I love credit cards so much!

[Alexle2007]

ok! I must be mixing up the things I've been reading about husbands and wives getting the same card. So I have to convince my husband to open up 2 SW cards. Thanks!

Yep! The biz card still has the 60k offer and if any of the 50k personal referrals are still working that would get you 110k without much effort since all you would need to do is meet the required spend. This was the one set of CCs DH is happy to churn with me since we typically fly SW and then we only need to purchase 2 tickets (with points) and DS flies free. It hasn’t definitely increased the amount of trips we take.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

Ok so I figured out the problem with using Apple Pay on phone. Turns out I had a 5S, not a 6s.
But I was so frustrated with not being able to use Apple Pay, DH & I both got new phones today. We are not the type to require the latest & greatest (obviously since we were using 5S) so we just got the 6S. For anyone looking for an upgrade & has Sprint, you get can a free 6s thru Apple & pay only the $30 upgrade fee from Sprint by signing a 2 year contract (I know not everyone wants a contract, but since Sprint is the only provider that gets service in my office and I get a corporate discount, I won't be changing)
Oh the things I do for points.

 

[ibob52]

When I was looking for a definition of a term

I found this list of travel and credit card related acronyms:

https://churning.rankt.com/glossary/

Credit a reddit member for making the list

smileyface

 

[Albort]

Ok so I figured out the problem with using Apple Pay on phone. Turns out I had a 5S, not a 6s.
But I was so frustrated with not being able to use Apple Pay, DH & I both got new phones today. We are not the type to require the latest & greatest (obviously since we were using 5S) so we just got the 6S. For anyone looking for an upgrade & has Sprint, you get can a free 6s thru Apple & pay only the $30 upgrade fee from Sprint by signing a 2 year contract (I know not everyone wants a contract, but since Sprint is the only provider that gets service in my office and I get a corporate discount, I won't be changing)
Oh the things I do for points.

heh, im considering buying an flagship samsung phone just for samsung/android pay... haha.

 

[Louie7080]

So here's the list of cards I see for you:
10/16 - Delta Gold
10/16 - Target RedCard
11/16 - Disney Visa
2/17 - United MileagePlus
2/17 - Delta Gold

Are you sure that one of those Delta cards isn't a business card? It's possible you earned the bonus twice if the second didn't have the "AMEX lifetime language" but typically with AMEX if you've earned the bonus twice one was a business card. I only ask because if one is a business card that would slightly change what I'm about to say.

SO, You are technically 5/24 BUT you could potentially apply for 1 Chase Card and call into the application reconsideration department and try to get them to exclude your Target Redcard from the count since it is a store card. Datapoints (DPs) are mixed on whether you will actually be successful with that. IF you were successful with that 1 card AND it was a Chase business card you could then try for a 2nd business card doing the same thing, calling in to get them to disregard Target. I can't even venture a guess as to your odds of success for getting 1 or 2 Chase cards.

Otherwise your options are:

• Convince your husband to get involved - you have a world of options then!
• Wait until October - you'll be under 5/24 then. In the interim you could target AMEX business cards (SPG has a biz card, Delta does too if you didn't already get it - see earlier question). You're going to have 3 cards come off in Oct/Nov and you could potentially turn those 3 slots into as many 6 Chase cards by using various loopholes...I know that sounds crazy but it is possible. EDIT: I forget your other 2 cards would fall off in Feb 2019 so you actually could potentially get 8 Chase cards spread out over 18-24 months from Oct 2018 and beyond. Not that I'm necessarily recommending that but in Oct. 2018 you basically have EVERYTHING Available to you.
• Forget about Chase and move on to other card issuers. This is certainly a viable option depending on your goals. BUT you will say goodbye to a SW CP then.

Up to a year ago, I didn't fly much or go out of state to vacation so when I decided to take my kids to Disneyland for the first time I found cheap Delta flights to LAX and to make it more enticing, when I put the ticket in the cart, I was offered 100 bucks off the tickets if I applied for this GDS card, so I took that offer (now I know that was a lame offer) - that was the first Gold Delta Skymiles card. Then when I still didn't know any better I signed up for another Gold Delta Skymiles card - this one came with 50,000 miles after a minimum spend the first 3 months. I think I got that one through an email that was sent to me. I really don't think either one is a business card. I double checked the names of the cards and they are the same and the physical cards look identical also, but like I described they came with different sign-up rewards/bonuses so I guess that is why I was issued both? I regret getting Delta branded cards as Delta doesn't have the best flights for either getting to Disneyland or WDW from Denver.

