Homeowner · CA · Member since 2014 · 7 posts · 3 votes
11y
I am very interested in this as well. I currently have a American Express Gold Rewards card and an "nrewards" card through Navy Federal. American Express is 3 points for travel, 2 points on gas and groceries and 1 point on all other purchases and I don't remember what the other one is off the top of my head. I'm definitely interested to see what others are getting though.
Rental Property Investor · Everywhere, USA · Member since 2012 · 689 posts · 525 votes
11y
I run most of my costs through my AA Citi Card. Then on occasion, when I get a new credit card offer with a bonus signup when you spend X amount in the first 3 months - I will open the new card, do the minimum spend to get the bonus points, then go back and cancel the card before the first year renewal.
I recently got offered the Lowe's business AMEX reward card, you still get the 5% off at lowes plus you earn points for AMEX rewards. This seemed like a pretty decent deal but I haven't signed up yet.
I run most of my costs through my AA Citi Card. Then on occasion, when I get a new credit card offer with a bonus signup when you spend X amount in the first 3 months - I will open the new card, do the minimum spend to get the bonus points, then go back and cancel the card before the first year renewal.
Andrew, have you monitored your credit score to see how it is affected opening and closing new accounts?
I run most of my costs through my AA Citi Card. Then on occasion, when I get a new credit card offer with a bonus signup when you spend X amount in the first 3 months - I will open the new card, do the minimum spend to get the bonus points, then go back and cancel the card before the first year renewal.
Andrew, have you monitored your credit score to see how it is affected opening and closing new accounts?
Yeah, I have read that isn't good for your score.
I use a Chase Rewards card, but planning to getting the CapitalOne card mentioned in the thread.
Real Estate Agent · Tampa, FL · Member since 2009 · 456 posts · 123 votes
11y
@Jon Klaus there are ways around this. Like having so many accounts that it doesn't impact you. If you have 2 credit cards, your average age of accounts (AAOA) is 10 years, and you open a new credit card, now your average age of accounts will be 10+10+0 / 3 = 6.67. Ouch.
But suppose you have 20 accounts, your AAOA is 10 years, and you open a new card - now it becomes 200/21 = 9.52. Pretty neat.
There are also ways to make credit inquiries fall off your TU and EQ reports, but EX inquiries can't be removed early. (If you really want to apply for something that is going to pull your EX score, some people freeze their EX report and then the bank magically decides to pull EQ or TU instead, thus getting around the whole issue of EX inquiries. I haven't personally bothered with the freezing strategy.)
Regarding rewards cards - the PenFed Platinum Rewards card is pretty good, and has the added benefit of being LOW INTEREST (you can probably get it at 8.9 or 9.9% APR whereas most rewards cards are 15-22% APR) which means that in a pinch, you could carry a balance without it hurting too much. Hell, 9% is less than what some people pay for hard money deals... also that card can go up to 50k limit.
I do believe you take a 5-10 point hit and you get a (soft) inquiry placed on your credit report for every new credit card line you open.
Jeff, the number of points you will lose is hard to determine but it will almost definitely be a HARD inquiry (ie the kind that affects your score) when you apply for a credit card.
Investor · Waynesville, NC · Member since 2014 · 408 posts · 121 votes
11y
I just this week signed up for a Chase Ink Plus that gave 70,000 bonus miles. It is a business card and does have a $95 annual fee, but the points made it worth it. You get 5x points on cable/satellite, cell phone, landline and internet if you pay with the card. You also get 2x points on gas. For me, those will add up very quickly. The reward program itself seems pretty good with 1:1 transfers to Unite, Southwest and a few big name hotel chains. I was approved for $24k instantly using the online form.
Investor · Middletown, NJ · Member since 2008 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
11y
Chased United Mileage had a good offer earlier this year, spend $1000 in the first 3 months and get 30K miles. I've applied only for business cards lately, as they don't report to your personal credit like Equifax, TransUnion, etc. and they almost all had at least 12 months 0% APR.
Amex Blue For Business had a 12 month interest free deal, which was great for a recent rehab, and also ties into our True Blue Amex (personal card), which gets us points on JetBlue.
