I would consider myself a casual churner. I (we) don’t go crazy like some people. I don’t do much if any manufactured spend. But I do understand the power of credit card sign up bonuses and other benefits that come with obtaining those cards. For years we have taken advantage of these perks by getting 2-3 cards per year and using the benefits for flights, hotels, lounges, etc. Friends and family always seem jealous but not usually enough to join us in the fun. I think there is still a healthy skepticism and misunderstanding about credit cards and credit in general out there.
It has been a few months since I got my last card, the Chase Sapphire Reserve. My wife and I both got that card back in the fall and we are now sitting on over 430,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points. We’ll leverage that hopefully in the next year on a fun trip.
Yesterday I got the Hilton Honors Surpass Card from American Express. Comes with a 100,000 point sign up bonus as well as Gold status and a free night at any property after your 1 year anniversary. Figured that is worth $75 a year.
Here is the breakdown of cards we currently have:
- Chase Sapphire Reserve (2)
- Chase Sapphire Preferred
- Chase Sapphire
- Hilton Honors Surpass
- IHG Rewards Club Select
- Local Bank Rewards Card
- BankAmericard Cashback
- Citi World Elite AAdvantage
- Delta Skymiles Amex
Here is roughly our balances for miles and points:
- Hilton HHonors – 100,000 points
- IHG Points – 93,000 points
- Delta Skymiles – 55,000 miles
- American AAdvantage – 120,000 miles
- United Mileage Plus – 65,000 miles
- Chase Ultimate Rewards – 430,000 points
I still think there is a chance we’ll get a few more cards this year. Specifically my wife could use a Hotel card. Maybe the Marriott card that also has a 100,000 point bonus?
Learning to Fly 