I love credit cards so much!

[gottalovepluto]

That's weird. I wonder why @linzjane88 's BCP doesn't code Fred Meyer as groceries? Same store brand, same cc processor.

But not the same physical store. Maybe the individual stores/districts decide their merchant code?

 

[gottalovepluto]

Another plastiq/CIP fan here. However, with the CIC potentially going away, I'm in agreement with @kmc8826, I'd go for the CIC now. Can always go after the CIP later. The bonus is the same as it's always been and I highly doubt is going anywhere soon.

@wdwcindy these guys changed my mind! I was ALL in on the “hit the big bonus CIP first” camp but then the reminder this is the best public offer seen on the CIC flipped my vote to CIC. Well played @kmc8826 @wendow & @Lain !

 

[linzjane88]

That's weird. I wonder why @linzjane88 's BCP doesn't code Fred Meyer as groceries? Same store brand, same cc processor.

I'm thinking maybe @afan is talking about the grocery store named Fred's, not Fred Meyer? Maybe? I dunno, I haven't used my BCP at FM in at least a year because I got burned early on and learned my lesson. LOL! But maybe it's changed? That would be great!

 

[disneedee]

That's weird. I wonder why @linzjane88 's BCP doesn't code Fred Meyer as groceries? Same store brand, same cc processor.

My Oregon Freddie’s also doesn’t code as grocery on ax. I was so upset after getting that ax for the 6% on groceries.

 

[wendow]

What happens when you close a card with points that are pending? Do you have access to those points?

 

[linzjane88]

My Oregon Freddie’s also doesn’t code as grocery on ax. I was so upset after getting that ax for the 6% on groceries.

Me too! Especially because Safeway, which does fuel points and codes as grocery, very rarely runs any 4x promos.

 

[Artygal90]

Evening y'all! I applied last week to have the existing credit line on my one credit card raised and it came through today! I'm hoping this means that I will look like a sure thing when filling out Chase apps...I got sick last week and that 100K CIP bonus in-branch didn't come through, so I haven't applied for that yet. I may just be lazy and stick with an online app rather than try and chase down a BRM. Actually, bringing up the online vs. BRM choice got me into an argument with my husband today over dinner, which leads me to a kind of personal question for anyone who's willing to answer...

My husband is deathly afraid of me dipping a toe into this churning world. He thinks it's really risky and is scared it will ruin the great financial progress we've made this year eliminating the last of our IRS and car debt. He knows this is irrational, since I'm objectively pretty dang good with money, so he's willing to let me try it out. However, I don't feel great about having to hide the details from him to avoid stressing him out. Actually, advance planning of any kind stresses him out - he got antsy today when I asked him if he'd like to meet Kylo Ren whenever we take our next trip to DHS :/

Has anyone else been in a similar situation with a spouse who is reluctant to start churning? Did you just keep the details from them? Sacrifice award travel for the sake of your relationship? Kidnap them from work and say "we're going to Disneyworld on awards points right now whether you like it for not!!!" ?

Argh, help. *headdesk*

 

[wendow]

Evening y'all! I applied last week to have the existing credit line on my one credit card raised and it came through today! I'm hoping this means that I will look like a sure thing when filling out Chase apps...I got sick last week and that 100K CIP bonus in-branch didn't come through, so I haven't applied for that yet. I may just be lazy and stick with an online app rather than try and chase down a BRM. Actually, bringing up the online vs. BRM choice got me into an argument with my husband today over dinner, which leads me to a kind of personal question for anyone who's willing to answer...

My husband is deathly afraid of me dipping a toe into this churning world. He thinks it's really risky and is scared it will ruin the great financial progress we've made this year eliminating the last of our IRS and car debt. He knows this is irrational, since I'm objectively pretty dang good with money, so he's willing to let me try it out. However, I don't feel great about having to hide the details from him to avoid stressing him out. Actually, advance planning of any kind stresses him out - he got antsy today when I asked him if he'd like to meet Kylo Ren whenever we take our next trip to DHS :/

Has anyone else been in a similar situation with a spouse who is reluctant to start churning? Did you just keep the details from them? Sacrifice award travel for the sake of your relationship? Kidnap them from work and say "we're going to Disneyworld on awards points right now whether you like it for not!!!" ?

