Question
Apologies if this has been covered before (probably has but I couldn't find an answer by searching).
I have a purchase coming up of close to $30,000 and instead of using my normal credit card which doesn't earn AAdvantage miles I'd like to use the Citi AAdvantage card and earn straight-to-my-AA-account miles.
If I have excellent credit, pay all my bills in full at the end of each month, and have a decent salary will Citi scoff at such a first purchase? Is it possible?
Thanks in advance. I'm a bit timid when it comes to credit cards and have had a grand total of two in my wallet for many, many years.
Answer
Apologies if this has been covered before (probably has but I couldn't find an answer by searching).
I have a purchase coming up of close to $30,000 and instead of using my normal credit card which doesn't earn AAdvantage miles I'd like to use the Citi AAdvantage card and earn straight-to-my-AA-account miles.
If I have excellent credit, pay all my bills in full at the end of each month, and have a decent salary will Citi scoff at such a first purchase? Is it possible?
Thanks in advance. I'm a bit timid when it comes to credit cards and have had a grand total of two in my wallet for many, many years.
1- Do you already have a citi advantage? , If so what is your credit line?
2- If you don't have a citbank aadvantage card, apply for one, what do you have to lose?
They should let you charge your full credit even on an intial purchase.
A possible tip/ pointer: prepay the money on the card, if you have a credit balance you night be allowed a large charge.
JUST MAKE SURE THAT YOU CAN EARN AA MILES ABOVE AND BEYOND YOUR CRDIT LIMIT.
Answer
Make the purchase with a Starwwod American Express Card.
You will earn 1.25 AA miles per dollar as opposed to 1.00 AA mile per dollar spent.
Answer
2- If you don't have a citbank aadvantage card, apply for one, what do you have to lose?
They should let you charge your full credit even on an intial purchase.
A possible tip/ pointer: prepay the money on the card, if you have a credit balance you night be allowed a large charge.
JUST MAKE SURE THAT YOU CAN EARN AA MILES ABOVE AND BEYOND YOUR CRDIT LIMIT.Thanks, I appreciate the advice. I forgot to mention it, but no, I don't have a Citi AAdv card as of yet. I'd consider the Starwood card but I'd love for the miles to dump straight into my AAdv account with no conversion, even if it is straightforward.
Thanks again for your help.
Answer
<<I'd love for the miles to dump straight into my AAdv account with no conversion, even if it is straightforward>>
Would you love it enough to give up a 25% bonus? Yes it is counterintuitive, but Starwood's American Express card generates more AA miles for the same amount of spending than the Citibank AAdvantage card. You simply accumulate 20,000 Starpoints and Starwood will deposit 25,000 miles in your AAdvantage account. The process can be performed on the Starwood website and is entirely automated.
dennis
Answer
Would you love it enough to give up a 25% bonus? Yes it is counterintuitive, but Starwood's American Express card generates more AA miles for the same amount of spending than the Citibank AAdvantage card. You simply accumulate 20,000 Starpoints and Starwood will deposit 25,000 miles in your AAdvantage account. The process can be performed on the Starwood website and is entirely automated.Well, that does sound easy enough for even my simple mind! ;)
Thank you, I will consider a Starwood Amex card.
Answer
Thank you, I will consider a Starwood Amex card.
And Amex seems to give out bigger credit limits than Citi does... at least in my case. The transfers from SPG are simple. Watch out for the exchange ratio to United though.
Using the points for hotel stays rather than airline miles may be a better deal, depending on your situation. I have gotten 2 to 5.5% effective cash back that way.
It's worth opening a Citi AA card just for the sign-up bonus miles. I got 20K miles, fee-free first year. I called as soon as the miles posted to cancel it and transfer the credit limit to one of my other Citi cards.
I use my Citi Dividend and my Chase Cash Plus Rewards cards for gas/groceries/pharmacies (5% cash back) and then my Amex SPG for everything else. I also have some more specialized cards.
BTW I would warn any credit card company before doing a transaction this big, just to make sure it doesn't raise any security flags and gets denied. I do the same with international trips.
Answer
a 20K limit isn't too bad. As long as you have good credit and a decnet income you should be able to swing it. there's no maximum cap on the # of points in a year/month/transaction are there?
i'd also make sure, in case you haven't, that the vendor will allow you to charge that much to a credit card or if you'd get a better deal (e.g. discount) if you paid in cash instead.
A lot of vendors, like my car dealer, didn't like the idea of paying 2-3% to a CC company.
Points are nice, but if I can get the vendor to give me 2-3% off instead of giving it to Visa, I'd like that better
Answer
A lot of vendors, like my car dealer, didn't like the idea of paying 2-3% to a CC company.
Points are nice, but if I can get the vendor to give me 2-3% off instead of giving it to Visa, I'd like that better
I tried that when buying my piano: I proposed a 1% discount if I paid by certified check. The dealer didn't bite, said he could live with the cc fee.
There's an implied warranty when purchasing by credit card. You can dispute charges if goods don't get delivered for example.
I heard that's the real reason why most car dealers won't take credit cards for the full amount...