topic Re: Needing Help Which CC to Apply for? in Credit Cards

Needing Help Which CC to Apply for?

Anonymous — Sun, 26 Nov 2017 16:55:11 GMT

Hello everyone, I was needing some helping trying to figure out which cc to apply for next. So far I have the following:

- Chase Freedom

- Chase Sapphire

- Chase Ink Business Cash

- Amex Simply Cashplus

Here is my strategy, to get a no annual fee, high signup bonus cc, or a possible, a card with a 1-2k minimum spend I could downgrade to a no af card.

So after doing some research, the two that I found were:

- Barclay Cashforward ($200 bonus + 1.5% cb)

- Amex Everyday (I dont have a Amex with membership points, so this would be my first amex besides biz).

I really would like the card with no af and the highest signup bonus right now, but I'm wondering if I should go with amex? Could I go for the gold amex, and downgrade to the everyday after a year, or could I do something similar with barclay?

Just wanted to hear your thoughts.

Re: Needing Help Which CC to Apply for?

patoot10 — Sun, 26 Nov 2017 17:49:37 GMT

Hello

If you are looking for a nice sign up bonus without any annual fee this is the card for you

Chase AARP .. you get $200 after spending only $500 in the first 3 months (Best signup bonus out there with minimum required spend out there and no annual fee) you also get 3% on Gas/Restaurants/Fast Food and 1% on everything else .. you don't need to be an AARP member

Regards

Re: Needing Help Which CC to Apply for?

K-in-Boston — Sun, 26 Nov 2017 18:15:23 GMT

Since you already have the Chase Freedom and Sapphire (regular? Preferred? Reserve?), I would think that the Chase Freedom Unlimited would be a wonderful option if you're looking at 1.5x cards. That currently comes with a $150 bonus for $500 in spend, and a $25 bonus if you add an authorized user and make a purchase within 3 months (doesn't have to be AU since AU card numbers are identical to primary cardholder). Keep in mind that it is subject to Chase's 5/24 rule, although an offer under My Offers (with the green checkmark) in your account on in a branch will bypass 5/24 for that card.

Amex only allows product changes within their card families, so if you got the Premier Rewards Gold you could downgrade it to a Green card or upgrade it to a Platinum but nothing else. The EveryDay Preferred, EveryDay, and Blue from American Express are in the same family and product changes are possible with those so if you got a higher bonus on the EDP you could enjoy the higher points earning on it and downgrade it to a no-AF ED later (Blue is pretty much a worthless card - I keep mine only for account age and have no need for an ED).

Ultimately, the right card for you will depend on what you charge and what you want from the rewards. Unless you're looking at travel redemptions through partners, Membership Rewards are typically worth 1 cent per point or less.

Re: Needing Help Which CC to Apply for?

Anonymous — Sun, 26 Nov 2017 18:46:32 GMT

Sorry I meant the sapphire preferred.

I really like what op posted above about the aarp card. I'm by no means a big cc spender, that aarp would be great.

Also, you thanks for telling me about Amex product change. I really doubt I will spending enough every year just to justify the af.

The only reason I wanted the Amex ed would be for the membership points in amazon. They also have a promotion every year where Amex cardholders with points can get good deals.

I really like the fact the Barclays card has a 1.5% cb rate, but the aarp has a 3% on gas and fast food, so tempting.

Re: Needing Help Which CC to Apply for?

Anonymous — Sun, 26 Nov 2017 18:47:11 GMT

You're a life saver! I'm looking into it now. Thank you.

Re: Needing Help Which CC to Apply for?

K-in-Boston — Sun, 26 Nov 2017 18:57:46 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:

The only reason I wanted the Amex ed would be for the membership points in amazon. They also have a promotion every year where Amex cardholders with points can get good deals.

Using Membership Rewards points for Amazon purchases is a horrible redemption value at 0.7 cents per point. You would get more than twice that by just using a 1.5x cash back card like the Chase Freedom Unlimited! While the nice offers do appear for MR-earning cards in Amazon (i.e. $30 off $60 or more purchase), they only require you to use at least 1 MR point, so you would use 1 MR point to reduce the order by a penny and then pay for the rest of the order with the enrolled Amex card to not waste points.

Re: Needing Help Which CC to Apply for?

Anonymous — Mon, 27 Nov 2017 06:23:08 GMT

The question I have is why you feel the need to get a new card?

Re: Needing Help Which CC to Apply for?

HeavenOhio — Mon, 27 Nov 2017 11:40:15 GMT

Sooner or later, I think the OP should look for something that's from a bank that isn't Chase. But because of 5/24 and because Chase cards seem to be a good fit right now, that can happen later.

I like the Freedom Unlimited suggestion because it works and plays well with the Freedom and Sapphire cards. I think that's a good choice to go for first. If you're able to apply in a Chase branch, it's possible that the banker might find an offer that gives you greater than the standard $150 sign-up bonus. The last time I checked, I had an offer for $200.

If the AARP card interests you, sign up from the card's site rather than Chase's site. Chase's site doesn't offer the bonus.

https://www.aarpcreditcard.com/

And if you're buying from Amazon, the Chase Amazon Visa is always a nice fit.

Re: Needing Help Which CC to Apply for?

Anonymous — Mon, 27 Nov 2017 13:11:34 GMT

I think I'm going to go with the aarp card. Seems like a perfect fit and I can transfer points to my sapphire preferred for redemption for travel right?

Re: Needing Help Which CC to Apply for?

HeavenOhio — Mon, 27 Nov 2017 13:48:23 GMT

I believe you can only transfer points from the two Freedom cards.

Re: Needing Help Which CC to Apply for?

K-in-Boston — Mon, 27 Nov 2017 14:56:34 GMT

@HeavenOhio is correct. UR points can only be transferred between Freedom, Freedom Unlimited, Sapphire, Sapphire Preferred, and Sapphire Reserve cards. For travel redemption bonus, all of the points must be on the CSP or CSR.

Re: Needing Help Which CC to Apply for?

Anonymous — Mon, 27 Nov 2017 15:16:32 GMT

I think still the aarp card is the way to go. I was looking at the amex ed cc, and it didnt seem as enticing after reading the point redemption. I also spotted the igh cc through chase (which I believe isnt affected by 5/24), and that seems great to have if there was a bonus along with the free night (the af is worth about as much as a room).