Argh, help. *headdesk*

My husband wasn't 100% on board at the beginning but I'd already been doing GC churning for almost two years previously, and he was quite impressed with how that turned out, so he agreed to let me play the CC game a bit. Once he saw that our credit scores were only going up and we weren't taking on debt, he relaxed about it. Now, he is fine with it but I don't share much. He doesn't care for the nitty-gritty details. Basically, he just wants to know which card to use Oh, and he doesn't want to call the CC company. He's done it when I have asked but he's much happier if I don't ask him to do that.

So, I recommend you start slow, and don't overwhelm him with details or anything you know stresses him out. Let him know it's very easy for one person to manage both spouse accounts so he really needs to do nothing.

 

[platamama]

Evening y'all! I applied last week to have the existing credit line on my one credit card raised and it came through today! I'm hoping this means that I will look like a sure thing when filling out Chase apps...I got sick last week and that 100K CIP bonus in-branch didn't come through, so I haven't applied for that yet. I may just be lazy and stick with an online app rather than try and chase down a BRM. Actually, bringing up the online vs. BRM choice got me into an argument with my husband today over dinner, which leads me to a kind of personal question for anyone who's willing to answer...

My husband is deathly afraid of me dipping a toe into this churning world. He thinks it's really risky and is scared it will ruin the great financial progress we've made this year eliminating the last of our IRS and car debt. He knows this is irrational, since I'm objectively pretty dang good with money, so he's willing to let me try it out. However, I don't feel great about having to hide the details from him to avoid stressing him out. Actually, advance planning of any kind stresses him out - he got antsy today when I asked him if he'd like to meet Kylo Ren whenever we take our next trip to DHS :/

Has anyone else been in a similar situation with a spouse who is reluctant to start churning? Did you just keep the details from them? Sacrifice award travel for the sake of your relationship? Kidnap them from work and say "we're going to Disneyworld on awards points right now whether you like it for not!!!" ?

Argh, help. *headdesk*

I think some people have told the non-churning partner that they can ride in coach while the churner goes in the front of the plane.

On a more serious note, it seems a lot of us who post on here have reluctant "participants" in the family (or those who need extra help remembering which card to use for which occasion). If you're coming out of a situation that was financially stressful, it's understandable. Maybe take things slowly and prove that this is all real and can be done by anybody who's willing to be disciplined and responsible. One of the first "rules" anyone here will tell you is to pay your bill in full each month, do not pay any interest, because if you do it defeats the purpose of the whole points/miles game.

Good luck!

 

[platamama]

deleted

 

[Artygal90]

My husband wasn't 100% on board at the beginning but I'd already been doing GC churning for almost two years previously, and he was quite impressed with how that turned out, so he agreed to let me play the CC game a bit. Once he saw that our credit scores were only going up and we weren't taking on debt, he relaxed about it. Now, he is fine with it but I don't share much. He doesn't care for the nitty-gritty details. Basically, he just wants to know which card to use Oh, and he doesn't want to call the CC company. He's done it when I have asked but he's much happier if I don't ask him to do that.

So, I recommend you start slow, and don't overwhelm him with details or anything you know stresses him out. Let him know it's very easy for one person to manage both spouse accounts so he really needs to do nothing.

Phew, glad to know I'm not alone! I will take the advice to avoid the overwhelm (so I'll be talking to y'all about it instead, hope no one minds ) Thanks!

 

[wendow]

Phew, glad to know I'm not alone! I will take the advice to avoid the overwhelm (so I'll be talking to y'all about it instead, hope no one minds ) Thanks!

I think a lot of us are in '2-player mode' but our 2nd player isn't really interested in playing so we come here to chat about it. I have learned if I start talking to much about CC's, my dh's eyes kind of glaze over and I know his mind is now on baseball highlights lol

 

[Artygal90]

I think some people have told the non-churning partner that they can ride in coach while the churner goes in the front of the plane.

LOL! Yes, that certainly would make the point! But I would probably regret that for the rest of the trip....our financial journey over the past year and his past financial history make the trepidation very understandable. I just felt icky about the idea of "hiding" things from him - but like you said, going slow and staying disciplined and responsible will lead to success, and there's no reason to over-involve him in the details. Glad to know I don't need to feel guilty about being interested in this while my spouse is not 100% enthusiastic about it! Thank you!

