I love credit cards so much! v2.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[SouthFayetteFan]

Got P2 instant approval for CSP using a dischurners link The question now is....to MDD or not to MDD?

If it won't put P2 over 5/24 and you can hit the MSR for both cards, why not do it. GO Go UR points!

I’d 100% agree with @Kawnipi that this is purely a function of MSR and 5/24 status. If you can hit the MSR and it keeps you <5/24 (or if you have a card dropping off soon) then go for it.

 

[Alexle2007]

No offense but kids may tease at his new school too. Good decision to move him but not a guarantee it won’t happen again. I was always teased and made fun of for being smallest in my class (& worst athlete) End of first grade they wanted to advance me to third grade and skip second. My parents refused as I was already the smallest and that would make it worse. By 5th grade, grades were blended and I took advanced classes anyway.

I totally agree. I just think it is a totally different environment. His current school does not much diversity and being bi-racial isn't always easy. The whole private school K-12 has about the same number of students as his middle school. I think there are like 50 kids in his grade. It was definitely a hard decision to make when he was in kindergarten but it had been working and all of the students from his elementary knew and never said anything about it. It was actually a pretty cool thing. But now with everyone being a teenager and him still having a year to go, I guess it is more noticeable as the other boys' voices are changing, facial hair, etc...The good thing is his new school is very supportive of whatever we decided whether it's continuing on to 8th grade and a redo of 7th grade. He's in all honors classes so academically it is fine, I think it is just the other aspects. He has his friend circle which are awesome kids but it's just the others and he stays strong at school, it's just when he gets home and reflects. We are actually going to let him make the grade call and will support whatever that decision is. (Secretly, I'd love to have him home an additional year so I am fine either way.)

 

[GZanta77]

I’d 100% agree with @Kawnipi that this is purely a function of MSR and 5/24 status. If you can hit the MSR and it keeps you <5/24 (or if you have a card dropping off soon) then go for it.

MSR shouldn't be a problem but it will put P2 @ 5/24 - but I don't think I am too concerned about it. Might not be a bad thing to lay off Chase for a while, and there are no other Chase cards we desperately want right now - I am not comfortable taking anymore CIPs from the cup as P2's 'business' is bordering on inactive.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

I can't help much since we flew out the same day we got off the ship, but if it was me I'd pick a place close to the port and explore the city. Vancouver is really nice and we enjoyed walking around the day we arrived (the day before the cruise). I would have done more touring except we brought my DM with us and she has mobility issues and can't really tour around.

Thanks. We have 1 1/2 days pre cruise, but I’m thinking there’s so much we could do more.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

There is a very nice Fairmont at the airport, which we have stayed at (and I recommend). If you stay overnight there, you can take the train (from the terminal) right into the city. The nice thing about the train is you don't have to worry about traffic. I'm not sure how much you could do in the morning with a 12:45 flight if you have to leave downtown for the airport around 10:45, but you could use the train again.

One of my favorite places in Vancouver is Granville Island -- great food there and a nice place to wander around. A bit further afield is the Capilano Suspension Bridge (there's a free shuttle from the city to the Bridge). Not much around the area, but it's worth seeing and doesn't take more than 2 hours (then take the free bus back to downtown). I also love the Fly Over Canada movie at Canada Place (it's not much money and is only a few minutes, but worth seeing). Gas Town is another cool area to wander around!

Have fun!

I have booked Marriott next to the airport (Westin Wall Centre airport) and the Westin Bayshore downtown post cruise. Our flight leaves the day after we debark, so we have the whole day and go to the airport he next morning.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

Ok, I’m freaking out a bit. DH was denied a CitiBiz AA card. Letter finally comes today, it says he was denied because “The credit privileges on your existing account are currently restricted”. I told DH he has no accounts, he needs to call them. They tell him he has a delinquent account ending in xxxx that the bank closed. What???? He closed that account 4/6/19. This year! This month! I told him to call back and tell them that’s wrong. Anybody have a number to call to straighten it out?

