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To churn or not to churn - That is the question
#1
So, does anyone here know what "Churning Credit Cards are?". If not, it basically is getting/cancelling credit cards and repeating the process for reward points. Those reward points can be used for airfare or hotel, I've not used it yet... but have been accumulating points.
For myself, over the last decade or more, relied on airfare pricing errors for my travels (many of them at significant discounts). The last trip I took with the family was $400/person to Hawaii (direct flight). The rooms were expensive, but wife works for Sheraton, so we had discounts there too.

I'm thinking of using points for travel and hotel stays. If you haven't tried doing so, I would recommend it if you're getting a credit card anyways.
I've cancelled my cards after 6 months and renewed them, I get those 15000 points each time (I have a crappy card). Other people with a higher credit line can score a lot more points, I don't do it purposely though. The pointing system I am using is Avios, there are others like Aeroplan and also AirMiles, etc. It depends who you fly with most and which of the 3 airline alliance they're under.

The reason I chose Avois is because of cheap regional flights; for example, flying from Hong Kong to Japan would be cheap use of points!
Compared to long haul flights, it's not as worth it as the other two Aeroplan or AirMiles. I usually find cheapo error fares for long hauls.
Haven't used those points yet, but thinking later this year or early next year for those Premium Economy short haul regional flights.
I don't think I'll ever splurge to business class *sigh*, I've always used economy and it's fine, I just want to try the premium version!
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#2
You're talking to the woman who STILL can't understand why having LOTS of credit cards with HIGH limits (which you don't utilize) is better for your credit score than fewer credit cards with lower limits.

Also, how in the Sam Hill did folks buy houses during the bubble? There were folks making much less than I am, and they owned a few houses. Of course, when the bubble burst, they and their renters were messed over. I STILL don't understand how financial institutions could say that they didn't see THAT coming.

Also, with my ADD, the only thing churned (and burned) would be me! I wouldn't remember to pay, cancel, etc. (Know a couple who almost had to declare bankruptcy 'cause hubby was doing that sort of thing. She was very fiscally responsible, but he wasn't. [Think dementia or some sort of intellectual decline may have played a part in his actions.]) Thankfully, she was able to pull him out of it, but it was a close call.
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"Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway." -- Earl Nightingale, radio personality and motivational speaker
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#3
Careful of closing and opening accounts and how that may affect your credit rating. I may not agree with or like the whole credit rating scheme cause it's rigged on the side of the credit card companies. But I play their darned game well and get the best interest rates on car loans, mortgage refi and soon a camper loan. Also, I know some employers now are looking at credit ratings during the recruitment process so there's that as well.
-Dina
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#4
Another major problem with doing this (besides forgetting to close an account on time, and opening/closing accounts affecting your credit ratings) - the annual fees. Some make you pay the annual fee up front, so you're not getting anything "free".

I prefer to keep my life simple and avoid all this nonsense. My husband is a VERY frequent traveler (53 nights/21 stays YTD), so we just use the points he gets from his stays/flights. He tries to stick to 2 airlines, and 2 hotel chains, with 1 being the favorite and 1 the secondary. Not a single point from a CC, and we've gone on a family vacation to Hawaii for free this year, and we haven't paid for a hotel in almost 10 years, and stay any time we want for free.

Obviously not everyone is in this situation, but if I wasn't, I still wouldn't do the credit card churning, as for me, it would really stress me out and wouldn't be worth it. I'm trying to get out of debt, and then stay out of it forever.
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#5
I don't play with fire, unless.... I understand exactly where that advice came from, and who's the kindling, and what We will be burning and destroying.
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#6
traveler Wrote:I don't play with fire, unless.... I understand exactly where that advice came from, and who's the kindling, and what We will be burning and destroying.

I know exactly what you mean, I'll do my due diligence and have researched each and every card I want, I just have one right now...
Haha, when I was younger, I was a bad bad boy and did play with fire.... in fact, the times I was in high school and college, made bad decisions in life.

Anyways, it turned out better afterwards when I finally started working and that hard work paid off in my career... I am pretty much where I want to be.
Except for my educational level, after a few fails and falls, I am back on my feet going through with my degree plan...
In Progress: Walden MBA | TESU BA Biology & Computer Science
Graduate Certificate: Global Management & Entrepreneurship, ASU (Freebie)

Completed: TESU ASNSM Biology, BSBA (ACBSP Accredited 2017)
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#7
Got any tips and tricks?
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#8
yb1 Wrote:Got any tips and tricks?

bjcheung77 Wrote:...If you haven't tried doing so, I would recommend it if you're getting a credit card anyways.
I've cancelled my cards after 6 months and renewed them, I get those 15000 points each time (I have a crappy card)...

From churning my crappy card for the last two years, I've accumulated enough points for two round trips to Asia. You should only do this if you're getting a credit card anyways. Essentially, it's just applying, cancelling in 6 months (going to a cheap card), and upgrading again after another 6 months. For example, I currently have a card that gives me 1 point for $1 spent, but a yearly fee of $39 (no bonus for signup).

In 6 months, I'll upgrade to a platnium card, it's the same card but I will get about 15,000 points bonus for signup, but the yearly fee is $120. I cancel it and change it back to the $39/yr card after 6 months, I get a credit back for $60 prorated. I do the same thing over again, after two years, I wait for the 1.3x conversion of points to Avios. Repeat, hahaha.

If you have a card that generates 50,000 points at signup, you've hit gold pretty much, after two churns (1 year) you have a flight to Asia, or wherever you want to go, there are bonuses for people who have a bigger paycheck, but I just do it for usage (i'm not a big spender), not for purposely getting points. Some others like to use the cashback feature instead.
In Progress: Walden MBA | TESU BA Biology & Computer Science
Graduate Certificate: Global Management & Entrepreneurship, ASU (Freebie)

Completed: TESU ASNSM Biology, BSBA (ACBSP Accredited 2017)
Universidad Isabel I: ENEB MBA, Big Data & BI, Digital Marketing & E-Commerce
Certs: 6Sigma/Lean/Scrum, ITIL | Cisco/CompTIA/MTA | Coursera/Edx/Udacity

The Basic Approach | Plans | DegreeForum Community Supported Wiki
~Note~ Read/Review forum posts & Wiki Links to Sample Degree Plans
Degree Planning Advice | New To DegreeForum? How This Area Works

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#9
Personally, I have done a credit card Balance Transfer - from one card to another, which can work well if one has big interest rate differences (move that debt with high interest to low interest card).
Closing any credit card or account is perceived by credit companies and ratings as a very negative thing. Negatives reduce credit ratings. Good credit ratings are necessary for loans and mortgages.
I'm not sure if churning is same as balance transfer.
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