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

[Lain]

That's where I'm using our Mariott 7 night cert in a few months! We're just in a regular room due to kids and occupancy, but I am hoping some sort of upgrade might work out since I'm Platinum. Fingers crossed...

Color me green, because I’m jealous!

What did you do for flights? I hope you’ll post pictures and a review!

 

[Etonduf]

How often (I assume you all do this) do you go back into Credit Karma and just poke around and make sure your accounts are up to date? I believe when I started this a month ago I opened a Credit Karma "account" and then also did Experian. Is it something you keep a regular eye on, or do you just sort of ignore it?

If I can tack on a related question, how many of you place a freeze on your credit?


To answer your question:
I don't go out of my way to check, but I have enough CCs with free FICO scores that I keep one eye on those. And I routinely get the "No major changes to your credit report" from a couple of those. I'm less worried about identity theft/fraud since I do freeze my credit. But remembering to unfreeze for all of these applications is proving difficult

 

[LuckyMamaInDE]

That's where I'm using our Mariott 7 night cert in a few months! We're just in a regular room due to kids and occupancy, but I am hoping some sort of upgrade might work out since I'm Platinum. Fingers crossed...

Holy cow, that looks gorgeous! I can't wait to hear what you think!

I really want to stay in an overwater bungalow somewhere

 

[spacerangerqueen]

Yeah a fast river is what I would like. I took my goggles to TL and kept swimming under water way ahead of Dh in the lazy river lol. People got electrocuted?!

They had to shut the park down for a bit and send some lifeguards to the hospital to get checked out after guests complained they were getting shocked in the lazy river. Apparently there was some kind of short nearby. Kinda scary, and it didn't sound like management handled it well when guests complained they were getting shocked.

That does look really fun! Do you have to wear a life jacket?

No life jacket needed. My DH doesn't usually get one.

 

[usakiwi]

-Use points for flights to Europe for May/June 2020 trip (x4)
-Start booking hotels/Air Bnb for Europe once flight dates are set
-Apply P2 for CitiAAbiz?
-Watch for next SW release date to book 1-2 winter trips to warmer locales (destinations TBD)
-Pray for another Plastiq promo

I'm with you on hoping for another Plastiq promo! I think you might have been lucky enough to get the most recent one - I wasn't. But just wanted to mention that I reached out to the guy who always sends me the bulk emails about Plastiq this or that and he DID offer me a very small consolation bonus since I wasn't eligible for the promo. I was going to use it anyway for payments, so I was happy for anything. Just might be something to keep in mind in the future if you get missed on future promos!

 

[gottalovepluto]

How often (I assume you all do this) do you go back into Credit Karma and just poke around and make sure your accounts are up to date? I believe when I started this a month ago I opened a Credit Karma "account" and then also did Experian. Is it something you keep a regular eye on, or do you just sort of ignore it?

I set up alerts on both and ignore it outside of alerts. They will alert me to anything of importance.

 

[Albort]

I set up alerts on both and ignore it outside of alerts. They will alert me to anything of importance.

ugh, i hate those alerts... always says "We detected a change to your credit report"
*Click* Congrats, your Score has increased!

always scares me when i see the topic line first... lol

 

[usakiwi]

Color me green, because I’m jealous!

What did you do for flights? I hope you’ll post pictures and a review!

It's actually the last stop on our NZ/OZ/Fiji trip. ,AA points on Fijian Air or Air Fiji, can't remember. I'm really not picky on flights because there are four of us and girls have been flying between NZ and the states pretty much every year since they were 8 months old, so we are all pretty accustomed to economy. I prefer to save points by using cheap seats which allows us to travel more, but I know that preference of economy on long haul puts me in the minority here! It just doesn't seem that "long" to us because we are so accustomed to doing it!

I'll do a separate post with the flights and hotels etc I've booked because I know a few are making similar plans in the near future.

