I love credit cards so much!

[Happy_2_B]

I picked up a British Airways card last May when they were offering 100,000 Avios for $20,000 in spend. The BA card also offers a travel together ticket when you spend $30,000 in a calendar year.

It's good you snagged it and had the foresight to hold off on the last part of the minimum spend to maximize your redemption window. Hopefully you don't burn those Avios on BA to go to Europe- and instead use them for shorter flights using partner airlines which is your best redemption opportunity. We buy a lot of Disney GCs from Sams as well- it's a great fill in to make spends, and when combined with a TiW card pushes the discount to almost 25% off dining and drinking in WDW. Don't stress too much about the 1:1 redemptions, getting the partner pass will make it worth it. Just be prepared for BA surcharges- they are pretty steep on award flights.

 

[mefordis]

IMHO on an 18k landscaping job you would have easily found at least one- if not 3 or 4- landscaping companies that would take a card and matched your lowest bid. We had a lot of 'big ticket' landscaping done at our Sedona, AZ house and never had an issue. We also almost always went with an Hispanic company whether we could easily communicate with them or not. We do know some Spanish which helped- but in our experience the companies we used all worked very hard and the jobs came out exactly the way we wanted them to. I never- and yes, that means NEVER, buy anything with cash when serious money is involved. You can ALWAYS find at least one (and usually more than one) service provider that will happily take a card to ensure he/she keeps his/her employees busy. In the past 6 months- if I had to guess- we have spent close to 50k on a Hawaii vacation, home upgrades, etc, etc, etc. In total- I would guess we spent less than $500.00 in cash during this time period (and most of that was tips for our butler, concierge, and room steward on the cruise- and tips for other random stuff during our last vacation). The take away from this is that EVERY POINT MATTERS.

What I meant by "not as easy to communicate with" is my regular landscaper/lawn cutter who does take credit cards is difficult to reach. There is no language barrier. The one I went with is very responsive and I often text him and he answers right away. That's all I meant.

 

[mefordis]

This makes me want to cry! You could’ve divided that expense on 3, 4, 5, or even 6 cards and easily hit several minimum spending requirements for all the cards’ bonuses at once.

Some vendors don’t want to take credit cards because they don’t want to eat the fee, but they should still accept check or money orders that won’t incur them a fee, or PayPal or Venmo where the customer pays the fee. The only reason why your landscaper insists on cash only is to do this job under the table and hide his earnings from the IRS. I would have gotten a different landscaper, and hope you still can.

This spring I plan on planting a row of trees and leveling our backyard as well as plant grass and I will go to the one who takes credit cards for this. However, I wonder if I can get my current person to take PayPal. I can use my credit card for that and get points.

 

[Happy_2_B]

my regular landscaper/lawn cutter who does take credit cards is difficult to reach

We have one of those now here in Florida. But... his employees show up weekly when they are supposed to and get the job done, and he matched our lowest bid and will take our CSR. It is a pain that it can take up to 2 weeks for him to personally return a call- especially since we are doing a major relandscaping (if that is even a word) job the first part of next year- but eventually he gets around to it- just a pretty laid back guy Yeah- it is sometimes hard to figure out what people mean when it is in writing, happens all the time on message boards.

 

[Lain]

This spring I plan on planting a row of trees and leveling our backyard as well as plant grass and I will go to the one who takes credit cards for this. However, I wonder if I can get my current person to take PayPal. I can use my credit card for that and get points.

Keep in mind that when using a credit card to pay a vendor via PayPal, you'll incur a 2.9% plus 30¢ fee per transaction. If you're using a credit card to pay via Venmo, you'll incur a 3% fee per payment.

