I love credit cards so much!

[wendow]

Thanks to you guys I dipped my toes in the business credit card world. I did the Amex GBR and got autoapproved. I know I might have been able to call in for a higher sign up but I wasn’t comfortable speaking to a rep. So @wendow I used your referral link...
I debated between that and the Hilton and the Blue preferred. Hope I made a good choice!!!

Oh my, Congrats! And thank you for using my link I thank you so much!

 

[gottalovepluto]

That's disappointing but good to know! I last tried about a month ago.

It changed shortly after. We’ve had one report in the gc thread of two codes working but all others have only gotten credit for one per day.

 

[gottalovepluto]

We’ve actually already paid about $1000 of it. Is it $5000 as the CL at one time or for the whole month?

Technically at a time but when you hit it in a month, pay it off and hit it again it’s called cycling and can trigger fraud reviews. Imho it’s ok to do once in a while but absolutely don’t make a habit of it.

 

[gottalovepluto]

I personally think the books are so much better than the movies. Just an idea here, but if he doesn't like to read, check out the audio books. The reader is awesome (and has different voices for Hagrid, McGonagal, etc.) and I listen to them sometimes when I'm too busy to read. (Granted I read the books multiple times before trying the audiobooks, but I still think they would be good if he wants to hear the story).

I discovered Harry Potter in college and this brings up memories of my roommate and I reading the entire 4th book out loud (she wanted to re-read it) when everyone else went home for Thanksgiving but we had classes making us stick around the weekend before... there was just something a little extra magical reading it out loud and doing the voices (Even the girl next door thought so when she knocked and asked if we were reading the 4th Harry Potter book out loud and could she join? Of course she could! -yes, I’m a total nerd. A high potential college party weekend was spent reading Harry Potter out loud #NoRegrets.)

 

[wendow]

@anyone lol...can I apply for the Biz green if I just applied and was approved for the BBP?

 

[DisneyMandC]

Hello from DL!! Currently sitting in the FP section of Fantasmic waiting for the show to start. Having a great trip!! Thanks to everyone for all the tips. The crowds were fantastic today and we rode everything we wanted to. Glad I spent the money on MaxPass because that makes it SO easy and you’re not running around trying to get paper FPs! I’m currently running low on steam as I’ve been awake for 24 hours, but we’re still planning a ride on BTMR before we head back to the Hilton Anaheim.

By the way, happy birthday @Ngwira!

 

[wendow]

Hello from DL!! Currently sitting in the FP section of Fantasmic waiting for the show to start. Having a great trip!! Thanks to everyone for all the tips. The crowds were fantastic today and we rode everything we wanted to. Glad I spent the money on MaxPass because that makes it SO easy and you’re not running around trying to get paper FPs! I’m currently running low on steam as I’ve been awake for 24 hours, but we’re still planning a ride on BTMR before we head back to the Hilton Anaheim.

By the way, happy birthday @Ngwira!

View attachment 340249

I am so jealous but very, very happy for you!! I loved DLR and miss it a ton! I cannot wait to go back

 

[Lain]

@anyone lol...can I apply for the Biz green if I just applied and was approved for the BBP?

Yes. The BBP affects Amex’s 2/90 rule for credit cards and 5 credit card limit. The Biz Green is a charge card so those rules don’t apply.

 

[wendow]

@Lain, approved! So now I can do the same and refer my dh? That was so easy peasy!!

 

[kidsfirsttrip]

Congratulations!



You might want to consider using your new BGR to refer yourself for the Biz Green before 8/8/18 for another 20k MR.

Check @SBWB48 's, @Angrose 's and my posts to @wendow above.

Since the Biz Green is another Amex business card, which won't report to your credit reports or count against 5/24, and because the Biz Green only requires you to make a single purchase (no minimum) to trigger the signup bonus, and has no annual fee in the first year, there's essentially no cost to pick up 20k MR (and maybe another 20k MR for P2).

Thanks did this and approved!! Going to get one for DH too!!

 

[Lain]

I can't remember, do you and @Lain have a business or a "business"? I loathe phone calls and basically get anxiety putting in takeout dinner orders so I don't know why I am contemplating this...but it's almost too good to pass up. I am strangely interested

@Lain has what can be defined as a real business IMO but will let him opine.

I have what skews more towards a “business”, despite having sold a few items here and there.

The phone call was painless. The rep was very chatty and only asked a few basic questions like “years in business”, “how many employees”, and “annual revenue”. Have a logical story for your “business” if that’s the case and just let the conversation flow. Beverly even asked what my most popular item was (only because she was curious she said lol).

My eBay business is still very much a “business.” I’ve put a little more focus into it since I started this hobby because they kind of go hand-in-hand. Buying and reselling occasionally helps me generate additional spend towards MSR, and gives me a basis for applying for business cards. I made over $11k in sales last year (revenue, not profit), and I’m at about $6k revenue YTD, but my sales tend to bump up during the holidays. I have a pretty good sense for toys, collectibles, apparel, and electronics. For a lot of items, I might spot a really good deal on somewhere like Slickdeals, or on clearance in stores, be able to utilize my money saving/rewards maximizing skills to make it an even better deal, and I’m usually able to resell at close to, and occasionally even over MSRP. If I make some money, great; if I break even, that’s at least spend on my credit cards.

