Credit card bonus whoring

[Dan Druff]

Let me tell you about a recent experience I had, regarding large credit limits.

I had one AA credit card which I was using like crazy, and I decided, "Fuck it... I want a huge limit." I decided this especially in case another opportunity like those dollar coins ever came up, and I needed a lot of credit quickly.

So I applied for a boost to $66,500 (from $16,500) and they APPROVED it.

That was last week. Then this week I realized I wanted to apply for another AA credit card -- this time a business card, and it was the same bank handling it.

They had no problem with me having a personal card and a business card, but they didn't like my $66,500 limit on the first card, and were afraid to give me much more credit on the second one. They told me they would give me $8,500, and also that the whole thing would have to be approved by a supervisor, and I'd hear back by Tuesday 10/29.

I haven't heard back yet.

Anyway, now I kinda wish that I didn't boost my credit line on the first card, but I think this only affected me because it was the same bank. Also, note that I didn't get rejected -- just stalled and given a lower credit line. And they said I'll likely be approved despite this.

[DutchDoDo]

The best Airline out there in my humble opinion is Southwest and the best cc is the Rapid Rewards Credit Card.
For signing up you'll get 750 points and for adding your email address to the Southwest rapid rewards shopping list gives you another 750. Regarding the credit card you'll get 50.000(!!!) points after spending 2k within the first 3 months + 1 point for every dollar spent anywhere and 2 points for every dollar spent on Southwest.com. They also partnered up which a bunch of other (online) stores, so for example if you go buy something @ Walgreens and you go through the rapid rewards shopping link, you'll receive 6 points for every dollar spent instead of 1. It doesn't cost anything extra (assuming you wanted to buy something in the first place and pay off the cc right away) and this way you can collect a bunch of free points. The yearly fee is 99$ BUT you'll receive 6000 points every year which equals about $100. So out of the bat you should have about 60.000 points after 3 months, which is good for about 8 Las Vegas - San Francisco , 7 Las Vegas - Denver or in my case 10 Omaha - Denver ROUNDTRIP flights. I used my points to buy tickets for my wife and 3 kids, not sure if the person with the CC HAS to be part of the travelling group but I like the fact that you can use points for other family members. They have no black out days and when the ticket prices goes on sale, the points for a flight you need go down also. Finally Southwest is one of the few airlines left where bags fly free!!! :-)

[Dan Druff]

No comments about the Southwest Rapid Rewards program, because I'm not familiar with it.

However, I hate Southwest. They run their airline with a very strict set of rules, and they have no ability to deviate from them, even when common sense dictates they should.

They outright cheated me out of $100 in 2009, and I now avoid them out of principle.

I realize that all airlines have their customer service problems, but all other airlines have eventually made their failures right after I've complained, while Southwest actually had one of their VPs get on the phone and rudely yell at me. True story. F them.

[Bootsy Collins]

Is there any real benefit to getting the Total Rewards Visa? For example can I charge a bunch of shit to it and become Seven Star?

[DutchDoDo]

I realize that all airlines have their customer service problems, but all other airlines have eventually made their failures right after I've complained

No offense and because of your personality the poker world owes you a lot, but I'm getting a feel that "sometimes" you are too critical, your quote says a lot. Your not flying a high end airline here, Southwest was chosen multiple times by consumers as the best airline,but its a budget airline, nothing more and nothing less. You can't expect a Hyundai to drive like a Mercedes. I'm probably not the PFA member with the most flights, but I'm pretty sure I'm the one that flew with the highest number of different airlines. Once you've boarded Cubana Air, LOT, Pegasus or Ukraine airlines you start to appreciate the Airlines you guys got here a lot more. Would love to see you call the Cubana Air customer service rep :-) It's the same about all your numerous problems and complaints regarding hotels, you might be right (and my guess is most of the times you are), sometimes it's best to just laugh it off!

However, I hate Southwest. They run their airline with a very strict set of rules, and they have no ability to deviate from them, even when common sense dictates they should.

Its an airline and especially since 9/11, they HAVE to follow by a very strict set of rules.
You say you had a bad experience in 2009, wanna share the story? Sometimes you have to give people and companies a second chance, I flew over 50 times with Southwest and never ever did I had any complaints, that being said, you probably would have found something to complain about at least 10 times.... :-)

btw, I'm curious which airline you are flying with.

[Dan Druff]

Here are 2 good AA cards:

http://away7.citicards.com

You get 50,000 bonus miles once you spend $3000 within 3 months.

So basically you get the card, spend $3k, and get 53,000 miles.

You can get BOTH the personal and the business card. You should apply for the personal first, clear the spending requirement, get the mileage, and then do the business one if you have a business tax ID to use for it.

No annual fee for 12 months.

[abrown83]

Let me tell you about a recent experience I had, regarding large credit limits.

I had one AA credit card which I was using like crazy, and I decided, "Fuck it... I want a huge limit." I decided this especially in case another opportunity like those dollar coins ever came up, and I needed a lot of credit quickly.

So I applied for a boost to $66,500 (from $16,500) and they APPROVED it.