 

[CyndiLouWho]

I totally agree. I just think it is a totally different environment. His current school does not much diversity and being bi-racial isn't always easy. The whole private school K-12 has about the same number of students as his middle school. I think there are like 50 kids in his grade. It was definitely a hard decision to make when he was in kindergarten but it had been working and all of the students from his elementary knew and never said anything about it. It was actually a pretty cool thing. But now with everyone being a teenager and him still having a year to go, I guess it is more noticeable as the other boys' voices are changing, facial hair, etc...The good thing is his new school is very supportive of whatever we decided whether it's continuing on to 8th grade and a redo of 7th grade. He's in all honors classes so academically it is fine, I think it is just the other aspects. He has his friend circle which are awesome kids but it's just the others and he stays strong at school, it's just when he gets home and reflects. We are actually going to let him make the grade call and will support whatever that decision is. (Secretly, I'd love to have him home an additional year so I am fine either way.)

Just a change in school might be enough. Hope he does well. My DS is Chinese, we’re white, so I kind of get the biracial thing. DS is sometimes uncomfortable when people notice we don’t “match” and make comments. The kids he knows from kindy just always saw me and didn’t think about it. Now he’s older, I don’t volunteer at school (no classroom volunteers in 5th grade) so kids he has met this year, may see me or DH and comment or question. He says kids tease him sometimes about being Asian as well.

 

[GZanta77]

Ok, I’m freaking out a bit. DH was denied a CitiBiz AA card. Letter finally comes today, it says he was denied because “The credit privileges on your existing account are currently restricted”. I told DH he has no accounts, he needs to call them. They tell him he has a delinquent account ending in xxxx that the bank closed. What???? He closed that account 4/6/19. This year! This month! I told him to call back and tell them that’s wrong. Anybody have a number to call to straighten it out?

Sorry can't be much help - but sounds like Citi IT has struck again. Do you know which Credit Bureau they used - might not be relevant if its an internal issue - but probably worth checking CreditKarma for anything odd.

 

[pillow]

DW and I got our final unrestricted IHG free nights today from the $49 card, making it in just before the May 1 deadline. Pour one out for the best deal in credit cards, one last time.

So true. We'll be using ours in Monterey this fall. That unrestricted night sure was a great benefit!

 

[CyndiLouWho]

Editing . . . just thinking about this. If it were me, I'd probably stay downtown on the water. It would be so easy after disembarking to hop over to your hotel + the waterfront area is so nice. Buses stop there for free transportation to Capilano if you want to go there. There are several Marriott options if you have points.

This was my thinking. I originally booked the Westin Airport since our flight left at 9, we’d have to be there by 7 and the Westin is a quick shuttle away. After the flight changed to 12:45 I booked the Westin Bayshore also since we could go right from the port and spend more time downtown after disembarking. Either way, I wasn’t planning on doing anything the day of our flight.

 

[calypso726]

This is the only I am trying to figure out if we want to keep long term - our personal Amex Plat. $550 AF is steep! I also have the Gold, which I love for the same reasons you cite (dining credit, 4x on groceries & rest). What benefits to you love on the plat that makes the AF worth it?

It is steep but I do use the benefits. I do use the Saks credit to purchase a GC twice a year. I can gift these to someone for a special occasion and that is one or two less gifts I need to purchase for a birthday or holiday. Or, I can let them pile up and treat myself to an expensive perfume I would never purchase otherwise. I also use the Uber credits. In the past we have purchased AA GCs with the airline credit but as that is no longer working I will switch to Delta GCs next year. We fly out a few times a year on travel hacked vacations and much prefer the Centurion lounges over PP lounges we've encountered and visit them a few times a year. Delta lounge access comes in handy too if we are connecting through ATL or another Delta hub. We've used the Fine Hotels & Resorts benefit a couple of times on paid stays. This gave us free breakfast which saved us several hundred dollars at the Wynn in Vegas over the course of our stay. We also got a $100 resort credit which I used at the spa. We got an upgraded room, early check in and late check out benefit. Sometimes they offer 4th or 5th night free through Amex FHR. Between all of that combined we are good with keeping it long term.

I'd say my top 3 reasons for keeping the card are Centurion Lounge access, Airline and Uber credits and Fine Hotels & Resorts benefits.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

Sorry can't be much help - but sounds like Citi IT has struck again. Do you know which Credit Bureau they used - might not be relevant if its an internal issue - but probably worth checking CreditKarma for anything odd.

