I love credit cards so much! v6.0 - 2023 (see first page for add'l details)

[sinnika]

I am going to PC my almost 5 years old CSP to a CF card. Which one should I ask for and why? And will my UR’s remain on the new CF card? I also have a CIP and could move all of the UR points there if I need to. I have several doctors appointments and surgery coming up in my near future and would like a new card to use for the SUB. Going to apply for a new CSP.
P.S. Breast cancer sux.

 

[LynnTH]

I am going to PC my almost 5 years old CSP to a CF card. Which one should I ask for and why? And will my UR’s remain on the new CF card? I also have a CIP and could move all of the UR points there if I need to. I have several doctors appointments and surgery coming up in my near future and would like a new card to use for the SUB. Going to apply for a new CSP.
P.S. Breast cancer sux.

Sorry to hear about the Breast Cancer. It does suck. Both my Mom and Grandma had it, so I am super vigilant of getting my yearly mammograms. Hope everything goes well!!

Freedom Unlimited - 1.5% on every purchase
Freedom Flex - 5% on rotating quarterly categories.

Your points will stay with the card - then you can transfer them back to your new CSP. I know you said you didn't think you would get enough benefit from the CSR - but many of us get it for a year then downgrade to CSP and Upgrade again to CSR. This way you can double dip the $300 Travel Credit. Just something to think about...

 

[becauseimnew]

Hello everyone, we just got back from our WDW trip. We had a great time, mostly due to the low crowds. We bought 6 day military ticket (expire 12/14/204) had planned on using 5 days, but only ended up using 4 days. We'll return before school starts in August to ride Tiana's (fingers crossed it opens by then).

No luck with Chase business cards for DH, he's 4/24. Down to 3 Chase Biz cards & 3 personal cards and still denied for CIC. He's going to apply for Citi AA personal putting him at 5/24 until June.

I'm going to try to apply for a Chase biz card soon, I'm down to 3 business cards. Going to wait until next month - 4 month spacing.

Our South Africa trip in less than 3 months, almost everything is booked. I just need 3 nights in Johannesburg, one night before our Safari using Delta $150 credit, and 2 nights after safari (Hyatt points) before our flight to Cairo. Also have to book flights from George SA to JNB.

For our big 2025 trip we are doing a scuba diving trip, not sure exactly where as we just don't have enough points to go anywhere extravagant. We only have 100K URs, 170K MRs, and 140K AA miles, but we have 226K SW miles so will probably go somewhere SW flies. And save our MRs and AA miles for 2026. My dream would be to go to the Galapagos but planning that trip seems overwhelming and SW doesn't fly there.

Any scuba diving suggestion where SW flies?

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

I am going to PC my almost 5 years old CSP to a CF card. Which one should I ask for and why? And will my UR’s remain on the new CF card? I also have a CIP and could move all of the UR points there if I need to. I have several doctors appointments and surgery coming up in my near future and would like a new card to use for the SUB. Going to apply for a new CSP.
P.S. Breast cancer sux.

F cancer! I had an HSA so everything went on that card, but boy do you hit your OOP max fast! Good luck to you.

As to which card, do you already have an everyday spend card that gets at least 1.5%? If not, unlimited would be a good option for a new default card.

If you do have a default card that's already at least 1.5% (we have a 2% everyday), then the Flex rotating categories will likely be better.

 

[sinnika]

Sorry to hear about the Breast Cancer. It does suck. Both my Mom and Grandma had it, so I am super vigilant of getting my yearly mammograms. Hope everything goes well!!

Freedom Unlimited - 1.5% on every purchase
Freedom Flex - 5% on rotating quarterly categories.

Your points will stay with the card - then you can transfer them back to your new CSP. I know you said you didn't think you would get enough benefit from the CSR - but many of us get it for a year then downgrade to CSP and Upgrade again to CSR. This way you can double dip the $300 Travel Credit. Just something to think about...

Good points on the CSR! I’ve never tried to double dip anything so this will be new to me. As far as mammograms, I have been getting them religiously every year since I was 40 so 23 years worth. I did skip 2020 because of Covid. no history of anyone in my immediate family with breast cancer. But there is a strong colon cancer and I get regular colonoscopies for that reason. So this came out of nowhere. All I could say is if you have a family hx for developing breast cancer, ask your GYN to add a breast ultrasound to your yearly mammogram . I had no symptoms, this did not show up as a lump or anything. But I do have dense (described as fibrocystic) breasts, so if you are in that category, definitely consider asking for breast ultrasounds. They also think my weight loss over the last two years may have made it show up better on the mammogram.

 

[AndreaDM]

Amex Plat fee posted 3/20, I chatted today to see about a retention offer, I was transferred to a specialist who gave me the rundown of the card benefits, I said I like the lounge access but wouldn't be traveling as much this year and was disappointed that Audible was no longer a digital credit. I was offered 1 to 1 points transfer to wipe out the AF for 69,500 pts., I said no thanks and asked if there was another option. I was then offered 25K points for 3K spend in 3 months. I took that because we are remodeling our master bath and I need to order a tub and fixtures, etc. Not a great retention offer, but better than nothing. From what I've read on Reddit, offers have been pretty slim recently.

