I love credit cards so much! v5.0 - 2022 (see first page for add'l details)

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hsmamato2 said:
Well..... Since I'm paring (my AF cards) I might as well be sharing :rotfl2: my reasoning..... recently,due to some medical issues our single income household took a hit to a no income situation. (hopefully temporary)
so far, I've still been able to utilize some built up benefits and points to go on a couple of trips (yay) but since we currently have $0 coming in, all AF cards are on the block right now...... I'll share one thing about this 'game' that has been invaluable (in addition to a 'free' Disney trip last month) over the course of the past 2 years....I focused solely on saving like a fiend,and paying off our mortgage earlier than normal. I used every tactic I could find to turn rewards and points into savings for our household- which in turn was flipped directly into our mortgage. I paid it all off in Oct '21. I used (PYB) around 900,000 UR (at least) and translated all of that into extra payments.
Now that we're in this situation -what a relief to not have that payment hanging over us. I was unsure if I had chosen correctly with all those points,but I'm so glad I was able to do this! Now I'm on to figuring out a side hustle for a while,and removing any unnecessary costs,like AF etc. The one I WILL keep is my CSP bc having the ability to still getaway and have a little fun at no cost is such a blessing! (and use the UR as cash if needed) I appreciate all the advice and cameraderie on this thread...and inspiration for travel ideas!
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Thanks for sharing this. DH and I have been discussing cashing out our MR’s to Schwab in order to help payoff our mortgage. We’re at a place where we could get it paid off by this time next year, but weighing all of our options. I keep thinking about how liberating it must feel not to have a mortgage hanging over your head.
 
My Companion Pass showed up on my account! Woohoo! This is truly the most valuable travel hack for me! With my last CP my daughter flew 15 trips with me including two to Hawaii!

I just added her today to an Easter trip to AZ and FL in May for a cheer comp! Those two flights alone saved $1000.

I don't think I ever updated but I did have to call in and move around credit to get my SW personal card approved. It was so easy and the representative was super helpful!
 
lsutigers03 said:
Thanks for posting this. I had no idea the AF could be cleared with PYB.

Perhaps someone can help me with the math on this. The $550 fee would normally have been 55,000 UR. With the 50% boost PYB cost 36,666 UR. That's a savings of 18,334 UR. I assumed that by 50% they meant 50% of the full cost normally which would be 27,500 UR but apparently that isn't correct and I would like to understand it for the future.
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It's not 50% of the cost, the points you use are worth 50% more. So 36,667 X 1.5 = 55,000 URs. Or, the 55,000 points you would have used divided by 1.5 is 36,667 URs.
 
How long does it take to get referral points? I referred my Dh to a SWA card and I'm hoping to get the points for a CP soon.
 
hsmamato2 said:
Well..... Since I'm paring (my AF cards) I might as well be sharing :rotfl2: my reasoning..... recently,due to some medical issues our single income household took a hit to a no income situation. (hopefully temporary)
so far, I've still been able to utilize some built up benefits and points to go on a couple of trips (yay) but since we currently have $0 coming in, all AF cards are on the block right now...... I'll share one thing about this 'game' that has been invaluable (in addition to a 'free' Disney trip last month) over the course of the past 2 years....I focused solely on saving like a fiend,and paying off our mortgage earlier than normal. I used every tactic I could find to turn rewards and points into savings for our household- which in turn was flipped directly into our mortgage. I paid it all off in Oct '21. I used (PYB) around 900,000 UR (at least) and translated all of that into extra payments.
Now that we're in this situation -what a relief to not have that payment hanging over us. I was unsure if I had chosen correctly with all those points,but I'm so glad I was able to do this! Now I'm on to figuring out a side hustle for a while,and removing any unnecessary costs,like AF etc. The one I WILL keep is my CSP bc having the ability to still getaway and have a little fun at no cost is such a blessing! (and use the UR as cash if needed) I appreciate all the advice and cameraderie on this thread...and inspiration for travel ideas!
Click to expand...
IFlossU said:
Thanks for sharing this. DH and I have been discussing cashing out our MR’s to Schwab in order to help payoff our mortgage. We’re at a place where we could get it paid off by this time next year, but weighing all of our options. I keep thinking about how liberating it must feel not to have a mortgage hanging over your head.
Click to expand...