I agree with @SBWB48 that the call was painless. I was going in ready for a fight. I’ve read the stories about calling into these Amex call centers for best offers. They usually press you for a RSVP code, and if you BS then they’ll check if the offer is actually available to you in the system. Every DP I’ve seen suggests that this offer is open to anyone who calls the number in DoC’s most recent post. I called in and said something like, “Hi, I’m interested in the Business Platinum card, and I understand there’s an offer for 100k Membership Rewards points if I spend $10k in 3 months?” My Amex rep was like, “Yes, that offer is certainly available right now. Would you like to apply for it?” Yes! He then asked me to tell him a little about my business, but in a chatty sort of way. I explained I was in the business of selling and reselling mostly toys, collectibles, apparel, and electronics online for years, but recently put more focus on it and would like to grow my online sales, and to do that I need more inventory and a card to put those purchases on. He asked broadly what I’d be using the card for (inventory), what kind of expenses I expected every month (varies depending on market prices and trends, and my spending can be very seasonal). Asked if I’d do any shipping on the card, to which I said probably not because I have other Amex cards that do better on shipping, so I want to leverage the benefits of different Amex cards to earn better rewards back on my business. He was actually asking because he also wanted to pitch me the BGR that offers 3x MR on shipping. He read some disclosures, asked me the same questions as on the online application (so review that beforehand and have your numbers ready), then read more disclosures, and submitted the application. It was maybe a two minutes wait at most before I got the good news that I had been approved. While we were waiting on the decision, my rep took another opportunity to sell me the BGR and told me it had an offer of 75k MR/$10k/4 months, 1st year AF waived, and gave me his direct line to call when I’m ready for the BGR or any other cards. I got the sense through the whole thing that they very much wanted you to sign up for their cards. It was maybe an 18 minutes call in total, a lot of it disclosures and talking about card benefits. Don’t be nervous. Just get your story and numbers together, take a deep breath, and call. Good luck!

ETA: I have also applied for business cards under some contracting/consulting I’ve done, which may be more legitimate, but I haven’t done much of that this year. And my eBay sales are actually higher than any income from consulting work, so I’ve been going with my eBay business because it has bigger numbers and longer history.

 

[wendow]

@wendow, you might also want to consider referring DH to the Biz Green. The referral bonus goes until 8/8/18.

Do I refer dh through my BGR or my new Biz Green? Is there a difference in the referral amounts?

 

[Lain]

@Lain, approved! So now I can do the same and refer my dh? That was so easy peasy!!

Thanks did this and approved!! Going to get one for DH too!!

Do I refer dh through my BGR or my new Biz Green? Is there a difference in the referral amounts?

Congratulations, you two!

@wendow, you can refer DH for the Biz Green from your BGR if you’re not maxed out on the referral bonus limit yet. I believe the referral bonus would be the same 10k MR whether you referred DH from your BGR or new Biz Green (check the Refer a Friend section, because I haven’t added my Biz Green to my account yet to see), but you might want to refer from your new Biz Green if you’ve reached the referral bonus limit on your BGR.

 

[kidsfirsttrip]

AMEX MSR question: avoid gift cards I know. Plastiq payments ok? What about bank funding?

 

[Lain]

AMEX MSR question: avoid gift cards I know. Plastiq payments ok? What about bank funding?

Avoid gift cards from retailers that report level 3 data, so no Staples/OD/OM and CVS (?); grocery stores are usually fine. If buying VGCs or MCGCs, add in some other items so the purchase isn’t a telltale $505.95. Plastiq is ok, but has payment restrictions on Amex cards. If you can get it through, it should count. I’m no expert on bank funding, but it seems tough with Amex. BMO for sure is dead.

 

[wendow]

AMEX MSR question: avoid gift cards I know. Plastiq payments ok? What about bank funding?

I've not had a problem with any of my plastiq payments counting, and I've even gotten my mortgage through I funded $500 on amex at memory bank. Not m any banks allow Amex funding

 

[Lain]

Self-referred for the Biz Green from my Biz Plat on Saturday morning, and an extra 20k MR is already in my MR account a little after midnight Monday morning. And I don’t even have the Biz Plat in my hands yet!

 

[striker1064]

@Lain, approved! So now I can do the same and refer my dh? That was so easy peasy!!

Yeah, and just for future reference, you can get as many Amex charge cards at once as they'll approve you for. They're way too easy.

 

[tink1970]

Question for travelers to Europe: I used sky pesos for a trip this fall to Italy. Delta changed my return flight from a layover in Atlanta to a layover in Amsterdam. I have never flown from one country in Europe to another before heading back to the states. Is there anything special I need to be aware of security-wise? Flight is from Rome to Amsterdam to Detroit.

Thanks again for all the great churning, banking, traveling info from the nicest group on the web!!

I travel to Europe 3-4/year exclusively on Delta/KLM.

Actually...there will be an extra screening if you fly Delta the entire way (or there was this year and last year and the year before) from Amsterdam. You'll exit your plane from Rome be told your "gate" is D1 but that's an extra security check- passport/boarding card. Sometimes the lines are fast ...sometimes horrible so I would head straight there. After you are screened they'll hand you a slip of paper with your "real" gate assignment.

Oddly enough, if you're flying a KLM plane then there is no extra screening...who knows why; I believe it's something to do with an American carrier versus a foreign flagged carrier but that's only a guess

Also, this could not be in place by the time you fly since policies and procedures are always changing but I would definitely plan for it so you're not caught unaware and have a 10-30 min line you didn't expect!

Have a great trip!!

 

[Haley R]

Technically at a time but when you hit it in a month, pay it off and hit it again it’s called cycling and can trigger fraud reviews. Imho it’s ok to do once in a while but absolutely don’t make a habit of it.

The only reason we want to do it is to make the $5000 MSR this month so we can go ahead and get plane tickets before they’re gone. Should we not risk it?