Tag Archives: Cash Back

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How I Messed up the $20 Dining Credit on my AMEX Hilton Aspire

Good morning everyone, I hope your week is going well.  One of the current card benefits of the American Express Hilton Honors Aspire Credit Card is the $20 monthly dining credit.  Unfortunately I ran into an issue using this card benefit in April on 2 restaurant purchases (In N Out Burger and Panera Bread).  As you can see, I never received the $20 dining credit for my April purchases, but I did receive the credit automatically in May, June, and July.  Based on my transactions, the $20 dining credit posts ~3 days after the restaurant charge posts to your account.  I contacted AMEX on May 1 and again on July 13 to check on the status of the dining credit and received conflicting answers.  Here is what I was told and what I learned…

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US Bank Cash Plus Credit Card Changes to Foreign Transaction Fees (Effective October 1, 2021)

Good afternoon everyone, I hope your Fourth of July Weekend is going well.  I was reviewing my recent statement from my US Bank Cash Plus Credit Card when I spotted this “IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT” about foreign transaction fees.  The statement doesn’t tell you anything about the change, so you need to look at the insert that comes with your paper statement or download the digital insert online to find out what is changing.

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The digital insert says that effective October 1, 2021, the foreign transaction fee will be:

  • 3% of each foreign purchase transaction or foreign ATM advance transaction in U.S. Dollars
  • 3% of each foreign purchase transaction or foreign ATM advance transaction in Foreign Currency

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Here is the backside of the digital insert that says you can reject the change by contacting US Bank, but that will result in US Bank closing your Cash Plus Credit Card.

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I found the current terms for the Cash Plus Credit Card and it currently says “2% of each foreign purchase transaction or foreign ATM advance transaction in U.S. Dollars.”  It looks like effective October 1, 2021, that will increase from 2% to 3%.

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The Cash Plus Credit Card is not a good card to use internationally or to make purchases at international websites.  If you plan to make international purchases, use a credit card that has no foreign transaction fees, like the US Bank Altitude Reserve Credit Card.  If you have any questions about this change, please leave a comment below.  Have a great Fourth of July everyone!

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Last Day to Register! FTU Virtual Seminar on Saturday June 26 ($25) or Free with Online Annual Membership

Good afternoon everyone, happy Friday!  If you have no plans tomorrow (Saturday, June 26), I highly recommend attending the FTU Virtual Seminar (tickets available for $25) or free if you have the FTU Online Annual Membership.  The seminar starts on Saturday at 8am PT / 11am ET.  I have attended all of the FTU Virtual Seminars over the last several months and they are always well done, educational, and entertaining – and I am sure this seminar will be no exception!  Here is the schedule and lineup of speakers.

If you register for the seminar on Saturday, but are unable to watch the live stream, you can access the recording of the seminar and watch later on.  This is also a great way to re-watch your favorite presentations and catch any details that you originally missed.

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Venmo Announces New Fees for Receiving Payments of Goods and Services & Instant Transfer Withdrawals

Good afternoon everyone, I hope your week is going well.  Last night, I received an email regarding “New and upcoming changes to Venmo” – a pretty generic looking email with generic looking text that I skimmed through and almost deleted.  Buried in the text were 2 changes about seller transaction fees and instant transfer fees.  I decided to dig into these changes to see what they really meant for me and other Venmo users.  Here are the 2 changes that I researched:

3) Effective July 20, 2021, users who receive payments that are identified by senders as for goods and services will be charged a seller transaction fee of 1.9% + $0.10.
4) Effective August 2, 2021, the fee for instant transfers will be 1.5% per instant transfer ($0.25 minimum fee, $15 maximum fee).

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Attend FTU Virtual Seminar on Saturday June 26 ($25) or Free with Online Annual Membership

Good afternoon everyone.  If you have no plans this coming Saturday (June 26), I highly recommend attending the FTU Virtual Seminar (tickets available for $25) or free if you have the FTU Online Annual Membership.  The seminar starts on Saturday at 8am PT / 11am ET.  I have attended all of the FTU Virtual Seminars over the last several months and they are always well done, educational, and entertaining – and I am sure this seminar will be no exception!  Here is the schedule and lineup of speakers.

If you register for the seminar on Saturday, but are unable to watch the live stream, you can access the recording of the seminar and watch later on.  This is also a great way to re-watch your favorite presentations and catch any details that you originally missed.

a screenshot of a video conference

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