July 2010

Costco American Express: the Best Credit Card for Well-Rounded Spenders?

July 31, 2010
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When you, as a credit card user, are hunting for ways to maximize rewards, attention-grabbing 5% cash back offers can be tempting. But can a card like the American Express Costco, which has static rewards categories, compete with the heavy hitter rotating bonus cards? But we’ve made no secret of our view that these cards [...]

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The Unfortunate Knock-On Effects of Financial Reform

July 28, 2010
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This morning, we published our very first post as a contributor to the Forbes Moneybuilder blog. In the post, we described how recently imposed limits on overdraft fees and potential future limits on debit interchange fees will severely impact the bottom lines of banks around the country. But rather than quietly suffer the consequences, these [...]

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Special Offer: Earn an Extra $50 With Citi Forward for College Students

July 25, 2010
Citi Forward for College Students

The best student credit card out there for both rewards and intro APRs is Citi Forward for College Students. The card tops our rankings because you get 5 points per $1 spent at restaurants and on movies/entertainment. It’s not too shabby when it comes to APRs either, with a 0% intro APR on purchases for [...]

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Carnival of Personal Finance – Gettin’ Hot in Here Edition

July 19, 2010
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If you’re on the East Coast, you know that it has been hotter than Hades these past few weeks. But hopefully that means that more of our readers are hiding indoors and surfing the web For those of you who are new to our site, please get inside where it’s air conditioned and peruse our [...]

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Chase Freedom Now Comes In 2 Varieties. One is Better, One is Worse

July 9, 2010
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We’ve made no secret about the fact that Chase Freedom isn’t one of our favorite cards. You have to opt-in to the rotating 5% reward programs each quarter, and the 5% rewards are limited to $800 in spending per month. On top of that, Chase seems to like switching the Chase Freedom reward program every [...]

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Discover Acceptance Hits 90%. Does the Escape Deserve Our Respect?

July 7, 2010
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Discover has a reputation for not being widely accepted, which is the main reason why I’ve shied away from applying for a Discover Escape card despite the mathematically superior rewards it offers. The bad rep is not without merit, but it’s quickly fading from truth into perception. Even since 2007, when Discover was the butt [...]

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Choice Privileges Visa Card Re-Launches: The Best Mid-End Hotel Credit Card Is Back

July 6, 2010
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The Choice Privileges Visa credit card has re-launched in the US, as of July 1, 2010. This card is very similar to the version that was discontinued in 2009, but this time around Choice Hotels has decided to co-brand the card with BarclayCard rather than Bank of America. What brands does Choice Hotels International encompass? [...]

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Earn Triple Miles This Summer With Southwest Rapid Rewards

July 2, 2010
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Southwest Airlines just announced that they are beefing up their rapid rewards programs for some travelers. For flights booked and flown between now and August 31, 2010, travelers on Southwest will earn triple rewards on the following routes: Chicago Midway (MDW) ↔ LaGuardia, New York (LGA) Chicago Midway (MDW) ↔ Logan, Boston (BOS) Chicago Midway [...]

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