Are credit Card Programs Still worth it?

[kt_kez]

My QF Small Business AMEX card is 1pt / $ (annual fee $160), so that’s still reasonable. My personal AMEX (fee free) went to 0.7 years ago and I only use it when there’s a cash back or similar.

My NAB VISA Signature is also 1pt / $ for first $5k pm then 0.5 (fee free with Private Banking).

Pretty much all my local spend goes on one of those cards. OS spend on 28° MC (fee free). I regret not getting one of the Coles MCs before retiring - at least the FBs points are better than nothing from Latitude.

Coles MCs are meant to be the most friendly for retirees. May be worth a shot?

Out of credit? The solution for retirees who want a card

Time and time again retired Australians tell me they are unable to get a credit card of their own. But there may be a solution.

www.smh.com.au

 

[Rich]

Coles MCs are meant to be the most friendly for retirees. May be worth a shot?

Out of credit? The solution for retirees who want a card

Time and time again retired Australians tell me they are unable to get a credit card of their own. But there may be a solution.

www.smh.com.au

I am currently a long way from retirement but have just taken out this card (requesting a modest $4k limit) after recent rejections from ANZ and Amex and having recently cancelled all other cards (in preparation for a home loan refinance). It has a pathetic 1 Fly Buy per [edit] $2 spent, but it is fee free for life and currently has 70000 bonus points ($350 or 35000 Virgin points), so a bit of a no brainer. I figured it was an idea to have a fee free card in preparation for retirement and a permanent card for automatic payments instead of updating every time I churn.
I will still keep churning though.

 

[SYD]

Coles MCs are meant to be the most friendly for retirees. May be worth a shot?

Out of credit? The solution for retirees who want a card

Time and time again retired Australians tell me they are unable to get a credit card of their own. But there may be a solution.

www.smh.com.au

It was on my To Do list to call them. I have a 28° MC for OS purchases but that was a PITA trying to get a credit limit increase. So considering Coles…

I am currently a long way from retirement but have just taken out this card (requesting a modest $4k limit) after recent rejections from ANZ and Amex and having recently cancelled all other cards (in preparation for a home loan refinance). It has a pathetic 1 Fly Buy per $1 spend, but it is fee free for life and currently has 70000 bonus points ($350 or 35000 Virgin points), so a bit of a no brainer. I figured it was an idea to have a fee free card in preparation for retirement and a permanent card for automatic payments instead of updating every time I churn.
I will still keep churning though.

It or 28° (and some others) are must have card to avoid 3% international transaction fees. Good idea to have at least one.

 

[SOPOOR]

For someone in your situation, I really feel it is churn or bust.

The increased annual fees & reduced points earn on regular spend means that trying to acquire enough points via a single credit card is very likely to be a losing proposition.

Programs are likely to devalue quicker than you can acquire enough points to redeem.

Yeah thats my take too.
Feels like its the end of an era, and ive lost part of me

Ie ill never be able to travel in J/F again, unless i win lotto

 

[Forg]

Ie ill never be able to travel in J/F again, unless i win lotto

… or a special comes up.

My F flight was the same cost as full-fare Y, and my most recent J flight was cheaper than QF or BA or CX premium economy.

 

[anat0l]

I'm a churner.

I think I've been told so, but I'm not sure if churning credit has a negative impact on my credit score, though I've been keeping a tab on that and it doesn't seem to be that way (or at least to a significant degree).

The only credit cards I have kept long term without churning are my Amex Platinum Reserve (long time, former co-brand card) and 28 Degrees Mastercard (yes, even after the data breach). The cards being churned are my mainstay Visa or Mastercard points-earning card.

I hadn't really thought of the effect of the annual fee on the churning strategy though; probably because nearly every card has an annual fee of sorts and I haven't had enough time to evaluate the effect of going with a no-rewards credit card but pocketing whatever savings there could be. Ironically, the more points that someone has at a time, the more valuable extra points adding onto that are. For example, a signup bonus of 100k points may be worth something for someone who has a balance of zero, but for someone with an existing balance of 300k points, the new 100k points is even more valuable. So once I burn down my balances to rather more meagre sums, that might change my perception to churning, or I'll just have to be patient before I can redeem Business and/or First again.

 

[levelnine]

signup bonus of 100k points may be worth something for someone who has a balance of zero, but for someone with an existing balance of 300k points, the new 100k points is even more valuable.

I think it resembles a bell curve. 100K on a balance of 0 doesn't get you much (unless you're happy with economy) & 100K on a balance of 10 mil doesn't get you much either as you already have enough points to meet your immediate future needs.

The sweet spot, as you said, is a balance of 300-500K. That's why you not only need to be a churner, you need to be a regular churner. Doing one card a year is not going to move the needle.

These devaluations therefore have an outsized negative effect on retirees. Even if a retiree can churn the occasional card, it's not going to be enough for a business class trip to Europe or the US. They need to be able to churn multiple cards, and that's going to be tough.

 

[Warks]

With the demise of the Woolworths QFF Visa card I have to look at getting another one for Qantas. I have Velocity Amex which I think costs $350 a year but you get a free return flight within Australia each year which offsets that if you are smart about it. Problem is the lack of acceptance of Amex, while not as bad as it was, is still common enough that no one could just get by with Amex. Plus vendors charge 'enhanced' fees for use much of the time, due to Amex's 'enhanced' charges.
I'll chase a new QFF card for points though and churn it regularly I think. The earn rates are poor now so it's really only the intro deals that make it worth it.

 

[Mischief1]

The Qantas Amex Ultimate card (where the $450 annual fee is offset by a $450 Qantas credit through Amex travel) is still worth it for me. 1.25 points per $1 is still one of the best offers out there, plus the other benefits such as the two Qantas Club lounge passes each year, Qantas Wine Premium membership and what not.


Like everything, it's each to their own, and you need to make sure you are using the benefits with the card to ensure that the annual fee is more than offset by the perks. I've managed to get it to work for me, but it's not for everyone

Agree,
I keep my Qantas Amex Ultimate because of the Qantas travel credit which we use at busy times when discounted domestic fares are not available. The lounge passes have come in handy but most of all the high earn rate makes it a no brainer to use for day to day spending. The only downside to Amex is that its not accepted everywhere (although many more places than a few years ago) so always remember to have an alternative!

 

[Pele]

None of the four options given quite fit my situation. I've given up actively chasing points, and whatever I get on my Citibank Premier fee-free for life card is just a small bonus. Spend that's likely to attract an international transaction fee goes on my Bankwest Platinum Zero card; no points, but no fee, either.

I recently downgraded my Amex Explorer card to the no-annual-fee Essential card, as the travel credit was becoming increasingly useless, as were the offers. I still have over 300,000 MR points but they sure as hell won't be going to KrisFlyer this time; once bitten, twice shy. Unlikely that they'll be going to Velocity either; I already have over 700,000 points there, but do you think I can find two CBR to PER (indirect obviously) J award seats on the same bloody flight?

Good luck to anyone who can still make the points game work for them, but I'm over it.

9th February 2025 using VFF points