RECENT POSTS
  • Advanced,  Credit Cards,  Miles and Points,  Travel Rewards

    Should You Pay the Annual Fee for the Chase Sapphire Preferred?

    Chase Sapphire Preferred (CSP) provides a number of additional benefits that the Chase Freedom card doesn’t offer. However, those extras come at a cost. After being waived the first year, the annual fee of $95 will kick in. Is it worth paying? I’ll walk you through the extra benefits and do the math for you with a calculator at the end of this article. The premise behind this exercise is that you are deciding whether to keep your CSP and pay the annual fee or downgrade it to a Freedom card to save the $95 (or simply cancel if you already have a Freedom). To make this determination, my calculator requires only 4 variables:…

  • Basics,  Credit Cards

    Time to Plan Some Late Summer Home Improvement Projects with Discover It Card

    The Discover It card’s 5% Cashback Bonus categories for the remainder of 2016 were recently announced, and July through September looks compelling. Use your Discover It card at home improvement stores like Lowe’s and Home Depot in the 3rd Quarter and get 5% cashback on up to $1,500 in purchases. If you’re planning some projects now, it might be worth putting them off until July to capitalize on the bonus–wish me luck explaining that to Mrs. PointsYak.   All the 2016 bonus categories are listed in the graphic below. Amazon.com is prominently featured in the entire second half of the year, while “& More” in the 4th Quarter is vague at best.…

  • Basics,  Credit Cards

    A Handy Tool For Using the Right Credit Card for Every Purchase

    You’re standing in line at the grocery or office supply store, holding a wallet overflowing with credit cards, and you can’t remember which one you should use to get the most cash back. Sound familiar? Same here, and that’s exactly why I created the PointsYak Cashback Lookup Tool: just follow the link, bookmark it on your mobile phone, and finding the right cashback card for every purchase will always be just a click away! There’s no app to download, no GPS tracking your whereabouts, and no sign-up required. Shopping online is usually the best the way to maximize your savings, and my last article, “Maximize Cashback and Points Using Online Shopping Portals”, showed you how…

  • Basics,  Credit Cards

    Credit Card Annual Fees: Are They Worth It?

    There are those who would never apply for a credit card that charges an annual fee. Why pay when there are so many other cards that don’t charge one?  A valid question, and the answer depends on your spending and lifestyle habits. As you’ll see below, in some cases, those fees could be well worth paying. Annual fees can top out at over $400 for some premium credit cards, but they can include access to airport lounges such as American Airlines, Delta, or United.  These private lounges offer travelers free food, snacks, complimentary beverage service, comfortable seating, free WiFi, clean facilities, and other luxurious perks not available to the general public. If you fly frequently…