Credit Cards

Category Archives for Credit Cards.

New 100,000 Point Offer Coming: Details of New Marriott Cards From Chase and American Express

by Gary Leff on April 16, 2018

Apr 16 2018

Marriott did a deal with both Chase and American Express for credit cards. Chase gets the bulk of the personal business, but American Express gets to issue a premium personal card. American Express gets the small business cards. And cardmembers keep their legacy products.

Both banks are issuing new products, and making changes to existing card products too. So in addition to speaking with Marriott about the changes I reached out to Chase and American Express as well to learn more and they were both forthcoming.

New Service Lets You Pay Rent by Credit Card for 1.5% Fee

by Gary Leff on April 15, 2018

Apr 15 2018

Urbanr lets you pay rent by credit card. They charge the tenant’s card, and the landord receives payment electronically in 3-5 business days.

And at 1.5% you’ve got a worthwhile margin even with a 2% cash back card though you can do better than that. Plus they’re offering $10.

New Chase Miles for Mortgages Offers: 25,000 – 75,000 Points for Cardholders

by Gary Leff on April 5, 2018

Apr 05 2018

Last year Chase offered 100,000 points for a home mortgage. That offer was stackable with a fee rebate that required signing up for automatic monthly payments, and Chase Private Client customer discounts also.

One thing we learn about the Chase Sapphire Reserve cardmember population — in addition to average credit scores (785) and annual income ($180,000) Chase has shared before — is that “[t]he average Reserve customer has … more than $800,000 in deposits and investments.” So they figure a down payment shouldn’t be a problem.

Southwest Just Set New Values For Rapid Rewards Points

by Gary Leff on April 3, 2018

Apr 03 2018

Southwest has changed their redemption values today in a way that upends the original model of the Rapid Rewads 2.0 program launched in 2011.

They’ve reduced the average number of points per dollar required for Business Select fares by 35% and Anytime fares by 22%. And they’ve increased the average points per dollar required for Wanna Get Away fares by 6%.

IHG Devalues Credit Card Anniversary Free Night

by Gary Leff on April 2, 2018

Apr 02 2018

This $49 card has come with an anniversary free night every year that’s good at any IHG hotel. For new certificates issued May 1 onward these certificates will only be good for hotels that normally cost 40,000 points per night or less.

New 60,000 Mile Cathay Pacific Visa Signup Offer

by Gary Leff on April 2, 2018

Apr 02 2018

From August through October there was a 50,000 mile signup bonus offer for the Cathay Pacific Visa. That’s double the previous offer.

Through June 30 they’re offering an initial bonus up to 60,000 miles.

Barclays Sending Out Personalized Books and Cookies to AAdvantage Cardmembers

by Gary Leff on March 29, 2018

Mar 29 2018

Yesterday I received a nice box with a thank you note inside and a book 1000 Places to See Before You Die with my name inscribed onto the cover.

I reached out to Barclays to see what’s going on with this and they shared:

Chase Improves Travel Booking Engine, Get Better Value For Your Points Buying Flights

by Gary Leff on March 26, 2018

Mar 26 2018

When you use your Chase card to buy travel directly — instead of transferring points to miles — you have the Ultimate Rewards online portal and you have phone reps. There are some things you cannot do online, like book Southwest Airlines flights. However there’s a new thing you can do online…

Leaked: American Express Centurion Coming to Denver (and Expect Plaza Premium, Too)

by Gary Leff on March 23, 2018

Mar 23 2018

American Express has been talking to the Denver airport about a Centurion lounge since 2011. They wanted to put one on United’s B concourse. That never happened, but there’s finally now movement because on Tuesday the Denver City Council is expected to approve a lease for a new Centurion lounge on the C concourse.

Data Shows How Your Neighbors Handle Credit

by Gary Leff on March 22, 2018

Mar 22 2018

The median credit scores by U.S. city are interesting. The best scores cluster in areas known for retirement and education as much as prosperity.

According to research by the Federal Reserve credit scores predict relationship stability. More or less you need to marry someone with a similar credit score if you want your marriage to last. So figure out which city you belong in if you want to find a life long partner. In fact get your credit score up and then get serious about dating.