Does applying for a credit card for free travel really work?

[Aerides]

If you’re already getting 2% cash back, how much is that in a year? You might have to go totally down the rabbit hole of travel points, spending all kinds of time, keeping track of spending on several cards and spending lots of time on websites looking for deals, to beat the plain old cash you’re already getting.

Yup. And reward miles aren't often awesome. The flight you want might not be available, or not in the good bracket. True black outs aren't as common anymore, but you definitely run the risk of not getting the best times/routes.

With AA, international flights are for sure the better deal, mile per dollar etc., but often means I have to take a 3 leg trip instead of 2. Or the 5am flight instead of the 7am, or the one that arrives at 7pm instead of 2pm, stuff like that. And if the flight I want is available with miles, it's at a premium, where I have to spend another 50% mileage cost over the basic reward cost. So I generally use mine for upgrades.

And doing it now for a trip in a few months? Unlikely. You'd have to check the fine print but there's usually a period after the charges are fully billed and paid before the miles are credited. And if you want to fly and book at least 21 days in advance...the time all adds up.

So, yeah, travel rewards can be good, but they do require a lot more time investment than simple cash back, which, you can then use on anything, anytime.

 

[brett]

Our primary premium card gives us 2 percent. Plus the usual rental car coverage.

But...two years ago we had to cancel a China trip because of a medical issue. I checked the card. Sure enough it had cancellation insurance. We submitted a claim and had a check in the mail for the full claim, $2K, within 15 business days.

First time ever we have used cancel insurance. The card turned out to be a winner for us.

 

[Sunset]

I just went to the Chase bank and got approved for the Sapphire preferred CC.
By doing at the bank, they waived the first year $95, plus give me a $50 grocery credit, and 100,000 points after spending $4K in three months.

I want to travel, and will now be ready with a good travel CC.

Unfortunately DW is funny about it, and didn't want to apply... but I'll still take her

 

[Jenna]

I just went to the Chase bank and got approved for the Sapphire preferred CC.
By doing at the bank, they waived the first year $95, plus give me a $50 grocery credit, and 100,000 points after spending $4K in three months.

I want to travel, and will now be ready with a good travel CC.

Unfortunately DW is funny about it, and didn't want to apply... but I'll still take her

You can each apply for your own card and end up with 200,000 points. Never do joint accounts because you will miss out on sign up bonuses. But you can get a card in her name for your acct to help meet your minimum spend. You can also put children/grandchildren on your account as card holder to boost their credit scores. My grandchildren have their own cards-that they dont really use. But they will have a well established credit history by the time they are 10. haha

 

[Sunset]

We each have our own CC and bank accounts. So that is what makes me feel she missed a good deal, as we could have doubled the bonus.
She said: "Why bother it's just more $$ to leave in the WILL".

Guess she hasn't seen the price of space flights

 

[BlueberryPie]

DW applied online but got an email they're reviewing the application. Doesn't bode well?
Last credit card i applied for was instantly approved, but my wife makes a lot less money (but funny enough has a credit score a few points higher than mine, but in the 800s, who is counting ...)

 

[WestUniversity]

We have a Mileage Plus card and we use it to pay for everything so that all of our normal spending helps us rack up a ton of points.

We have gotten a bunch of free flights. I say free but really there is an $11.20 fee that has to be paid regardless so actually the free tickets cost us $11.20.

 

[Sunset]

DW applied online but got an email they're reviewing the application. Doesn't bode well?
Last credit card i applied for was instantly approved, but my wife makes a lot less money (but funny enough has a credit score a few points higher than mine, but in the 800s, who is counting ...)

Over a year ago or more, I applied for a CC online and got the dreaded ... Under review....

At that point I realized I had not temporarily unfrozen my credit reports.
At least it showed that freezing the credit reports really does stop a scammer from getting CC's in my name

 

[BlueberryPie]

Both wife and I got approved. I have other chase cards so I can see the last 4 digits of mine in the Chase app but no way to see the full number and start using it until the card shows up in the mail. Gotta charge $4K on each by the end of September to get our free $1k flights, so we'll be transferring all automatic payments to those for a while. Too bad i can't pay mortgage or kids college on a CC!

I know that Capital One let's you see you card number before you get a physical one so you can start using it right away

 

[fh2000]

Both wife and I got approved. I have other chase cards so I can see the last 4 digits of mine in the Chase app but no way to see the full number and start using it until the card shows up in the mail. Gotta charge $4K on each by the end of September to get our free $1k flights, so we'll be transferring all automatic payments to those for a while. Too bad i can't pay mortgage or kids college on a CC!

I know that Capital One let's you see you card number before you get a physical one so you can start using it right away

DW was pre-approved for Chase Sapphire Preferred card last month. So we put $2000 to pre-pay utilities. $2000 Costco cash card. Done with spending.