 

[PartyOfSe7en]

Hi, I'm new here! Military mom of 5. Heading to Disney in July for our 8th time. We put everything on a card each month and pay it off, no debt beyond a mortgage. I have no "business", so looking for recommendations on personal card with best sign on bonus. Last and only application in 5 years was Capital One Venture 3/23. Will easily spend 9k in 3 months and pay off, even more soon as I am going to buy tickets and flights. Used to churn a little about 8 years ago so some lifetime offers may be unavailable to me. We typically fly Southwest, don't have their card yet. What do you recommend at the moment?

 

[sinnika]

Hi, I'm new here! Military mom of 5. Heading to Disney in July for our 8th time. We put everything on a card each month and pay it off, no debt beyond a mortgage. I have no "business", so looking for recommendations on personal card with best sign on bonus. Last and only application in 5 years was Capital One Venture 3/23. Will easily spend 9k in 3 months and pay off, even more soon as I am going to buy tickets and flights. Used to churn a little about 8 years ago so some lifetime offers may be unavailable to me. We typically fly Southwest, don't have their card yet. What do you recommend at the moment?

Military (retired) mom here too with an AD Air Force daughter. Your spouse is eligible to get annual fees (AF's) waived, so consider cards with high AF's. She just recently got the Am Ex platinum. The experts can chime in on what cards to get. Don't rule out a "business" card. I have gotten many of them with large spends that amounted to lots and lots of points. The Chase Ink Preferred is my most recent one (100,000 UR's for $8000 spend over 3 mo.). If considering the SW card, maybe wait till the end of the year so you can earn a companion pass (CP) for 2025 and 2026 (if timed correctly- I think there's info about that on the first page with all of the abbreviations.) And you and your hubby would benefit from each earning CP's if SWA is your main mode of flight travel.

 

[PartyOfSe7en]

Military (retired) mom here too with an AD Air Force daughter. Your spouse is eligible to get annual fees (AF's) waived, so consider cards with high AF's. She just recently got the Am Ex platinum. The experts can chime in on what cards to get. If considering the SW card, maybe wait till the end of the year so you can earn a companion pass (CP) for 2025 and 2026 (if timed correctly- I think there's info about that on the first page with all of the abbreviations.) And you and your hubby would benefit from each earning CP's if SWA is your main mode of flight travel.

I am the military member. Are you saying my spouse and I are both eligible? Just want to make sure I understand. Thanks a bunch

 

[georgina]

Any scuba diving suggestion where SW flies?

Caymans, Belize, Puerto Rico to name a few. Also Aruba & Turks & Caicos. Some of those locations are a bit limited though, sometimes DH can only fly to/from Washington DC on Saturdays? There's always Hawaii!

 

[calypso726]

Hilton points and Aspire card peeps:

We had a few FN certs expiring soon from our Aspire cards. I decided to book 3 nights at the new Conrad Orlando next to Evermore this past weekend. Two nights from 2 of my cards and 1 night from one of DHs two cards. We requested a continuous reservation. The rates this past weekend were $800 per night so it was definitely a good use for FN certificates.

Diamond members get a $25 per day dining credit so we had $50 a day. Not sure if it would have been $50 if only one of us was Diamond due to the Aspire card but I think so. I didn’t ask. There is no self parking, only valet which is $50. That might be per stay as I was only charged $50 for my 2 nights and DH did not get a valet charge on his invoice.

The Aspire card now has a $400 resort credit split into two $200 credits. Once in Jan-June and again July-Dec. The Conrad Orlando was on the list of eligible resorts for the credit so we charged everything to the room and used the Aspire card to pay. This will earn 14x on that spend. Diamond members also get a complimentary one hour of paddle boarding or kayaking in the Evermore Lagoon. There are a number of on site restaurants but we didn't try them out. Perhaps the next visit. We did order room service and the sliders and kung pao chicken wings were a favorite.

We received an upgrade without asking to their deluxe king room with a pool view and balcony. The room was spacious and really nice. We enjoyed the stay and have already booked another weekend using the last expiring FN cert and 90k HH points. We blow the remainder of the resort credits on our Aspire cards between dining or a spa experience I'm sure.

 

[trenty]

JetBlue will put your $5.60 taxes into a travel bank though. They do not refund that part. Which is super frustrating.

thank you

Delta is confusing. If it's not Basic Economy and travel originates in North America, then there are no cancellation fees. If travel does not originate in North America, then the redeposit fee is $150, but DPs are that it's not collected.

thank you. So for a domestic flight in Economy (not basic), I should be ok?

 

[wanderlust7]

thank you

thank you. So for a domestic flight in Economy (not basic), I should be ok?

Correct

 

[djmeredith]

F cancer! I had an HSA so everything went on that card, but boy do you hit your OOP max fast! Good luck to you.

