Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Rebate Credit Cards
My criteria for openning credit card accounts are offering rebate and no annual fee. Carrying a balance is against the simple principle, even with 0% balance offer, since one missed payment could wipe out any small gains with finance charge and late fee. I am against credit card hopping, too. Unfortunately credit card companies keeps on changing terms, making it difficult to have loyalty. These are the credit cards I currently have.
Citi Driver's Edge MasterCard
For the first year, it offers 6% rebate on purchases at supermarkets, drugstores and gas stations. This is the substitute for the Citi Dividend Platinum Select card, which recently lowered the rebate term.
Fidelity 529 Rewards MasterCard
Offers 2% rewards deposited to a 529 plan account, that's great if you do have children. Again, Fidelity recently changed it to American Express and lowered the rebate to 1.5%. The link for the old MasterCard still works, so hurry to catch it before it is gone for good. Otherwise, you may have to go with the Fidelity Investment Rewards Visa Card, which offers 1.5% cash reward, still better than most other rebate cards.
Amreican Express TrueEarnings Card
Since Costco only takes American Express card, I have to get this card for shopping at Costco. It does offer 3% for eating out, 2% for traveling and 1% for everything else.
There are cards offer reward like points and miles. I have never done the research since I do not travel a lot and the system seems very complicated. There is also Discover Card which offers 5% rebate for different items at different time. It is hard to track therefor is against the simple principle. I do not use it but keep the account open, as you might know that closing credit card account has a negative impact on the FICO score.
Citi Driver's Edge MasterCard
For the first year, it offers 6% rebate on purchases at supermarkets, drugstores and gas stations. This is the substitute for the Citi Dividend Platinum Select card, which recently lowered the rebate term.
Fidelity 529 Rewards MasterCard
Offers 2% rewards deposited to a 529 plan account, that's great if you do have children. Again, Fidelity recently changed it to American Express and lowered the rebate to 1.5%. The link for the old MasterCard still works, so hurry to catch it before it is gone for good. Otherwise, you may have to go with the Fidelity Investment Rewards Visa Card, which offers 1.5% cash reward, still better than most other rebate cards.
Amreican Express TrueEarnings Card
Since Costco only takes American Express card, I have to get this card for shopping at Costco. It does offer 3% for eating out, 2% for traveling and 1% for everything else.
There are cards offer reward like points and miles. I have never done the research since I do not travel a lot and the system seems very complicated. There is also Discover Card which offers 5% rebate for different items at different time. It is hard to track therefor is against the simple principle. I do not use it but keep the account open, as you might know that closing credit card account has a negative impact on the FICO score.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Simple Places to Park Cash
It is recommended to keep cash equivalent to about 3-6 months of expense for rainy days.
Local Accounts
A local account is needed to access cash and deposit checks. I am a big fan of credit union. It is convinient, and sometimes offer very good rates for loans. After all, it is the place for me to get my first auto loan and one of the first a few credit cards, and definately helps me to build good credit history from next to nothing. In addition, CU also provides other service such as notary public, offer times free for members. If there isn't a decent CU near you home or work, then a bank with local braches will be the alternative. I recommend Bank of America. It has branches almost everywhere. On top of it, if you open a account online, there is $100 bonus using promotion code MYA100 or THZ3.
Online Accounts
Interest rate for local accounts are often close to nothing, therefore an online account is needed to park the majority of your cash. ACH makes things much easier so one can transfer money back and forth through internet. There are several internet bank offer decent rates, such as ING Direct, GMAC bank, and HSBC direct. I personally hate account hopping to chase the small difference in interest rate. Current, Eloan has the best rate.
Local Accounts
A local account is needed to access cash and deposit checks. I am a big fan of credit union. It is convinient, and sometimes offer very good rates for loans. After all, it is the place for me to get my first auto loan and one of the first a few credit cards, and definately helps me to build good credit history from next to nothing. In addition, CU also provides other service such as notary public, offer times free for members. If there isn't a decent CU near you home or work, then a bank with local braches will be the alternative. I recommend Bank of America. It has branches almost everywhere. On top of it, if you open a account online, there is $100 bonus using promotion code MYA100 or THZ3.
Online Accounts
Interest rate for local accounts are often close to nothing, therefore an online account is needed to park the majority of your cash. ACH makes things much easier so one can transfer money back and forth through internet. There are several internet bank offer decent rates, such as ING Direct, GMAC bank, and HSBC direct. I personally hate account hopping to chase the small difference in interest rate. Current, Eloan has the best rate.
