I was wondering if people could post something on the rewards cards they have and why they think that it is good. I have a Chase Toyrus platinum card that I really love. I just became a father and it comes in handy for pampers. 1% for every dollar you spend and 5% of every dollar you spend at toysrus, babiesrus, or imaginarium. They send you the rewards every month in 10.00 increments. I have earned $230.00 since September of last year.
I like the airline mileage cards. I have the United Mileage Plus Visa from First USA and the US Airways Dividend Miles Visa from Bank of America. Both give you one mile per dollar spent. If you can use it for everything and pay it off every month, the annual fee is worth it for the miles. If you carry a balance it may not be a good idea because rewards cards usually have higher interest rates. I travel for business, some years a lot and some years not so much. The card gives me a good way to supplement the miles I earn traveling so that my husband can go with me sometimes and we still have enough for vacation.
I have a Citi Platinum Drivers Edge card ... it gives back 1% of every purchase in rebates redeemable towards any auto repair and/or purchase of a new vehicle (either new or used). I use my Citi card extensively for this purpose; I let the rebates accumulate ($785 so far) .... that I can use in a pinch when I need to spend big bucks if/when my car breaks down. Best of all, unlike airline miles rewards card, there is no annual fee.
The best for me is Merrill Lynch signature rewards. It is a cash management account so it doesnt qualify as a regular points program. BUT...My absolute best is Starwood from American Express. Not good for baby stuff, but great for hotels at very fair point rates. Robert
a costco membership would save you more money on diapers than the reward points are worth..and executive members get 2% back
My favorite reward card is the Chase Freedom Platinum card. I receive a 1% rebate towards my gas purchases (actually towards anything you charge after the rebate is applied) when I use the card. If I charge gas (at any station), I receive a 5% rebate since I am a "Charter Member" (Oooo.....LOL). With gas as high as it is, every bit helps.
Daruler, the costco card sounds good, but I don't have a Costco in my area. I live in a relatively small town. The nearest costco is about an hour away. I do have a Sams Club closer, but they don't have the brand of pampers that we use. And if they did, not really a good deal. I guess the thing about a rewards card is you really have to stick with it with all of your purchases. There is really not room for two.
$25,000 for 48 states... BUT...you can cut that amount with UAL VISA (BANK ONE) or AMEX DELTA...you can also get like 6-12 miles per dollar spent at selected restaurants added to your account...(IDINE)...DOUBLE RESTAURANT MILES...UP TO 15,000 UNITED SIGN-UP MILES...double (price of ticket) UNITED/DELTA flight miles if you charge it on the right card. MILEAGE FOR THE ACTUAL MILES THE PLANE TRAVELS...1,000 miles for ON-LINE reservations...miles for HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, PAY CELL BILL, MANY MORE WAYS TO EARN MILES...
I am working on my SECOND flight with AMEX GOLD DELTA and the card is 4 or 5 months old!!! Second flight by JUNE 2003...card still won't be one year old...
That sounds pretty good. I may have to look into that one the little man gets a little older and we start taking trips. That Disney card would be good because we live about 45 min from Disney here in FLA. He would like that about the time that he turn 2 or so.
The only rewards card that I have experience with is the BMW card. You get 1% on everything, BUT on gas purchases and anything deemed "automotive" you get double points. The points are good for additional lease miles, repairs at the dealership, merchandise, money down on next purchase, etc. If you use it alot it could be enough for a down on a lease or something. For example, we use it for gas mostly, and we have probably spent 3000-3500 in the past year on it, but we have like 5900 points already, and they don't expire from year to year as long as you use the card three times a year. This is only useful if you will use the points at the dealerships.
poohbear, so does the fact that you have 5900 pts, does that mean that you have 5900.00 to spend on a car?
Nope, the points redeem differently for different things. If you redeem it for merchandise, you get the worst deal in my opinion, for example, I would get only $59.00 (I think - don't hold me to it!) towards the purchase. They send you specials in the mail where your points are worth more if you purchase certain things at certain times like service. I would have to check in my papers about how the points transfer to leases, etc. If you want to know, I don't mind checking it out for you. All I know is that since they don't expire each year, I can save them up for when my lease expires, and then I may be able to just put my points down, which they told me is possible.
OK, I think I know what your asking about. The points go like this: If you spend $30 on gas, you get sixty points. $30 on groceries, etc., you get 30 points.
I have different types of rewards cards (cash back, merchandise, rail, airline, hotel), but I feel the best ones are the hotel cards because they allow you to use your points (which never expire) for free hotel stays or free flights. I like using my AMEX Hilton and Starwood cards the most because of their flexibility. The Hilton points can be used for free stays and can be combined with your FF miles to earn rewards faster. You can also redeem them for free flights. The Starpoints can be transferred to almost any airline to top off your FF accounts or you can use it for free stays as well.
I am sure that I would know this if I thought hard enough, but what bank issues the card for the hotel rewards?
I think only American Express has a Starwood card, while the Hilton card is issued through AMEX and Citibank. The Marriott card is issued by Bank One (First USA).