Thanks for the advice - other than getting my husband to sign up with Chase, I will move on for now till as you say some of the cards fall off.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

On the topic of keeping track - I have a spreadsheet (well I have about 40 spreadsheets, my wife's joke is I have one for everything) - but my one for tracking CCs has the following fields (Bold for ones I think are really important). (Also should note that I keep my list and my wife's list separate for tracking each of our 5/24 statuses, etc.)

1) Issuer
2) Card Name - Highlighted Green if a Biz card that does not affect 5/24 status
3) Last 4 Digits
4) AU - used this to track when we used to add spouse as AU on cards - no X's have appeared in this column lately
5) Date Approved - the sheet is sorted by this column
6) Date Cancelled - blank unless I cancelled the card
7) Annual Fee
8) Annual Bonus - things like 6k SW points, free IHG night, etc.
9) Signup Bonus - detail of the signup bonus I received on the card
10) Min Spend Amount
11) Date Bonus Received - helpful with Chase where you're tracking 24 months to get the bonus again
12) Bonus Value - an approximation of what the signup bonus was worth
13) % Return - Bonus Value DIVIDED BY Min Spend - neat to see my return
14) Notes - misc notes not captured elsewhere
15) Ongoing Rewards - field where I capture any category bonuses (i.e. Grocery 3% or Gas 3%, or Freedom 5% quarterly)

When I cancel a card I highlight the whole row in a light red shade but don't move it or sort it differently. By counting backwards I can quickly determine how many cards I or my wife has been approved for in the past 6 months, year, 24 months, etc.

I have all of this information stored for all 62 cards we've applied for in this game. It's nice for informational purposes. For those tracking by hand...I'd consider moving to a spreadsheet at some point, especially if you're gonna get serious about the game. It will eventually become hard to keep writing it all down.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Up to a year ago, I didn't fly much or go out of state to vacation so when I decided to take my kids to Disneyland for the first time I found cheap Delta flights to LAX and to make it more enticing, when I put the ticket in the cart, I was offered 100 bucks off the tickets if I applied for this GDS card, so I took that offer (now I know that was a lame offer) - that was the first Gold Delta Skymiles card. Then when I still didn't know any better I signed up for another Gold Delta Skymiles card - this one came with 50,000 miles after a minimum spend the first 3 months. I think I got that one through an email that was sent to me. I really don't think either one is a business card. I double checked the names of the cards and they are the same and the physical cards look identical also, but like I described they came with different sign-up rewards/bonuses so I guess that is why I was issued both? I regret getting Delta branded cards as Delta doesn't have the best flights for either getting to Disneyland or WDW from Denver.

Thanks for the advice - other than getting my husband to sign up with Chase, I will move on for now till as you say some of the cards fall off.

You are welcome! Now...when you say "move on" keep in mind that any new cards from ANY issuer will be put on the list unless they are certain cards (namely AMEX Business cards). IF getting Chase cards (especially UR cards as @calypso726 mentioned) is important to you then you should a) have only your husband get cards for now OR b) focus on only AMEX business cards until October of this year OR Best yet - a combination of those two ideas for the next 9 months.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

On the topic of keeping track - I have a spreadsheet (well I have about 40 spreadsheets, my wife's joke is I have one for everything) - but my one for tracking CCs has the following fields (Bold for ones I think are really important). (Also should not I keep my list and my wife's list separate)

1) Issuer
2) Card Name - Highlighted Green if a Biz card that does not affect 5/24 status
3) Last 4 Digits
4) AU - used this to track when we used to add spouse as AU on cards - no X's have appeared in this column lately
5) Date Approved - the sheet is sorted by this column
6) Date Cancelled - blank unless I cancelled the card
7) Annual Fee
8) Annual Bonus - things like 6k SW points, free IHG night, etc.
9) Signup Bonus - detail of the signup bonus I received on the card
10) Min Spend Amount
11) Date Bonus Received - helpful with Chase where you're tracking 24 months to get the bonus again
12) Bonus Value - an approximation of what the signup bonus was worth
13) % Return - Bonus Value DIVIDED BY Min Spend - neat to see my return
14) Notes - misc notes not captured elsewhere
15) Ongoing Rewards - field where I capture any category bonuses (i.e. Grocery 3% or Gas 3%, or Freedom 5% quarterly)

When I cancel a card I highlight the whole row in a light red shade but don't move it or sort it differently. By counting backwards I can quickly determine how many cards I or my wife has been approved for in the past 6 months, year, 24 months, etc.

I have all of this information stored for all 62 cards we've applied for in this game. It's nice for informational purposes. For those tracking by hand...I'd consider moving to a spreadsheet at some point, especially if you're gonna get serious about the game. It will eventually become hard to keep writing it all down.

