Chase

March 11, 2016

Chase Freedom Unlimited Will Be Available Starting March 13th

Update: Read my post on the conversion process – I learned a few new things while doing this

Several weeks ago we found out that Chase would be offering a new credit card, the Chase Freedom Unlimited, which has the potential to be one of the best no annual fee credit cards out there. This card will earn 1.5 Chase Ultimate Rewards per dollar spent and if you (or a household member) have a Sapphire Preferred or Ink Bold/Plus card, you can then effectively transfer the rewards earned on the Freedom Unlimited card to airline and hotel partners. Earning 1.5 UR points on a no annual fee card is quite strong – in fact it is better for non-bonus spend then the Sapphire or Ink Cards, both of which have annual fees of $95.

My wife has a normal Sapphire card (not Preferred) from several years ago when she product changed from the Sapphire Preferred to the no annual fee Sapphire card. I wanted to do another product change and convert that card into the new Freedom Unlimited card since it is a much stronger card and still carries no annual fee. I secured messaged Chase online (on behalf of my wife) and asked if she could product change into this new Freedom Unlimited card. While she was told she could not yet, the representative spilt the beans that the card would be available on March 13th.

ChaseFreedomUnlimited

This is also consistent with what others are hearing, such as this exchange on Twitter started by Doctor of Credit’s tweet. It is noted that the card will be available in just Chase branches and by phone. The only semi-strange part of the representative’s response was that it would be available between March 13, 2016 and April 7, 2016.

I’m not quite sure why there is an end date even listed so maybe there is some chance this representative is misinformed but I feel rather confident (though not 100%) that the card will be released on March 13th. It does seem that the card will not be available online at first and for that timing, I’ve heard early April (maybe April 8th if the representative was referring to the time period above when the card is solely available via a branch or phone). I’ll be sure to detail my experience attempting a product change if the card is available on March 13th.

Has anyone else heard anything about a March 13th release date?

January 14, 2016

My Mini January App-O-Rama – 80,000 Points/Miles + $200 Cash Back

I just completed a mini app-o-rama and I wanted to share the final results as I was not approved automatically for any of these 3 cards but #spoileralert, I ended up getting all 3 cards in the end. I post about my credit card dealings as these posts are always popular with readers but please remember just because I apply for a card (or 3) doesn’t mean you should. In fact, you probably shouldn’t as I know what I am doing and the risks associated with it. We are at different places in the miles/points games and probably have different travel goals/needs. With that disclaimer out of the way, here is what I applied for and why.

1) Chase United MileagePlus Explorer Card – 55,000 miles total

Don't settle for the 30k offer!

Don’t settle for the standard 30k offer!

The offer/benefits:

  • 50,000 miles for spending for $2,000 in 3 months (check this post how to get this offer)
  • 5,000 miles for adding an authorized user
  • Additional award availability for United flights (unpublished benefit)
  • Free checked baggage & priority boarding
  • 2 United Club passes annually

This was the first card I applied for in this series of applications since I’ve been able to generate a 50k offer repeatedly but unsurprisingly I was not approved instantly (I never am with Chase anymore). I am running low on United miles and with it being 2+ years since I last got the signup bonus on this card, I wanted to see if Chase would give me my second United Explorer card without an issue. Nowadays I’ve been advising against calling Chase for reconsideration but I wanted to get this card sooner rather than later as I need to book a United award and would most likely need the extra award availability benefit to find the award space I was looking for.

I got grilled during my approximately 15 minute reconsideration call but the agent at the end offered to take a 10k credit line from my IHG card and move it my United card. This effectively forced me to close my IHG card which was fine with me. With the annual fee waived for the first year, this was a great offer for me and fit my upcoming travel plans perfectly (I even have a use for the United club passes I get with the card).

2) American Express Everyday – 25,000 points

The offer/benefits:

  • 25,000 points for spending $2,000 in 3 months
  • No annual fee American Express that keeps Membership Rewards points transferable
  • 2x Points on Supermarket Purchases
  • 1x Point on Other Purchases
Don't settle for the standard 10k offer!

Don’t settle for the standard 10k offer!

I’ve actually had my eye on this card for a while now for two main reasons. The biggest reason is I need a card to keep my Membership Rewards points active and still transferable to airlines/hotels as I plan on closing my Business Gold card when the annual fee is due in March. The other reason I wanted this card is for Amex Offers – as this is a no annual fee card, I know year in and year out I will make money off this card with Amex Offers. I will add a few authorized users to take even more advantage of the Amex Offers. I was not approved instantly but I received an email a few days later congratulating me on my new card without having to call reconsideration.

