I love credit cards so much!

[vanjust14]

I have 3 cards with annual fees of $85, $95 and $99. I can easily use the nights in my travels even with Marriott's changes and the cost of each room being the under $100 'fee' makes them reasonable to me. Driving down the east Coast into Florida you don't find Marriott rooms for under $100, so for me there are savings to keeping all 3 cards, with the SPG and it's offers being the top pick. Too bad Chase wouldn't expand their offers a bit. Each card will easily save me $50 a night on a room. The 35K point cards will save me closer to $200 plus if I use them in Clearwater, which I am in the habit of visiting as a side trip on my Disney visits.

It all adds up to making my wanderings affordable.

And, I'm waiting to catch that luxury card for other higher point options.

I've been thinking about a trip to Clearwater..never been! Where do you like to stay?

 

[WVMomof3]

Ok. So, I have not gotten much into Plastiq or Venmo or any MS'ing. Going to try dipping my toes I a bit. We just closed on a Re-fi beginning of the month. Waiting on info for our new Mortgage Company. (I had our last mortgage already set up to be auto deducted every month so didn't want to mess that up..). But now I think would be a good time to start using Plastiq. Let me know if I have this right..

1. DH has CIP and this will get us 3X Points on Plastiq?
2. Paying Mortgage with CIP is totally legal and not against any of the rules.
3. I can just set up payment to be auto deducted each month.
4. Payment will be around $2200 a month. So at 2.5% my fees would be $55 a month or $660 a year. That in turn would earn 79,200 UR's a year (at 3x points), which I can transfer to CSR for redemption value of 118,800 points. Is that correct. Anything I am missing??

Define legal. Lol

Mortgages are not supposed to be paid with a Visa. Which is why people need to make clever names for their mortgage company. I don’t know that I would call it illegal though....

 

[MrsAlexis]

Just following up on some of my other posts as a lurker/newbie. Just got DH approved for CSR today! Was a little worried about not getting an auto approval (not sure why, he has great credit), but that turned into non-issue. I'm not going to DD him due to concerns with meeting MSR and I'm OK with that. One of my previous posts mentioned that I have Disney reservation in my name, but want to pay for it using URs under DH's new CSR. Melissa at Chase emailed me and said that is "totally fine, he is able to use his points for anyone. So it would not be an issue with you being the primary traveler on the reservation " So that was a great relief and good to know for future reference.

So I plan to hold my new CSP for at least the first year (added DH as AU like a dummy before you guys taught me some things!) and he will have the CSR. We will pool our points every month into his CSR UR account. Then at the end of first year, DH will at least keep his CSR to reap 2nd year travel credit, but before AF cannot be reversed. Then I will refer him to CSP, and he will refer me to CSR. Then after two years of CSR, we will evaluate how much perceived value we are getting from it and decide whether to keep it or not. I am 5/24 right now (down to 4/24 next month), and DH is at 4/24 and next card drop off for him isn't until next June. So we have some room to play but need to complete CSR MSR before I can consider anything else. However, reading you guys each day will have my mind wandering about my next card!

Like others before me have said, thank you to everyone on this board for your tips, advice, and strategies!

 

[LynnTH]

Define legal. Lol

Mortgages are not supposed to be paid with a Visa. Which is why people need to make clever names for their mortgage company. I don’t know that I would call it illegal though....

I was just on the Plasiq site and looked for different info. And it said Mortgages could be paid with MC/Visa but not AMEX... Ok so that is why you don't want anything with Mortgage or Finance in the name.

 

[jhoannam]

I saw this on Flyer talk, thinking about doing the same.

Please correct me if I am wrong in this scenario: We want to stay at a SPG property in HI next summer that will be Cat 5. If I get a Cat 5 MTP now and attach it to a Marriott property that is currently 25k and going up to 35k (is currently Cat 5 and will be Cat 5 in August) we could possibly transfer that to the Cat 5 Starwood property after the August conversion. It may also be possible if we did the Marriott reservation and cancel we could be given points equivalent to the amount to book a new Cat 5. I realize this is speculation and hedging a bet, but I wanted to try to make a safer bet...