My spread sheet is very similar, except I'll admit I haven't been tracking the signup bonuses. Under date approved, I'll add date cancelled if cancelled and highlight purple. My list is sorted by issuer and each card also has the monthly due date and cardholder (DH or me). The date opened is highlighted in red (me) or blue (DH) so I can quickly count up the red dates, for example, and see how many cards I have approved in past 24 months. However, we have only 19 cards, not 62.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

My spread sheet is very similar, except I'll admit I haven't been tracking the signup bonuses. Under date approved, I'll add date cancelled if cancelled and highlight purple. My list is sorted by issuer and each card also has the monthly due date and cardholder (DH or me). The date opened is highlighted in red (me) or blue (DH) so I can quickly count up the red dates, for example, and see how many cards I have approved in past 24 months. However, we have only 19 cards, not 62.

The only problem with using the same field for date approved and date cancelled is if you cancel a card after 1 year, how do you keep track of when that card was opened then for 5/24 status (because obviously the approved date is all that matters for 5/24 purposes).
That's why I have it as two separate columns...and also because I'm a data junkie and just want to keep track of ever single detail related to these accounts, lol.

Hoping to make it 63 cards in the next month or so hahaha, I am the first to admit I have a problem!

 

[Lain]

Just wanted to post this here too. I noticed some new fee free dollars on my Plastiq account today, so thank you, thank you, thank you to whomever found my posts helpful enough to bestow me with your generosity. I know you didn’t have to, so it’s much appreciated.

 

[Albort]

Just wanted to post this here too. I noticed some new fee free dollars on my Plastiq account today, so thank you, thank you, thank you to whomever found my posts helpful enough to bestow me with your generosity. I know you didn’t have to, so it’s much appreciated.

u basically wrote all there is to know about plastiq on our reddit post... you deserve it! :]

PS, it wasnt me.

 

[calypso726]

I saw this thread on the BB asking everyone what their vacation plans and costs were for this year. I thought it would be a good one to post here but with a spin that fits our thread. Where is everyone planning to go on vacation this year and how or what are your plans to use points and miles for said vacation? Here is my list:

Feb - 3 day Disney cruise - $1400 (paid with discounted Disney gift cards and/or earned 5x points and miles on the GCs)

March - weekend in DC - Willard Washington hotel - free with IHG card holder anniversary night, flights paid with Amex MR points. Out of pocket costs will be food and sightseeing.

May/June - Adventures by Disney trip to China ($15,798 opening day discounted price and paid with discounted Disney gift cards and/or earned 5x points and miles on the GCs), with a pre day in Hong Kong DL using DVC points, a post day at Shanghai DL and a post trip to Tokyo DL and Tokyo Disney Sea (planning to wipe off hotel charges with credit card points). Flights are all in first class and were all booked with miles and points and we paid under $200 in taxes and fees.

Sep - Hawaii 6 nights at Westin Maui $600 and have to attend the 90 minute timeshare presentation. Flights paid with points and miles.

Sep/Oct/Nov - will be at F&W every weekend using our DVC points with Beach Club Villas, we drive and are AP holders, so just gas and food. Will use CSR and charge everything to the hotel for the 3x.

Nov - 4 nights over Thanksgiving in WDW at Villas at Grand Floridian - booked 2 of the two bedroom rooms and a studio using our DVC points to bring the whole family. Will use CSR and charge everything to the hotel for the 3x.

Dec/Jan - Antarctica with Linblad on the National Geographic Orion for my 50th birthday. $36,000 and we are in steerage This of course is a once in a lifetime trip and will be the most expensive trip we've ever taken. We will be paying it with a British Airways credit card so we can earn a companion pass out of it at least. The flights will be booked with points and miles and everything else is included, thank goodness.

 

[Sun_soakin]

There are currently links out there for 50k for both Plus and Premier (just not referral links). Business is still at 60k.

Hard to say if personal will go back up to 60k and if so, when...hope this info helps.

I’ve found those links but didn’t know if we’d actually get the higher bonus. I didn’t realize business was still at 60k, that’s great! I’ll see if I can still find a 50k link for the personal card.
Thank you for the help!

 

[CyndiLouWho]

The only problem with using the same field for date approved and date cancelled is if you cancel a card after 1 year, how do you keep track of when that card was opened then for 5/24 status (because obviously the approved date is all that matters for 5/24 purposes).
That's why I have it as two separate columns...and also because I'm a data junkie and just want to keep track of ever single detail related to these accounts, lol.

Hoping to make it 63 cards in the next month or so hahaha, I am the first to admit I have a problem!

On my spreadsheet, the field titled 'Opened' is large enough for both, '9/15, closed 7/17' or if PC'd 'CSR 11/16 PC 12/17'

 

[vanjust14]

Just wanted to post this here too. I noticed some new fee free dollars on my Plastiq account today, so thank you, thank you, thank you to whomever found my posts helpful enough to bestow me with your generosity. I know you didn’t have to, so it’s much appreciated.