However, if you're working on the minimum spend for the Chase Ink Preferred (CIP) ($5k in 3 months for both your husband and you!), Venmo is perfect because although you'll incur a 3% fee, Venmo payments "code" as "trvl, ship, adv, telecom" and earn 3x Ultimate Rewards points -- effectively negating Venmo's transaction fee. If you're not working on a minimum spend for a new card, the CIP should be your default card when paying through Venmo.*

As I've explained, 1 UR point = 1¢, so your 3x UR earnings on Venmo payments exactly negate its 3% fee. However, if you transfer your household's UR points to a CSR card (I'm guessing your husband's), and you're redeeming UR points for travel (like booking the Disneyland Hotel) on the Chase UR travel portal, 1 UR point is worth 1.5¢. (If you redeem UR points on a CSP through the Chase portal, they're worth only 1.25¢).

*P.S. I wouldn't bother with PayPal if you're going to pay with the CIP. PayPal earns you only 1x points, whereas Venmo earns you 3x UR points when using CIP. If you're working on a minimum spend for any other card, I'm not aware of any difference in the way they code, and thus how many points or miles you earn. PayPal is more ubiquitous, but Venmo is popular among more social media savvy users. My dog sitter recently stopped taking credit cards and moved to Venmo. If you're paying your vendor some substantial amount of money, the least he can do is spend 15 minutes downloading PayPal or Venmo and setting it up for you to pay him. Funny thing is both apps are owned by PayPal.

 

[mefordis]

Keep in mind that when using a credit card to pay a vendor via PayPal, you'll incur a 2.9% plus 30¢ fee per transaction. If you're using a credit card to pay via Venmo, you'll incur a 3% fee per payment.

However, if you're working on the minimum spend for the Chase Ink Preferred (CIP) ($5k in 3 months for both your husband and you!), Venmo is perfect because although you'll incur a 3% fee, Venmo payments "code" as "trvl, ship, adv, telecom" and earn 3x Ultimate Rewards points -- effectively negating Venmo's transaction fee. If you're not working on a minimum spend for a new card, the CIP should be your default card when paying through Venmo.*

As I've explained, 1 UR point = 1¢, so your 3x UR earnings on Venmo payments exactly negate its 3% fee. However, if you transfer your household's UR points to a CSR card (I'm guessing your husband's), and you're redeeming UR points for travel (like booking the Disneyland Hotel) on the Chase UR travel portal, 1 UR point is worth 1.5¢. (If you redeem UR points on a CSP through the Chase portal, they're worth only 1.25¢).

*P.S. I wouldn't bother with PayPal if you're going to pay with the CIP. PayPal earns you only 1x points, whereas Venmo earns you 3x UR points when using CIP. If you're working on a minimum spend for any other card, I'm not aware of any difference in the way they code, and thus how many points or miles you earn. PayPal is more ubiquitous, but Venmo is popular among more social media savvy users. My dog sitter recently stopped taking credit cards and moved to Venmo. If you're paying your vendor some substantial amount of money, the least he can do is spend 15 minutes downloading PayPal or Venmo and setting it up for you to pay him. Funny thing is both apps are owned by PayPal.

Thanks for the info! Assuming he is insisting on cash to avoid taxes, I'm thinking using Venmo or PayPal might put him in jeopardy of doing that. Just thinking aloud...

 

[Lain]

Thanks for the info! Assuming he is insisting on cash to avoid taxes, I'm thinking using Venmo or PayPal might put him in jeopardy of doing that. Just thinking aloud...

Are there only two landscapers in town?

 

[mefordis]

Are there only two landscapers in town?

No, but I have a good relationship with this person. I've been working with him for about 10 years.

 

[mom2elal]

For cards that come with a credit for global entry/precheck, does the credit have to be for the person who has the card? Or could I use my card to pay for global entry for my dh and get the credit?

 

[mefordis]

It has been advised that I use AirBnB or homeaway instead of renting a $3200 2 bedroom for 6 nights in downtown LA. I found this great 3 bedroom condo on homeaway BUT there are no reviews! Should I rule it out? It would save us over $1200 on lodging PLUS we could add a 7th night - stil $1200 cheaper!!

https://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p1202130vb#reviews

Thanks for your advice!

