Is It Still Possible to Make Lots of Rewards Points from Credit Cards?

Rewards Points Opportunity Still Exists

First Published Date : July 23, 2015

In the past, credit card rewards points explorers were able to take advantage of juicy sign-up rewards bonuses over and over from the same cards and various different cards. However, some credit card companies closed the loophole that existed and others are working on closing it.

If you check the footnotes underneath credit card profiles on issuers’ websites, you will see that some of them are started to add something like this: Bonus offer is applicable to new members only. If you have held this card in the past, we may still approve your application, but will not reward you with any bonuses.

So this raises the question: Are the rewards points parties that existed until now all over? The answer is actually surprisingly both yes and no. Yes in the sense that like many points explorers did in the past – opening 5 to 10 accounts every year to rack up rewards points and then close those accounts after 3 months and then reopen them again to continue this rewards points party cycle – again and again are over. Credit card companies became aware of these parties and are closing the loopholes that existed.

However, the other answer is – no, it is still possible to make decent rewards points from bonuses every year and year after year. Slow and steady process is the key here and if you carefully apply for one credit card every six months, you can still make decent points without damaging your credit score.

But to succeed with this slow and steady process, there are other details you need to carefully consider and that’s what I will talk about in my upcoming book Credit Card Hacks: What Credit Card Companies Don’t Want You to Know. A full chapter will be dedicated on how to travel for free or with very little money from rewards points. Stay tuned for more once the book is published.

The American Express Gold Rewards card: Should You Keep It?

The American Express Gold Rewards Card Review

First Published Date : August 12, 2015

The American Express Gold Rewards card is a flexible highbred travel rewards credit card that lets you earn American Express points for everyday purchases that can be used towards eligible travel costs without any blackout periods or restrictions.

The Cost

Annual Fee = $150. Additional cards = $0

Minimum annual income required = $20,000

Rewards Points Snapshot

– Earn 2 points for every $1 spent at eligible gas stations, grocery stores and drugstores in Canada.

– Earn 2 points for every $1 spent on eligible travel purchases.

– Earn 1 point for every $1 spent on everything else.

First Time Bonus

A 25,000-point (valued $550 or more) welcome bonus when you spend $500 within 3 months. Also, the annual fee is waived for the first year.

Anniversary Bonus

None.

Features & Benefits

– Book any travel purchases with this card and use points to pay them when appear on statement.

– This is a charge card. Balance has to be paid in full every month.

– Transfer points to Aeroplan or AVIOS at 1:1

– Emergency Medical Insurance (15 days<65, none>65 or older, Amount: 5 M/per person).

– Travel Accident Insurance (Up to $500,000 CAD).

– Auto Rental Theft and Collision/Loss Damage Insurance ((maximum $85,00)

– Trip Interruption Insurance ($1,500 each, maximum $6,000).

– Flight Delay Insurance (After 4 hrs, maximum $500 per occurrence).

– Lost Luggage (maximum $500)

– Hotel/Motel Burglary (maximum $500)

– Extended Warranty Insurance

– Purchase Security

What’s Missing

Some of the important benefits this card does not offer:

– Price Protection Insurance

– Trip Cancellation Insurance
– No Concierge services

My Take

Although the American Express Gold Rewards card is a highbred card that charges a high $150 annual fee, it is missing some important elements of insurance and services you would expect from a $150 per year credit card, and it has no anniversary bonus to consider to add it to your credit card portfolio.

For a cheaper annual fee, for example $120 per year, you will find many other cards that offer features that the American Express Gold Rewards card is missing, such as Trip Cancellation insurance, Concierge service, etc., and you will find more value for your dollar.

I personally do not hold this card as of this writing and I’m planning not to hold it after its 1st year even if I get this card in the future.

However, a point worth mentioning is that this card earns 2 points for every $1spent at gas stations, grocery stores and drugstores and then lets you convert them to Aeroplan points. This makes it a high Aeroplan earner (2 Aeroplan points for each dollar) comparing any other cards.

Disclosure: Information provided here may not be accurate and no longer valid. The mentioned card provider is not related to A Dawn Journal and neither monitor this site nor responsible for any inaccurate information. Contact the card company directly for accurate and updated information. A Dawn Journal or my YouTube Channel are not compensated by or affiliated with any credit card companies. All credit card articles are 100% unbiased and honest.

TD First Class Visa Infinite Points Value Decrease

TD Devalues Visa Infinite Points

First Published Date: June 22, 2015

If you are a TD First Class Visa Infinite credit card holder, you will see lower rates and lose some value in your points redemption starting August 16, 2015. You may want to consider redeeming your points before August 16 (if your circumstances allow), so you don’t get dinged by TD.

As of now, before August 16, the redemption rate is 200 points for $1, but it will be devalued at 250 points for $1 starting August 16. What it means that if you have 100,000 points, you will get $500 in travel spending, but after August 16 the same 100,000 points will fetch you $400.

