Hotel status, Credit Cards, Car Rentals, Bonus Points, etc... what's been "worth" it to you?

[manlymatt83]

I've played the credit card / hotel status / etc. game for years. This year, I've been trying to simplify my life and in an ideal world, I'd forget all the noise, drop down to a single credit card, book the cheapest hotels available at any given time, and forget status, bonus points, credit card optimization, etc.

Some of the deals are too hard to ignore. For example, 5% rotating cash-back categories on credit cards. But the hotel status and credit card optimization game seems to be nothing more than spending valuable time chasing the best deal, and forgetting to sometimes live life or enjoy your vacation.

For those who put energy into financial "optimization", which things do you find most valuable? Which have you left in the past in pursuit of simplicity?

 

[Zorba]

I do it pretty simply, I only chase Southwest Points and basically haven't paid for a flight in 6+ years. I'm guessing it's saved me in the neighborhood of $10-15K at this point.

 

[JEDI]

i dont fly much so dont need specialized travel credit card.

i have 2 cards in my wallet:
Costco visa- 2% costco, 3% restaurants and travel, 4% gas (including costco gas, which is 2miles from where i live. it's also the cheapest gas near me.)

Fidelity 2%- for everything else.

i used to do discover/chase freedom when they have 5% restaurant specials.
but +2% over Costco wasnt really worth it to take up space in my minimal wallet

 

[Saylick]

This will sound like an ad, but I wholeheartedly believe this:

If you hold a lot of assets with Bank of America, their Preferred Awards tier offers anywhere from 1.25x to 1.75x the cash back on their credit cards. Their main Cash Rewards credit card is 3% on a category of your choice, 2% on grocery stores and wholesale clubs, and 1% back on everything else. If you hold $100k in assets with BoA, you can multiply those numbers by 1.75x, which I doubt most credit cards, including travel ones where you convert points to hotels/flights, could beat. You can have multiple of these cards and just use the one that makes the most sense for the 3% category (5.25% effective with the 1.75x multiplier), which can be set to gas, online shopping, dining, travel, drug stores, or home improvement/furnishings.

 

[bbhaag]

I know a lot of you guys around here are into chasing CC points/% but we never got into it. It just seems like a gimmick and it just makes the cost of goods go up on the backend because retailers have to make up the extra costs of these programs. We just prefer to pay cash when we can or use our debit card. This method has worked for us and helps keep it simple.

Even on the business side were we put hundreds of thousands of dollars a year on the CC's we just keep it simple with some Home Depot and Amazon gift cards when we redeem the points.

 

[otho11]

Mostly Chase ultimate rewards points used to transfer directly to Hyatt and Southwest pre pandemic and bonuses through Sapphire, Ink and Freedom. Burned through them all with the 25-50% bonus pay yourself back program post covid.

I've tried for years to use up American Airlines points but it seems like there's substantial planning involved to get good itineraries.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

Played the game for Marriott status. Currently have platinum, and usually have platinum every year. At this point I've hit lifetime silver status as well.

Definetly helps when I'm traveling with family (and business) getting free upgrades to suites, late checkouts, lots of points, etc.

Airlines... I go with southwest. But the more I travel with the family the more I would just rather drive to a given destination. Flying with babies and toddlers and shit that need car seats,diapers, and other shit is a HUGE pain in the ass.


That aside, I churn credit cards and general and use the 5% off categories as much as I can.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I tend to like going with the one that you just get points and can pick items out of a list. I always go for the Home Depot gift cards myself.

 

[Muse]

I like discounts, i.e. credit cards that reward purchases. Minimal 2% (Citi Double Cash fits that). Amazon CC has 5% cash back on Amazon purchases. Costco's Visa CC has 3% back on restaurants and approved travel, also gas and they have a discount for Costco purchases. Discover and Chase Rewards have 5% cash back on up to $1500 with quarterly categories and I keep an eye on those (currently Discover is 5% back until Sept. for Paypal).

I haven't looked into hotel and airline bonus points, I haven't been flying much and don't patronize hotels a lot, not so far, anyway.

I got a letter from Bank of America and the envelope said 3% cash back, you choose your categories, I might apply for that, but I have so many cards already, it starts to be too much trouble juggling these things.

 

[Muse]

I do it pretty simply, I only chase Southwest Points and basically haven't paid for a flight in 6+ years. I'm guessing it's saved me in the neighborhood of $10-15K at this point.

How does that work? I fly SWA, but only maybe a couple times a year, may increase. AFAIK I haven't redeemed anything with them in years! But I'm registered for the program.

 

[purbeast0]

How does that work? I fly SWA, but only maybe a couple times a year, may increase. AFAIK I haven't redeemed anything with them in years! But I'm registered for the program.