 

[Albort]

@Lain dont forget about plastiq. :]

 

[havaneselover]

Thanks for the info! Assuming he is insisting on cash to avoid taxes, I'm thinking using Venmo or PayPal might put him in jeopardy of doing that. Just thinking aloud...

Evading taxes puts him in legal jeopardy!

Does he give you an invoice? I wouldn't do this deal regardless (he sounds unethical) but what recourse do you have if you have problems down the road with his work?

 

[mefordis]

Yes, I do get an invoice. HIs work has been 100% top notch for 10 years. I don't know if he pays taxes or not. I don't want to ask him because I feel that is his business.

There are places around town that give discounts for paying cash (gas stations, dry cleaners), so many people like to deal in cash.

 

[havaneselover]

Yes, I do get an invoice. HIs work has been 100% top notch for 10 years. I don't know if he pays taxes or not. I don't want to ask him because I feel that is his business.

There are places around town that give discounts for paying cash (gas stations, dry cleaners), so many people like to deal in cash.

Sure but why cash instead of a check? That's where this gets questionable.

 

[havaneselover]

For cards that come with a credit for global entry/precheck, does the credit have to be for the person who has the card? Or could I use my card to pay for global entry for my dh and get the credit?

Yes. At least for csr it does not have to be for the card holder. They just see the fee and it triggers reimbursement.

 

[Lain]

No, but I have a good relationship with this person. I've been working with him for about 10 years.

Sounds like you should be able to talk to him about why you want to put his work on credit card(s). (Seriously, the principal of my kid’s preschool tells me she has parents asking all the time if they can charge tuition to their credit cards “to earn points.”)

If you’re spending $18,000 on landscaping, that’s seriously 3-6 minimum spends right there. To put it in context, that one expense can meet the minimum spend on the CSP, CSR, and 2x CIP, earning you 280,000 UR points bonus and whatever the $18,000 codes as. If he’s been working with you for 10 years and you two have a good relationship, he should be accommodating enough to let you use a credit card or several. If he doesn’t want to eat the fees or isn’t set up to accept credit cards, there are several options like PayPal, Venmo, or Plastiq, where you pay the small fee.

@Lain dont forget about plastiq. :]

Plastiq has a lower fee at 2.5% than either PayPal or Venmo. Whereas PayPal and Venmo essentially sends your vendor an electronic payment, Plastiq charges your credit card the principal amount and a 2.5% fee, then sends your vendor a physical check within 7-10 business days. So your landscaper can give you an invoice, then you can make one or several payments to him on that invoice for however many credit cards you’re trying to meet spend on.

I posted a pretty detailed guide to Plastiq a while ago, so you can search for that.

 

[mefordis]

Sure but why cash instead of a check? That's where this gets questionable.

True and I have to admit it's a pain taking all that cash out.

 

[platamama]

Sure but why cash instead of a check? That's where this gets questionable.

Yikes, I hate giving out checks! Everything a thief needs to know about you is right there - name, address, bank routing number, checking account number.

 

[havaneselover]

Yikes, I hate giving out checks! Everything a thief needs to know about you is right there - name, address, bank routing number, checking account number.

Not even on my radar as a concern. Withdrawing $18 k in cash and carrying it around would not make me comfortable. My issue though is more about the vendors' ethics. We all decide what we are comfortable with though.

ETA: getting a cashier's check might be another option. I'd feel better about that than carrying around that much cash!

 

[Albort]

Yikes, I hate giving out checks! Everything a thief needs to know about you is right there - name, address, bank routing number, checking account number.

well, if you had to choose, would u carry a $18,000 check with everything on it or $18,000 worth of cash...

my marriott points never showed up, but i got a message from them saying "Thanks for getting in touch! Our Customer Care team is most responsive between the hours of 9am-11pm ET. Type your question and Marriott Rewards number below and someone will respond as soon as possible." :\ bad luck for me i guess.

Another solution to the 18k problem would be the MS method. CC --> VGC --> MO. give MO. but its super ymmv right now.