CFW incentives improved overnight

[airjay75]

Do I have a business? Yes. Do I put spend on my cards that’s personal? Yes. Would I tell Amex that my DVC was for business purposes if they asked? Yes. After all many people have a business renting out DVC

And I think that is perfectly defensible!

 

[AstroBlasters]

Do I have a business? Yes. Do I put spend on my cards that’s personal? Yes. Would I tell Amex that my DVC was for business purposes if they asked? Yes. After all many people have a business renting out DVC

Follow up questions:

1) Does the business credit card have to be tied to a specific business upon application? Supporting documents? Especially with Chase….
2) Isn’t there an issue if you ever have an audit and you have commingled personal spending on business credit cards and bank accounts?
3) Don’t you have to make a certain level of income for something to be qualified as a business (profit seeking, hours worked, etc.) vs a hobby? This may just be for taxes…as lots of business lose money…., but I though there was still some type of hours put into the business qualifications…

I work in a very regulated business and if you put anything (no matter how small) on a work card and don’t quickly declare it as accidental personal spending (I.E you used the Lyft app and it defaulted to your corporate card) then you could get fired. Retroactively looking at business expenses and the corporate card is one of the fastest ways I have seen people get fired if management is looking for a reason …. So I am extremely paranoid about that type of stuff.

 

[Brian Noble]

Do I have a business? Yes. Do I put spend on my cards that’s personal? Yes. Would I tell Amex that my DVC was for business purposes if they asked? Yes. After all many people have a business renting out DVC

Oh, I totally understand that others will do this. Like I said, I'm weird. While I do have a Schedule C consuting business, I do not have a Schedule E DVC rental business, and I don't want to claim that I do.

I particularly don't want to do that given DVCMC's saber rattling around commercial use.

 

[Brian Noble]

Follow up questions:

1: Chase asks for the nature of the business, estimated annual revenue, and estimated monthly spend.
2: I don't think there are any IRS rules forbidding it*, but it will make defending your Schedule C deductions more complicated.
3: No, only the intent for profit, as I understand it**.

I work in a very regulated business and if you put anything (no matter how small) on a work card and don’t quickly declare it as accidental personal spending (I.E you used the Lyft app and it defaulted to your corporate card) then you could get fired.

Semi-related story: I started working at the University back when phone calls were billed individually. After a few months, the lab adminsitrator came by with some phone bills.

Lab admin: "You haven't marked these up yet?"
Me: "What do you mean?"
LA: "You have to identify which calls are personal, so that they can be deducted from your check."
Me, realizing we are talking about at most a few bucks for a PITA monthly task: "Every single phone call I ever make is personal. Deduct them all. Never ask me about this again."

And, more on my weirdness: I do not claim a home office deduction on my Schedule C. It would be easily justifiable, given the nature of my side gig. But, I don't have a space I use solely for work, and I don't want to have to be in a position to lie about that. For me, personally, a sound night's sleep is worth the few dollars it migth cost me. If someone else could sleep soundly while still claiming it, well---Adler would remind me that that is not my task.

----
*: IANAA. I am not an accountant.
**: IANAL either.

 

[cigarboo]

So, how about putting it on the Disney premier Visa vs Costco Visa? Any thoughts? I think it's 2% Disney rewards with Disney Card or 1% Cash back on Costco? I was hoping it was coded as travel for 2%, but I briefly looked back at my transaction a couple year ago, and I think I only got 1%

 

[Brian Noble]

You know, in the current interest environment, the Disney Premiere is not a terrible idea. 2% back on the purchase, and as long as you have the cash on hand at the beginning, you can stash it in a HYSA or money market account for the 6-month 0% interval, and probably earn another 1.5-2% after taxes on it, give or take.

The trick is having a high enough credit limit on it, but if you have other Chase cards, you might be able to talk them into consolidating some of it onto the Disney card. The other issue is if you intend to take out a large loan (mortgage, HELOC, etc.) during that time, as your credit rating will probably take a hit during the period you are carrying this balance. But maybe not too much of one?

I know my rating dipped druing the two billing cycles I put the purchase through on my cards, because my utilization ratio was higher than usual, and those were paid off right away.

 

[VGCgroupie]

Follow up questions:

1) Does the business credit card have to be tied to a specific business upon application? Supporting documents? Especially with Chase….

Chase only lately has gotten more strict. Sometimes asking more questions by phone. When you applying as a sole proprietor it doesn't necessarily have to be tied to a specific business. I have had 4 business cards from Chase, 3 are still open. When buying DVC I got 2 business cards for my husband who has much less of a business than I (random you tube video here and there) and he did have to to talk to Chase by phone for his 2nd card and he didn't love doing that honestly so I can understand why some are hesitant.

2) Isn’t there an issue if you ever have an audit and you have commingled personal spending on business credit cards and bank accounts?

Ive never been audited so I cant say for sure. What I can say for an IRS audit I have receipts that I would provide for anything I wrote off not credit card statements.