You get 2 of their credit cards early in the year with bonuses and get 125k points as quickly as possible, and then you have 125k+ points and you earn the companion pass which allows anyone you designate as your companion to fly with you for free for the rest of the calendar year and the entire following year.

You can do this every 24 months.

My wife and I have been alternating years with this since about 2013 or around there and have saved thousands upon thousands of dollars because of this. The only thing that sucks is right now we're both having companion passes expire at the end of 2021. One of them was extended a year due to covid. But right now we have 70k in my account and 200k in her account. Once it hits Jan 1st 2022 I will have a new Southwest card that I will start using to get a bonus. Once I get that, I will get another southwest card and get that bonus, and we'll hopefully have another companion pass until the end of 2023.

You do have to pay taxes still though and it varies depending where you go. If you fly nationally, it's about $11/person round trip. We've flown down to Florida to go to the keys like 5x with points and it costs us $33 for the family of 3 (1 lap baby too now). But I'm going to book a trip to Aruba for November and those taxes are like $75 or something a person. Bahamas was the most I believe it was like $125/person in taxes but I doubt I'll go back there.

 

[Exterous]

I've played the credit card / hotel status / etc. game for years. This year, I've been trying to simplify my life and in an ideal world, I'd forget all the noise, drop down to a single credit card, book the cheapest hotels available at any given time, and forget status, bonus points, credit card optimization, etc.

Some of the deals are too hard to ignore. For example, 5% rotating cash-back categories on credit cards. But the hotel status and credit card optimization game seems to be nothing more than spending valuable time chasing the best deal, and forgetting to sometimes live life or enjoy your vacation.

For those who put energy into financial "optimization", which things do you find most valuable? Which have you left in the past in pursuit of simplicity?

We are usually working on a new credit card sign up bonus so we don't need to put too much time and effort into optimizing. In all honestly if we do finish the spending on a new credit card to get to the bonus we fall back to our Chase Ink Unlimited car. It's 'only' 1.5% but we transfer that into UR via another Chase card and we get way more than 1.5% worth of travel value per Ultimate Reward point.

I know a lot of you guys around here are into chasing CC points/% but we never got into it. It just seems like a gimmick and it just makes the cost of goods go up on the backend because retailers have to make up the extra costs of these programs.

They also make it back with higher interest rates and sometimes annual fees but I'm not sure gimmick is the right word (typically means a trick or something without real value) since there is real value in it. That value band is constrained with a fair number of rules and things to be aware of but if you spend a little bit of time to learn some of them and pay off your bills on time there is a huge upside available

I've tried for years to use up American Airlines points but it seems like there's substantial planning involved to get good itineraries.

That is definitely true especially for AA. If you haven't tried recently you might want to try again as long as you aren't looking to go to the new COVID era popular destinations (Mexico, Caribbean, domestic flights to airports near popular National Parks, Iceland). I know United and Delta have a lot more reward flights open than they have previously on certain domestic routes and to Europe and Africa. Space to Asia and Oceana still seems constrained likely due to lack of frequency of flights and local restrictions.

 

[Zorba]

You get 2 of their credit cards early in the year with bonuses and get 125k points as quickly as possible, and then you have 125k+ points and you earn the companion pass which allows anyone you designate as your companion to fly with you for free for the rest of the calendar year and the entire following year.

You can do this every 24 months.

My wife and I have been alternating years with this since about 2013 or around there and have saved thousands upon thousands of dollars because of this. The only thing that sucks is right now we're both having companion passes expire at the end of 2021. One of them was extended a year due to covid. But right now we have 70k in my account and 200k in her account. Once it hits Jan 1st 2022 I will have a new Southwest card that I will start using to get a bonus. Once I get that, I will get another southwest card and get that bonus, and we'll hopefully have another companion pass until the end of 2023.

You do have to pay taxes still though and it varies depending where you go. If you fly nationally, it's about $11/person round trip. We've flown down to Florida to go to the keys like 5x with points and it costs us $33 for the family of 3 (1 lap baby too now). But I'm going to book a trip to Aruba for November and those taxes are like $75 or something a person. Bahamas was the most I believe it was like $125/person in taxes but I doubt I'll go back there.

Which 2 cards do you get?

 

[Zorba]

How does that work? I fly SWA, but only maybe a couple times a year, may increase. AFAIK I haven't redeemed anything with them in years! But I'm registered for the program.

I use a Saphire Reserve as my main card which gets me a lot of points and has many other benefits. If my point bank is getting low I'll get a new card with a good bonus. Last year I earned a companion pass with a Southwest card.

 

[purbeast0]

Which 2 cards do you get?

Whatever has the best bonuses at the time. One business, one non-business.

