AskDong

It’s funny that I just recently wrote about my worries about making a late payment. No sooner than the digital ink was dry, I had a late payment. I completely missed one of my credit card bills. However, the problem really wasn’t with me or the system I have in place for paying my bills but with my mail. I had signed up for the University Iowa Bank of America card for the equivalent of $250 via a promotion they were running(they are no longer running it). I got the card in late July, and started making purchases to qualify for the promotion.

In the middle of last month, I began worrying about my payment. It had been what seemed like a month since I received the card, but still no statement. When I called the automated information service there was no statement issued. I filed the worry away, and worried instead about other more pressing financial matters, like what was I was going to have for dinner.

This week I called again since I still hadn’t received a bill. As fate would have it my bill was due last week, and I was 5 days past due. I got hold of a customer service representative and explained my situation. I told him I hadn’t received any bills, and given that this was my first statement I had no sense of when the due date was. He was kind enough to give me a credit for the $29 late fee, and send me another copy of the bill. Later that evening, I then signed up for online access for the credit card and paid my bill. I had hoped to avoid signing up for online access as this was a card I had no plans on using on a long term basis.

Given that I’m only 5 days late on the payment, my credit score should not be be affected. 60 day past due is typically when a late payment is reported to the credit agencies, though some companies will report individuals after just 30 days. I also got the late fee waived, so I’m not paying anything extra. Though I’ll have to wait to the next statement to see if I end being assessed interest on the balance, though that should be minimal. However this mistake was a reminder to me why opening too many credit card accounts for every single promotion really can be a hassle. Yes, $250 is worth it assuming the ding to my credit score is immaterial and quick repairable (which it is), but the hassle gives me more pause on signing up for the next promotion I come across.

I have too many credit cards. I know I do. I applied for more than few to earn a particular bonus. Some I have because of balance transfer offers that have long been paid off. But I only have a few that I use week in and week out. Now that I’m pretty much done with balance transfers, and have no desire to jump on the next credit card deal offered, I want to maximize my rewards. I’m somewhat saddened but I believe I will be retiring my trusty old Amex Blue with Membership rewards. The membership reward program just can’t compete with other reward programs. I’ve been delaying this switch  for a long time as I’ve always enjoyed watching my membership reward points accumulate week in and week out. However at some point sentimentality has to put aside, and cold hard reasoning has to take over.

Year to date, I’ve spent a little over $20,000 on my credit cards. That’s average of about $2,500 a month. Extrapolate that over a whole year, I should spend close to $26,000 on my credit cards. That’s a lot of money, and reflective of the fact that I try to pass as many expenses as I can through my credit card. If I’m going to put that much through my credit card, I better be maximizing the benefit I get. Ideally, I would already have the right credit card for me in my wallet, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Below is table of my current reward cards and rewards cards I’m thinking about adding.

The top table is rewards card I currently have, and the bottom table is cards I’m considering.

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Every few months, I get an offer from American Express for a Platinum card.  I’ve been a good customer of Amex’s for the last 10 years.  I started off with the Optima card, and found I had little use for it, and moved on to the Amex Blue.  I’m perfectly willing to admit, I went for the Blue because I thought it was a great looking credit card.  At the time, the Blue card also pitched itself as way to perform secureonline purchases via this device you hooked up to your computer.   I never got that device, but I have used the card for online transactions.  Though now if I transact with a vendor that does not have an established reputation I tend to use Bank of America/MBNA ShopSafe service to create a temporary credit card number for use.  

I keep hoping that Amex will offer me the platinum card with a waiver of the annual fee ($450) so I can try out of some the benefits.  The only benefits that I really care about are:

• Free Companion Tickets (upto 4 times a year)
• Complimentary Access to Airline Lounges 

I travel by air maybe only a half a dozen times a year, but traveling, especially international traveling, is one of the things I always want to do more of.   Also having had a job where I used to travel alot, and had access to the airlines lounges, I really do appreciate the benefit of waiting in comfort with free drinks and internet access over scrambling for a seat near an outlet.  In the past when I got the offer for the Platinum card, I would dismiss it out of hand given the high annual fee.   Recently, I heard from a friend that he has been effectively using the companion ticket benefit for travel with his girlfriend.  Most recently he used it to book a companion flight to Hawaii.  I had always assumed that in reality it would be difficult to book a companion ticket using the Platinum card, apparently it’s not quite as difficult as I had originally believed.   It’s not easy, but far from impossible.   He effectively payed for his annual fee by booking that one ticket to Hawaii.  Normally, booking two trips should be enough pay for the card.  I make at least two trips a year with my girldfriend, and I could wait around in the club lounge… Still that $450 sticker prevents me from taking the plunge.    Like any program, Costco included, the benefits can easily outweigh the cost as long one actively takes advantage of the benefits.