@mongstradamus wrote:
@lg8302ch wrote:
@HailtotheVictors79 wrote:
I am just looking to do some gardening after this spree for at least a year. So a hit to my score at the moment would be acceptable.excellent idea... see you in the garden
still no luck with your nemesis that is the freedom ? I had no luck with my nemesis discover IT :-(
Partial success. Got the Signature card with 22,99% APR..lol.. regarding your Discover IT card just be patient it will work for your CLI as well... it took me 15 months for the first successful approval with the luv button but then 3 months later another successful CLI all with SP. So it is just a matter of time.. for some it is faster than others but Discover CLI will happen one day..Good luck!
@Anonymous wrote:
@lg8302ch wrote:Last year when I got horrible terms (example Chase Freedom) I realized that this was 1 card too much.. I should have waited as now I am stuck for life with 22,99% APR
Have you considered closing it and reopening at a later point? Looks like you have enough card for AAoA not to be too big a factor. But maybe too much hassle just to get a lower APR you don't plan to use!
Just made me want to check my APR! OK, it's less...
+1
Chase will never see a dime in interest like this and since they finally did send me the Signature version of the Freedom it is a win for me. 
Who knows maybe in the next 20 years they will wonder one day how their Signature cards have 22,99% APR...lol
I didn't mean best rate of all cards, just rewards. Best example I can think is I use Discover IT before Freedom because the rate is lower, I've had better experiences with customer service and gotten one, very tiny CLI. Nothing from Chase.
I guess my thing with them is I've made a good bit of progress and if feels like there is no getting out of the risk category I'm in with them. BoA, Discover, even Kohl's has seen I'm less of a risk. If it's company practices, so be it, but I prefer those that I can grow with. While they've helped in my journey, it looks like this is as far as I'll get. I don't hate Chase or my Freedom,
but there are other banks and cards higher on my list. That's all.
In regards to a waste of time trying to get lower rates.....to each his own. For me, I have high rates and it's a goal to get as many lowered as possible.. It takes less than 5 minutes to call or email. I've probably spent more time on this thread than I have getting a lower APR. It's worth it to me, also feels like I've accomplished more in my credit repair journey. Kind of like getting approved for a card I couldn't previously. Maybe one day my mid score will hover in the 800s and II'll be in a position where rates don't matter and I'm able to charge whatever I want and always just PIF. Unfortunately, that day is not today. Probably not tomorrow either. Lol.
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@lg8302ch wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
@lg8302ch wrote:Last year when I got horrible terms (example Chase Freedom) I realized that this was 1 card too much.. I should have waited as now I am stuck for life with 22,99% APR
Have you considered closing it and reopening at a later point? Looks like you have enough card for AAoA not to be too big a factor. But maybe too much hassle just to get a lower APR you don't plan to use!
Just made me want to check my APR! OK, it's less...
+1
Chase will never see a dime in interest like this and since they finally did send me the Signature version of the Freedom it is a win for me.
Well, you also expended more effort getting it to be a Sig than I would! With the CSP already being one, not quite sure of the gain.
My highest Visa CL is a Plat, and have no plans to change that. (Wasn't going to change my Penfed's either, but they did that for me!)
@Open123 wrote:
@Stanic413 wrote:Maybe one day my mid score will hover in the 800s and II'll be in a position where rates don't matter and I'm able to charge whatever I want and always just PIF. Unfortunately, that day is not today. Probably not tomorrow either. Lol.I see nothing wrong with carrying a balance to have something today. After all, having something today is worth more than having the same thing in the future, all things being equal.
My only query was that high rewards cards will by nature have the higest APRs. There aren't many absolutes, but "carrying a balance on a rewards card" will negate any benefit derived from the rewards is one of them. Spending on rewards cards should always be PIF, as a general practice. The only exception would be a low rate promo. If the intention is to finance, then there are better alternatives, which offer much lower rates saving you much more than even the highest rewards cards can every hope to earn.
*Edited* Hence, in my way of thinking, why even spend a nano-second on lowering an APR that I will never use. Even if I were to have to unexpectantly carry a balance on a rewards card, I'd balance transfer it to a lower one immediately before suffering the high APRs.
I don't know that higher rewards cards will necessarily have the highest APR. My 1.5% cashback Quicksilver has a much higher APR than my 5% back Sallie Mae. The point of having a great FICO is getting high rewards with a low APR.
Also, different people think differently about interest and spending. Some people have a "they'll never get a dime of interest from me" approach, while I don't mind paying some interest for the convenience of breaking up a large purchase over several months. To me that's a win-win and I'm happy with it. Saving a dime of interest isn't my priority, living a life I enjoy is. Of course, given a choice I'll use the 0% interest option, but that doesn't drive my decisions.
In practical experience, carrying a balance on a rewards card doesn't always negate any rewards. You can also view it as "the rewards negate the already low interest rate." For instance I charge an $800 laptop, and pay it off over three months. The first month I might pay $11 interest (rough estimate). The 2nd month I pay interest only on $550, since I paid $250 toward the balance. So it's only $7 interest that month. 3rd month say $4 interest. So say $22 interest altogether, but since I used my 5% cashback card, I earned $40 in rewards. Easily negating the interest and even netting a profit. Effectively, my card is always 0% interest +2% cash if used this way. Since this is often how I use cards, I value low interest.
@Open123 wrote:*Edited* Hence, in my way of thinking, why even spend a nano-second on lowering an APR that II will never use. Even if I were to have to unexpectantly carry a balance on a rewards card, I'd balance transfer it to a lower one immediately before suffering the high APRs.
Well, you may have answered your own question. You could avoid having to do a BT and avoid transfer fees. Again, to each his own. I explained why I would take the time. I honestly don't think there is a right or wrong answer. Just personal preference. I prefer low rates since I started with less than stellar credit and still have some cards with high rates. If my rates weren't the higest given for the card, I probably wouldn't even consider trying to lower them. So I do see your point.
@Open123 wrote:
@Bman70 wrote:I don't know that higher rewards cards will necessarily have the highest APR. My 1.5% cashback Quicksilver has a much higher APR than my 5% back Sallie Mae. The point of having a great FICO is getting high rewards with a low APR.
While it's possible a rewards card may from a one time promo have a lower APR than others, such as the Amex Blues with 3.99% lifetime out there, in general a card specificially intended to carry a balance without rewards will have a lower APR.
Sans rewards, the cards from CUs, Simmons, Iberia and assorted other landers are around 7%. Take a look at rewards cards or even Prime Bank offerings, how many do you see belowe 10%? Barclay Ring at 8%?
What's the lowest APR for a Sapphire/CSP, 15%? All the current Amex cards, 13.99% is the lowest? Or, the Chase Inks, 11.99%?
I'm not suggesting financing is bad or one shouldn't do it, but merely it would be more prudent to finance at a lower rate than a higher one. In my view, the reason to have a high Fico score is to maximize rewards when I choose, or minimize the cost of borrow when necessary.
However, I agree. Ideally, I'd like a super rewards card with a 7.99% APR!
This is where it's really useful to calculate based on your own usage. What looks best on face value might not be best in a real world experience.
For instance, using my example above, I paid $22 total interest for my laptop, but earned $40 in cash back, on a 13.99% APR rewards card.
Now, a Simmons at 7% would cut that interest in half. But with no rewards, I would end up paying a flat $11 interest. Instead, with my Sallie Mae, I paid nothing in interest and got paid $18 net ($40 profit -$22 interest). So rewards can outweigh interest, making a higher interest rewards card worth more than a lower interest non-rewards. But let me know if you find that 7.99% APR / 7% cash card!