September 2008 Weddings
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Recommend Your Credit Card
Does anybody have a great rewards card? DH and I are talking about getting another card for rewards. We're more interested in cash back, but if there is a really great travel rewards card, I'd be open to that. We currently have 1 credit card that gives us points. It's not bad, but I know we can do better.
We're looking for no annual fee. Interest rate doesn't really matter since we won't carry a balance (and our current card has a 7% rate).
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Re: Recommend Your Credit Card
We just use Discover for cash back. We've got like over $400 sitting there now waiting to be used. It doesn't add up super fast, but we've bought a few big ticket items (bedroom set, mattress etc).
You don't also have to take it as cash, you can either use it to pay your bill, get a check or use it for rewards. It used to double your cash (like for $20 you got a $40 gift card somewhere) but it has been scaled back, although still better than 1:1.
Planning bio My DIY blog The Maine Bio
2012 Reading Challenge
We use Amex and the points are pretty good - we often just use them on Amazon.com - you can link your acct to Amazon and when you check out it will ask if you want to use your Amex points. That, along with a $100 gift card is how we got our DSL plus a case and extra memory card for like $22 out of pocket.
Also, K's brother is in finance and has a relationship with Amex and apparently their Starwood Rewards credit card (hotels - Sheraton, Westin, etc) is the best program they offer if you are interested in travel rewards. The points accrue fastest and are most valuable when used for hotel stays.
Planning bio My DIY blog The Maine Bio
2012 Reading Challenge
I have an AmEx card for Starwood hotels. It has an annual fee and I want to cancel it. It takes like 10,0000 points to get one night in a not so expensive hotel. It takes more to get a room in more preferred location (ie: Chicago). I have never actually used my points for free nights b/c I don't accumulate that many. I'd be waiting forever. You can transfer points to many airline rewards, most are 1:1, or trade them in for GC to like 10 stores. I get Amazon GC with them.
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The Chase Freedom one was one I was looking at. I don't like that the categories switch, either. I kind of like the Capital One Cash card. It's a Master Card, with 1% on everything, plus 50% bonus on the cash back every year. Plus, if you spend $500 in the first 3 months, you get $100 back (we do that easy with just gas). 1% isn't huge, but it is on everything.
I also liked the Blue Cash Everyday from American Express. 3% at supermarkets, 2% on gas, and 1% on everything else. You get $100 back if you spend $1,000 in the first month (we could do it, but we'd have to put more that our normal stuff on the card, which we probably would if we're getting 3% back on groceries instead of using cash).
I think I'm leaning towards the American Express, but I'm hesitant because I don't know how widely accepted it is. I know Visa and Master Card are almost always accepted. I never really paid attention to American Express, though.
Thanks for the info, ladies!
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I have a points Amex through BOA. It was once an MBNA mastercard (when I opened it in 1999) and has transitioned to that...
90%+ of places take Amex, so that's not a huge problem. I have a MC also with BOA (also once MBNA) that I use for backup, or my debit card. I honestly don't know exactly what the regard schema is since its been a rewards Amex since like 2005. They do run special but I don't pay attention since I charge everything anyway, and am not changing my spending habits based on my CC rewards.
We used the points for our hotel for 3 nights on either side of our cruise in 2009. I have like 60k+ points now. They'll probably sit there until we travel again, in some part because I can't think of anything we *need* enough to cash them in for. We probably could do better outside of BOA, but I don't really care enough to switch.