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| My new cards for 2024 |
| by Brian Kelly |
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I think a good way to start the year is by taking stock of your credit cards. I always do an analysis of all 30 of my credit cards and, off the bat, make sure all of them are pulling their weight.
Generally, I Iike all my cards to have perks that outweigh the annual fee, and it’s pretty easy to get that. Then, I decide if I want to add new cards to the mix. There are a lot of great sign-up offers out there.
I recently added the Capital One Venture X Business card to my mix, and the current promotion on the Venture X Business is 150,000 bonus miles when you spend $30,000 in the first three months of account opening. If you can meet the spending requirement and earn the bonus, it’s worth over $2,700, according to our valuations.
Another card that I added was the Air France KLM World Elite Mastercard from Bank of America, which only had a 50,000-mile sign-up bonus but also offered 60 Experience points (XP is what they are called), and I need to earn 300 XP this year in order to reach Platinum status. Air France Platinum elite members are the only ones allowed to redeem for La Premiere first-class seats on Air France — which is an amazing experience.
The 60 XP I can earn from the sign-up bonus are one-fifth of what I need to reach top-tier Platinum status again, so it would be like getting one-fifth of Delta Air Lines Diamond status with one credit card, just to put it in perspective.
I also signed up for the Chase Ink business card offer, which is 90,000 points or $900 cash back after spending $6,000 in the first three months after account opening. This offer is ending soon, so if you are looking for a no-annual-fee card, one of these could be a great addition to your wallet.
I also opened another Amex card — the American Express® Business Gold Card, which at the time offered 150,000 points. The current offer of 70,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $10,000 in the first three months is still a decent amount of points, so I recommend getting the card prior to Feb. 1, when the annual fee is set to change to $375 — an $80 increase from its current $295 annual fee (see rates and fees). I spend a lot on internet advertising, and the card earns 4 points per dollar in that category on up to $150,000, which would be 600,000 points per year. If you can max out some of the business card categories, the cards are super lucrative.
If you’re saying, “I don’t have a business, I couldn’t get that card,” think again. There are many types of businesses that qualify for business cards.
Have a great weekend,
BK
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| Photo Credit: WYATT SMITH/THE POINTS GUY. |
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