and is an AU on two of my cards. He called recon twice (which is a lot for my dh cause he hates calling) and was unable to get them to reverse their decision. They claim there is no 5/24 rule lol. So, moral of the story is don't put your spouse as an AU unless you absolutely have to.

5/24 isnt a on paper rule... its def sits in the grey area of things. it does suck if an AU does come into play... its also possible that chase could have pulled from another credit bureau.

 

[calypso726]

So, I wanted to come back and update as a DP for others regarding Chase's 5/24 rule and the CSR. I was approved but my dh was denied based on "too many credit cards opened in the last 2 years". I knew he was not at 5/24 and @calypso726 had pointed out that they might be counting cards he is an AU on. So, I looked at his Experian report and sure enough, he was only at 3/24 and is an AU on two of my cards. He called recon twice (which is a lot for my dh cause he hates calling) and was unable to get them to reverse their decision. They claim there is no 5/24 rule lol. So, moral of the story is don't put your spouse as an AU unless you absolutely have to.

So sorry to hear about that Wendow. I had read quite a few data points where recon told the applicants that AU cards weren't supposed to count and approved. They won't admit 5/24 but that appears to be the magic number anyhow.

 

[Ngwira]

spending habits? Seems like a decent cash back card would be nice for you. Do you have a emergency fund? perhaps an account that can help you earn more interest back for your bank account?



What do you suggest? The citi double cash? We do have an emergency fund with a year of monthly expenses in it.



5/24 isnt a on paper rule... its def sits in the grey area of things. it does suck if an AU does come into play... its also possible that chase could have pulled from another credit bureau.

 

[Albort]

What do you suggest? The citi double cash? We do have an emergency fund with a year of monthly expenses in it.

if you dont have a specific category, than yeah, citi double cash is a good choice, but i do notice you have a CSR and Freedom, the Freedom Unlimited, although .5% less, may be worth a look if you plan to keep the other 2 cards for awhile.
Disney gives u 1%... im not sure what u plan to do with this card.

CSR - covers your travel
Freedom, covers your 4 quarters.
PRG - 3x on flights, 2x on groceries, 2x on restaurants
Blue cash 3x on groceries, 2x on gas. (does this card earn u MR pts?)

You seem to have a doubles on a few things.

I would probably stick with one travel card or another. check your card partners and keep using a certain one.

A few things id replace for higher benefits would be costco card (4x gas, 3x restaurant, 2x costco) or Sams club card (5x gas, 3x dining and travel). These both give u cash backs.
citi double cash if you do not plan to keep your CSR alive, if you do keep CSR, Freedom Unlimited is the way to go.

The other tactic that i was talking about are bank account returns. For example, there is a bank called Consumers Credit Union, you open an account with them, get their credit card, do what is required, you can get an Interest rate as high as 4.5%. I am currently only doing their 3% but it might be worthwhile in the long run. rates may change, it requires more work, so at the end, its up to you to decide. I would suggest doing the 5% less work ones first, may be worth making some money to add to your funds. :]

this is all my 2 cents though. Im sure we all see it differently. haha. sorry.

edit: i still highly recommend the Ink+ though.

 

[Albort]

If using something like WOW, can we use points, or would we just be getting points by using our CSR to purchase the tickets? They do seem extremely reasonably priced, and we happen to live at one of their hubs (D.C.), so there wouldn't even be any connecting flight from another U.S. location. At least for 6 of us. The other 4, we'd have to use points for domestic flight to D.C., but that would still be way cheaper doing that combination than buying everyone Int'l flights thru Expedia or something...

i didnt realize your reply was in the quote until Ngwira did the same... haha. You will be getting your 3x on your CSR. WOW isnt a partner with anyone. $300 per round trip x 6, will net u 5400 points. You can use points on your next trip. Using points doesnt always work out.

 

[SMorgan711]

my ink+ statement says to send my check to here...

CARDMEMBER SERVICE
PO BOX 94014
PALATINE IL 60094-4014

i live in california(it might vary by state).

my freedom card and ink+ address are the same.

hmmmmmmmmm. thanks. I didn't even think that it could vary by state. My Disney Visa, Freedom and CSP are all the same address but it's
CARDMEMBER SERVICE
PO BOX 1423
CHARLOTTE NC 28201-1423

We just moved to FL from PA.

I still didn't see my $50 go through but I did notice there's a lag between pending and posted activity with the Ink+. I guess I'll just have to wait. I have no patience though. haha. I guess I could try a secure message.

 

[Albort]

I still didn't see my $50 go through but I did notice there's a lag between pending and posted activity with the Ink+. I guess I'll just have to wait. I have no patience though. haha. I guess I could try a secure message.

hehe, sometimes they disappear... if you got the INK+ app, the app will show 99.99% of the transactions... better than the actual website. LOL

 

[Ngwira]

if you dont have a specific category, than yeah, citi double cash is a good choice, but i do notice you have a CSR and Freedom, the Freedom Unlimited, although .5% less, may be worth a look if you plan to keep the other 2 cards for awhile.
Disney gives u 1%... im not sure what u plan to do with this card.

CSR - covers your travel
Freedom, covers your 4 quarters.
PRG - 3x on flights, 2x on groceries, 2x on restaurants
Blue cash 3x on groceries, 2x on gas. (does this card earn u MR pts?)

You seem to have a doubles on a few things.