I just made a reservation to one of those few current Cat 5 (25K), that will also be a new Cat 5 (35K). Hope it works.

 

[trstno1]

Does anyone know the best way to order a MacBook through Apple to maximize points? Last time I went through chase portal to get double points. Not sure if that was the best. This time I am using my Hyatt card I just got, wasn’t sure if the shopping portals worked on cobranded cards? Or should I do something like the Southwest portal someone mentioned earlier? Haven’t looked into this at all yet, but DD just got back from Thailand and is now in a hurry to get things ready for leaving for college. Hope we didn’t wait too long, I remember watching the tracking on my last DDs MacBook and it literally took the slow boat from China. Took forever to get here. I think it got here right before classes, but she goes to school 20 minutes from home. This DD is going 7 hours away, so needs to get here before she leaves!

I apologize if this has been answered, but Discover Deals offers 5% cash back at Apple when using your Discover card, doubled during the first year. You can customize all you want, and they have the best selection of free Beats if your daughter is still a student (plus the student discount). Shipping times are very fast right now, even on the brand new MacBook Pro's.
https://www.discover.com/credit-car...al/?id=5842&ICMPGN=DEALSPUB_MAIN_POPDEALS_TXT

 

[Judique]

Regarding Clearwater...I was just looking at some places there last night.
Hilton- not so great reviews
Hampton inn-new and great reviews
Doubletree N Redington- good reviews , cheap!

I've been thinking about a trip to Clearwater..never been! Where do you like to stay?

I stay at the Sheraton Sand Key Resort on Clearwater Beach.

It is south of the Pier area and away from the area that the Hilton and Hampton are in. Parking is easy. They've got a club lounge. The rooms are large. Rooms look out to the Bay, to the Gulf and if you are unlucky onto the ac units near the tennis courts - I've never been unlucky so far but prefer the Gulf view for the sunsets.

The beach is right there. There are also a pool, hot tub, fire pit, tennis and badminton area (in the sand)and its not at all crowded.

There are a couple of restaurants in the hotel and lots of choices nearby.

It is a 10K with SPG but going up with Marriott. I think to 35K but maybe its 30K.

There is also a Marriott Suites on the Bay side right across the street. In my opinion the Sand Key has the better location.

This an older property but pretty well kept up. And Starwood Preferred Guest used to mean something here.

 

[WVMomof3]

Just following up on some of my other posts as a lurker/newbie. Just got DH approved for CSR today! Was a little worried about not getting an auto approval (not sure why, he has great credit), but that turned into non-issue. I'm not going to DD him due to concerns with meeting MSR and I'm OK with that. One of my previous posts mentioned that I have Disney reservation in my name, but want to pay for it using URs under DH's new CSR. Melissa at Chase emailed me and said that is "totally fine, he is able to use his points for anyone. So it would not be an issue with you being the primary traveler on the reservation " So that was a great relief and good to know for future reference.

So I plan to hold my new CSP for at least the first year (added DH as AU like a dummy before you guys taught me some things!) and he will have the CSR. We will pool our points every month into his CSR UR account. Then at the end of first year, DH will at least keep his CSR to reap 2nd year travel credit, but before AF cannot be reversed. Then I will refer him to CSP, and he will refer me to CSR. Then after two years of CSR, we will evaluate how much perceived value we are getting from it and decide whether to keep it or not. I am 5/24 right now (down to 4/24 next month), and DH is at 4/24 and next card drop off for him isn't until next June. So we have some room to play but need to complete CSR MSR before I can consider anything else. However, reading you guys each day will have my mind wandering about my next card!

Like others before me have said, thank you to everyone on this board for your tips, advice, and strategies!

Congrats on approval! But the rest will not work. That is why people double dip. You can not have both cards within 2 years from bonus posting of either card. If you get them both same day then you can have both.