TD First Class Visa Infinite provided 1.5 percent return on your purchase spending, excluding TD Expedia spending, until now. This rate will go down to 1.2 percent once the devaluation kicks in. Although TD said you would still get 1.5 percent rate on your regular purchases if you redeem over 300,000 points, but the truth is you will never go back to the old 1.5 percent return level as the first 300,000 points will be counted as 1.2 percent return – making the total return on regular spending above 300,000 points ($1,200) a low 1.33 percent.

This is obvious that TD will lose lots of clients after the devaluation as TD First Class Visa Infinite will lose its ranking among other travel reward cards. And there are so many better cards out there, unless you don’t mind losing your spending’s worth and sticking to TD due to allegiance. As I will be writing on more credit cards to maximize your reward returns, don’t forget to keep an eye on A Dawn Journal. Visit here if you would like to find out more about TD’s recent devaluation announcement.

New Credit Card Rules

What New Credit Card Rules Mean

First Published Date: May 23, 2009

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is unveiling new regulations which will force credit card companies to behave in a more transparent manner – including a strict disclosure policy on penalty fees and interest rates. The move, announced Thursday (May 21), is intended to bring an end to or at least limit the incidence of Canadian consumers becoming saddled with excessive interest payments on their cards. In the midst of a global recession, more consumers than ever are struggling with debt repayments, and in Canada as elsewhere, the banks are being blamed for this situation.

Short-term special offers regarding rates and fees have long been used as a way to persuade shoppers to take out credit cards – leading to even reluctant customers finally agreeing to go plastic, then finding out some way down the line that the special offers are not worth the paper they are printed on in many situations. The new transparency regulations are intended to give customers a better chance of spotting the worthless offers and only accepting a credit card that they will be able to benefit from in a substantive manner. The way of things up to now has been that customer obligations regarding the special offers are couched in the cardholder agreements using the old obfuscatory methods of small print and impenetrable jargon.

Among a comprehensive raft of legislation, Flaherty is also set to introduce an industry-wide 21-day grace period for interest on new purchases, so that if customers pay their balance in full by the due date they will not incur interest. Up to now this period has been practised by some banks but not by all, but the new legislation will make it a blanket rule. The limiting of certain business practices that are not beneficial to customers will form a major plank of the new legislation. This will also hit the banks who have recently shortened their purchase-to-payment interest-free period, a move already condemned by the Consumers’ Association of Canada.

The ideas are intended to give Canadian customers a bit more breathing room on monthly bills – meaning that customers who do not pay off their bill in full will no longer find themselves penalized by interest. A large majority of Canadian households do pay their bills off in full every month – estimates put this in the region of 70% of homes – but with belt-tightening becoming a competitive sport in most of the Western world there are a number who simply cannot.

Opinions on the moves seem to differ widely, with opposition critics having derided the minister’s measures as nothing more than an “information campaign” which will do little or nothing to protect customers who are already struggling. Others have dubbed the moves “weak” and suggested that the minister is actively seeking to favour  his “bank buddies on Bay Street”. Opposition proposals which have not been adopted included a cap on credit card interest at 5% above the prime rates enjoyed by commercial banks. The NDP, who suggested this move, say that the government’s latest move will “send working families into more debt”.

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Canadapersonalfinancewebsite.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to A Dawn Journal. This article originally published on the above website on May 23, 2009.

Book Hotel & Flight For Free With These Credit Cards

Credit Cards That Let You Travel Free

First Published Date: July 6, 2015

If you are looking for a free vacation this year, look no further than WestJet RBC World Elite Credit Cards and Marriott Rewards Premier Visa Card. These two cards let you fly and stay in a hotel totally free for the first year and partially free (at a very low cost) continuously for subsequent years as long as you hold the cards.

The WestJet RBC World Elite Credit Card comes with a $250 WestJet dollars welcome bonus and you will also get an annual round-trip companion flight for $99 (plus tax and fees) every year, letting you fly anywhere in Canada and the continental US (excluding Hawaii and Puerto Rico). What it means? You can virtually fly for very little on your first year of card membership, considering you also got the $250 for free.

Want to include an upscale hotel for free as well on your trip? The Marriott Rewards Premier Visa Card comes with 30,000 bonus points and 1 free night just for trying the card. That means you already got up to 5 free nights at a category 1 or 4 free nights at category 4 hotels. And you also get one free night continuously for subsequent years as long as you hold the cards.

Don’t like to fly WestJet or stay in Marriott hotels for free? Try these other 2 cards instead that offer almost identical bonuses like the above 2 cards: The Starwood Preferred Guest Card from American Express or the MBNA Alaska World Elite MasterCard Credit Card.

What you read so far is one of the many secrets I will be sharing with you in my next book Credit Card Hacks: What Credit Card Companies Don’t Want You to Know. Stay tuned as I am working on the last few chapters of this book and should be able to get it to you in 3-4 months.