Monkeys, I came across this article on WSJ which said that a communications director from DC owns about 29 credit cards: https://www.wsj.com/articles/if-you-have-29-credi…
That seemed to be an abnormally high number even if you want to rack up credit points and it go me thinking. So how many credit cards do you actually own?
2 per country. Usually 1x Amex 1x Visa. Sometimes a debit on top of that, sometimes not. Some EU countries have terrible acceptance for amex though.
That link above seems very high, points/rewards/cashback/miles and rest only make sense if you pool spend onto fewer, relevant cards. Less spend on various cards won't necessarily make sense, it depends on the individual.
That person in the article is getting sign on bonuses. They aren't using those cards on a daily basis. I have the following
AA Executive Card Citi Prestige AMEX Platinum Chase Reserve Chase Sapphire (downgraded to Freedom) AMEX SPG
I actually use most of these cards regularly, although most spend goes on the Reserve. I travel a lot for work and personally, as well as eat out/drink often.
The AA card gets me lounge access and since all of my main airports are AA hubs, the fee is worth it. I've made at least 2k on the Prestige with their 4th night free, so definitely worth it. The Reserve card is epic and great for good and travel. The sign on bonus alone makes the fee worth it. Amex is the best sleeper Card. I've used the concierge for reservations and tickets and the centurion lounges are great. I got a strong sign on bonus as well.
The sapphire was a first Card and no longer necessary. The SPG Card had a good bonus and I stay at SPG hotels when I can't stay at Kimptons.
I know people with a shit ton more though. And it's always about the sign on bonus. I don't churn or manufacture spend, but I know people who do as well. Get cards that fit your spending patterns and lifestyle the best. Go on flyer talk and read up. Lot of good info.
Are AA lounges any good? I was thinking about upgrading my AA card to the executive for the lounge access since I live in a hub. However, if it's one of those lounges where it's just a nice place to sit and you still have to pay for food/drinks you can buy at an airport restaurant anyway, then I'm not sure it's worth it.
Also, AA seems to have really crappy award availability, so I'm not sure if I want to put all of my eggs in that basket with my spend, especially since the CSR gives me priority pass and allows me to cash out pretty easily if all else fails.
The AA Exec gives you lounge access 50 dollars less than if you bought it. You also get group 4 (I believe 4) boarding, which is nice if you don't have status. One free checked bag, 25% discount on in flight purchases, etc.
As for the lounges, they are whatever. The ones in Ohare are decent, except for the one near G I believe. That one blows. But in general you get some free drinks and food and I always jack an economist or WSJ. Each visit is worth about 10-15 bucks for me (couple drinks, snack, periodicals). So only you can do the math. I only use the card for lounge and when I buy shit on american. Plus the sign on bonus is worth a free flight or two.
Personally, I fly enough that I like have lounge access. Oh, if you book your flights with the Card you can call them and they will fix shit for you. I've called the Card and had them route me to an agent simply because it's faster. Nice little benefit.
For booking flights, I used the Amex platinum. 5x per dollar spent on flights. If it wasn't for that, I'd use the Prestige which has a 3 hour flight delay pay out. I think the CSR does 4 or 5 hours.
Like everything in life, it's all about the details. These cards can be amazing tools or just dead weight. If you really read up on what they offer you can get a shit ton of value from them.
Zero, just debit. Now that I'm out of college though I should start building up credit... on the to-do list.
Look at The Points Guy for some good intro research.
I have:
Chase Sapphire Reserve (Best Travel Card 3x points) AmEx Platinum (Centurion lounges are amazing) Chase Freedom (5x bonus categories) Chase Freedom Unlimited (1.5x on all purchases) Wells Fargo Platinum Card (First CC)
Only cards im thinking of adding are some hotel cards, but I like having a pool of points to allocate. Honestly, the majority of my redemptions are through the Chase portal at 1.5c per point. So basically I get 4.5% back on all travel and dining purchases. If we go to a $900 brunch with 14 ppl I have everybody venmo me and I pocket ~$40 in travel credit, its amazing.
JPM cut the Chase Reserve bonus in half back in January btw https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/credit-cards/chase-sapphire-reserve-cut…
Luckily, I hopped on that wagon beforehand
Just 4 and thinking about counting down to 3 or 2.
2: a rewards Visa that I run 99.9% of my expenses through, and a Mastercard for places that don't accept Visa.
I own 24. Thinking about cutting down though.
I'm just now getting into the credit card churning game.