The normal public offer is only 10,000 points but I was able to generate this better offer of 25,000 points by using the infamous incognito method on this link here. It took several times across several browsers to get this offer to show but finally I tried this link in private mode on Internet Explorer and got the 25k offer. I plan on posting more about this separately but basically you should try opening a link for an Amex card in a private browser and/or mobile device as American Express is unlikely to recognize you as a current customer and thus will occasionally present a better offer. This method is reportedly working to generate a 75k offer on the Business Gold and Business Platinum cards.

3) BBVA Compass NBA Amex – $200 cash back (technically 20,000 points)

The offer/benefits:

  • $200 (technically 20,000 points) for spending $1,000 in 90 days
  • 5x points on ALL purchases during NBA All Star Weekend and the NBA Finals
  • 3x points for purchases for NBA games or purchases at NBA arenas/NBAStore.com
  • 2x points for purchases at Supermarkets and Gas Stations
  • 1x points on everything else
Sadly, I am a Knicks fan

Sadly, I am a Knicks fan

This card is a bit of an outlier for me (and from a bank I never heard of until recently) as I normally don’t focus on cashback cards but I have three very specific reasons for getting this card. The first reason is for the 5x earning ability on all purchases during NBA All Star weekend and the two weeks of the NBA finals – this will help greatly with my increased on manufactured spending/reselling margins during that time period.

Another reason I wanted this card is that this is one of the few cards you can load to Serve online and earn points for it. However, from the time I applied to the time I actually got the card, Amex cancelled thousands of Serve accounts though not mine (for now). I plan to load it monthly to earn 1,000 points (more during the 5x periods above) for $10 until I’m shut down. Lastly, I wanted this card as this is yet another no annual fee American Express like the Everyday card above and thus eligible for Amex Offers, even though it is issued by BBVA Compass. I was not approved instantly for this card but I later received an email about a week later congratulating me on my new card without having to call reconsideration (that is if BBVA has reconsideration?).

This seems like a misfit of cards but I’m actually quite happy with this round of applications. If you noticed, I only applied for cards that had higher than normal signups as I always want to maximize my points/miles – if you are going to get hit with a credit inquiry, might as well make it worthwhile.

In summary, I acquired two no-annual fee cards that I plan on keeping so this will help with the average of my accounts. They are both eligible for Amex Offers so I will continue to make money off them as I’ve racked up hundreds of dollars of savings on my other Amex cards with Amex offers. The United card is good for a quick infusion of 50k miles and I can see myself taking advantage of the extra award availability for United credit card holders.

Lastly, in case you’re wondering these 3 credit cards were my 41st, 42nd and 43rd credit card I’ve had in my own name. And my actual FICO credit score right before I did this series of applications? An outstanding 805 which goes to show if you are know what you are doing, this hobby won’t just fund your travels – it can give you a near perfect credit score.

Actual FICO Score on 12/18/15

Actual FICO Score on 12/18/15

*As always, no affiliate links were used in this post*
October 27, 2015

Targeted Offers for the Chase United Explorer Cards Don’t Expire…Maybe

I hate to post something that I can’t replicate to prove it works for others but I need others to chime in on their experience to see if this is anything or just a random coincidence. Last month, I was targeted for a 50,000 mile offer on the Chase MileagePlus Explorer Card and it was clear per the terms offer that I must apply by October 21st.  I applied for this card two years and cancelled it about a year ago, so I pleasantly surprised to see this offer. Here is a snippet from the email:

United50kOfferEmail

However for various reasons that aren’t important, I decided to pass on applying and did nothing by October 21. Last night, I decided to see if the offer still worked for me and I clicked the link from the email. And it still showed I could apply for the 50,000 offer even though it was past the stated expiration date. However, that’s not the most interesting part.

United50kOffer

Now as many of you know, you must sign into your United account whenever you try any of the targeted links that can be found floating around the internet that advertise a 50,000 mile offer since the standard, public bonus right now is only 30,000 miles on Chase’s website. Interestingly, I can only get the 50,000 mile offer to appear when clicking the link from my email (which re-directs me to https://www.theexplorercard.com/50kAFW). If I try that link directly or any others that I have found, I can only get a 30,000 mile offer to appear. There seems to be something to be said for clicking the link via the targeted email even though it should be expired as that is only working 50k link for me.

