Tag Archives: Barclays Bank

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My 8 Credit Card App-O-Rama Results (Mostly Bad News)

Good morning everyone, I hope you all has a great weekend.  A few weeks ago, I applied for 8 new credit cards during my App-O-Rama.  Here are the 8 credit cards and sign up bonuses that I applied for (not in this particular order).  Unfortunately, my App-O-Rama skills are not as good as they used to be and I was (ultimately) declined for most of these credit cards.

  • Bank of America Alaska Airlines Visa Signature Credit Card: 30,000 AS Miles + $100 statement credit after spending $1,000 in 3 months ($75 annual fee)
  • Bank of America Virgin Atlantic Credit Card: 75,000 VA Miles after spending $12,000 in 6 months ($90 annual fee)
  • Bank of America Amtrak Rewards Credit Card: 30,000 Amtrak Points after spending $1,000 in 3 months ($79 annual fee)
  • US Bank Altitude Reserve Credit Card: 50,000 FlexPoints ($750 in travel credit) after spending $4,500 in 3 months ($400 annual fee)
  • Wells Fargo Visa Signature Credit Card: 20,000 Go Far Reward Points after spending $1,000 in 3 months ($0 annual fee)
  • First Bankcard Best Western Credit Card: 50,000 Points after spending $1,000 in 3 months ($59 annual fee, first year waived)
  • Synchrony Bank Cathay Pacific Credit Card: 50,000 CX Miles after spending $2,500 in 3 months ($95 annual fee)
  • Barclays Wyndham Rewards Credit Card: 45,000 Wyndham Points (3 free nights) after spending $2,000 in 3 months ($75 annual fee)

Long story short, I applied for 3 Bank of America credit cards, starting with the Bank of America Alaska Airlines Visa Signature Credit Card.  I recently closed my previous Bank of America Alaska Airlines Visa Signature Credit Card a few weeks ago, so I was ready to apply again and earn more Alaska Airlines miles.  Unfortunately, my application went to pending.  Since I was not immediately declined, I decided to apply for a Bank of America Virgin Atlantic Credit Card.  Surprisingly, I was instantly approved for that credit card with a pretty small credit limit.  With that success, I decided to apply for a Bank of America Amtrak Rewards Credit Card.  Unfortunately, that application went to pending as well. 1 out of 3 instant approvals was not bad.  I was hopeful that the 2 pending applications could be approved with a short reconsideration call.

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Keep, Convert or Close the Barclays American Airlines AAdvantage Aviator MasterCard?

I’ve made a resolution! From now on, when a credit card I currently have comes up for renewal, I really want to consider more deeply than I have in the past, whether or not to keep the credit card. I’m determined to look more closely at the annual fees I pay to keep the credit card and the benefits I receive. And whether I’m actually using those benefits… maybe that’s the most important question of all.

Since I made this resolution, the first credit card to come up for renewal is my Barclays American Airlines AAdvantage Aviator MasterCard. Like many of you, I got this credit card because I had the Barclays US Airways World MasterCard, which became the Aviator credit card when American Airlines bought US Airways. The yearly fee for the Aviator credit card is $89. My first action was to actually read the Reward Summary on my statement and really understand the potential of this credit card, whether or not I actually put much spend on this card. Continue reading

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5 Months Later, I Received 10,000 Bonus JetBlue Points from Barclays JetBlue Plus Credit Card Promo

Good afternoon everyone.  At the end of March, I received an email from Barclays regarding my Barclays JetBlue Plus Credit Card.  The email said I could earn 10,000 bonus JetBlue Points for spending $750 or more for 3 consecutive months (April, May, and June).  I had to make sure to spend $750 or more from April 1-30, May 1-31, and June 1-30 (not when my credit card statement closed in April, May, and June). I received the 10,000 bonus JetBlue Points ~5 months after the date I received the email.

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Redeem Barclays Arrival Points for Travel Statement Credits

Good morning everyone, I hope you all had a great weekend.  During my March App-O-Rama, I was approved for the Barclays Arrival Plus Credit Card that offered 50,000 Barclays Arrival Points after spending $3,000 in 3 months.  After meeting the minimum spending requirement and receiving the sign up bonus, I wanted to redeem my Barclays Arrival Points for travel statement credits.  In this post, I will show you how to redeem Barclays Arrival Points for travel statement credits.  First things first, log into your Barclays online account and go to your Barclays Arrival Plus Credit Card.  Then click the Rewards & Benefits Center button to start redeeming your Barclays Arrival Points.

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Barclays Lufthansa Miles & More Credit Card Downgrade & Retention Offer

Good morning everyone, happy Memorial Day!  A few days ago, I called Barclays to close my Barclays Lufthansa Miles & More World Elite MasterCard.  The $79 annual fee was coming due soon and I barely spent any money on the credit card after completing the minimum spending requirements last year.  After calling the number on the back of the credit card and explaining that I wanted to close the credit card because the annual fee was posting soon, the rep transferred me to a different department (I don’t remember the department name, but let’s call it the Barclays retention department).  After explaining my situation to the second rep, she asked me if I would be willing to downgrading the credit card to a no annual fee version of the Barclays Lufthansa Miles & More Credit Card.  Sure, I said, that sounds good to me. The downgraded credit card will earn 1 Lufthansa mile for every $2 spent and the conversion would be completed on June 5.

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