re: Credit Card Rewards and Points Discussion

quote:

---

I don't think the points will share because one is in my name the other in the LLC name.

---

I transfer points from a personal account to a business account all the time. You are personally responsible for the business card debt, so your name is on both, so transfers are not a problem. Log into Ultimate Rewards via your Freedom, go to "Combine Points" at the top of the page, then select "Other." Type in your business account card #, etc. and Voila.

quote:

---

I get confused with points and miles in general. Ex. How many miles will get me to Nashville?

---

It is confusing, and there is really no good way to get around learning about it. The first step is identifying what airline you prefer OR what reward program you prefer. From there you can study their award charts. There are also a slew of blogs that deal with this issue like The Points Guy, Frequent Miler, One Mile at a Time, View From the Wing, etc.

quote:

---

I would like a card where I could accumulate some points and take the wife somewhere nice every few years.
I use my Discover because it offers some buy a $50 gift card for $40 at GAP.
Can you help me decide on the best bang for my buck? TIA

---

This is again dependent on where you want to go/how often you travel and you have two basic ways of accumulating points.

1) Signing up for cards for their big bonuses and using that bonus on the travel (Earn and Burn).
2) Have a card that you can earn consistently on.

I do a little of both, but if you have a preference for domestic travel, you are probably better off with something like (Barclay's Arrival Plus, Cap One Venture, or even a 2% cash back card like Fidelity Amex).

For international, your Chase set up is pretty good right now in the present, and I'd recommend a Chase Sapphire Preferred for you and your wife (40,000 points each and you CAN SHARE THEM!).

quote:

---

What has been the best way for you to use your Chase rewards? I just cashed out my reward points to pay off some of my statement balance, and I am now left wondering if I could have made better use of my reward points.

---

If you needed the cash, nothing wrong with that. You just don't get nearly the value out of your points.

As Teddy noted, you need one of their premier cards.

In the past I have used mine mostly transferring to Southwest, Hyatt, United.

Hyatt offers some nice redemptions in the 8k or 12k point categories. Booked a room in Downtown Nashville when everything was booked solid and the only thing I could find was $400 & up. 12k Points transferred over and I had a room. That would have cost me almost $450 with tax and I could have only cashed out $120 if I paid statement with it.

quote:

---

I put about 3k a month on the credit cards

---

AA 100k Miles

If you can hit the 10k spend in 3 months, you'll have 110k American Airline miles. That can just about get you two coach round trips to Europe.

ETA: It will cost you $250, but it does come with free luggage and Admirals club access.

quote:

---

I hope this deal holds out 3 more months

---

Yeah I jumped on it day 2 like it was a real limited time offer. Silly bloggers.

I want to get my wife one really bad too and I'm on hold until September. I think it's possible. It has been out there for a while.

quote:

---

See the above. It really depends where you are in life, what you can reasonably accomplish, etc. If it is going to take you forever to earn on a card to accrue point/miles of a reward program, or you can't take off to travel, it might not be the best route for you to go.

---

The three cards I have are all cash back cards and I am getting nearly 5% back on every purchase I make. That was my original goal when I started opening credit card accounts for rewards. Since activating my Chase Freedom card, it appears I may benefit looking beyond the cash reward credits. So ultimately, I did not have any particular destinations or what not in mind when I opened my cards. My goal was to make every purchase happen at a discount.

I certainly do not plan to open any more credit cards for the time being, as I have plenty enough credit to manage for my personal interest.

I know Chase Freedom has the select 5% back on cards. What other cards are that high. I saw a Capital One with 1.5% back on all purchases and AmEx blue with 2%.

Thanks for the advice to all As I continue to explore this I'm sure I'll have more questions.

quote:

---

//As a side note, I do a large amount of online shopping to take advantage of my Amazon Prime membership. Since I got my Discover It card, I have migrated a share of my online shopping through the Discover Store to take advantage of 5% or greater discounts through the web portal.

---

Get a Chase Ink/Bold. Buy Amazon gift cards at office supply stores. Enjoy the 5x points.

The platinum delta airlines card gives you a companion pass every year on renewal to fly anywhere with someone for free in the lower 48 states. Something to consider

quote:

---

I just got married and we plan on taking a vacation that requires flying at least once a year. We only fly delta usually

---

Is there a reason?

quote:

---

We are mainly just looking for flying rewards

---

Are you flying domestic or international?

What are your primary expenses?