It was me I followed your advice on reddit for paying with Plastiq. It worked perfectly and I figured you deserved the referral!

 

[CyndiLouWho]

I saw this thread on the BB asking everyone what their vacation plans and costs were for this year. I thought it would be a good one to post here but with a spin that fits our thread. Where is everyone planning to go on vacation this year and how or what are your plans to use points and miles for said vacation? Here is my list:

I'll play although nowhere near your plans
Feb-March: WDW at Poly (paid with UR points) and Dolphin (SPG points), flights paid with SW points. Tickets bought a > a year ago before price increases, paid on CSR for 3x points

June: A week in AZ. 4 nights in Flagstaff on Hilton points. 1 night in Williams on UR points. 2 nights at the Grand Canyon rim OOP on CSR. First class train tickets from Williams to Grand Canyon, covered with CSR TC. Flight with AA points.
2 vacations a year is probably all we can manage with work & school schedules but we're enjoying them.

 

[calypso726]

I'll play although nowhere near your plans
Feb-March: WDW at Poly (paid with UR points) and Dolphin (SPG points), flights paid with SW points. Tickets bought a > a year ago before price increases, paid on CSR for 3x points

June: A week in AZ. 4 nights in Flagstaff on Hilton points. 1 night in Williams on UR points. 2 nights at the Grand Canyon rim OOP on CSR. First class train tickets from Williams to Grand Canyon, covered with CSR TC. Flight with AA points.
2 vacations a year is probably all we can manage with work & school schedules but we're enjoying them.

Well done! Your train tix got me thinking about the idea of rail vacations. This is what I love about sharing vacation ideas, it always spurs me on to look into something new.

 

[AmyAnne]

Well done! Your train tix got me thinking about the idea of rail vacations. This is what I love about sharing vacation ideas, it always spurs me on to look into something new.

I also enjoy reading about how others plan. We have decided on a Christmas trip to WDW and Universal this December, probably the week before Christmas, so I'm excited to start planning that trip. And in the next few months I will be buying plane tickets for my two kids who are applying to grad schools for the fall -- although these tickets are the antithesis of planning . . .

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

I saw this thread on the BB asking everyone what their vacation plans and costs were for this year. I thought it would be a good one to post here but with a spin that fits our thread. Where is everyone planning to go on vacation this year and how or what are your plans to use points and miles for said vacation?...

Sounds neat to me - Here's our Plans...

1) January/February - 8 Day Trip to Disney World (Split Stay at Beach Club & Poly);

• Flights = $715.85 cash cost; Using 40,340 SW Points AND $44.80 in tax/fees covered by SW Gift card from AMEX Plat GC Reimbersement.
• Disney Cost = $6,612.28 (includes hotel, tickets, and budgeted amount for dining/souven'ears); LESS $1,205.22 saved by booking on travel agent excl. discount; LESS $911.64 in Disney rewards CC redemptions = NET $4,495.42
• Acquired Gift Cards for the other ~ $4,495.42; LESS $601.00 in various gift card savings = $3,894.42 NET After that
• Cashed Out $3,894.42 in MRs via Schwab (applied to this trip) = FREE TRIP in my accounting spreadsheet!!

2) Late June - 9 Day Trip to Myrtle Beach

• Using Marriott points for 2 free rooms for us and brother in law halfway there on Fri Night (Value = Roughly $200)
• Condo booked via Airbnb for $1,045. Bro-In-Law will pay $400; Our share = $645 cash out of pocket
• Dining/Misc = TBD
• Will apply additional MRs cashed out via Schwab to net this trip as FREE in my accounting spreadsheet

3) Mid July - 8 Day Trip to Captiva Island in Florida

• Annual trip with Parents and my sister - everything but flights is paid by my parents
• Flights = $1,271.84 cash cost; Using 71,672 SW Points and $44.80 in tax/fees covered by SW Gift card from AMEX Plat GC Reimbersement.
• Obviously this is a nice benefit that my parents pay for but still FREE in my accounting spreadsheet

4) November TBD Trip to Orlando (probably Seaworld and maybe a Halloween or Christmas party depending on exact trip timing)

• Flights will be covered by SW Points and fees via GC
• Hotel will be through points with either IHG, Marriott, Hilton or some combo thereof
• Attraction Tickets probably covered via some additional cash rewards generated
• Hoping this is FREE or < $100 at most.

5) Also considering a weekend trip to Niagara Falls OR Washington DC - TBD but would use Hotel points for that portion

SUMMARY - Hoping to beat last year when we put $12k in gross travel expenses on the books for a NET cost of $20.12!!

 

[calypso726]

@SouthFayetteFan color me impressed!