Congrats to everyone on the financial freedom. We also proritized paying off our mortgage. We have now have zero debt, no house debt, no car debt, pay off cards in full every month. About 1.5 years ago we dramatically changed our lifestyle and went down to a one-income household, to about 1/4 of our previous income. The mental freedom of not having a mortgage allowed us to be able to make decisions unburdened by financial stress and I'm so, so grateful for that freedom.
Now having said that, I didn't realize having some type of loan makes up a decent chunk of your credit score. Our scores are still in the low 800s/high 700s, and we almost always get instant approvals, but it is something to weigh when making the choice.
 
hsmamato2 said:
oh boy that's our 2nd card to get pitched this month....it feels strange but also freeing.... Again on the FNC here...are they affected by the cancellation? they must be from last year,don't expire till June....
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The FNCs you already have will stay in your Marriot account until you use them or they expire. You just won't get another one if you cancel the card because they don't post right away. I doubt we'll see another extension. I have one more left to use before the June date. My card is almost at its anniversary too. I'm likely going to cancel unless I get a retention offer or some great Amex shopping offer that offsets the fee. I have had no worthwhile offers on this card in a very long time.
 
elgerber said:
Our Portillos is just as slow to get the food as Culvers if not more. At least at Culvers you sit down and wait. But my dipped beef sandwich and chocolate cake yesterday was worth every minute of wait!!
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Not going inside. Drive through only, Portillo's usually much much faster than Culver's. Portillo's has refined the art of drive thru. Our nearest Culver's only recently added Curdside so I order from home, then by the time I get there it's usually ready.
 
FreeDiningFanatic said:
Congrats to everyone on the financial freedom. We also proritized paying off our mortgage. We have now have zero debt, no house debt, no car debt, pay off cards in full every month. About 1.5 years ago we dramatically changed our lifestyle and went down to a one-income household, to about 1/4 of our previous income. The mental freedom of not having a mortgage allowed us to be able to make decisions unburdened by financial stress and I'm so, so grateful for that freedom.
Now having said that, I didn't realize having some type of loan makes up a decent chunk of your credit score. Our scores are still in the low 800s/high 700s, and we almost always get instant approvals, but it is something to weigh when making the choice.
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I wish we had this option. We are upper 50s and due to a series of unplanned events, we just bought a new house last August. I'm trying to our whatever extra I can towards principal but it's hard. Vacations are all points, very little cash or we don't go. We don't spend a lot, so the higher spend cards are out of reach.
 
CyndiLouWho said:
Not going inside. Drive through only, Portillo's usually much much faster than Culver's. Portillo's has refined the art of drive thru. Our nearest Culver's only recently added Curdside so I order from home, then by the time I get there it's usually ready.
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I can't drive through it's a 25 minute drive. My food would be completely ruined by the time I got home.
 
FreeDiningFanatic said:
A way to save a few bucks and earn some AA miles on things like insurance payments using virtual visa gcs without running to stores for gcs. My points successfully posted on aadvantageshopping.

https://frequentmiler.com/now-3x-am...off-virtual-visa-gift-cards-at-giftcards-com/
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This sounds good! I was just looking at my AA miles and wanted to do something for activity to extend their date. Am I correct in assuming there are no activation fees with these virtual visa gift cards.
 
I'm so excited to go home to rain tomorrow. This dry heat is wrecking havoc on my skin even with lotion multiple times a day. Fantastic for the hair though, but only when I was the conditioner out since I can't get it rinsed out. Had hoped this might be a warm weather area to live in someday but it's not for more reasons than these. And next time I visit, hopefully next year, I'll come better prepared to handle the lack of humidity.

I'm sure it's a great place for those that choose to live here but not everywhere is good for everyone.
 
disfanforlife said:
This sounds good! I was just looking at my AA miles and wanted to do something for activity to extend their date. Am I correct in assuming there are no activation fees with these virtual visa gift cards.
Click to expand...

The virtual visas I purchased were $250 each with a $4.95 purchase fee. 5% savings=$12.95 less purchase fee= $7.55 savings on $250. But then being able to earn points on it is a nice bonus.
I also saw a DP that you could then turn around and use the VV to purchase gift cards at places like Kroger during their fuel points. I haven't tested that myself but plan to.
 
SUBs Ending 3/14/2022:
Just a reminder they are reporting the limited time introductory or elevated offers on these cards are expiring:
Capital One Venture X, 100,000 points, $10k spend/6 mos
Capital One Spark Cash with the huge 50k spend.
Southwest cards with points and companion pass

Amex transfer bonuses:
Hawaiian miles 20%, ends 3/21
Hilton Honors 30%, ends 3/31
Virgin Atlantic 30%, ends 3/31

IHG mystery points purchase of up to 100%, ending 3/18

IHG is launching their revamped awards program 3/24, along with a new biz card
 
Does anyone know if the capital one points can be used towards Disneyland tickets?

Once I pay for summer camp this month, we should be done with our two companion passes and planning a Disneyland trip this summer. I also offered to put the very large payment for a friends vrbo trip this summer on one of my cards, so that’s like 3.5k.

The whole trip is free hotels on points except the Grand Canyon hotel and the Disneyland tickets. If I could use the capital one points to bring down those costs, it could be worth it:
 
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