Credit Card Blog

Travel Hacking 101: A Beginner’s Guide

January 30, 2020 By Kevin | Just Start Investing

With all the talk of a pending recession, saving some money on your next vacation is likely even more top of mind than usual. Luckily, there’s a solution out there to help you save money while still enjoying your next vacation! The answer is called travel hacking.

Travel hacking is just a fancy term that entails using existing systems to your advantage to get discounted and free airfare, hotels, car rentals, and other travel expenses. So you can get your next vacation on the house!

Below, we’ll highlight the six steps to travel hacking that any beginner can use to get started – yes, even during a recession.

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Chase Sapphire Reserve Benefits Guide 2021

January 27, 2020 By Kevin | Just Start Investing

The Chase Sapphire Reserve card debuted back in 2016 with a whopping 100,000 point sign-up bonus. It has evolved since then in many ways, and I was curious if this premium credit card was still worth it today. This Chase Sapphire Reserve benefits guide should help answer that question.

The sign-up bonus has gotten smaller and the list of other premium credit cards longer, but the Chase Sapphire Reserve card is still one of my favorite credit cards out there. Even though Chase recently decided to raise its annual fee.

With significant rewards points offered on dining and travel (3 points for every $1 spent) that get more value when you redeem them for travel, it’s a card that I can’t imagine will be leaving my wallet any time soon.

Let’s dive into the details of my Chase Sapphire Reserve card review:

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Credit Card Rewards Definition: Pros and Cons

December 22, 2019 By Amy Beardsly

My definition of credit card rewards: they can be pretty awesome. When you use your cards to buy big-ticket items or for everyday purchases, you can rack up a hefty amount of reward points and tap into other perks as well.

Though, there’s a right way and a wrong way to use credit card rewards. If you’re not careful, it could end up costing you more in the end.

That got me thinking: Are credit card rewards good, or is there a downside?

There are plenty of people in this world who think credit cards are pure evil. Most of the time, it’s people who got themselves into a heap of debt using credit cards who feel this way.

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How to Redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards the Easy Way

December 15, 2019 By Kevin | Just Start Investing

I’m a Chase credit card guy, there’s no hiding it. The Chase Sapphire Reserve is one of the best premium credit cards out there right now, and I love to redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards points for free flights and hotels.

Just this past month I got a free flight from Chicago to Phoenix, a hotel for 5 nights in Arizona, and two flights back to Chicago for 74,534 points. Here’s how it broke out:

35,540 points – 5 nights and 6 days in a 3 star hotel in Arizona
9,887 points – 1 American one-way flight to Arizona from Chicago
29,107 points – 2 American one-way flights to Chicago from Arizona

Now, some of you Chase Ultimate Rewards connoisseurs may be scoffing at me for not booking a first-class flight to Singapore – which is without a doubt the best value for your points. Some might even say the above point redemptions I made weren’t a good deal because I didn’t efficiently transfer points to the right travel partner!

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Advantages of Credit Cards and Why You Need One

November 17, 2019 By Kevin | Just Start Investing

When used responsibly, the advantages of credit cards are nearly endless. In fact, credit cards are actually one of my favorite personal finance topics to talk about because of all the great benefits they offer.

Credit cards are one of those things that get a bad reputation because of the horror stories you hear about consumers racking up insurmountable amounts of credit card debt. Don’t get me wrong, those horror stories are real and scary, but it’s also fairly easy to avoid getting caught in a bad situation.

When you use a credit card the right way, you can take advantage of all the perks and rewards that they offer.

Using it the right way really just means paying it back on time and in full every month. You’ll hear me say that a few times, because, well, it’s just that important.

Before diving in, we’ll level set on what defines a credit card. If you’re already an expert, go ahead and skip to the next section.

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