Questions and Answers

Lucky,

I am 24 years old and have a Discover card (got in college as my first card; 3 years old) and a Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (got in 2nd half of 2014). I’m looking at getting another card as I have some flights and other travel related expenses I need to book in the near future. I live in Houston, so United hub, but I prefer American between the two.

With that being said, is there a card right now that you would recommend? I’ve read over your top credit cards but I’m having a hard time comparing them all to decide which provides the biggest benefits to me. Let me know if I need to provide more information.

Thanks!

Great question, James. Are you open to applying for a few cards to maximize sign-up bonuses as much as possible, or are you looking for one card which has the biggest benefits and sign-up bonus? Because there could definitely be value in trying to maximize a few sign-up bonuses, and in many cases it can actually improve your credit score as well.

[QUOTE=”Lucky, post: 3930, member: 4″]Great question, James. Are you open to applying for a few cards to maximize sign-up bonuses as much as possible, or are you looking for one card which has the biggest benefits and sign-up bonus? Because there could definitely be value in trying to maximize a few sign-up bonuses, and in many cases it can actually improve your credit score as well.[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the quick reply!

I don’t guess I would be opposed to applying for a few different cards. My biggest worry, as with most people, is the affect on credit score, but the age of my accounts are relatively low already and new cards should reduce my credit utilization even further.

What plan of attack are you thinking?

James, there are some great sign-up bonuses out there right now, so I’d certainly be considering the Citi Prestige and/or Citi Premier cards. If you want to avoid the Citi Prestige due to the annual fee, you can go for a Citi AAdvantage Card as well.

There are also lots of great hotel credit cards out there, if those points/currencies interest you.

But I’d start with some of the above Citi cards, in your shoes.

Lucky,

I’m entered a state of “analysis paralysis” looking at the Prestige vs. Premier. I need to book several hotels and trains in the next few weeks for my trip to Spain but I can’t seem to decide which card I should apply for first. I think I’m going to go the route of just getting one of the two cards right now.

Anything that might tip the scales one way or the other for me?

I’m a new user of both Prestige and Premier and have looked at both at length, so maybe my decision process will be of use to you. (Lucky, you’re welcome for the referral commissions – the least I could do for all the info!)

My strategy was to get both cards while they’re still offering nice bonuses, which will cost net $200 for the first year (even less if you use the Prestige’s $250 airline credit twice and then cancel the card before you get the fee). I’m certain I’ll keep one card at the end of the year, but having both cards for a year gives me time to answer the following questions:

Prestige:
[I]1) how much do I enjoy airline lounges? I’ve only been in a lounge one time almost 20 years ago, so maybe I won’t find them very useful, especially since I almost always fly direct. Is this something that’s worth paying $105 more than the Premier’s annual fee to keep in future years?
2) It makes the most sense to fly on American with this card, given Admiral’s club access and the redemption bonus. I live in SF, so American’s routes aren’t great compared to United (although they’re good to the places I travel, especially if you count code-share flights with Alaska). Do I even like flying American? I haven’t flown with them in over a decade.
3) Do I care about getting 1.6x redemption with TY points, given that my main goal with miles is to redeem for business class tickets thru transfer partners?
4) Did I even use the 4th night benefit? It sounds great, but the whole “flexible rate” stipulation makes me wonder if it will even save me that much money.[/I]

If I answer “no” to all these questions, I’ll use that second $250 bonus in early 2016 and then cancel the card and keep the Premier. Assuming I *do* want to keep the Prestige, I’ll then move on to the following question:

[I]How much did I spend on gas/public/transit/other forms of travel not bonused with the Prestige? Did I earn enough bonus mileage to offset the $95 fee, thus providing a reason to keep both cards open? [/I]

If not, then I’ll cancel the Premier and keep the Prestige. Hope this helps you make a decision, and have fun on your upcoming travel!