Investor · Chelsea, MI · Member since 2013 · 350 posts · 138 votes
11y
I use the Fidelity Investment Rewards Amex. It gives 2% back on everything, no limit, as long as you put your reward into a brokerage or IRA account. If you want cash, you get less (not sure how much because I'm already planning to contribute to my IRA each year so I just use this card to lower how much I have to come up with out of pocket).
Real Estate Consultant · Lansing, MI · Member since 2011 · 356 posts · 306 votes
11y
I just signed up for a US bank Plus, which gives you 5% on up to $2,000 in purchases per month in 2 categories you select each month, 2% on another everyday category, and 1% on everything else. I got this so I could get more for spending at Menards and Lowes. I also have the Bank of America card like @Jeff S. and have had it and used it for years. I'll continue to use it for gas and groceries. There isactually an article iin Money magazine this month that goes through the best deals for every type or reward.
Consider keeping the cards open, as having a high acceisbile credit limit is good for your score, while closing the account could have an (albeit small) negative impact.
Rental Property Investor · Arlington, TX · Member since 2012 · 788 posts · 640 votes
11y
Wow! I am surprised no one has mentioned Discover. I am receiving 1% on all purchased and they always have 5% incentives on gas, Home Depot, restaurants, etc. throughout the year. They also provide a free credit score. No annual fee.
Wow! I am surprised no one has mentioned Discover. I am receiving 1% on all purchased and they always have 5% incentives on gas, Home Depot, restaurants, etc. throughout the year. They also provide a free credit score. No annual fee.
5% cash rebate on Home Depot purchase? All the time?
Rental Property Investor · Northern, CA · Member since 2012 · 5k+ posts · 5k+ votes
11y
@Jon Klaus I have almost all the cards mentioned here (i.e. Citi Double Cash Card, Chase Freedom card, Chase Ink business card, Capital One card, Discover, American Express, etc.)
You really can't beat the Citi Double Cash Card if you're looking for the card with best cash back rebate. In fact, it was named #1 best rewards card in this month's issue of Money magazine.
The Citi Double Cash Card gives you 2% cash back on everything (1% when you make a charge and another 1% when you make the payment). The next best one is probably the Capital One card, but that's only 1.5% back.
Rental Property Investor · Everywhere, USA · Member since 2012 · 689 posts · 525 votes
11y
@Jon Klaus I do monitor my score. It tends to swing in a 20 point range. What I have noticed, the biggest cause of the swing is from credit card balances and the limits versus opening a new card. What I mean by this, is even though I pay off the balances, it doesn't guarantee a zero balance gets reported. An example is one month my score was lower as I ran about $15k through a single credit card, then paid it off when I got the draw, even though I paid the balance off long before I got the bill, I still showed a balance as I had a balance when the credit card company went to report the credit bureau. The next month it was reporting back at zero and the credit score moved back up.
@Account Closed @Patrick Snyder I have three stand by cards that I always keep open. Two are the first two credit cards I got when I was 18/19. Then the other is the AA Citicard that has been open around 5 or 6 years. As @Corey Demuth mentioned, these cards give me a long account open history. So when I open a new card it doesn't reflect that much in lowering the total account history. The three standby cards combined also have high limits now that when I open a new card, even if I max it out temporarily, my total balances to limit is still very low.
One other thing about credit scores - a small part of your credit score is derived from the variety of credit accounts (house, car, cc) and new credit. So going crazy and getting new cards every other month isn't good, but doing the hack I mentioned twice a year, I have found, doesn't hurt.
Then lastly, as long as my credit score meets a minimum level, I don't really care if it moves around 20-30 points. If I am planning a big purchase where I need credit like a new car, or a personal loan I will plan around that for the 3 months in advance and take appropriate action like not open a new account, keep balances low, etc.. In addition, all the real estate loans I get are in my businesses name, and while the lender still looks at me personally, he said it is more about my assets, the way I pay on time and the way the property cash flows versus me having a stellar credit score. The said they do loans all the time for people with loan 600 scores.