Which card(s) would you NOT app for?

[Anonymous]

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@MrDisco99 wrote:

OK, mountaindew, I see what you're saying now.  You're right, if I pay $550 for Platinum, I get all kinds of perks right off the bat without having to actually use the card.  If I was to pay for SkyClub and Priority Pass access and hotel tiers and all that stuff a la carte, it would be way more than $550.  You're absolutely right about that.

What I'm saying is, the reason I won't apply for one, is that I personally wouldn't buy those perks anyway, whether at full price or for $550, and for me that money is better spent on something else.  Those Platinum perks aren't worth the fee to me.  Most people who have one talk about how the $550 isn't the true fee because of travel credits and Uber credits.  Yes, you can reduce the net fee if you actually make use of those credits AND they are reimbursements for something you'd buy anyway.  For me, that's not the case.

As for the BCP thing, if you're not figuring out how to optimize rewards earning with the cards you have, then you're likely leaving money on the table.  I try my best to avoid doing that.

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Well as there are 75k and 100k targeted offers for the card, so the value of those do exceed the annual fee.  Combine that with the 400 dollar in airline credits if you get  the 100k points and you are getting at least 850 dollars the first year in value. 

 I have the Amerprise version and haven't even installed Uber on my phone so that 200 dollars won't ever be used. I did sign up for Global Re-entry though and getting the 400 dollars in travel credits.  I might get the regular one next year when the free year runs out on the Ameririse one. Or have my wfie get the Ameriprise version.  I mean if they are giving out 400 dollars in airline gift cards I will take them.  Lounge access I don't value very highly but I will sample the lounges as it is free.  Lounges seem less fun than airport bars but I am willing to have an open mind and give the lounges a chance. 

[iced]

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@Adkins wrote:
Which card(s) would you NOT app for, even if you had the score to get approved for them? I'm just curious. I'm still in the middle of my rebuild, but the more I scrutinize cards, the more I realize I'll probably never app for the CSR or Amex Platinum. I rarely travel far and I don't see this changing anytime soon, so I can't justify the annual fees (even with the sign up bonuses). Which card(s) are currently off your app list, and why? Thanks!

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I'm very selective in my cards, so I wouldn't apply for just about every card out there. Any card with few or no benefits useful to me, cashback only cards (Capital One's offerings, for example), or cards lacking universal acceptance (Discover/American Express) are off my radar. Perhaps in my case the better question to ask is what card(s) would you app for?

The only cards that interest me are cards with travel benefits and rewards that align with the airlines and hotels I tend to frequent. At present, that means Chase's premium travel cards as my travel habits mostly involve United and Marriott. I already have the cards that Chase has of any interest to me, so unless a bank came along and really, really went out of their way to attract me, there's no card out there today I would consider applying for.

[CreditMagic7]

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@K-in-Boston wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I am not sure why people are so against Barclay. In the past 5 months they have given me 120k American Airline Miles and 650 dollars.  I did have to pay 190 dollars in annual fees for the 120k American Airline MIles but that still seems like a good deal and 650 dollars for 3k spend is pretty good as well.  

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Wife got a Ring card about a year ago with a 10k SL, before they nixed the Prime + 5% structure for new applicants.  Util was around 32% and TU score was in the 750s or 760s at time of approval.  They sent us loads of convenience checks; since there is no fee to use them, if paid off relatively quickly the fee is lower than a 3% fee on a 0% card would be.  Used a convenience check to pay a contractor that didn't accept credit cards like $6,000 and paid it off in 2 months.  A few months later, used another check for about $8,000 to pay another contractor and paid about $850 the first two months (many multiples of the "minimum payment") and were planning to pay it off by month 4.  They slashed her credit line to $6400 when the statement cut and reported 98+% utilization!!! They sent a letter stating their reasons: payments have been too low and her FICO score.  For clarity, again all payments we had made since opening the account were huge.  Her TU 08 FICO score at the time they slashed her credit line, and noted on the letter, was in the 780s and her overall util was down to about 22%.  Flawless credit reports, income in the 200s, oldest account 25+ years, AAoA 14 years, 3 TU inquiries (one of which was them), a few accounts opened in past 2 years but only new account was being added to an AU on my SPG since opening the Ring card.  Only her Kohl's card has a lower limit (and that's due to the previous $3k cap on credit lines).

I know that there are many people that have had Barclaycard products for years with no issues, but which other lender have you heard of that balance chases for the sole reasons of only making $850-$4,000 monthly payments towards 3-8k balances and having credit scores juist slightly south of 800?

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It only took a few stories of experiences just like this to convince this camp that we are better off without them

[Anonymous]

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@UpperNwGuy wrote:

Not sure I fully understand your point, mountaindewvoltage.  Are you saying that, for you, the annual fees buy the perks, and the earnings on regular spend are essentially free?

By the way, your math is off on the BCP.  The annual fee is paid off after $1584 of spend, not $9000.

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The $9000 was just an example number thrown out there, my point was it was at least $1000 in spend required, and that's probably if you max out the grocery category. 

I'm saying the annual fees buy the perks at a significant discount, so some cards doesn't even need $0.01 of spending on them to "make up" for the annual fee. 

If you have to spend $thousands over time to "make up for" the annual fee, it is different than a card that provides an annual fee that is basically providing lounge access and only requires you to pay $450 a year [Citi AAdvantage Executive].

[Anonymous]

Thread closed at OP's request.