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

I think some people have told the non-churning partner that they can ride in coach while the churner goes in the front of the plane.

That was me, LOL--and it worked. He's fully on board now. He even has a nice little chart to look at that tells him the card to use for a category. It's like credit card garanimals. (And for the record, his reluctance was from aziness LOL).

 

[Albort]

I think a lot of us are in '2-player mode' but our 2nd player isn't really interested in playing so we come here to chat about it. I have learned if I start talking to much about CC's, my dh's eyes kind of glaze over and I know his mind is now on baseball highlights lol

hmm... any other single players out there? :|

 

[calypso726]

Evening y'all! I applied last week to have the existing credit line on my one credit card raised and it came through today! I'm hoping this means that I will look like a sure thing when filling out Chase apps...I got sick last week and that 100K CIP bonus in-branch didn't come through, so I haven't applied for that yet. I may just be lazy and stick with an online app rather than try and chase down a BRM. Actually, bringing up the online vs. BRM choice got me into an argument with my husband today over dinner, which leads me to a kind of personal question for anyone who's willing to answer...

My husband is deathly afraid of me dipping a toe into this churning world. He thinks it's really risky and is scared it will ruin the great financial progress we've made this year eliminating the last of our IRS and car debt. He knows this is irrational, since I'm objectively pretty dang good with money, so he's willing to let me try it out. However, I don't feel great about having to hide the details from him to avoid stressing him out. Actually, advance planning of any kind stresses him out - he got antsy today when I asked him if he'd like to meet Kylo Ren whenever we take our next trip to DHS :/

Has anyone else been in a similar situation with a spouse who is reluctant to start churning? Did you just keep the details from them? Sacrifice award travel for the sake of your relationship? Kidnap them from work and say "we're going to Disneyworld on awards points right now whether you like it for not!!!" ?

Argh, help. *headdesk*

DH started out as a reluctant participant. He argued that our credit scores would drop and we'd be in debt. I argued that he was not allowed to make up facts to suit his narrative and I showed him articles from financial publications on how credit scores work. I asked him what he'd think if a financial expert decided to explain to him how computer networks and security systems for computers work (this is his profession) based on assumptions they made and they had no experience in the area. I said that he was doing the same thing. I asked him to explain in detail how we would go in debt by using a credit card to purchase the exact same things we were currently getting, like groceries and paying household expenses. He was unable to do that. I asked him to explain exactly what he was getting in return by paying cash for things. Then, I showed him what he'd be getting by using a credit card and then paying it off right away and treating it like a debit card.

After our very first international first class flight in lie flat seats where we got turn down service on the plane, DH became a very willing participant and a plane seat snob. I said he turned into a princess when it came to airline seats. He earned the nickname "Plane Princess" here on this thread. I don't remember who gave it to him, but I showed it to him and he cracked up.

I think some people have told the non-churning partner that they can ride in coach while the churner goes in the front of the plane.

That was my threat when the Plane Princess did not want to call recon He called.

 

[trenty]

MR actually has more transfer partners than UR. Not sure if that was a typo. MR has 19 transfer partners. 16 are airlines and 3 are hotels. 13 of the airlines transfer 1:1. Choice Hotel is 1:1, SPG is 1:.333 and Hilton is 1:2

UR has 13 transfer partners. 9 are airlines and 4 are hotels. All transfer 1:1

I also prefer Chase UR over Amex MR and would agree with the other excellent points you've made.

Thanks for pointing out my error. I guess I thought UR had more because I think of them as so much more versatile than MR. I will go and edit my post.

 

[GZanta77]

hmm... any other single players out there? :|

Yep - pretty much a single player in 2P mode. My DW knows she has a new credit card when I hand her a piece of plastic and say 'Sign this, please'. She rolls her eyes and sighs 'Another One?'. She has absolutely no interest in the details, but does know we get a lot of free travel out of it.

DW has gotten a lot better at using the right card. A shared notes file on iCloud has helped and I think she has learned I can get irrationally frustrated with missed points earning opportunities - esp if working on a MSR.