 

[vanjust14]

When does the SPG biz perk of lounge access end? And why are all the Sheraton hotels I look at so outdated with only mediocre reviews??

August 1. I used it for the first and last time at a Sheraton in May. It was awful! The hotel was rundown and the "lounge" did not have any food or drinks. It literally was just a room with chairs and a TV. I complained as their website advertised it had a lounge with drinks, snacks, and breakfast. They gave me two bottles of water and breakfast vouchers. I wrote a review and was given 4,000 points in response.

 

[miztressuz]

When does the SPG biz perk of lounge access end? And why are all the Sheraton hotels I look at so outdated with only mediocre reviews??

Unfortunately, August 1 I believe, along with all the other changes. Agree on the Sheratons, one of the reasons I opted to go with Hyatt House when we went to DL last month (apart from distance), but the ones I've looked up elsewhere had the same issue. I'm a stickler for "new" and renovated properties

Yeah, Aug 1. Since that's a CC perk, that date they were clear on

Nice to see another MD-er

Gyft makes no sense sometimes. After hearing the stories from @DaveL and some others, I still tried it and had no issues with the first couple of purchases (bought $100 from HD, a $50 and $25 from WM). Thought I was in the clear, NOPE. My $25 WM purchase today is "under security review" Really? So $100 HD and $50 WM previously were fine, $25 gets flagged for a security review. Called and was told someone needs to review my account to confirm it's me. Recommended that I link my FB or Google ID account for improved verification odds Seriously?? Social media accounts make my Gyft account more secure, but not the verified mobile number??? Um, ok...

Because no one could open a totally free account with fake info ever on fb or google. (I read that on the interwebs, it must be true )

In all seriousness I do find it disturbing that many places are relying on that type of thing for security/verification. Hopefully that's just a claim to disguise their true intent of collecting demographic data (not that it's better) and not really for security purposes. (and if I stole your phone or took the time to spoof the number to get around the mobile number verification, why am I buying $25 WM cards???)

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Just following up on some of my other posts as a lurker/newbie. Just got DH approved for CSR today! Was a little worried about not getting an auto approval (not sure why, he has great credit), but that turned into non-issue. I'm not going to DD him due to concerns with meeting MSR and I'm OK with that. One of my previous posts mentioned that I have Disney reservation in my name, but want to pay for it using URs under DH's new CSR. Melissa at Chase emailed me and said that is "totally fine, he is able to use his points for anyone. So it would not be an issue with you being the primary traveler on the reservation " So that was a great relief and good to know for future reference.

So I plan to hold my new CSP for at least the first year (added DH as AU like a dummy before you guys taught me some things!) and he will have the CSR. We will pool our points every month into his CSR UR account. Then at the end of first year, DH will at least keep his CSR to reap 2nd year travel credit, but before AF cannot be reversed. Then I will refer him to CSP, and he will refer me to CSR. Then after two years of CSR, we will evaluate how much perceived value we are getting from it and decide whether to keep it or not. I am 5/24 right now (down to 4/24 next month), and DH is at 4/24 and next card drop off for him isn't until next June. So we have some room to play but need to complete CSR MSR before I can consider anything else. However, reading you guys each day will have my mind wandering about my next card!

Like others before me have said, thank you to everyone on this board for your tips, advice, and strategies!

..are you referring each other after 1year of having the CSP and CSR to try for the 50,000 bonus or just to get the 10,000 referral bonus. If it’s the 50,000 bonus you can only get it again on a Sapphire product 2 years after the first sign up bonus

 

[wendow]

Ok. So, I have not gotten much into Plastiq or Venmo or any MS'ing. Going to try dipping my toes I a bit. We just closed on a Re-fi beginning of the month. Waiting on info for our new Mortgage Company. (I had our last mortgage already set up to be auto deducted every month so didn't want to mess that up..). But now I think would be a good time to start using Plastiq. Let me know if I have this right..