You can log on to chase and secure message them to expedite. You will get a UPS package with the new card in 2 days.

 

[BlueberryPie]

I called to ask for my card number. They wouldn't tell me but they expedited the card as a result
All good.

 

[YVRRocketSurgery]

Cancelled all three cards prior to the renewal date.

Not the expert on this but point of caution in cancelling prior to the 1 year renewal date. IIRC, I think I read on the Prince of Travel website that cancelling within a year is frowned upon by the credit card issuers and might impact your ability to sign up again. I suspect additional details like how much you spent on the card, etc will likely play a role too. It sounds like if you cancel within 1 month after your renewal date, you should be able to have the renewal fee cancelled and give you an opportunity to try for a retention offer. YMMV but I'm going to give it a go when my AMEX comes up for renewal.

 

[Markola]

I’ve looked into them have decided, for maximum return-on-effort, I’m going for the highest no fee, cash-back cards. I have a 2% cash back Mastercard from Citi for DW and my general purchases on everything and is the only physical card we’ll carry around; a 5% cash back Prime Signature card dedicated to Amazon purchases in that app; and a Venmo Visa that gives 3% back for my top purchases category. I’m going to dedicate that card to groceries and use it only in the Instacart app. All of them are set up for automatic payoff and they sync well with my YNAB budgeting software.

Altogether, I will net north of 2% back or about $2,200/year, tax-free. That is more than we typically spend on domestic flights yet I don’t have to fool with chasing and tracking points, just a little set-up effort to make everything automatic.

 

[BlueberryPie]

@YVRRocketSurgery, an interesting thought. Let us know if it works out as planned for you.

As I mentioned earlier, I am really singing for the sign-up bonus, not interested in using points long-term when I can get 2% back on everything and 5% from Amazon at all times and spend that on anything, including towards travel.

One thing I do want to check on is which card i want to keep in the end. I travel internationally and I believe the terms on international charges are better on my Venture card than on a Citi card, but I'd have to do the research. (Venture gets you 2 year of CLEAR airport security line bypass, which is worth the annual fee right there).

 

[C4B1]

Both wife and I got approved. I have other chase cards so I can see the last 4 digits of mine in the Chase app but no way to see the full number and start using it until the card shows up in the mail. Gotta charge $4K on each by the end of September to get our free $1k flights, so we'll be transferring all automatic payments to those for a while. Too bad i can't pay mortgage or kids college on a CC!

I know that Capital One let's you see you card number before you get a physical one so you can start using it right away

Will the convenience checks not work for college and cc payments?

Sent from my moto g play (2021) using Early Retirement Forum mobile app

 

[BlueberryPie]

Hmm I've never used a convenience check.
Those use the cash advance APR and have no grace period don't they? So they could come at a premium.

 

[SecondCor521]

Hmm I've never used a convenience check.
Those use the cash advance APR and have no grace period don't they? So they could come at a premium.

Some convenience checks come with low interest rates, but they also usually come with a 3% fee.

 

[Sunset]

Will the convenience checks not work for college and cc payments?

...http://r.tapatalk.com/byo?rid=84276

I think convenience checks are treated like cash advances, and cash advances don't count towards the $4,000 spending for the last CC I just got.

 

[beernutzbob]

If you’re already getting 2% cash back, how much is that in a year? You might have to go totally down the rabbit hole of travel points, spending all kinds of time, keeping track of spending on several cards and spending lots of time on websites looking for deals, to beat the plain old cash you’re already getting.

Some people love the game but I already get 1.5% cash back and am not sure I can justify the opportunity cost in the form of my time to make it all worthwhile. Those that do seem to use Chase points as the gold standard flexible currency for international travel and Southwest as the currency for domestic travel.

You don't have to use the miles/points credit cards all year. Just use them enough to earn the initial bonuses and then you're free to switch back to the x% cash back cards if you want.

I do exactly this. With the Chase Sapphire Preferred I earned about $1,250 in travel expenses by spending $4k during the first 3 months as opposed to $80 in 2% cash back.

After you get the initial bonus you can selectively decide which subsequent purchases get you the best bang for the buck with respect to miles/points or cash back.

 

[Sunset]

Not the expert on this but point of caution in cancelling prior to the 1 year renewal date. IIRC, I think I read on the Prince of Travel website that cancelling within a year is frowned upon by the credit card issuers and might impact your ability to sign up again. ....

I cancel at the 11 month mark , on cards I want to avoid a fee. Some fee cards I have kept in the past (pre covid) due to the normal travel benefits.

One card, I called in, they offered to waive the fee for another year, so I kept it.

