Credit Cards

This week I shared a post about my slew of card applications whose sign-up bonuses will be supporting a slew of fun and exciting activities over the coming year. Two of those applications took advantage of a widespread type of application known as preapproval. These effectively let you go from window-shopping the manakin’s outfit to […]

There’s lots of reasons for me to be loyal to Capital One, but really high up there is how much I love the Capital One lounges. I’ve now graced Dulles, Denver, and Dallas lounges. Each of these is markedly better than the mediocre Priority Pass quality, or the good but not amazing American Express lounges.

There’s almost nothing that brings a smile to my face quite like going 3-for-3 on new card applications. The truth is, I took advantage of prequalification tools to have high confidence in two of the three. Still exciting to see the approvals roll in, one by one. Almost as exciting as the big bonuses that

How many is TOO MANY open credit cards? Every month I have to log into 12 different issuers accounts to update my tracking and make payments across 39 open credit cards with $560,200 total credit line. I track this carefully to make sure I don’t miss something. The reality is that this can be a

We’re a month into the new year and the new credit card itch is starting to scratch. I’m hungering for those sweet, sweet sign up bonuses. And best of all, I know I have some big expenses coming up (tax season, oof!) so hitting them will be easy. Perhaps, even, there’s a long term 0%

Nice little targeted offer from US Bank showed up in my email box this past month. And this past week, a reminder saying not to forget to take action. Believe it or not, I forgot. US Bank wants me to change default payments and get in the habit of using their card so they can

A few months back there was some big news, Visa/Mastercard and a broad group of suing merchants agreed upon terms that would see a range of restricted actions on the part of networks (Visa, Mastercard) and fewer restrictions for merchants (surcharges, ability to decline certain card types). Anything impacting transactions (restrictions, fees, surcharges, etc.) has

I closed three accounts in 2025. Each for a varying reason. Each for an account with a $20,000 limit or more. Those closures did not destroy my credit score, damage my credit history, or have any meaningful impact whatsoever. It is also true that I have many, many accounts, so in the balance of other

I don’t like paying fees. I don’t like paying small fees. I ABSOLUTELY don’t love paying big fees. That said, I have found there are many cards where the annual fees are worth the slew of rewards and benefits that come with the membership. American Express Platinum is one of those, despite the outrageous, marketplace-topping

We had a lovely MLK weekend trip up in New York City and Connecticut this past weekend. While we didn’t need (or want) a car in the city itself, we did need one to visit the family in more rural Connecticut. The internet helped find a reasonably cheap booking (<$100 for a one-way, one-day rental),