Category Archives: Promotions + Deals

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2024’s Must-Reads: Have You Read My Most Popular Posts Yet?

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Good afternoon everyone, happy New Year’s Eve!  As we wrap up 2024, it’s time to take a look at my top 10 most popular blog posts of the year. Barring any crazy last minute spikes in blog readership today, these are the top 10 blog posts written in 2024 and top 10 blog posts written in previous years. If you are curious, here were the most popular posts from 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023.

2024’s Most Popular Blog Posts (Written in 2024)

  • PSA: Bank of America Won’t Automatically Send a Replacement Debit Card when your Card Expires (2/20/24) – I realized my Bank of America debit card had expired in July 2022, and I never received a replacement debit card until I requested one in February 2024, despite having it stored in ApplePay. My frustration grew from the lack of notifications and outdated PIN change process. Judging by the number of pageviews this post received, I guess I wasn’t the only one with this problem.
  • My 2023 Peloton Bike Rental Year End Review (Total Cost of Ownership & Workout Class Stats) (1/21/24) – In 2023, I rented a Peloton bike instead of buying one, opting for the flexibility of a monthly rental with the option to pause or return it. Although I didn’t meet my fitness goals, I appreciated the variety of classes, the ability to create multiple profiles, and the affordability of the rental option, especially with my employer’s fitness reimbursement.  I wasn’t planning on writing a 2024 Peloton year end review, but since this post was so popular, I will work on a 2024 update in the coming days.
  • Attention Coinstar Users: Not All Kiosks Offer Amazon eGift Cards (1/19/24) – During a recent trip to SoCal, I used a Coinstar kiosk to convert a bag of change into an eGC, only to find that Amazon was missing as a redemption option. After researching, I discovered that not all kiosks offer Amazon eGCs, with availability varying by location and grocery store chain.  I wish all Coinstar kiosks had the same redemption offers so this issue would be avoided.

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How Much Money Did I Make from Bank Account Bonuses in 2024?

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Good afternoon everyone, I hope your week is going well.  Doctor of Credit has a Best Bank Account Bonuses page that he keeps up to date with the best offers each month.  In that master post, he links to individual bank account bonuses with helpful information regarding the bonus details, how to avoid monthly fees, when to close the account, how often you can open a new account, and much more.  For the last 10 years, I have been opening new checking accounts, savings accounts, brokerage accounts, and cash management accounts for the new member bonuses.  At the end of each year, I share my results on the blog.

Over the last 10 years, I have made $26,775 in bank account bonuses. You will receive 1099-INT / 1099-MISC tax forms every year, so you have to pay taxes on the bank account bonuses, but sometimes you can fund the opening deposit with a credit card and earn miles, points, or cash back.  If you are lucky, you can meet a minimum spending requirement by funding a new checking account or reach a spending threshold / milestone to earn more rewards.  Here are my results from the last 10 years with links to corresponding yearly summaries:

Drum roll please… Here are the 12 new accounts Laura and I opened in 2024 that paid out $2,755 in bonuses:

Bank Account Name Opened Closed Bonus Notes
WeBull Brokerage (Laura) 01/01/24 02/21/24 $180 30 free stocks (worth $180)
Citi Access Checking 01/01/24 04/26/24 $200
PSECU Checking 01/04/24 05/31/24 $300 $100 credit card funding
PenFed Credit Union Checking 01/04/24 11/08/24 $250
M1 Finance 01/06/24 02/20/24 $250
NASA Federal Credit Union Checking 01/09/24 04/26/24 $300 $400 credit card funding
Redwood Credit Union Checking 01/26/24 04/26/24 $250 $500 credit card funding
Raisin Account @ Grand Bank 01/26/24 08/15/24 $150 Rakuten cash back: 10,000 AMEX MR Points ($150 value)
Upgrade Rewards Checking Plus 03/05/24 05/11/24 $150
Upgrade Premier Savings 03/07/24 08/15/24 $200
One Finance Savings 11/08/24 12/28/24 $225 Rakuten cash back: 15,000 AMEX MR Points ($225 value)
Chase Total Checking (Laura) 11/11/24 Open $300
$2,755

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8 Buy Miles / Points Promos Ending Soon: Avianca (160%), JetBlue (130%), Hilton (100%), Southwest (50%), Wyndham (45%), United (30%), Air Canada (30%), & Hyatt (25%)

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Good morning everyone, I hope you had a great weekend. I was working on my Buy Miles & Points Page and found 8 offers that end in the next week.  Always check the math to make sure that buying miles & points makes sense for you.  Do not buy miles & points speculatively unless you have a use in mind.  With that said, here are 8 offers that end soon.

Up first, Avianca Airlines is offering up to a 160% bonus, depending on the number of Avianca Airlines LifeMiles you purchase. This offer expires on December 31.

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My Overly Ambitious 2025 Airline, Hotel & Credit Card Predictions

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Good morning everyone, happy Sunday!  Not to be deterred by my abysmal 2024 results (How Right (& Wrong) were my 2024 Airline, Hotel & Credit Card Predictions?), 2025 is a fresh year and the year all most some a few of my predictions will come true.  Without further ado, here are my predictions for 2025:

My 2025 Airline Predictions:

  • Alaska Airlines or Southwest Airlines will bring back their “convert travel funds to airline miles” feature.
  • Alaska Airlines will let you use the Companion Fare to book Hawaiian Airlines flights.
  • American Airlines will return as a Citi ThankYou Points transfer partner.
  • British Airways will lower their partner redemption prices for American Airlines and Alaska Airlines.
  • Delta will increase the annual fee on their credit cards and increase the Delta SkyMiles discount to 20%-25%.
  • JetBlue will allow you to redeem points on a new partner airline (besides Etihad Airways, Hawaiian Airlines and Qatar Airways).
  • Southwest Airlines will do a status match once they start selling seat assignments.
  • United Airlines will bring back their “family pooling” feature.

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8 Miles & Points Predictions from the Past that Came True Too Late

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Good evening everyone, happy Wednesday Thursday Friday (or whatever day it is).  I hope you enjoyed reading How Right (& Wrong) were my 2024 Airline, Hotel & Credit Card Predictions?  Admittedly, my track record on making accurate predictions is pretty bad, but I decided to play Monday Morning Quarterback and take a loooooong look back at travel predictions I made over the last 7 years.  I dusted off my prediction archives and found 8 predictions that came true, but just a couple years too late.  Here they are:

2017 predictions that came true too late:

  • Alaska Airlines will introduce a new level of elite status (maybe MVP Gold 100K?) – Alaska Airlines added MVP Gold 100K elite status in January 2022 (link).
  • Citi will stop issuing the Citi Prestige and focus more on improving the Citi Premier. – Citi stopped accepting applications for the Citi Prestige in July 2021 (link) and rebranded the Citi Strata Premier in May 2024 (link).

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