I'm thinking of applying for Chase Freedom and need help.

[kdm31091]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Kevin86475391 wrote:

Personally, my advice would be to wait. I tend to think 2 new cards in 7 months is a lot to begin with, but for someone with only 7 months history total I think that's especially fast. I'd strongly recommend just slowing down and waiting at lease 1-2 years before applying for anything else. In the meantime focus on gardening and growing your QS and IT credit limits and histories.

Many people will tell you you don't need both the Freedom and the It anyway because they're so similar. Personally, I love having both the Freedom and the It and they're two of my favorite cards, but I got them years apart. I definitely wouldn't have pushed for an app on the second one within a short time of getting the first. While the quarters often don't align...they often do. Having both is nice IMO, but definitely not a necessity for someone with new credit. Remember thin, young reports like yours are even more affected by inquiries and new accounts than thicker, established files. Credit is a marathon not a sprint. My advice is to slow down and pace yourself.

But that's just my advice and I freely admit I'm very conservative in credit matters. Good luck with whatever you do and regardless, congrats on getting the QS and It! Those are fantastic cards by any standards and outstanding for someone to get as starter cards! Way to go! It sounds like you're doing great so far!

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Good advice but keep in mind for someone starting out, a rule of thumb is to have at lease 3 credit cards to maximize one's credit profile.  But like everything else, it is entirely up to OP.

That being said, everyone's weekend is off to a good start.

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Right, but it's important to weigh the fact that when someone is just starting off, it's not as big of a concern to worry about "maximizing" a profile. Build some history with a couple cards. FICO will give you more points for 3 cards (in theory), but someone who's new to all of this doesn't need to worry about that kind of optimization at this point, IMO. It's far more important to build a history of keeping on top of payments vs worrying about the more marginal optimization factors.

[NRB525]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Kevin86475391 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I have a question that I just thought of since I remember reading you have the Citi Double Cash. I've heard mixed reviews on it. I've read alot of complaints of people having trouble getting the second 1% back if they pay their balance too early and that need to allow the purchases to show up in the purchase tracker in order for you to get the second 1% so on and so forth. Could you explain if you don't mind? 

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I'm sorry, unfortunately I can't really provide any insight into this except to say that I have not experienced this problem at all. I have heard of other posters complaining about this, but my Purchase Tracker has always been 100% accurate and I've always earned full rewards on all payments. I'm not sure why this hasn't been the case for others.

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So earning your cash back is as easy as it sounds? Sounds good to me.

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Regarding the Citi DC Purchase Tracker, that likely has to do with letting the charges be shown on the statement. Several people here are in the habit of paying their new credit card charges almost before they get home from the store, before the charges have even registered through the bank transaction system. The Double Cash gives the second 1% on statement payments, so it's best to let them report on the statement. It may be possible in other situations to pay prior to statement, but then one runs the risk of not getting that second 1%.

Regarding the comparison between Freedom and Discover, they are not usually overlapping categories.

Also note that Discover has not offered Groceries as a category either of these two years, but relies on Amazon and home improvement a lot.

2015:

Q1 Freedom Groceries, Discover Gas,  Complementary

Q2 Freedom Restaurants, Discover Restaurants  Overlap

Q3 Freedom Gas, Discover "Summer Spruce Up" (?)  Gas is good

Q4 Freedom Amazon (which was boosted to 10% mid-way through Q4, Discover Amazon and Online. Overlap but competitively so

2016:

Q1 Freedom Gas, Discover Gas and Ground Transport,  Overlap, but Discover better on Transport

Q2 Freedom Groceries, Discover Restaurants and Movies, Complementary

Q3 Freedom Restaurants,  Discover Home Improvement and Amazon, Complementary

Q4 Freedom Holiday Shopping (to be defined) Discover, yet more Amazon. Likely some overlap

[Anonymous]

Sounds like OP has decided to garden for a bit, but I thought I'd add my 2cents. I got both cards last year and I have struggled to use my freedom. Last year so many of the catagories mirrored Discover that all my spend went that way to maximize double cashback. This year I'll get some use out of the next two 5% catagories, but I do not put big spend through this card.  OP I think you're on the right road. I'd garden for a bit  and then I'd app for the Freedom if you still want it. While there are other attractive cards out there, If I was building credit I'd get Chase out the way  1st so I wouldn't have to worry about 5/24.

[Anonymous]

Would you recommend getting both?

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@NRB525 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Kevin86475391 wrote:

---

@Anonymous wrote:

I have a question that I just thought of since I remember reading you have the Citi Double Cash. I've heard mixed reviews on it. I've read alot of complaints of people having trouble getting the second 1% back if they pay their balance too early and that need to allow the purchases to show up in the purchase tracker in order for you to get the second 1% so on and so forth. Could you explain if you don't mind? 

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I'm sorry, unfortunately I can't really provide any insight into this except to say that I have not experienced this problem at all. I have heard of other posters complaining about this, but my Purchase Tracker has always been 100% accurate and I've always earned full rewards on all payments. I'm not sure why this hasn't been the case for others.

---

So earning your cash back is as easy as it sounds? Sounds good to me.

---

Regarding the Citi DC Purchase Tracker, that likely has to do with letting the charges be shown on the statement. Several people here are in the habit of paying their new credit card charges almost before they get home from the store, before the charges have even registered through the bank transaction system. The Double Cash gives the second 1% on statement payments, so it's best to let them report on the statement. It may be possible in other situations to pay prior to statement, but then one runs the risk of not getting that second 1%.

Regarding the comparison between Freedom and Discover, they are not usually overlapping categories.

Also note that Discover has not offered Groceries as a category either of these two years, but relies on Amazon and home improvement a lot.

2015:

Q1 Freedom Groceries, Discover Gas,  Complementary

Q2 Freedom Restaurants, Discover Restaurants  Overlap

Q3 Freedom Gas, Discover "Summer Spruce Up" (?)  Gas is good

Q4 Freedom Amazon (which was boosted to 10% mid-way through Q4, Discover Amazon and Online. Overlap but competitively so

2016:

Q1 Freedom Gas, Discover Gas and Ground Transport,  Overlap, but Discover better on Transport

Q2 Freedom Groceries, Discover Restaurants and Movies, Complementary

Q3 Freedom Restaurants,  Discover Home Improvement and Amazon, Complementary

Q4 Freedom Holiday Shopping (to be defined) Discover, yet more Amazon. Likely some overlap

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[Anonymous]

Is it worth having both? Or should I opt for something else?

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@Anonymous wrote:

Sounds like OP has decided to garden for a bit, but I thought I'd add my 2cents. I got both cards last year and I have struggled to use my freedom. Last year so many of the catagories mirrored Discover that all my spend went that way to maximize double cashback. This year I'll get some use out of the next two 5% catagories, but I do not put big spend through this card.  OP I think you're on the right road. I'd garden for a bit  and then I'd app for the Freedom if you still want it. While there are other attractive cards out there, If I was building credit I'd get Chase out the way  1st so I wouldn't have to worry about 5/24.

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