Get Chase Sapphire preferred first, and then Freedom card? Or the other way around...

[red259]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Thanks for the feedback everyone. My general spends card at the moment is my quicksilver card, which I could easily flex over into the freedom for the categories, CSP for dining/travel, and then my quicksilver for everything else to maximize the best percentages for each. When you did your apps 4thekill, did you do them both online through pre-qual or did you call? 

Thanks everyone for the help. Anyone have the Barclaycard arrival+, and if so like it better than the CSP at all?

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I had the arrival+ and have since downgraded it to the arrival. Comparing it to the CSP is apples and oranges. One is a points card the other is nothing more than a cash back card with limitations. The only time I would recommend the arrival+ anymore is if they have a really good cash back signup. 

[takeshi74]

....and if looking at a rewards program like Ultimate Rewards then one need to look at redemptions, which redemption options the person can use and how that recemption option impacts value per point.

Run the numbers for your spend all the way from spend to redemption to calculate out rewards value to compare.  Don't just look at earn rates.

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@Anonymous wrote:

Thanks everyone for the help. Anyone have the Barclaycard arrival+, and if so like it better than the CSP at all?

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You can't just poll to determine which card is best for you.  People's spend, categories, preferences, priorities, etc vary.  You need to do your due diligence to determine which card suits you best.

The Arrival+ is a better option for some.  The CSP is a better option for others.  There are yet others who would find neither to be a good fit.  It's not just about the card itself.

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@Anonymous wrote:

Hey everyone, so bit of a dilemma, I'm debating between applying for the CSP first, and then getting the Freedom later (not thinking about Unlimited since the 5x categories sounds more enticing).

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Again, don't just look at earn rates.

Start with your spend.  Where is the majority of your spend going?  Focus on maximing rewards on your biggest spend categories.  Yes, 5% does look good but 5% of 0 is 0.  5% of very little spend is a tiny fraction of that spend.  If you have a lot of noncategory spend then a card that offers a higher rate on noncategory spend could be of benefit to you.  "Higher" being 1.5% or 2% in this context as that's about the best you can get on noncategory spend.  Definitely run the numbers so you understand how much rewards you're talking about in terms of dollars and you're better equipped to make comparsions.

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@Anonymous wrote:

Get Chase Sapphire preferred first, and then Freedom card? Or the other way around...

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Reconsider whether these are best fits first.  If they are then apply for the one more important to you first.  The CSP probably has slightly more stringent criteria but I'd recommend going with the one that would be of most use to you first.  It's not just the approval that you need to consider but limit, APR (for the Freedom anyway), etc.  You want the card that will see the most use to have the best terms.

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@Anonymous wrote:

I've also read that others have applied for BOTH at the same time to use only 1 HP for both apps, any truth to that?

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There's truth but that doesn't mean that you'll get both with 1 HP.  HP's are typically a small factor anyway.  If 1 HP is going to break the camel's back then you have bigger issues that you need to address before worrying about applying for these 2 cards.

[red259]

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@takeshi74 wrote:

....and if looking at a rewards program like Ultimate Rewards then one need to look at redemptions, which redemption options the person can use and how that recemption option impacts value per point.

Run the numbers for your spend all the way from spend to redemption to calculate out rewards value to compare.  Don't just look at earn rates.

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@Anonymous wrote:

Thanks everyone for the help. Anyone have the Barclaycard arrival+, and if so like it better than the CSP at all?

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You can't just poll to determine which card is best for you.  People's spend, categories, preferences, priorities, etc vary.  You need to do your due diligence to determine which card suits you best.

The Arrival+ is a better option for some.  The CSP is a better option for others.  There are yet others who would find neither to be a good fit.  It's not just about the card itself.

I'm hard pressed to think of situations where the barclay arrival+ would be a better fit for most people. Beyond the signup there is a not a lot going for the card. If someone wanted to go just for the signup you can get the same offer from cap 1 for the venture card and then you could later PC that card to QS if they won't waive the AF. Neither of these cards are great beyond the signup offers when it comes to spending.There are non-AF 2% cash back cards that will get the trick done if that is what someone is really interested in. 