The great thing is she is happy to let me do what I want with this hobby. She loves to travel so is quite content to share the benefits, even if her eyes glaze over pretty fast if I attempt to share any details on various point redemption options etc.

 

[3 DD love princesses]

Over 200 messages yesterday you guys have been busy. I think this thread moves fast when I’m on vacation!

More than likely my SW card, but also curious what people do with the other Chase cards frequently mentioned here, i.e CIP and CSP.

For your sw Card wait for the points to show on your rr account then you can cancel it and fee refunded. I made the mistake of canceling before fee hit and missed out on the 6k bonus

Hey y'all, quick question.
I made a purchase with my CIP card at office depot and it didn't give me 5X points. I thought Office depot/max and Staples were 5X?

I will need a big amount of Disney GCs soon, I had planned on purchasing them at one of the 3 stores mentioned but maybe I need to rethink my plan?

We all make mistakes. I know some use spreadsheets as reminders and some label cards.

Thanks for the quick reply. Next question-CIC OR CIP? I like the idea of the 5X on CIC and I will not be using Plastiq.

CIC while there’s a high bonus

Evening y'all! I applied last week to have the existing credit line on my one credit card raised and it came through today! I'm hoping this means that I will look like a sure thing when filling out Chase apps...I got sick last week and that 100K CIP bonus in-branch didn't come through, so I haven't applied for that yet. I may just be lazy and stick with an online app rather than try and chase down a BRM. Actually, bringing up the online vs. BRM choice got me into an argument with my husband today over dinner, which leads me to a kind of personal question for anyone who's willing to answer...

My husband is deathly afraid of me dipping a toe into this churning world. He thinks it's really risky and is scared it will ruin the great financial progress we've made this year eliminating the last of our IRS and car debt. He knows this is irrational, since I'm objectively pretty dang good with money, so he's willing to let me try it out. However, I don't feel great about having to hide the details from him to avoid stressing him out. Actually, advance planning of any kind stresses him out - he got antsy today when I asked him if he'd like to meet Kylo Ren whenever we take our next trip to DHS :/

Has anyone else been in a similar situation with a spouse who is reluctant to start churning? Did you just keep the details from them? Sacrifice award travel for the sake of your relationship? Kidnap them from work and say "we're going to Disneyworld on awards points right now whether you like it for not!!!" ?

Argh, help. *headdesk*

DH wasn’t into this and still isn’t but will allow it as long as I do all the work. He just asks what card do I use for every purchase.

 

[speedyfishy]

Evening y'all! I applied last week to have the existing credit line on my one credit card raised and it came through today! I'm hoping this means that I will look like a sure thing when filling out Chase apps...I got sick last week and that 100K CIP bonus in-branch didn't come through, so I haven't applied for that yet. I may just be lazy and stick with an online app rather than try and chase down a BRM. Actually, bringing up the online vs. BRM choice got me into an argument with my husband today over dinner, which leads me to a kind of personal question for anyone who's willing to answer...

My husband is deathly afraid of me dipping a toe into this churning world. He thinks it's really risky and is scared it will ruin the great financial progress we've made this year eliminating the last of our IRS and car debt. He knows this is irrational, since I'm objectively pretty dang good with money, so he's willing to let me try it out. However, I don't feel great about having to hide the details from him to avoid stressing him out. Actually, advance planning of any kind stresses him out - he got antsy today when I asked him if he'd like to meet Kylo Ren whenever we take our next trip to DHS :/

Has anyone else been in a similar situation with a spouse who is reluctant to start churning? Did you just keep the details from them? Sacrifice award travel for the sake of your relationship? Kidnap them from work and say "we're going to Disneyworld on awards points right now whether you like it for not!!!" ?

Argh, help. *headdesk*

SO was not on board. He thought I was doing something illegal, his credit score would tank and I’d forget to pay a card. I decided to just get him a basic Freedom Unlimited card and started going hard with cards for myself first. I showed him how my credit score kept going up and was higher than his. I also told him I would keep organized with excel sheets. I’m pretty disorganized so I saw his concern there. I’m in charge of paying all our bills, but SO has a checklist on his phone to just confirm I didn’t forget.

I’d recommend going slow with this stuff in the beginning. He may eventually come around. SO has given me permission to get whatever card I want now, but at first it was looking like he would just be getting a few cards.