That was last week. Then this week I realized I wanted to apply for another AA credit card -- this time a business card, and it was the same bank handling it.

They had no problem with me having a personal card and a business card, but they didn't like my $66,500 limit on the first card, and were afraid to give me much more credit on the second one. They told me they would give me $8,500, and also that the whole thing would have to be approved by a supervisor, and I'd hear back by Tuesday 10/29.

I haven't heard back yet.

Anyway, now I kinda wish that I didn't boost my credit line on the first card, but I think this only affected me because it was the same bank. Also, note that I didn't get rejected -- just stalled and given a lower credit line. And they said I'll likely be approved despite this.

BeerAndPoker is right but just not for the reason he thinks he is right on this topic.

When you draw large lines of credit, especially in a short amount of time, credit card companies get worried that you are going to do one of two things.

1. You are going to buy a shit ton of stuff and just never pay it back.

2. You are going to buy a shit ton of stuff and move to Mexico.

As the card ages it should become easier to get other cards with larger limits.

[DutchDoDo]

Here are 2 good AA cards:

http://away7.citicards.com

You get 50,000 bonus miles once you spend $3000 within 3 months.

So basically you get the card, spend $3k, and get 53,000 miles.

You can get BOTH the personal and the business card. You should apply for the personal first, clear the spending requirement, get the mileage, and then do the business one if you have a business tax ID to use for it.

No annual fee for 12 months.

Hey you take your free 2 roudtrips with AA and pay $100 for luggage + changing fees and experience wonderfull customer service while I'll take my free 10 roundtrips with Southwest and pay $0 for luggage and changing fees and I'll deal with all the horrible flight attendants, rude managers and laughable customer service ANY DAY!!! :-)

[gm2022]

Here are 2 good AA cards:

http://away7.citicards.com

You get 50,000 bonus miles once you spend $3000 within 3 months.

So basically you get the card, spend $3k, and get 53,000 miles.

You can get BOTH the personal and the business card. You should apply for the personal first, clear the spending requirement, get the mileage, and then do the business one if you have a business tax ID to use for it.

No annual fee for 12 months.

Hey you take your free 2 roudtrips with AA and pay $100 for luggage + changing fees and experience wonderfull customer service while I'll take my free 10 roundtrips with Southwest and pay $0 for luggage and changing fees and I'll deal with all the horrible flight attendants, rude managers and laughable customer service ANY DAY!!! :-)

100% agreed

2 years ago I got southwest card (chase) and it's best value. 50,000 points you get on day1 you can buy $500 gift card with. That include great deals for flights extra points with vendors online ect. I fly Vegas La a few times each year and haven't paid a dime sense having card.

Annual fee is $99 (I got it down $49) and you get 6500 Pts offset cost.

[Dan Druff]

Hey you take your free 2 roudtrips with AA and pay $100 for luggage + changing fees and experience wonderfull customer service while I'll take my free 10 roundtrips with Southwest and pay $0 for luggage and changing fees and I'll deal with all the horrible flight attendants, rude managers and laughable customer service ANY DAY!!! :-)

100% agreed

2 years ago I got southwest card (chase) and it's best value. 50,000 points you get on day1 you can buy $500 gift card with. That include great deals for flights extra points with vendors online ect. I fly Vegas La a few times each year and haven't paid a dime sense having card.

Annual fee is $99 (I got it down $49) and you get 6500 Pts offset cost.

So if I get a Southwest card, I can buy a $500 Southwest gift card on Day 1, and then sell it?

Because that I would do.

I just don't want to fly with them.

[gm2022]

100% agreed

2 years ago I got southwest card (chase) and it's best value. 50,000 points you get on day1 you can buy $500 gift card with. That include great deals for flights extra points with vendors online ect. I fly Vegas La a few times each year and haven't paid a dime sense having card.

Annual fee is $99 (I got it down $49) and you get 6500 Pts offset cost.

So if I get a Southwest card, I can buy a $500 Southwest gift card on Day 1, and then sell it?

Because that I would do.

I just don't want to fly with them.

I have friends who did exactly that. Let southwest go druff

[FR1GHT]

Chase Freedom Credit Card: Spend $500 in First 3-Months and Earn $200 Cash Back

https://applynow.chase.com/FlexAppWe.../3-10002108/na

[Dan Druff]

So if I get a Southwest card, I can buy a $500 Southwest gift card on Day 1, and then sell it?

Because that I would do.

I just don't want to fly with them.

I have friends who did exactly that. Let southwest go druff

I had one a few years ago though. It's canceled now.

Am I still eligible?

I got it as a favor to Ken Scalir, who wanted to fly to Chicago and had no $. I got the card, got him the flight, and canceled it. This was in 2009 I think.

[FR1GHT]

I have friends who did exactly that. Let southwest go druff

I had one a few years ago though. It's canceled now.

Am I still eligible?

I got it as a favor to Ken Scalir, who wanted to fly to Chicago and had no $. I got the card, got him the flight, and canceled it. This was in 2009 I think.

Airtran which is now operated/owned by Southwest runs the same deal. You can get that card separate of the Southwest card. It is also offered by Chase.

