I have a Chase United. I like it but so far I have only redeemed it once.
Has anyone ever really done the math? I have and I don’t like it.
The $60 annual fee sucks and I really don’t think people should get a card with miles and an annual fee unless you 1) buy a lot, a lot, a lot…I’m talking like $20K+ a year 2) intend to cancel it immediately after you get your bonus and free flight. That $60, if you don’t get and use a free flight immediately could be $240-300 within 4-5 years which is basically a flight in itself. I’m actually kind of irritated right now because I just got charged my $60 annual fee. I think this is the 3rd or 4th time I’ve paid and so far I’ve only used it on 1 flight. I probably should have redeemed something last month and then cancelled it but it’s got a good credit limit and it’s not good to cancel cards a lot for your credit rating, obviously, so I’m a not sure what to do right now so I keep paying. Most people are only able to get a free flight after years and years so it’s not really a good option for most people. I think it costs a min of 25K for a free rt (though I think you can do one ways at 12.5K now. And occasionally you will have to pay a service fee to get the flights that you want (sometimes the good ones are only available for $15 more on the phone and not for free website booking), etc.
As much as I love traveling, it seems like it is better to get a card that gives you cash back and no annual fee, if you are in a similar situation to me. You could earn about $50-100/year and then put that towards a flight if you want and then you also don’t lose the annual fees. Within 4-5 years you have like $600-800 (earned and saved).
The card I think I want to apply for is a Capitol One card (no, I do not work for them), though I’m afraid they don’t give out good limits. Seems like a card for young people without credit history. Supposedly, they are the only major credit card company that doesn’t charge a foreign transaction fee. But I don’t really like the card options they have online. The rewards aren’t that great and some of the actual cards look terrible. The best plan is the MTV card but I don’t want and MTV logo on my credit card! It’s embarrassing. Now, they are offering the Venture card. I think I may go that route, but the one with no annual fee earning 1.25 points per dollar, rather than the one that earns 2 points per dollar.
If you have checked out Capital One, let me know what you think. Do they offer fair credit limits? How easy is it to redeem points?