404

It did used to be easier to get them when it was 110k points to get the companion pass. Now it's 125k. Also the bonuses aren't quite as high as they were before. Before basically spending the amount needed to get the bonuses on both cards would put you over the 110k points, but now that isn't really the case most of the time.

EDIT:

Shit I am very tempted to sign up for this myself right now actually and just get another companion pass for next year.

 

[Zorba]

Whatever has the best bonuses at the time. One business, one non-business.

404

It did used to be easier to get them when it was 110k points to get the companion pass. Now it's 125k. Also the bonuses aren't quite as high as they were before. Before basically spending the amount needed to get the bonuses on both cards would put you over the 110k points, but now that isn't really the case most of the time.

EDIT:

Shit I am very tempted to sign up for this myself right now actually and just get another companion pass for next year.

Do you actually run a business or what do you claim for the business card?

 

[purbeast0]

Do you actually run a business or what do you claim for the business card?

No I don't run a business. I (used to) make mobile apps on the side and when my wife gets it I say she sells stuff on ebay. Never had an issue receiving one.

 

[Zorba]

No I don't run a business. I (used to) make mobile apps on the side and when my wife gets it I say she sells stuff on ebay. Never had an issue receiving one.

Yeah, we always sell some random stuff every year, thought about claiming that.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

That is definitely true especially for AA. If you haven't tried recently you might want to try again as long as you aren't looking to go to the new COVID era popular destinations (Mexico, Caribbean, domestic flights to airports near popular National Parks, Iceland). I know United and Delta have a lot more reward flights open than they have previously on certain domestic routes and to Europe and Africa. Space to Asia and Oceana still seems constrained likely due to lack of frequency of flights and local restrictions.

If I could I would sell all my United, American, and Delta airline miles. I sincerely hate their stupid fucking games with using miles so much that I would rather just avoid it all and use cash all the time with them. I fly them now so little that I just don't care.

Now that Southwest flies to Caribbean + Hawaii, I have zero reason not use them for 80% of my trips. the other remaining 20% to other countries I'd rather use international carriers ever AA,Delta, and UA as well.

 

[Exterous]

If I could I would sell all my United, American, and Delta airline miles. I sincerely hate their stupid fucking games with using miles so much that I would rather just avoid it all and use cash all the time with them. I fly them now so little that I just don't care.

Now that Southwest flies to Caribbean + Hawaii, I have zero reason not use them for 80% of my trips. the other remaining 20% to other countries I'd rather use international carriers ever AA,Delta, and UA as well.

The miles on United, AA and Delta work for their alliance partners as well (Star Alliance, Oneworld and Skyteam). Its not always seamless due to mileage differences and fuel surcharges (Oneworld to Europe is particularly bad due to BA's absurd fuel charges) but its not all that hard either. I've spent more time on Lufthansa and Swiss planes than United with United miles.

Edit: As an aside United, AA and Delta have interline agreements with eachother. SW doesn't. So if you get stuck with Delta due to an operational meltdown but an AA flight is open Delta will often put you on an AA flight to your intended destination. If that happens with SW you're stuck until SW can fix their mess. I still fly SW a lot but this year I would give that some consideration as all the airlines have had operational meltdowns of several days in the past few months while they try and suck up all the leisure demand with staff and operational aircraft constraints

 

[dullard]

I've played the credit card / hotel status / etc. game for years. This year, I've been trying to simplify my life and in an ideal world, I'd forget all the noise, drop down to a single credit card, book the cheapest hotels available at any given time, and forget status, bonus points, credit card optimization, etc.

Some of the deals are too hard to ignore. For example, 5% rotating cash-back categories on credit cards. But the hotel status and credit card optimization game seems to be nothing more than spending valuable time chasing the best deal, and forgetting to sometimes live life or enjoy your vacation.

For those who put energy into financial "optimization", which things do you find most valuable? Which have you left in the past in pursuit of simplicity?

The key is to find what is actually a value to you and what is just advertising for the companies. Scoring a free hotel night that is 20 miles away from the action is not really a win for you. It might actually cost you more money in rental car fees, taxi fees, or uber fees than paying for a better hotel. It certainly will cost you an hour a day driving back and forth.

* Unless you live in a hub city, pick the best flight for your needs--forget about airline miles.
* Unless you only do business trips to the same business districts, pick the fun hotel right in the action that you can walk to after a great night out--forget about hotel points.
* Unless you have a very specific need, pick something that gives you cash back--forget about points. Expiring airline miles didn't do people a whole lot of good when they don't fly in a pandemic. Points to get money off a car doesn't do you any good when there is a chip shortage and you can't buy the car (especially when you can just negotiate lower prices instead).

