Even if investments still count, without the tax and insurance categories, the card is not that useful for my expenses.
I agree. Paying taxes and insurance with it was a huge advantage. Made it worth paying the convenience fees of like 2% on taxes.
But Iāll likely still keep their card considering no annual fee and flat 4% on most expenses. All it costs me is to keep the same $100k investment at their brokerage instead of at BoA or Fidelity.
The ā2.5% is going to 1.6%ā has been disputed I believe. Iāve received no notice from Alliant.
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Alliantās go-to move is to not sent notices, then when people complain claim they did and people mustāve ignored them.
Darn. I guess I applied for the BoA $300 checking and $600 PR SUBs for nothingā¦ 
Anybody here use multiple CCRs to maximize uneven spend in various categories? Iām new to it and wanted to double check. Say I spend $3500/q online and $1500/q on restaurants, on average. With two cards set to one constant category each, Iād go over the $2500/q limit on one and wouldnāt reach the limit on the other. If I could control the online CC spend (by preloading some accounts with GCs, for example), I could switch the categories twice per quarter to maximize both, like this:
| month | card#1 | card#2 |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | online $1000 | restaurants $500 |
| Feb | restaurants $500 | online $1500 |
| Mar | online $1000 | restaurants $500 |
| Q1 Total | $2500 | $2500 |
Right? Anybody doing this already? Itās probably too much micromanagement for not that much reward, but inquiring mind wants to know.
I have only one CCR card and used to switch between 2 categories. Now, itās basically just for online. Itās probably easier to stick with the same categories until you hit $2000, and then swap.
Kinda depends whatās your baseline for these categories. If youāre getting 4% or 5% from other cards, then keeping track of how close to the limit you are on each card, and swapping may not be worth it.
Also it may not be limited to a 2 card strategy. Say next quarter you can get 5% cashback on Restaurants with Citi Dividends. Just that Citi for restaurants and split online purchases between the 2 CCRs. Same if some of your online purchases are at Amazon, Target, Paypal, or another rotating 5% category. Otherwise, yes loading up with gift cards of various retailers might work too.
For me, I really only use it for the 3% for online purchases. Sometimes I switch it to travel. For restaurants I use Citi Custom Cash for 5% up to $500. Wife has one also so itās effectively up to $1,000 between the cards. For gas, I use PNCās Cash Rewards card for 4% and it would be backup for restaurants at 3% if we went over $1,000 in a month with the Citi cards.
If an option, just opening more card accounts is the easiest way to avoid having to switch categories.
Right, but thereās an opportunity cost to opening new accounts that Iām not willing to pay just yet 
Not sure whether this is the correct thread/topic. Feel free to move this post elsewhere as needed.
I went to the car dealership today to get some maintenance done. I found out that there is a 3% surcharge if paying with a credit card instead of check, cash or debit card. First time I see that at a dealership.
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Saw it at a Toyota dealer when I had my car serviced a couple of weeks ago.
I too have seen a 3% fee at car dealers and repair shops before I saw it anywhere else. Itās like they were the first to add it as soon as it became legal, and they also completely forgot that accepting cash isnāt actually free.
Discover debit to the rescue, for now, with fingers crossed regarding acceptance and recognizing it as debit.
I must be missing something. Any reason way Discover debit could be recognized as anything other than ādebitā?
I tried to pay a local mechanic. They asked ācredit or debitā before showing the total (with / without fee) on the payment terminal. The Discover debit was somehow not recognized as valid by their system. Not declined, just an error like āinvalidā or āunrecognizedā, I donāt remember exactly. They accept Discover credit cards, so I donāt know why debit didnāt work. He suggested I try running it as credit, but then heād tack on the fee. I paid with a Visa debit instead.
Also I think the dealership I was thinking of added a 3% fee for ALL cards, including debit. The sign claimed thatās what it costs them. I try to not go there anymore unless itās a warranty / recall issue thatās free to me.
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