 

[spacerangerqueen]

June churning:

• 40k AA bonus posted
• 20k self referral UR pending for CIP2
• $200 Wells Fargo bonus posted (this was end of May, but close enough)

Future plans:

• Cancel Hilton Biz when annual fee hits (I have to say this card was pretty awesome though, it got me my first PP card and used my Gold Status to match to Caesars Diamond. But I just don't have a need for it anymore)
• Cancel CIP 1 when annual fee hits
• Apply for either new SW Biz or CIP3
• Close Suntrust & Wells Fargo accounts and then find a new bank bonus!

 

[Jax1023]

Really hoping for some new amex business offer in the next few days for staples.

Final payment for my free dining trip is due in 2 weeks, and I need another ~1500 dollars.

I think I’m gonna get cip #3 before the trip in case we decide to upgrade to APs.

My first cip was now more than 2 years ago, and is closed, so does that set me back to getting a second cip #2?

 

[Judique]

I've moved both the glasses and the monitor all over- no luck so far. Looks like I'll be calling the optometrist next week. I've been reverting to my regular single visions for computer use and I will have to use them tonight at work as well (although I'll take the new ones with me to try them out in a different environment).

I can understand your frustration. The idea of progressives was very appealing to me a few years back and I got several pair - I think we changed them out about 3 times and they just didn't work for me. This was somewhere in my forties that my sight changed requiring a bifocal and I was working on my computer at work for a good part of each day. I eventually went to bifocals which took less time to get accustomed to. I was extremely near sighted from birth and had worn glasses all my life. Also had an astigmatism in one eye.

Fast forward to my 60ties and my eyes deteriorated to not seeing well while driving or at night - yup, cataracts! Had the surgery and it was successful and I don't need glasses after more than 60 years of wearing them - except for reading my phone and for my laptop - up close things. I can actually squint and see if I have to, but can't see tiny things.

Sight is certainly a progression. I've had 3 fails - progressive lenses, the early contacts that supposedly could be left in for a month at a time - yeah, no. I wore regular soft contacts - for almost 10 years until I had an eye injury in my doctor's office. And the glasses that darken when you go into the sun - sound good but caused problems long term. The progressives actually made me dizzy and queasy.

Now, since cataract surgery I buy readers at Costco on sale - 3 pairs for 12.99....I like it this way, and hopefully my new lenses in my eyes will last as long as I need them.

 

[smallsy]

Someone posted about using plastiq to pay their heloc... how does that work? Can I use a chase card or do I need amex or mc since it’s mortgage related?

 

[bernina]

we did Furnace Creek in the middle of the park. was pricey and the AC wasnt as strong as we hoped by it was okay at the end.
edit: also would highly recommend renting a 4x4 to visit parts of the park that cant be done without one. I regret not checking out the moving rocks!

Thanks! We’ll be driving by in July and don’t think we’ll get out of the car for much at all. It’s part of our route from San Francisco to Yosemite to Vegas. Hitting Lone Pine for a day and then debating Pahrump or inside the park before getting to Vegas.

 

[mmmears]

That's where I'm using our Mariott 7 night cert in a few months! We're just in a regular room due to kids and occupancy, but I am hoping some sort of upgrade might work out since I'm Platinum. Fingers crossed...

Wow! Can't wait to hear about it. That place looks incredible!

I was thinking what if San Bruno adopts a similar policy to Bayshore (and I guess Union City). San Bruno is convenient enough for me to swing by every now and then, especially since I’ve been doing smallish purchases with DW’s card to use up her offer without drawing attention. But the next closest Lowe’s location would be Sunnyvale, which is quite a trip, in which case I may have to drag my wife down that way one weekend and do the whole offer in one transaction.