So is this something noteworthy? I have no clue but check your email folders (spam too) to see if you ever got sent a similar offer to apply, pay no attention to the expiration date in that email and give the link in the email a shot. Maybe this helps someone get a 50,000 mile offer they thought was expired and would never think to try clicking on an “expired” offer. This could also help those who don’t want to rush to apply for the card and want to wait to apply to make it part of a larger round of applications.

Has anyone had a similar experience like this?

September 28, 2015

Our Sunday Night Mini App-O-Rama – 175,000 Points for $95 in Annual Fees

For whatever reason, some of my most popular posts (and maybe other bloggers can weigh in if this is true for them as well) are posts about the credit cards we chose to apply for. I wonder if its a phenomena of “well that blogger applied for it, so it must be a good deal and we must follow!” Or maybe just curiosity to see what the “experts” are doing? I always find it interesting as what I chose to apply for will most likely not be the right solution for you. We are all at different stages in the points/miles game with different needs for points/miles based on our current balances and future trip goals. I’m happy to share what I’ve done but please remember I am an experienced travel hacker with years of knowledge and I understand the risks involved. Do not apply for credit cards just because I did!

As some of you might recall, my wife’s latest round of credit card applications was back in early July and she just about hit the minimum spend on all of them. While I like to stick to a 91+ day application cycle (others will say this is not necessary and they are correct to an extent but this is what I like to do), we will be away for the next two weeks starting Thursday (2nd anniversary trip woohoo!) so I wanted to complete a small round of applications for my wife. Here is what she applied for:

Card 1: Chase British Airways Visa Signature – 100,000 Avios – $95 Annual Fee

100kBAOffer

I posted about this offer when it came out last week and let me stress, this card is NOT for everyone (see that post for why). It works for us because we live in an AA hub and we love using AA miles to fly to the Caribbean for cheap. We’ve been to Antigua and Puerto Rico in the last year using Avios for 20,000 Avios roundtrip instead of using 35,000 American AAdvantage miles. The other big reason to get this card for us is the upcoming devaluation of Amex Membership Rewards transfers to British Airways. While we could still transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards to BA, I like using my Chase UR points for United & Hyatt so picking up a 120,000 Avios (including the spending requirement) will not force us to rely on flexible rewards from either Amex or Chase.

Card Details:

  • 50,000 Avios for spending $2,000 in 3 months
  • 25,000 additional Avios for spending $10,000 total in the first year
  • 25,000 more Avios for spending $20,000 total in the first year (so 100,000 total Avios if you spend $20k or more in a year)
  • 3x Avios earned on British Airways Purchases
  • 1x Avios earned on All Other Purchases
  • $95 Annual Fee (not waived)
  • Travel Together Ticket after $30,000 in spending in a calendar year 

Neither of us have had a British Airways credit card before so I didn’t have to worry about the 24 month rule nor does Chase’s 5 recent inquiries rule apply on non Ultimate Rewards cards (the rule does apply to the Chase Slate however) as my wife would have failed this requirement. She applied online and got a message asking to call Chase right away to verify some information. She called and after moving some credit lines around from other Chase cards, she was approved.

Card 2: Citi Hilton HHonors Visa Signature – 75,000 Hilton HHonors Points – $0 Annual Fee

CitiHilton75kOffer

This offer (which expires today by the way) is the highest ever on this card that I am aware of. I actually got this card for myself last year when it was 60,000 points but this offer is obviously better. My wife has just shy of 100k Hilton HHonors points now so this will be a nice little infusion that will cover a few nights at mid tier Hilton hotels.

Card Details:

  • 75,000 Hilton HHonors Points for Spending $2,000 in 3 months
  • No Annual Fee
  • 6x Points earned at Hilton Family Properties
  • 3x Points earned at Supermarkets, Gas Stations & Drug Stores
  • 2x Points earned on All Other Purchases
  • Complimentary Hilton Silver Status (basically you get 15% bonus points that’s about it)

It’s a shame Hilton devalued their program a few years ago but the program isn’t totally dead for our travel needs. I like that this is a no annual fee card that my wife can keep and it ensures will she will always have some status with Hilton, even if it is only marginally worth something. She applied online and was approved instantly.