As to which card, do you already have an everyday spend card that gets at least 1.5%? If not, unlimited would be a good option for a new default card.

If you do have a default card that's already at least 1.5% (we have a 2% everyday), then the Flex rotating categories will likely be better.

Will they not let you submit a receipt for reimbursement from that HSA?

I get a health care "credit" at the start of each year and it is combined with my FSA. I am able to use my cc to pay for my medical expenses and then submit my receipt for reimbursement. Their app is really easy to use and the deposit is usually in my acct within a few days.

Good points on the CSR! I’ve never tried to double dip anything so this will be new to me. As far as mammograms, I have been getting them religiously every year since I was 40 so 23 years worth. I did skip 2020 because of Covid. no history of anyone in my immediate family with breast cancer. But there is a strong colon cancer and I get regular colonoscopies for that reason. So this came out of nowhere. All I could say is if you have a family hx for developing breast cancer, ask your GYN to add a breast ultrasound to your yearly mammogram . I had no symptoms, this did not show up as a lump or anything. But I do have dense (described as fibrocystic) breasts, so if you are in that category, definitely consider asking for breast ultrasounds. They also think my weight loss over the last two years may have made it show up better on the mammogram.

Sorry to hear about your diagnosis. Hope your treatment brings a very speedy and full recovery.

 

[calypso726]

I am going to PC my almost 5 years old CSP to a CF card. Which one should I ask for and why? And will my UR’s remain on the new CF card? I also have a CIP and could move all of the UR points there if I need to. I have several doctors appointments and surgery coming up in my near future and would like a new card to use for the SUB. Going to apply for a new CSP.
P.S. Breast cancer sux.

So sorry to hear about the diagnosis. Sending good healing thoughts your way.

 

[WaltsMartini]

Question - do any of you track redemptions? I have a tricked out spreadsheet to track apps, SUBs, key dates, etc but I have not been tracking redemptions.

I’d like to track them to see the amount of $$ saved, but also because my dumb a$$ recently cancelled a hotel room I had originally booked months ago with a Bonvoy FNC, thinking the points would refund so I could book a different hotel, and instead I ended up with the credit again and the place I wanted couldn’t be booked with FNC. Went to book the original room and what do you know - no longer eligible for FNC. Lesson learned - get a tracker!

 

[havaneselover]

I am going to PC my almost 5 years old CSP to a CF card. Which one should I ask for and why? And will my UR’s remain on the new CF card? I also have a CIP and could move all of the UR points there if I need to. I have several doctors appointments and surgery coming up in my near future and would like a new card to use for the SUB. Going to apply for a new CSP.
P.S. Breast cancer sux.

I’m so sorry.

 

[wanderlust7]

Question - do any of you track redemptions? I have a tricked out spreadsheet to track apps, SUBs, key dates, etc but I have not been tracking redemptions.

I’d like to track them to see the amount of $$ saved, but also because my dumb a$$ recently cancelled a hotel room I had originally booked months ago with a Bonvoy FNC, thinking the points would refund so I could book a different hotel, and instead I ended up with the credit again and the place I wanted couldn’t be booked with FNC. Went to book the original room and what do you know - no longer eligible for FNC. Lesson learned - get a tracker!

I do track redemptions on my spreadsheet, but I'm not always good about updating it, especially if I'm doing speculative bookings. I also try to update points account balances periodically and when SUBs post or I make a redemption.

You can set up an alert with StayWithPoints.com, it'll notify you if the points drop below an amount you set. The free account allows 1 alert.

 

[newski_mom]

Question - do any of you track redemptions? I have a tricked out spreadsheet to track apps, SUBs, key dates, etc but I have not been tracking redemptions.

I’d like to track them to see the amount of $$ saved, but also because my dumb a$$ recently cancelled a hotel room I had originally booked months ago with a Bonvoy FNC, thinking the points would refund so I could book a different hotel, and instead I ended up with the credit again and the place I wanted couldn’t be booked with FNC. Went to book the original room and what do you know - no longer eligible for FNC. Lesson learned - get a tracker!

I try to keep track of redemptions. I put together a document for each trip we take and when I book hotels or flights, I put the points used and the cash price. I think have a summary worksheet that shows all redemptions. It does make me feel like all of the work is worth it when I see how much we redeemed for each year.

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

Will they not let you submit a receipt for reimbursement from that HSA?

I get a health care "credit" at the start of each year and it is combined with my FSA. I am able to use my cc to pay for my medical expenses and then submit my receipt for reimbursement. Their app is really easy to use and the deposit is usually in my acct within a few days.

The system his company uses is terrible. It takes forever for things to hit the account, we've had contributions just fail without any communication, truly poor service.

We can submit for reimbursement but decided against the hassle. There was enough going on with me having to go through chemo that we weren't going to tack on tracking every reimbursement request and likely having to call on some number of them to get them through. Following the medical expenses was enough of a project without adding in the step, even though it meant forgoing that CC spend.