Credit Cards (1 Viewer)

[Rickboy]

Hello my WhoDat Family,

I think I'm going to get my first personal credit card in 15 years but I'm unsure which one to go with. I got out of credit cards after I paid off $12K of debt but now I'm looking to try again for multiple reasons.
1. I want to get my debit card off the internet. Too much fraud and too much liability. Credit Cards limit my exposure from fraud to only $50.
2. Rewards. I'm already spending thousands a month in my normal spending so I figure I should get something out of that.

Now I'm thinking on reward and travel based credit cards. Miyako and I want to vacation a bit more and of course who doesn't like cash back. My intent is to pay off the card every month. I also have excellent credit with my only debt being my Jeeps and the house. Miyako keeps a Kohls card but we limit that to $300 and it's paid off every month. I have a business AMEX but that just for business travel. I don't get any benefits from it. The Chase Saphire Reserve seems to be a good one, is it?

Any thoughts, comments, questions, or snide remarks (I know those are coming)

 

[Brennan77]

Chase Sapphire Reserve is pretty good if you want to use the points for travel. We use it for everything.

 

[TheRealJRad]

Chase Sapphire Reserve is pretty good if you want to use the points for travel. We use it for everything.

This is what I use as well. There is/was a 60k point bonus if you spend like 4k in the first 3(?) months - very easy if you use the card for everything.

 

[Brennan77]

This is what I use as well. There is/was a 60k point bonus if you spend like 4k in the first 3(?) months - very easy if you use the card for everything.

Exactly. You just have to be in a position of stability and discipline to not spend more than you can afford and pay it off every month.

 

[FullMonte]

Hello my WhoDat Family,


1. I want to get my debit card off the internet. Too much fraud and too much liability. Credit Cards limit my exposure from fraud to only $50.

This statement is 100% incorrect. If you have a Visa or Mastercard branded card (debit or credit) your fraud liability is $0.

From Visa's website: "Visa's Zero Liability* Policy is our guarantee that you won't be held responsible for unauthorized charges made with your account or account information. You're protected if your Visa credit or debit card is lost, stolen or fraudulently used, online or offline. "

NOTE: This protection only applies if the transaction is processed through the Visa network. So, always select "credit" when given the option.

https://www.visa.com/chip/personal/security/zero-liability.jsp

 

[mjcouvi]

Here's probably a better summation than anyone on SR could provide: https://www.nerdwallet.com/the-best-credit-cards

It really depends on your spending habits and what you want regarding rewards, fees, and how confident you are in maintaining payments, etc. I'll just say that I had a Discover card once and I would never recommend it if you do much travelling because there are places that don't accept it.

 

[zeetes]

on the amex, is it in your name and you are responsible to pay it off?

you should be able to get amex rewards attached to it in your name. $90 a year and i made that back first month.

 

[Twyst]

Its getting a bit more complicated to pick the best card now. For a few years its been that the Chase Sapphire reserve hands down was the best card on the market, but it's being passed on rewards in some pretty crucial areas pointswise. Im actually using 4 cards right now to maximize my points, I churn quite a bit and usually do well enough to get to asia and back on a first class ticket every year just from playing the points game.

For booking airfare (and hotels if you dont care about getting nights towards elite status) AMEX plat is the best card as yoiu get 5x points for every dollar, CSR will give you three here, but chase is MUCH more lenient on what they consider travel expenses than AMEX so use the Plat only for tickets booked direct through the airline (no expedia) or hotels booked through AMEX travel. Use Chase Sapphire for anything else travel related.

Foreating (nice restaurant or Mcdonalds) CSR was the top of the heap for a long time at 3x points per dollar on dining, however the Citi Prestige card will go to 5x points per dollar in the new year. The new Amex gold will get you 4 but I think that is in the US only if you travel abroad a lot.

For Groceries, the Amex gold will get you 2x points per dollar while everythinhg else gets you 1.


None of this matters if you carry a balance as interest costs a lot more than your points are worth so pay your balance every month!