Summary:

This was a quick and painless round of applications that netted us another 175,000 points for $95 out of pocket. I’ve been waiting to apply for the British Airways card until a 100k offer returned and while it is a bit more spending than I’d like, I have no doubts I’ll accomplish it within a year especially with  some new reselling venues I’ve started to get into (post coming once the items sell and I can calculate my profit).

The Citi Hilton makes sense (especially with the bonus at its highest point ever) for us since we tend to stay in Hiltons that average 40,000 to 50,000 points a night so we will hopefully get 2 nights out of this signup bonus. At the worst, we get one night and some leftover points but my wife will now finally have a no annual fee card from Citibank that she can keep forever. This will help her establish a better relationship with Citi as she has been cancelling many of their cards before the first year is up.

*As always, this post contains does NOT contain any affiliate links*
September 18, 2015

What to Consider Before Applying for the British Airways 100k Avios Credit Card Offer

(This post does not contain any affiliate links)

I know you’ve most likely heard about the new 100,000 Avios offer on the Chase British Airways Visa credit card already but I wanted to share a few thoughts on it, specifically on a few different items to evaluate before applying. A lot of digital ink has been spilled expressing how amazing this offer is and while I agree it is a good offer, I’d like to express some words of caution because this offer is NOT for everyone.

BAoffer

Here are the key details of the offer:

  • 50,000 Avios for spending $2,000 in 3 months
  • 25,000 additional Avios for spending $10,000 total in the first year
  • 25,000 additional Avios for spending $20,000 total in the first year (so 100,000 total Avios if you spend $20k or more in a year)
  • $95 annual fee NOT waived

As you can tell that is a LOT of spending to take full advantage of this offer and unlike the normal offer on this card (which is 50,000 Avios for spending $2,000 in 3 months with the annual fee WAIVED) this offer does NOT waive the annual fee. While a 100k offer is normally great, here is a list of items to consider before applying for this card.

  1. If You Are Unsure if You Can Spend $20,000 in a Year on This Card

This is probably the most important point to make. As I mentioned above, the normal offer on this card has the annual fee of $95 waived and you can earn the same 50,000 Avios from this offer (this offer is still available here). If you gamble and think you can spend this much but fail, you would have paid a $95 annual fee on this offer for no reason. Please make sure you have a plan to meet this large minimum spend.

  1. Do You Fly American Airlines or Alaska Air?

It might sound funny to those who aren’t already aware but you don’t actually want to use these points to fly British Airways. That’s because British Airways will tack on hundreds or thousands of dollars of fuel surcharges on award flights on their metal (and most of their partners with some exceptions). Instead you should plan on using these points on American Airlines/Alaska Air domestically or to the Caribbean/Mexico. Since British Airways’ award chart is based on the distance of the flight, a 100,000 Avios can go a long way. See the chart below for flight costs. Basically, if you don’t plan on using a good portion of these points for American or Alaskan flights, I’d rethink if this is the right offer for you.

New British Airways Award Chart P.S. Yes, I am aware of other good uses of Avios (US to South America, Australian domestic flights etc.) but practically speaking the majority of my readers would be using these points for AA or Alaska Air flights.

  1. You Had This Card & Received a Signup Bonus within the Past 24 Months

This is actually a quite simple rule to follow. Chase will not award you the bonus points on this offer if you received the signup bonus within the past 24 months. (Thanks to Justin for catching this!)

  1. Losing the Opportunity to Put Spend on More Rewarding Cards

Assuming you are not into manufactured spending, most people would need to use this card full time for a while to meet the minimum spend requirement. Since this card only earns 1 Avios per dollar spent with no bonus category (except for 3 points per dollar spent on British Airways), you are giving up 2x, 3x or even 5x points earned in certain categories. Without knowing your personal situation and spending habits, does it really make sense to put all your spending on a 1x card whose points have limited usefulness (as described above)? Of course only you can answer that question.

Conclusion:

I don’t mean to sound so negative about this offer as I think this offer works for the right individuals – in fact, I plan to apply for this card myself. I posted this because I know a lot of people are going to see “100k offer” and think it is amazing (and a lot of blogs have written as such). My advice is to analyze your personal situation and ask yourself if it really makes sense for you. I think the four points I presented above are a good starting point for this discussion and if you find yourself wavering on a few, rethink whether this offer is good for you. The old offer of 50,000 Avios with no annual fee for the first year is still available as well.