I just went in-branch to Chase to try and get the Ink Preferred Business. It's pretty easy to get evidently and I told him (truthfully) what my plans were.
From there I'm going to try to get the Sapphire Reserve and the Preferred.
I'm planning on opening an Ink Preferred soon. What kinds of questions did they ask about your "business"? And do you think applying in branch helped more than just applying online?
You can be a sole prop. Just watch out. If you've opened say 5 cards in the last year they will decline you. I got DQ and was pissed.
Hah I'm using r/churning as well friend. I had a brief discussion today, told him my plans to stream on twitch and he seemed ok with it. You can do online or in-person, I don't really think it matters. We'll see tomorrow when I fill out the paperwork with him
Just 3. Discover, Amex, and a Southwest Visa.
I have the following and am about to sign up for more to just get the signup bonuses (plan on cancelling before another annual fee comes around):
Chase Southwest Plus (50k miles) Chase Southwest Premier (50k miles) AA Platinum (50k miles) Citi Double Cash (best for everyday purchases when not trying to get a signup bonus)
Going to signup for these next:
Chase Sapphire Preferred (50k points) Chase Ink Business Prefferred (80k points)
As long as you use the cards for everyday spending and don't over extend yourself to where you're racking up debt to reach the minimum spend, you're basically getting free money (in the form of points) from the bank. If you think about it, if you can churn $5k worth of travel benefits every year, it essentially increases your pre-tax income by $8-10k depending on your marginal rate.
I'd recommend checking out the Reddit churning forum to learn more. Really good info out there. There's definitely an order to what cards you want to sign up for first because Chase only approves you if you've opened less than 5 cards in the last 24 months (not counting business cards). In hindsight, I definitely would've changed the order of cards I've opened if I had known better.
Only 1
I'd own more if opening them didn't ding your credit. I'd rather get lower mortgage rates than 0.5% more cash back. My staples are Visa Quicksilver, Amex Blue, Barclays Arrival+, and the Costco card.
I don't travel enough to warrant any of the travel cards, but can definitely see their appeal. I keep the following cash back cards:
Sapphire Reserve (Daily) Freedom Unlimited (Daily) Chase Biz Preferred (Daily) Amex Platinum (Delta Lounge Access and Great Vegas Hotel prices/benefits) Delta Amex Reserve (Signup Bonus) Alaska Visa Sig (Signup Bonus)
My BA Amex And Standard Bank Visa I love my Amex though, bought my car with it and got a number of free flights in return!
Wouldn't that result in a 1.5-2.5% CC charge for your car purchase?
Considering I was spending 6 figures on it and had lots of extras they were kind enough not to hit me with a charge.
4 - probably going to open up 1 to 2 more as 2 of mine only have Netflix and Amazon prime on them cause the rewards are crap. I'll get 2 more travel cards
I earned enough money in the past that I don't have to clip coupons anymore. I use amex because the customer service is second to none and that's it.
There's always one. Think the logic goes something like this, "would you rather have $1,000 or not have $1,000?"
Right. Like I pay for all my travel and can well afford it, but free is free. Minimal effort and I have something like 5-6k, at a bare minimum, in free travel.
Chase Freedom Chase Freedom Unlimited Costco Visa
Don't spend a whole ton of money, if I did, I would probably get the Chase Sapphire Reserve and a Discover It. Used to have Amex, but I spend too much time in tertiary markets where they're not accepted.
Only three Amex Blue Cash Barclays Visa Secured Mastercard (first credit card)
I have 5: 1 - Discover IT (Rotating 5%) - Used only for 5% categories 2 - Amex Blue Everyday (3% on Groceries, 2% on Gas) - Used only for groceries 3 - Citi Double Cash (2% Across the Board) - Used for everything else minus below 4 - Wells Fargo Cash Wise - Used only for cell phone bill. If you pay your cell bill on a WF card, they insure your phone for up to $600 with a $25 deductible that you can use up to twice a year I believe 5 - Capital One Venture - Got it years back for a study abroad trip as my first CC
Charge cards - 1 Credit Cards - 6
-Chase Sapphire Preferred -Amex Gold Premier Rewards -Debit Card
I keep it simple, amex and the chase can transfer to pretty much the same airlines. I don't believe in using points for anything other than travel, but I don't like the specific travel cards that tie you to a specific hotel/airline.
Definitely look into upgrading to the Sapphire Reserve. It literally is all upsides with no downsides compared to the Preferred.
Yea rewards-wise you're right. Just hard for me personally to justify an annual fee of $450 for just one of my cards.
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