3) Don’t you have to make a certain level of income for something to be qualified as a business (profit seeking, hours worked, etc.) vs a hobby? This may just be for taxes…as lots of business lose money…., but I though there was still some type of hours put into the business qualifications…

Nope. As a sole proprietor you can make very little and still be considered a business for credit card applications

I work in a very regulated business and if you put anything (no matter how small) on a work card and don’t quickly declare it as accidental personal spending (I.E you used the Lyft app and it defaulted to your corporate card) then you could get fired. Retroactively looking at business expenses and the corporate card is one of the fastest ways I have seen people get fired if management is looking for a reason …. So I am extremely paranoid about that type of stuff.

Corporate credit cards are very different and guidelines are not the same as a business credit card.


If anyone has more questions about using credit cards to buy DVC I started this thread a long time ago and there are some very helpful people in there. https://www.disboards.com/threads/w...tract-credit-card-rewards-etc.3946321/page-19

 

[cigarboo]

Will see if I get approved and at what credit limit. I do have a Chase Marriott, but that would be an interesting call to Visa...sir, would you mind raising my credit limit to $30K? I know I just got approved and have not made a single payment yet...

 

[AstroBlasters]

Chase only lately has gotten more strict. Sometimes asking more questions by phone. When you applying as a sole proprietor it doesn't necessarily have to be tied to a specific business. I have had 4 business cards from Chase, 3 are still open. When buying DVC I got 2 business cards for my husband who has much less of a business than I (random you tube video here and there) and he did have to to talk to Chase by phone for his 2nd card and he didn't love doing that honestly so I can understand why some are hesitant.

Ive never been audited so I cant say for sure. What I can say for an IRS audit I have receipts that I would provide for anything I wrote off not credit card statements.

Nope. As a sole proprietor you can make very little and still be considered a business for credit card purchases.

Corporate credit cards are very different and guidelines are not the same as a business credit card.


If anyone has more questions about using credit cards to buy DVC I started this thread a long time ago and there are some very helpful people in there. https://www.disboards.com/threads/w...tract-credit-card-rewards-etc.3946321/page-19

I’m hoping you’ll be doing a separate thread on the new Alaska Atmos program and Premier card.

 

[VGCgroupie]

I’m hoping you’ll be doing a separate thread on the new Alaska Atmos program and Premier card.

I was just reading up on it again since I saw applications are live today

 

[airjay75]

You know, in the current interest environment, the Disney Premiere is not a terrible idea. 2% back on the purchase, and as long as you have the cash on hand at the beginning, you can stash it in a HYSA or money market account for the 6-month 0% interval, and probably earn another 1.5-2% after taxes on it, give or take.

The trick is having a high enough credit limit on it, but if you have other Chase cards, you might be able to talk them into consolidating some of it onto the Disney card. The other issue is if you intend to take out a large loan (mortgage, HELOC, etc.) during that time, as your credit rating will probably take a hit during the period you are carrying this balance. But maybe not too much of one?

I know my rating dipped druing the two billing cycles I put the purchase through on my cards, because my utilization ratio was higher than usual, and those were paid off right away.

I second keeping this in mind in terms of timing credit card and/or home equity loan applications. I put most of my first purchase on a Disney Visa Premier back in June to take advantage of the 0%. My credit score took a hit on account of the increased credit utilization and my ideal plan for credit card usage for my now pending second purchase hasn’t worked out quite as planned. It is still working out just fine and I’m going to get a lot of 0% financing plus 2% cash back on my purchase, but a few banks were much more stingy with approval and/or new credit lines than has been my usual experience.

 

[VGCgroupie]

I second keeping this in mind in terms of timing credit card and/or home equity loan applications. I put most of my first purchase on a Disney Visa Premier back in June to take advantage of the 0%. My credit score took a hit on account of the increased credit utilization and my ideal plan for credit card usage for my now pending second purchase hasn’t worked out quite as planned. It is still working out just fine and I’m going to get a lot of 0% financing plus 2% cash back on my purchase, but a few banks were much more stingy with approval and/or new credit lines than has been my usual experience.

Score will bounce back up so it wont have a long term impact. When credit card churning carrying a balance doesn't make it easy. I know you probably didn't know what your plans were for DVC but getting the card in which you will keep the balance on to take advantage of the 0% should be gotten last.

 

[Brian Noble]

Yes, it definitely bounces back quickly. But if you are going to carry the full purchase price for six months, that's six months during which your score may or may not be material for other things. I am right now house-hunting, so I am a litlte more cognizant of it than usual.

 

[VGCgroupie]

Yes, it definitely bounces back quickly. But if you are going to carry the full purchase price for six months, that's six months during which your score may or may not be material for other things. I am right now house-hunting, so I am a litlte more cognizant of it than usual.