[Anonymous]

Thank you takeshi74 and red259 for your concise and valuable input. It definitely sounds like I need to re-evaluate what my spends are going to be and which of the combination is going to be maximal for my use. I know I want to get the CSP because I do quite a bit of flying across the country, 5-6 a year, and planning an international trip later in the year.

I'll need to define between the two (Freedom vs unlimited) which 'would' be the maximized value, as I do see that the 1.5x for everything on the FU may average out better than the potential 5x categories on the Freedom IF I take full advantage of those categories each quarter.  Looks like i'll be number crunching over the weekend  

[red259]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Thank you takeshi74 and red259 for your concise and valuable input. It definitely sounds like I need to re-evaluate what my spends are going to be and which of the combination is going to be maximal for my use. I know I want to get the CSP because I do quite a bit of flying across the country, 5-6 a year, and planning an international trip later in the year.

I'll need to define between the two (Freedom vs unlimited) which 'would' be the maximized value, as I do see that the 1.5x for everything on the FU may average out better than the potential 5x categories on the Freedom IF I take full advantage of those categories each quarter.  Looks like i'll be number crunching over the weekend  

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I'd be very interested in know what the break points are as well. I absolutely suck at math but I believe if you actually max out every quarter at x5 you earn a total of 30k points (24k of those are bonus points). The total spend to do this would be 6k (1.5k x 4) in the specific categories. In order to earn 30k points with an unlimited card you would need to spend 20k in the year. Things become a lot more complicated though if you are not maxing out the categories every quarter. Lets say you only spend 1k in two quarters and nothing in the other two quarters. Your take would be 10k points (8k of which are bonus points). With the unlimtied you would hit 10k points on around approx 6.7k spend. These are just some general numbers and I could have messed up the calculations, but you need to really look at the categories and be honest with yourself about how much you will spend in them. You also don't want a situation where you are spending on things you don't need just to max the category out.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

When you did your apps 4thekill, did you do them both online through pre-qual or did you call? 

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I did them both online. I did not go through pre-qual as, no matter what, I never get any offers when I do. I just used the offer links from one of the card review sites.

[Anonymous]

After crunching out the numbers on my daily spends and comparing the benefits between the Freedom and Unlimited, the Unlimited came out to be a better overall for the points, the category spends I wouldn't be able to maximize other than the 4th quarter for holiday spending, as my gas, restaurant and grocery spends won't max a couple of those categoriese out, and I would put more general spends on the unlimited to maximize it more. 

I'll apply for the CSP first once my current quicksilver statement ends, which will report 0% utilization across both my cards, then I'll apply for the unlimited right after. 

Thanks everyone for the help and I will keep you all posted with the results, wish me luck!!!

[Anonymous]

OP if you plan to get both to maximize UR points you may also be interested in the chase ink cash. Those 3 are my great compliments.

I don't suggest you make a new card, but rather research it and see if it makes sense.

[Anonymous]

Wanted to give everyone an update, so I just applied for the CSP and got the "Thank you for responding. Your response requires further review before making a decision." message with the what you can expect:

• Our goal is to notify you in writing within 10 days; however, in some circumstances it may take up to 30 days.
• If you are approved, you will receive your card and other important information in the mail.
• Please do not resubmit this response.

So it sounds like i'm just going to need to ride it out, unless you guys think I should call to see if it's just further verification that they may need?

**UPDATE**

So just received the 30 day email from chase, which is a good sign?

[myjourney]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Wanted to give everyone an update, so I just applied for the CSP and got the "Thank you for responding. Your response requires further review before making a decision." message with the what you can expect:

• Our goal is to notify you in writing within 10 days; however, in some circumstances it may take up to 30 days.
• If you are approved, you will receive your card and other important information in the mail.
• Please do not resubmit this response.

So it sounds like i'm just going to need to ride it out, unless you guys think I should call to see if it's just further verification that they may need?

**UPDATE**

So just received the 30 day email from chase, which is a good sign?

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Good so far 

Good luck