1. DH has CIP and this will get us 3X Points on Plastiq?
2. Paying Mortgage with CIP is totally legal and not against any of the rules.
3. I can just set up payment to be auto deducted each month.
4. Payment will be around $2200 a month. So at 2.5% my fees would be $55 a month or $660 a year. That in turn would earn 79,200 UR's a year (at 3x points), which I can transfer to CSR for redemption value of 118,800 points. Is that correct. Anything I am missing??

1. Yes
2. 'Legal', yes. Not against any rules, no. You cannot use a Visa to pay a mortgage.
3. Yes, however Plastiq will require you to enter an 'end date' for the payments. I just pay each month.
4. Seems about right, without actually crunching any numbers lol...I'll leave that to the mathy peeps here

 

[wendow]

August 1. I used it for the first and last time at a Sheraton in May. It was awful! The hotel was rundown and the "lounge" did not have any food or drinks. It literally was just a room with chairs and a TV. I complained as their website advertised it had a lounge with drinks, snacks, and breakfast. They gave me two bottles of water and breakfast vouchers. I wrote a review and was given 4,000 points in response.

Wow, that is awful! I was thinking i might try to squeeze in a 1 or 2 night stay at a Sheraton here to enjoy the perk plus just a getaway for dh & I but 1) we can't get anywhere, even for one night, before Aug 1 and 2) there are only two Sheratons around here and both get fairly poor reviews.

 

[Judique]

August 1. I used it for the first and last time at a Sheraton in May. It was awful! The hotel was rundown and the "lounge" did not have any food or drinks. It literally was just a room with chairs and a TV. I complained as their website advertised it had a lounge with drinks, snacks, and breakfast. They gave me two bottles of water and breakfast vouchers. I wrote a review and was given 4,000 points in response.

That sounds like the club lounge at the Charleston Sheraton - pitiful!

 

[Lain]

Ok. So, I have not gotten much into Plastiq or Venmo or any MS'ing. Going to try dipping my toes I a bit. We just closed on a Re-fi beginning of the month. Waiting on info for our new Mortgage Company. (I had our last mortgage already set up to be auto deducted every month so didn't want to mess that up..). But now I think would be a good time to start using Plastiq. Let me know if I have this right..

1. DH has CIP and this will get us 3X Points on Plastiq?

Currently, yes. This could change at any time. Plastiq has had to change their merchant category code (“MCC”), which is the thing that triggers category bonuses on our credit cards, before. A recent Ask Me Anything (“AMA”) chat with Plastiq’s CEO on Reddit made it sound like Chase is well aware of how Plastiq is coding on the CIP, and they are ok with it (for now). Nonetheless, we all freak out when one of the points and miles blogs decide to post about how the CIP earns 3x UR on Plastiq.

2. Paying Mortgage with CIP is totally legal and not against any of the rules.

Mortgages is a restricted category of payment using Visa and Amex cards per Plastiq’s terms. In practice, however, application of this restriction is inconsistent and your mortgage may slip through. Read the Plastiq guide on DISchurners for more information.

3. I can just set up payment to be auto deducted each month.

Yes, you can set up scheduled payments on a monthly basis.

4. Payment will be around $2200 a month. So at 2.5% my fees would be $55 a month or $660 a year. That in turn would earn 79,200 UR's a year (at 3x points), which I can transfer to CSR for redemption value of 118,800 points. Is that correct. Anything I am missing??

At $2,255 (monthly payment plus fees) x 3x UR = 6,765 UR/month x 12 = 81,180 UR/year. You should transfer out your URs from the CIP to the CSR every month when the statement closes as a best practice in case Chase vet decides to restrict transferability and pooling. However, those 81,180 URs aren’t exactly worth 121,770 points; technically your 81,180 URs remain 81,180 URs but can be redeemed on a CSR (1.5x) towards $1,217.70 worth in travel booked through Chase.

