New Rocket Visa Signature Card Earns Money-Saving Points for Homeowners
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Nothing drains your bank account quite like purchasing a home. The Rocket Visa Signature Card is aimed toward those who want to turn credit card rewards into homeownership savings.
The card, issued by Celtic Bank, earns 5 Rocket Rewards points per $1 spent — no matter the category of the purchase — and point values vary based on how you decide to redeem them. Here are the redemption options:
New mortgage: Redeem points toward costs associated with a new mortgage with Rocket Mortgage — a down payment, closing costs or fees — at a value of 1 cent per point. That’s equal to getting 5% cash back on your spending. You’re limited to a cap of 800,000 points (or $8,000 in value) when redeeming points this way. Refinances are excluded.
Existing mortgage: If you already hold a mortgage with Rocket Mortgage, you can redeem points toward the principal at a value of $0.004 per point, equal to 2% cash back.
Statement credit: Redeemed this way, points are worth $0.0025 per point, equal to 1.25% cash back.
There’s also a welcome offer for new cardholders: Earn a $200 statement credit if you spend $3,000 in the first 90 days.
The card does have a $95 annual fee, but it's waived for Rocket Mortgage customers.
The ability to redeem credit card rewards toward a mortgage is an interesting concept, but not a novel one: The now-discontinued Wells Fargo Home Rebate Card also offered that redemption feature, albeit with a more modest rewards rate.
Is the Rocket Visa Signature card worth it?
The ability to earn 5% back in rewards toward a future home purchase is enticing and could prove quite valuable to a new home buyer. But in order to redeem rewards for the highest value, your new mortgage must be serviced by Rocket Mortgage. That means when the time comes to shop for a lender, you may feel locked into using Rocket Mortgage, even if they don't offer you the lowest rate or best terms.
If you want to redeem rewards toward your existing mortgage, a standard 2% cash back credit card could be a better fit. You can choose to put the cash back that you earn toward your mortgage, but you have the flexibility to use it in other ways, too.
» SEE: Best cash back credit cards
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