 

[mc4saints]

If you do not want to think about expiring rewards and want to know for sure your rewards are going to something beneficial -

https://www.fidelityrewards.com/credit/welcome.do?redirect=directTrafficsec&lang=en&exp=

2 percent of everything you spend, uncapped, automatically rolls into a fidelity retirement account. They automatically sweep your points into the account quarterly.

The only catch is, you must have some type of Fidelity retirement account to roll it into. I love the fact I don't have to worry about expiring points on 12 different credit cards and no caps on the 2 Percent.

 

[Charlie Brizzown]

If you don’t want to play credit card shuffle then the Chase Sapphire Reserve is a good general travel rewards card. If you have specific travel preferences then that might affect which card works better for you.

 

[N.O.Bronco]

If you don’t want to play credit card shuffle then the Chase Sapphire Reserve is a good general travel rewards card. If you have specific travel preferences then that might affect which card works better for you.

This is what I have.

I think people are put off by the high annual fee, but if you take into account the $300 annual travel credit plus the greater travel rewards multiplier, it’s probably the best travel card out there right now.

Add to that the sign up bonus and it’s a great deal as far as credit cards go.

...Just keep in mind it is Chase and there is talk of Chase screwing some people over that are too good at playing the rewards game and may start the process of rolling back some of the benefits as they aren’t making enough profit right now to satisfy them. But those are problems with pretty much any major bank card. Especially the better rewards ones it seems.

 

[buzd]

This statement is 100% incorrect. If you have a Visa or Mastercard branded card (debit or credit) your fraud liability is $0.

From Visa's website: "Visa's Zero Liability* Policy is our guarantee that you won't be held responsible for unauthorized charges made with your account or account information. You're protected if your Visa credit or debit card is lost, stolen or fraudulently used, online or offline. "

NOTE: This protection only applies if the transaction is processed through the Visa network. So, always select "credit" when given the option.

https://www.visa.com/chip/personal/security/zero-liability.jsp

The problem with debit cards is that if you are hit with fraud, it can tie up your cash while it all gets straightened out. You will eventually get it back, but it's an ordeal. With a credit card, they will usually just credit back a dispute in a day or two.

 

[Brennan77]

The problem with debit cards is that if you are hit with fraud, it can tie up your cash while it all gets straightened out. You will eventually get it back, but it's an ordeal. With a credit card, they will usually just credit back a dispute in a day or two.

Exactly. You don't want the cash in your banking account affected.

 

[Waymer]

Lots of good advice here already. As someone who plays the points game most of my everyday spend does go to the CS Reserve. But as Twyst noted it's not so cut and dry now.

I'll say this, if you are looking for just 1 card and 1 only, I'd probably go CSR. With the dining multiplier and transfer partners it's overall one of, if not the, best. Perfect? No. But versatile and rewarding.

Depending on driving habits though you might consider another card for gas though. To me that's the only real place CSR truly lacks. But if you aren't buying boatloads of gas, that's a moot point. In fact if you are instead using public transportation or other like options, CSR is generous in that regard.

 

[MLU]

Its getting a bit more complicated to pick the best card now. For a few years its been that the Chase Sapphire reserve hands down was the best card on the market, but it's being passed on rewards in some pretty crucial areas pointswise. Im actually using 4 cards right now to maximize my points, I churn quite a bit and usually do well enough to get to asia and back on a first class ticket every year just from playing the points game.

For booking airfare (and hotels if you dont care about getting nights towards elite status) AMEX plat is the best card as you get 5x points for every dollar, CSR will give you three here, but chase is MUCH more lenient on what they consider travel expenses than AMEX so use the Plat only for tickets booked direct through the airline (no expedia) or hotels booked through AMEX travel. Use Chase Sapphire for anything else travel related.

IIRC, AMEX platinum gives you access to Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Clubs (if you buy a Delta ticket with the card) and Priority Pass lounges and pretty sure they don't have foreign exchange fees (I know Rick makes trips to Japan). I prefer collecting cash and no annual fees, but if miles are your thing I don't think anything beats AMEX platinum.