For simplicity, I have three credit cards. Two of them are rotating 5% cards, and one is the BOA pick your 3% back card. I only carry two cards at any time. Every quarter I choose the two that best fit what I normally buy: restaurants, groceries, and gas. Between the 3 cards, I can almost always get two cards that cover those items. I write on the card in permanent ink what category is covered. Then I don't care about the fine details on purchases that I rarely make. So what if I only get 1% back on my purchase of a 55 cent stamp, it is worth not carrying and memorizing another card just to get 5% on that 55 cent purchase. The next quarter, I clean off the permanent ink and start over.

 

[ponyo]

I've been having the same thoughts, and I think I'm going to drop my Chase Sapphire Reserve card at renew time and stop with the Chase Ultimate Rewards points. I will switch to Amex Platinum for a year since I just got the card and the signup bonus points. But after a year, I will also not renew Amex Platinum and will switch to Bank of America Premium Rewards card. I was looking over BoA Platinum Honors and it sounds like great program. The only con I can see is I have to keep $100k at BoA or Merrill but that's not a problem since I can just open Merrill account and transfer in $100k money or stocks. I like the 75% bonus booster on every purchase. So if I get BoA Premium Rewards card, I can get minimum 2.62% back on every purchase. Sounds pretty sweet. Then I think I can just stick with Costco Citi card and the BoA Premium Rewards card for 99% of my spending and get rid of Chase and Amex cards.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

I've been having the same thoughts, and I think I'm going to drop my Chase Sapphire Reserve card at renew time and stop with the Chase Ultimate Rewards points. I will switch to Amex Platinum for a year since I just got the card and the signup bonus points. But after a year, I will also not renew Amex Platinum and will switch to Bank of America Premium Rewards card. I was looking over BoA Platinum Honors and it sounds like great program. The only con I can see is I have to keep $100k at BoA or Merrill but that's not a problem since I can just open Merrill account and transfer in $100k money or stocks. I like the 75% bonus booster on every purchase. So if I get BoA Premium Rewards card, I can get minimum 2.62% back on every purchase. Sounds pretty sweet. Then I think I can just stick with Costco Citi card and the BoA Premium Rewards card for 99% of my spending and get rid of Chase and Amex cards.

It's not a bad idea - the only exception to having plat/CSR cards is for things like airline lounges if you're the type that finds yourself in them many many times a year. I also am becoming more and more annoyed with the restrictions they are starting to impose for things like airline incident credits - and I'm just getting more annoyed with how many hoops we have to jump through to use all the benefits with stupid ones like the new "entertainment credit" and the stupid $50 Saks 5th credit.


You should also continue to churn though - Every 2 years or so getting $800 - $1,000 sign-up bonuses still is a no-brainer win though.

 

[purbeast0]

I am glad I live within 30-40 minutes of 3 international airports and one is a SW hub (BWI) and one is a United hub (IAD). I'm not sure what hub the other is (DCA) if any. I can usually get to where I want to go via Southwest, but I also have like 100k United points right now. When I had the Sapphire Reserve with the huge CUR sign on bonuses I ended up transferring it to United so I could get their good deals from that United hub.

 

[manlymatt83]

For simplicity, I have three credit cards. Two of them are rotating 5% cards, and one is the BOA pick your 3% back card. I only carry two cards at any time. Every quarter I choose the two that best fit what I normally buy: restaurants, groceries, and gas. Between the 3 cards, I can almost always get two cards that cover those items. I write on the card in permanent ink what category is covered. Then I don't care about the fine details on purchases that I rarely make. So what if I only get 1% back on my purchase of a 55 cent stamp, it is worth not carrying and memorizing another card just to get 5% on that 55 cent purchase. The next quarter, I clean off the permanent ink and start over.

I love this idea.

I've been having the same thoughts, and I think I'm going to drop my Chase Sapphire Reserve card at renew time and stop with the Chase Ultimate Rewards points. I will switch to Amex Platinum for a year since I just got the card and the signup bonus points. But after a year, I will also not renew Amex Platinum and will switch to Bank of America Premium Rewards card. I was looking over BoA Platinum Honors and it sounds like great program. The only con I can see is I have to keep $100k at BoA or Merrill but that's not a problem since I can just open Merrill account and transfer in $100k money or stocks. I like the 75% bonus booster on every purchase. So if I get BoA Premium Rewards card, I can get minimum 2.62% back on every purchase. Sounds pretty sweet. Then I think I can just stick with Costco Citi card and the BoA Premium Rewards card for 99% of my spending and get rid of Chase and Amex cards.

I use the centurion and delta lounges all the time, so definitely want to keep my Amex Platinum, which I also just got. You're right, I may dump my CSR as well once the Lyft Pink and Doordash benefit runs out.