Now they are saying it’s a Biz Card but that doesn’t match the number they gave. Between Citi IT/CSR incompetence and DHs lack of attention to detail I’m going crazy.

ETA I don’t see anything on DHs credit reports, likely because it’s a biz card. The personal card, he closed this month so it’s still listed as active but no late payments.

 

[trstno1]

Totally off topic here but there is such a wealth of knowledge on this thread and I need some advice. I have been taking A LOT of photos (with my trusty old Canon EOS T2i) at my DD's sporting events (LAX and FH games). There are many, many pictures of the entire team and I would like to put them out somewhere so the girls can see them and download them. Has anyone done anything like this or have any ideas for me? THANKS!

I take a lot of dance/stage performance photos. I share albums on Facebook and tag the performers and family members so that they can be easily seen by friends and family if those individuals choose to have my post shared on their facebook page. For me it's the easiest way to share lots of photos with lots of families, and to make sure they are seen.

However, facebook compresses the photos, and a lot of quality is lost if photos are downloaded from facebook. I used to also share the photos in albums on Flickr, but Flickr started charging money earlier this year, so I began uploading to albums in Google Photos around 6 months ago. I must admit that I really like Google Photos, including the animations, albums, and memories, it creates for me. I now share a link to the google photos album in my facebook album descriptions, and I encourage everyone to download from google photos.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Just noticed SW pushed the next release date back to May 29th......ugh would like to get our December flights booked

 

[GlamMistress]

Saw all the data points for the "black star" offers. I logged onto my account and saw the usual referral and checking offers.

My last chase card i got almost 2 years ago! All my marketing boxes are checked so i don't know what the deal is.

I never get offered anything either. Don't feel bad.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Ok, I’m freaking out a bit. DH was denied a CitiBiz AA card. Letter finally comes today, it says he was denied because “The credit privileges on your existing account are currently restricted”. I told DH he has no accounts, he needs to call them. They tell him he has a delinquent account ending in xxxx that the bank closed. What???? He closed that account 4/6/19. This year! This month! I told him to call back and tell them that’s wrong. Anybody have a number to call to straighten it out?

Wow. That’s Definitely citi IT for you but that’s super frustrating. Hope you get it all figured out!!

 

[platamama]

They say be the DP you want...so I got the Citi AA Biz last month, made the MSR and I just chatted online for a match and the agent approved me for the 70k offer! I was approved under the 50K and those points are already in my account. We'll see when/if the points make it to my account, the rep didn't have the best handle on the English language but when I confirmed the match she said it was matched. So I saved a screen shot of the conversation.

Sixty more days and I can do this again!!

Did you chat before or after your statement posted?

 

[have2getaway]

How do you know when to cancel a card? Does everyone cancel once they hit the MSR? We’ve hit 3 MSR’s within the past 9 months with 3 new cards, but we haven’t closed any. What’s the magic number for debt to income ratio? I feel like I understand how to apply for a card and hit the MSR, but I’m guessing I will eventually need to start thinking about closing out some, and I’m not as comfortable with that process and how that might impact our credit scores.

 

[PolyRob]

New to booking a flight on points. It seems obvious, but I just want to make sure I am understanding this correctly. I think I can book the same flight through the UR portal for "less points" than JetBlue direct. The flight costs $206.30 (more than I like to pay, but it came down $100 so I think its time to book).

Chase UR (CSR): 13,753 points

JetBlue: 16,700 points + $5.60 cash

The higher redemption rate with the CSR is helping, but it makes sense to go directly through Chase UR, right?

 

[palhockeymomof2]

How do you know when to cancel a card? Does everyone cancel once they hit the MSR? We’ve hit 3 MSR’s within the past 9 months with 3 new cards, but we haven’t closed any. What’s the magic number for debt to income ratio? I feel like I understand how to apply for a card and hit the MSR, but I’m guessing I will eventually need to start thinking about closing out some, and I’m not as comfortable with that process and how that might impact our credit scores.

I only found this thread last May, so coming up on 1 year...from what I have read you should not cancel a card until you have had it open a year
My first card was the CIP 5/14/18...I plan on cancelling after 5/14/19

If your asking about credit limit to income...most seem to say 50% of household income or around $75,000 extended for Chase...not sure about other issuers