 

[Lain]

Nice to see another MD-er

Gyft makes no sense sometimes. After hearing the stories from @DaveL and some others, I still tried it and had no issues with the first couple of purchases (bought $100 from HD, a $50 and $25 from WM). Thought I was in the clear, NOPE. My $25 WM purchase today is "under security review" Really? So $100 HD and $50 WM previously were fine, $25 gets flagged for a security review. Called and was told someone needs to review my account to confirm it's me. Recommended that I link my FB or Google ID account for improved verification odds Seriously?? Social media accounts make my Gyft account more secure, but not the verified mobile number??? Um, ok...

I’m just really miffed Target is no longer on Gyft (and unsure if it’ll come back). I had sockdrawered my REDcard because I could earn 5x UR on my CIC instead.

 

[WVMomof3]

I apologize if this has been answered, but Discover Deals offers 5% cash back at Apple when using your Discover card, doubled during the first year. You can customize all you want, and they have the best selection of free Beats if your daughter is still a student (plus the student discount). Shipping times are very fast right now, even on the brand new MacBook Pro's.
https://www.discover.com/credit-car...al/?id=5842&ICMPGN=DEALSPUB_MAIN_POPDEALS_TXT

Thanks! But I don’t have a discover card. My DD did just get one, but her student limit would not be enough for a MacBook.

 

[miztressuz]

Just following up on some of my other posts as a lurker/newbie. Just got DH approved for CSR today! Was a little worried about not getting an auto approval (not sure why, he has great credit), but that turned into non-issue. I'm not going to DD him due to concerns with meeting MSR and I'm OK with that. One of my previous posts mentioned that I have Disney reservation in my name, but want to pay for it using URs under DH's new CSR. Melissa at Chase emailed me and said that is "totally fine, he is able to use his points for anyone. So it would not be an issue with you being the primary traveler on the reservation " So that was a great relief and good to know for future reference.

So I plan to hold my new CSP for at least the first year (added DH as AU like a dummy before you guys taught me some things!) and he will have the CSR. We will pool our points every month into his CSR UR account. Then at the end of first year, DH will at least keep his CSR to reap 2nd year travel credit, but before AF cannot be reversed. Then I will refer him to CSP, and he will refer me to CSR. Then after two years of CSR, we will evaluate how much perceived value we are getting from it and decide whether to keep it or not. I am 5/24 right now (down to 4/24 next month), and DH is at 4/24 and next card drop off for him isn't until next June. So we have some room to play but need to complete CSR MSR before I can consider anything else. However, reading you guys each day will have my mind wandering about my next card!

Like others before me have said, thank you to everyone on this board for your tips, advice, and strategies!

Just to clarify, you can't get another Sapphire card while you hold a Sapphire card. So you can't refer DH next year to the CSP now that he holds the CSR (and would have received the bonus within the last 24 months). If you really want those sign up points you'd have to double dip today, it's the loophole to holding both at the same time now (and getting both bonuses). Otherwise you are now both locked out for 2 years, and would have to downgrade or cancel your existing cards, to try for the bonus again.

But congrats on approval!

 

[kmc8826]

Small update on my quest to have Chase UR's pay for our Disney package. Finding time yesterday was a bit of a bust but this morning it worked. Talked to Krystal and she was all over it. Heads up everyone stay away from Reneshia(sp). Sent me the form, I sent it back, and now waiting to hear. Fingers crossed. So thanks everyone @DaveL, @disneybirds, @speedyfishy.

And I got the email yesterday and we are going to the AP event on October 25! So excited it actually works out for once when we are there! And the price is definitely right. See the AP's practically pay for themselves.

 

[hsmamato2]

BCP..... statemnt closes Aug 12- Aug.20 is anniversary date...I'll pc the card down to the no AF card at that point...are my points earned safe if I do that? ....and..... what is the best use of these reward points? it appears that gc is the same as cash,so I might as well apply to statement credit...I've been ignoring this card b/c of MS etc and going to hit it hard for the last 4k of this years spend to max that 6% out...(I never paid an AF and got a $200 credit for opening,so great deal)