I’m not too concerned about stores down the Peninsula adopting a cash/debit only policy. I’ve swung by Safeways and Staples when I’m in the area to buy VGCs/MCGCs, and I’ve never been asked to see the card and matching ID, never been told no credit cards, never even had a cashier flinch at $500 loads. The Peninsula is affluent so high value gift cards and credit card use are totally typical, whereas Bayshore... let’s just say is in a very “rough” part of SF. And even in the city, I’ll get carded in Western Addition but not the Marina for example.

Hmmm. I hope I'll be ok. I didn't think of it this way. I think DH did a $500 GC spend in one transaction and no one batted an eye. Off topic, but have you tried the Hyatt in Tahoe? I was going to try for a weekend in Carmel, but it's usually a day trip for us and then I thought about the one on the lake and it looks nice online, but I haven't stayed there. I'm debating between using up some points there and hoarding them for next year.

 

[StephPlum]

What hotel did you book in Death Valley?

we did Furnace Creek in the middle of the park. was pricey and the AC wasnt as strong as we hoped by it was okay at the end.
edit: also would highly recommend renting a 4x4 to visit parts of the park that cant be done without one. I regret not checking out the moving rocks!

I booked The Ranch at DV. It is in Furnace Creek. Beside The Inn at DV but cheaper. Both were on the Chase portal. You always end up paying for the convenience of staying in the park not for amenities or luxury so nothing is cheap. It will save a ton of time driving in the park so worth it to me. I am planning to go in March.

I've got an SUV on reserve right now for the trip. When we went to Co Springs our Jeep Compass had 4x4 and we actually used to get to Zapata Falls. The gravel road was a series of ruts and huge rocks.

 

[bernina]

ugh, i hate those alerts... always says "We detected a change to your credit report"
*Click* Congrats, your Score has increased!

always scares me when i see the topic line first... lol

I always get the “paid tradeline” alert which basically means I paid my cc bill. Really needed an alert for that

Someone posted about using plastiq to pay their heloc... how does that work? Can I use a chase card or do I need amex or mc since it’s mortgage related?

Since it’s mortgage related you need to use MasterCard. I was never able to get my credit union to work with Visa or Amex no matter what I named it.

 

[StephPlum]

Tomorrow is the first day to book hotels at Glacier NP (in the park) for July 2020. I have seen the hotels on Chase portal but I am going to go on the Xanterra site first, hopefully get my first picks, then see if on Chase since I can always cancel Xanterra. It is more important to me to stay in the park than be free. There are a few NPS fans on here. I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

CIP #3 question that I hope will be an easy answer for someone!

I have the following:

CIP1: 7/18
CIC: 12/18
CIP2: 3/25/19
(No other Chase apps since January 2018 and at 4/24 overall)

I am planning to cancel my CIP1 after 7/11. Should I apply for CIP3 before or after I cancel the CIP1? I am torn because I will have two open CIP cards if I app before I cancel, but I will have just closed a CIP if I open it after. I admit I want to hear that I should apply first as I hate having no MSR. Thanks for any thoughts you have!

.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

How often (I assume you all do this) do you go back into Credit Karma and just poke around and make sure your accounts are up to date? I believe when I started this a month ago I opened a Credit Karma "account" and then also did Experian. Is it something you keep a regular eye on, or do you just sort of ignore it?

I look at it weekly....unfortunately got in the habit if doing so after we found out my DHs brother...well really his wife used my MILs SS number to consign her daughters student loans....since she is in assisted and has us paying her bills we then put a freeze on her credit....this happened 2 years ago and she would not file identity theft charges against them.....we will see what happens in November when the loans have to start being repaid...then her choices will be to file charges or move in with them if they garnish her pension etc

 

[Limes96]

Someone posted about using plastiq to pay their heloc... how does that work? Can I use a chase card or do I need amex or mc since it’s mortgage related?

Yes, what @bernina said about using mc. I tried using a CIP but it didn’t work. So I used the CitiAAbiz. My first Plastiq to HELOC actually hasn’t posted yet. I’m constantly checking to see when it does. Plastiq said they’d receive it by Tuesday this week I think.