I was real paranoid about all my DVC spending when we decided to move right after I spent so much money and opened so many new credit cards for DVC. The upside of business cards is they dont show on your credit report. The inquires do but not the balance. I was actually more scared they would question all my outgoing wire transfers for my resale purchases, but they didnt care. Whew! I was actually embarrassed to tell my loan guy what I spent all that money on... you know how people react to the words "I bought a timeshare"

 

[airjay75]

Score will bounce back up so it wont have a long term impact. When credit card churning carrying a balance doesn't make it easy. I know you probably didn't know what your plans were for DVC but getting the card in which you will keep the balance on to take advantage of the 0% should be gotten last.

Yeah, I sort of shot myself in the foot at the very beginning. Back in April, I opened up a regular Disney Visa for both me and my wife, and then a week later, ended up submitting new applications for the Disney Visa Premier for both of us, realizing I wanted the Premier for the 2% cash back. I could have upgraded, but then I’d miss out on the sign up bonus, so I figured why not give it a shot. Chase, surprisingly, ended up approving all 4 card applications.

Now, fast forward a few months and I’ve got a hefty balance on one of those Premiers and all those hard inquiries and new account openings, so I can understand why banks are a bit hesitant. Wells Fargo wouldn’t give either of us any new cards, but I’ve managed to get a $35k limit (between the two of us) from BoA on their 2% cash back card that will also have 15 months 0% financing. So, not too bad, but probably could have done better if I had had a plan going into all of this.

 

[Mouseforward]

I was real paranoid about all my DVC spending when we decided to move right after I spent so much money and opened so many new credit cards for DVC. The upside of business cards is they dont show on your credit report. The inquires do but not the balance. I was actually more scared they would question all my outgoing wire transfers for my resale purchases, but they didnt care. Whew! I was actually embarrassed to tell my loan guy what I spent all that money on... you know how people react to the words "I bought a timeshare"

I share your concern and all my timeshare payment payments are paid off my Wells Fargo account. All my real world payments come off my Chase account. In today’s world, I think the banks are looking for gambling payments. Timeshares are probably the least of their worries. But since Disney doesn’t report your loan, it keeps everything well hidden. If I had to relocate for my job, I would have no fears getting a mortgage.


I figured since Wells Fargo just gives your account without even asking I might as well use it for something. I only need to deposit 1500 off my monthly check for free checking and that easily covers my DVC expenses.

 

[VGCgroupie]

Yeah, I sort of shot myself in the foot at the very beginning. Back in April, I opened up a regular Disney Visa for both me and my wife, and then a week later, ended up submitting new applications for the Disney Visa Premier for both of us, realizing I wanted the Premier for the 2% cash back. I could have upgraded, but then I’d miss out on the sign up bonus, so I figured why not give it a shot. Chase, surprisingly, ended up approving all 4 card applications.

Now, fast forward a few months and I’ve got a hefty balance on one of those Premiers and all those hard inquiries and new account openings, so I can understand why banks are a bit hesitant. Wells Fargo wouldn’t give either of us any new cards, but I’ve managed to get a $35k limit (between the two of us) from BoA on their 2% cash back card that will also have 15 months 0% financing. So, not too bad, but probably could have done better if I had had a plan going into all of this.

Wells Fargo is a tough cookie so Im not surprised. Pro tip: if you have any Amex cards they wont even do a credit pull when you apply for a new card.

 

[MarkNC2Disney]

Stayed in a Cabin last week and really enjoyed it, but holy cow is Lakeshore Lodge RIGHT ON TOP of Pioneer Hall.

It is jarring and saddening how close it is, even though I have no attachment/history to Fort Wilderness

 

[SugarSweetLee]

The other issue is if you intend to take out a large loan (mortgage, HELOC, etc.) during that time, as your credit rating will probably take a hit during the period you are carrying this balance. But maybe not too much of one?

I know my rating dipped druing the two billing cycles I put the purchase through on my cards, because my utilization ratio was higher than usual, and those were paid off right away.

I opened four 0%-APR-for-15 months cards with varying welcome and cashback incentives for our direct purchase last year. I paid them all off about 12 months later, but in the time in between my credit dropped 100 points due to the debt load I was carrying It went back to normal ~4-6 weeks after paying them all off iirc.

We had 3 separate contracts and split the payments into 4 installments across 90 days, which allowed me to use so many different CC options during the DVC payment process. In retrospect, I wish I'd thought to have my husband open up all the same new cards that I did so we could've doubled our welcome bonuses

 

[VGCgroupie]

I opened four 0%-APR-for-15 months cards with varying welcome and cashback incentives for our direct purchase last year. I paid them all off about 12 months later, but in the time in between my credit dropped 100 points due to the debt load I was carrying It went back to normal ~4-6 weeks after paying them all off iirc.

We had 3 separate contracts and split the payments into 4 installments across 90 days, which allowed me to use so many different CC options during the DVC payment process. In retrospect, I wish I'd thought to have my husband open up all the same new cards that I did so we could've doubled our welcome bonuses

Amazing!!