[Dan Druff]

New question for anyone who might know:

I have a United Mileage Plus Visa through Chase that I've had for eternity.

It carries a $60/year fee that bills every March.

Even if I can negotiate it off (just learned this year that this can be done), would I be best just canceling it now, waiting a certain amount of time, and signing up again to get bonus miles?

How much of a waiting period is there between canceling and signing up again to get the bonus offers? I don't give a shit if my credit score goes down from doing this.

[FR1GHT]

Discover IT Credit Card: Spend $750 in First 3 Months and Earn $150 Cash Back

https://www.discovercard.com/cardmem...vg0_0_0_0_kE51

[abrown83]

New question for anyone who might know:

I have a United Mileage Plus Visa through Chase that I've had for eternity.

It carries a $60/year fee that bills every March.

Even if I can negotiate it off (just learned this year that this can be done), would I be best just canceling it now, waiting a certain amount of time, and signing up again to get bonus miles?

How much of a waiting period is there between canceling and signing up again to get the bonus offers? I don't give a shit if my credit score goes down from doing this.

Druff I would use Credit Karma to monitor you credit score and figure out your average age of credit.

Ideally what you would do is find some cards with no annual fees and keep them open forever.

Then use the bonus whoring cards and switch them out often (once a year or so).

You are going to find if you start whoring too much you will start getting denied and it will take a year or two to recover.

[PLOL]

I'm also in the market for a new CC, and I'm not sure which to get. I hate how it seems like they all give good cashback on gas purchases. I don't own a car anymore and therefore it's of no use to me. Higher cash back on Groceries/Restaurants is more useful to me. I'm not concerned with interest rates because I always pay it off right away. I'm thinking of getting the Southwest card. I have had some issues with SW in the past. I signed up for Turbotax through them and was supposed to get $20 worth of points to my rapid rewards account. Well, it didn't show up. I e-mailed them and they said I have to wait a million weeks for the credit. Well, I waited the aforementioned million weeks and it still didn't show up. I e-mailed them again and they wanted to jump through a bunch of hoops with Turbotax. I'm not sure if it was Turbo's fault or Southwests', but it wasn't really worth it, so I just let them jip me out of $20.

I have pretty limited credit. I basically had no credit and then I opened my first CC with BOA about a year and a half ago (I actually got rejected by 2 other CCs first) and they gave me an $800 line of credit. I always kept my balance low (sometimes negative) and paid it off right away. What's annoying is that you have to request for a credit line increase and you have to put how much of an increase you want. Well, I basically want it to be as high as possible, but I didn't know what I'd get approved for. So a few months ago I asked for a $4k credit line (idk if I could've gotten higher?) and they approved it. My main goal is to get my credit up as high as possible and also increase my total available credit. I hate getting rejected for cards. I applied for a card about a year ago and got pre-approved for a $9,500 limit and then a few days later they rejected me due to limited credit history.

I'm sorta just rambling, but I'd like to know how hard it is to get approved for the SW Credit Card. I don't want to get rejected again because it can hurt my credit score. My credit is good, my history is just limited.

[FR1GHT]

I'm also in the market for a new CC, and I'm not sure which to get. I hate how it seems like they all give good cashback on gas purchases. I don't own a car anymore and therefore it's of no use to me. Higher cash back on Groceries/Restaurants is more useful to me. I'm not concerned with interest rates because I always pay it off right away. I'm thinking of getting the Southwest card. I have had some issues with SW in the past. I signed up for Turbotax through them and was supposed to get $20 worth of points to my rapid rewards account. Well, it didn't show up. I e-mailed them and they said I have to wait a million weeks for the credit. Well, I waited the aforementioned million weeks and it still didn't show up. I e-mailed them again and they wanted to jump through a bunch of hoops with Turbotax. I'm not sure if it was Turbo's fault or Southwests', but it wasn't really worth it, so I just let them jip me out of $20.

I have pretty limited credit. I basically had no credit and then I opened my first CC with BOA about a year and a half ago (I actually got rejected by 2 other CCs first) and they gave me an $800 line of credit. I always kept my balance low (sometimes negative) and paid it off right away. What's annoying is that you have to request for a credit line increase and you have to put how much of an increase you want. Well, I basically want it to be as high as possible, but I didn't know what I'd get approved for. So a few months ago I asked for a $4k credit line (idk if I could've gotten higher?) and they approved it. My main goal is to get my credit up as high as possible and also increase my total available credit. I hate getting rejected for cards. I applied for a card about a year ago and got pre-approved for a $9,500 limit and then a few days later they rejected me due to limited credit history.

I'm sorta just rambling, but I'd like to know how hard it is to get approved for the SW Credit Card. I don't want to get rejected again because it can hurt my credit score. My credit is good, my history is just limited.

My girlfriend got one with limited credited. Not great credit, but not terrible either. I think you will be OK.

[chinamaniac]

lil off topic but I have a macys card and havnt used it in 3 years and will never use it, in fact I just cut it up. Am I better off just leaving this open or calling them and shutting it down.