I would probably stick with one travel card or another. check your card partners and keep using a certain one.

A few things id replace for higher benefits would be costco card (4x gas, 3x restaurant, 2x costco) or Sams club card (5x gas, 3x dining and travel). These both give u cash backs.
citi double cash if you do not plan to keep your CSR alive, if you do keep CSR, Freedom Unlimited is the way to go.

The other tactic that i was talking about are bank account returns. For example, there is a bank called Consumers Credit Union, you open an account with them, get their credit card, do what is required, you can get an Interest rate as high as 4.5%. I am currently only doing their 3% but it might be worthwhile in the long run. rates may change, it requires more work, so at the end, its up to you to decide. I would suggest doing the 5% less work ones first, may be worth making some money to add to your funds. :]

this is all my 2 cents though. Im sure we all see it differently. haha. sorry.

edit: i still highly recommend the Ink+ though.

Thanks for your detailed response! I have the blue cash with no annual fee so it's only one percent on everything. The Disney is sock drawered. I only have two annual fee cards, the prg and csr. I will look into the bank account.

 

[SMorgan711]

I switched from doing Bill Pay from my credit union to setting up my Chase account so I can pay it there instead. Link your bank account to Chase (through Chase's site), and then you can pay whenever you want right there on your Chase page. I like having all of my cards and their respective balances and due dates right there, and I can pay them as I please without ever logging into my credit union's site.

I am not one who likes to pull payments from my checking account. I like to push them out instead. I do have a chase checking account but I'm not linking it to the Ink+ yet bc of issues with Quick Pay w

if you dont have a specific category, than yeah, citi double cash is a good choice, but i do notice you have a CSR and Freedom, the Freedom Unlimited, although .5% less, may be worth a look if you plan to keep the other 2 cards for awhile.
Disney gives u 1%... im not sure what u plan to do with this card.

CSR - covers your travel
Freedom, covers your 4 quarters.
PRG - 3x on flights, 2x on groceries, 2x on restaurants
Blue cash 3x on groceries, 2x on gas. (does this card earn u MR pts?)

You seem to have a doubles on a few things.

I would probably stick with one travel card or another. check your card partners and keep using a certain one.

A few things id replace for higher benefits would be costco card (4x gas, 3x restaurant, 2x costco) or Sams club card (5x gas, 3x dining and travel). These both give u cash backs.
citi double cash if you do not plan to keep your CSR alive, if you do keep CSR, Freedom Unlimited is the way to go.

The other tactic that i was talking about are bank account returns. For example, there is a bank called Consumers Credit Union, you open an account with them, get their credit card, do what is required, you can get an Interest rate as high as 4.5%. I am currently only doing their 3% but it might be worthwhile in the long run. rates may change, it requires more work, so at the end, its up to you to decide. I would suggest doing the 5% less work ones first, may be worth making some money to add to your funds. :]

this is all my 2 cents though. Im sure we all see it differently. haha. sorry.

edit: i still highly recommend the Ink+ though.

I have blue cash preferred and it does not earn MR pts. It's strictly cash back only.

 

[SMorgan711]

hehe, sometimes they disappear... if you got the INK+ app, the app will show 99.99% of the transactions... better than the actual website. LOL

is this a separate app or just the chase banking app?

 

[peel]

My mortgage company is a small Michigan bank.

That might pose a problem, but you never know. It seems to me that all it would take is one other person who has already paved the way by setting up a payment to the bank through Plastiq, but if I were you I would test a small amount first before sending the whole mortgage payment. I wonder if you might be able to contact Plastiq and ask if they have a prior relationship with your bank.

 

[Albort]

is this a separate app or just the chase banking app?

its a separate app called Ink+.

 

[wendow]

5/24 isnt a on paper rule... its def sits in the grey area of things. it does suck if an AU does come into play... its also possible that chase could have pulled from another credit bureau.

The denial letter said they pulled from Experian. Either way, he is only at 3/24 for cards that he opened in his name. I knew that when I applied for him and that is why I was completely shocked that he was denied. It's ok. The first card, which he is just an AU on, will fall off in Jan. We won't be able to get the travel credit twice but as long as the 100k bonus is still there, it will be a good card to get.

 

[wendow]

So sorry to hear about that Wendow. I had read quite a few data points where recon told the applicants that AU cards weren't supposed to count and approved. They won't admit 5/24 but that appears to be the magic number anyhow.

There are a lot of DP's about whether AU'ers count or not. It seems to be kind of up to each recon agent as to whether they allow or not. He gives up much easier than I would. I'd probably call a few more times and plead my case but he will not. Sigh. Not much I can do there. It's so funny that they will not admit to the 5/24 rule.

 

[SMorgan711]

The denial letter said they pulled from Experian. Either way, he is only at 3/24 for cards that he opened in his name. I knew that when I applied for him and that is why I was completely shocked that he was denied. It's ok. The first card, which he is just an AU on, will fall off in Jan. We won't be able to get the travel credit twice but as long as the 100k bonus is still there, it will be a good card to get.

I thought this, too, regarding the travel credit. That I had to quick apply for CSR so I could get the travel credit twice. BUT you can still get the travel credit twice.. it will just be 2017/2018 instead of 2016/2017. so If you get it in Jan.. you can get the travel credit 2017 and then in Jan of 2018 before you'll have to pay the $450 again