I have not been turned down for a CC in the last 18 yrs, but I normally only get about 1->2 new cards per year, and some (no fees) I keep for decades.

 

[FIYes]

I have used credit card sign up bonuses to build up travel awards. It takes some monitoring and planning but it can be an effective way to extend a travel budget. I don’t like fees and cancel cards before the fee is due…typically the first year is fee waived. Once I was scolded by a card company for canceling the card to avoid the fee after racking up a hefty number of bonus mikes. However, it was just a scolding and didn’t impact my credit score and I got to keep the miles.

A couple of our very enjoyable and great value trips were great deals on a transatlantic cruise and using miles for the one way return flight. Cheap repositioning (transatlantic) cruise, AirBnB type accommodations, miles to fly back home, added up to an inexpensive but great European trip. Of course, this is slow travel…I called them my more time than money trips.

 

[BlueberryPie]

The Venture Sapphire Preferred card charged me the yearly fee in the first billing cycle, no a riding it.
That's fair, I'm getting a big travel allowance out of it.

I am not so happy with chase though. It's been a month and my wife's card has not been delivered and their customer service hours are not great for working couples. My wife called to get a replacement rushed but they were cagey about whether it resets the 3 months period to charge $4K on her card

I discovered my son's university will take credit cards with a 2.7% surcharge, so if it comes to that we may charge whatever we need to complete the $4K at that time and eat the fee. Still worth it for the sign-in bonus.

 

[OldConch]

Both wife and I got approved. I have other chase cards so I can see the last 4 digits of mine in the Chase app but no way to see the full number and start using it until the card shows up in the mail. Gotta charge $4K on each by the end of September to get our free $1k flights, so we'll be transferring all automatic payments to those for a while. Too bad i can't pay mortgage or kids college on a CC!

I know that Capital One let's you see you card number before you get a physical one so you can start using it right away

On the spending side we put all of our organic spending on our newest card to meet the minimum spend. That includes property and estimated federal taxes. We also occasionally pre-pay utilities and health insurance. Finally, since we travel quite a bit, when Kroger is running their 4x fuel deals, we'll stock up on airline and AirBnB gift cards. With interest rates near zero, we don't mind floating some cash to earn these crazy good cc sign up bonuses.

On the redeeming side you might want to look into Chase transfer partners. That's where you'll get the best bang for your buck. Last February, just before covid hit, we transferred 105,000 Chase UR each to Virgin Atlantic and got to fly home from Hong Kong via London in the front of the plane. A real treat for us with lie-flat seats, booze, and great lounges in HKG and LHR. Cash prices for the tickets were $14,700 each. After you meet minimum spend on your new Sapphire cards you'll have at least 104,000 points.

BTW, your Chase points will post on the first statement after you meet your minimum spend.

AA cards can also generate pretty good value. We got two cards at 70,000 miles each. Flew AA partner JAL to Bangkok via Tokyo in business class for 70k miles each plus some taxes.

If you get hooked on the game, look into the Chase 5/24 rule before you get any more cards.

Safe travels!

 

[OldConch]

I 100% agree, I already get 2% cashback through a Venture card, which technically only applies towards reimbursing yourself on travel expenses, but between gas, the occasional restaurant and hotel, I spend it all monthly and don't try to hoard it for miles/vacation/miles.

This is why I am specifically after the sig-up bonus for some of the cards, if I do get $1250 towards travel for spending $4K over 3 months, even with a $95 yearly fee, it's worth signing up and maybe closing the card at te end of the year.

If you close your Chase Sapphire you'll forfeit any points left in the account unless you have another ultimate rewards card you could transfer to. You might consider downgrading to one of the "Freedom" cards. They're no annual fee cards that give 5% back at grocery stores and continue to earn ultimate rewards. Since it's a product change you won't burn another 5/24 slot.

 

[beernutzbob]

The Venture Sapphire Preferred card charged me the yearly fee in the first billing cycle, no a riding it.
That's fair, I'm getting a big travel allowance out of it.

I am not so happy with chase though. It's been a month and my wife's card has not been delivered and their customer service hours are not great for working couples. My wife called to get a replacement rushed but they were cagey about whether it resets the 3 months period to charge $4K on her card

I discovered my son's university will take credit cards with a 2.7% surcharge, so if it comes to that we may charge whatever we need to complete the $4K at that time and eat the fee. Still worth it for the sign-in bonus.

Venture is Capital One, Sapphire Preferred is Chase. Both are good cards with good bonuses imo.

One way you can get to that $4k amount in the 3 month bonus period is by buying gift cards to places you'd spend your money anyway such as grocery or hardware stores. In addition to the other ways OldConch previously mentioned I pay my auto insurance bill with whatever card I'm trying to earn a miles bonus with. Since I'm insuring 5 cars that really moves the marker.