6 Uncomfortable Credit Card "Truths" You Need to Hear...

[@MarkReese]

📲 MAXREWARDS - Use promo code “markr” markscreditcards.com/maxrewards 💳👇 VIEW CREDIT CARD OFFERS! markscreditcards.com/offers 🛍 RAKUTEN - Earn Cash Back! markscreditcards.com/rakuten ⬆ (More links in Description below video!)

[@DailyThingsInLife]

Agree with above. Banks did a lot of research on the backend and there's a reason why they setup the reward categories the way it is. They trying to make most people spend more than what they actually need

[@MarkReese]

Yep 😁

[@Jiggy609]

Yeah they’re obviously making money off these cards, even though they sound too good to be true. Because the vast majority of the population don’t know how to use partners/awards

[@ToboeKey309]

​@@MarkReese I have 3.2 million hilton points 🤔🤔

[@MarkReese]

@@ToboeKey309 🏆🏆🏆

[@ToboeKey309]

@@MarkReese hey, do u have the chase sapphire reserve credit card? 🧐

[@ColoringKaria]

citi premier. thats what you use for food inside a hotel as it earns 3x for restaurants and 3x at hotels so either way its 3x no muss no fuss.

[@MarkReese]

One great option for sure!

[@theinternationalist1357]

The best credit teacher, Professor Reese 😊

[@randallraines6553]

Profesor Reese en Español 😂

[@MarkReese]

Thank you! 🏆👨‍🏫

[@bodyloverz30]

@@MarkReese Mark, the Wyndham Business Card does earn 8% if used correctly: the best use is to transfer to Caesars Rewards for comp credit. 100,000 intro points = $1,000 Caesars Comp Credit, plus the annual 15,000 point credit = $150.00 at Caesars. Plus you get CET Diamond Status = NO Resort Fees!

[@AT-mv2mr]

Wow.... taking *_Read the fine print to another level_*

[@traderpete007]

Hotel restaurants are aways best to book the charge to the room. You get the highest credit card multiple, but you also get the hotel points for the stay charges

[@MarkReese]

Exactly right 💯👍

[@cfpzona]

This is a great tip to keep in mind, hadn't thought of this one. Thanks for the heads up!👍

[@aadeorukhkar]

@markReese: 100% with you about not accumulating points for too long! They hold all the cards (no pun intended), and can change the rules any time. Also, life is short, unpredictable. Lastly, never leave your money (or points) with someone who has more power than you: the golden rule always applies!

[@MarkReese]

Earn 'em ... and use 'em! 😁

[@aadeorukhkar]

@@MarkReese exactly! I personally feel uneasy every time my point balance crosses $500 value, as if someone’s gonna rob me 🤣🤣🤣

[@Thecreditcardgame]

That’s true, I went to Ecuador last week and I ate at KFC inside of a mall , guess what no 4x , Amex told me this KFC was targeted as retail store , but I bought with my savor one and it went through

[@MarkReese]

Great data point / comparison between Amex network vs. MC network! 🌐

[@shawn.credit]

Simon Amex has 5% for mall food courts as well as select stores within Simon malls kinda sweet. Odd that Amex didn't code restaurant but the C1 Savor One did hmm.

[@jasonmccann257]

I had a similar situation happen to me at the beginning of this year. I took my family on a cruise to Cozumel, and everywhere used my Amex Gold card, I didn't get points for. Another incident that happened during the same vacation was that we drove down to where the ship sailed from. I used my Amex Gold card three times when we stopped and got gas. When I pre-paid inside for the gas, Amex charged me the full amount for the gas, not the actual amount I filled up to. When I got home from the vacation, I had to dispute these charges, and submit receipts, which I'm glad I held on to the receipts, b/c Amex didn't want to cooperate with me. Shady tactics.

[@Tristin471]

@@jasonmccann257Wow, and I’ve always heard how good Amex’s customer service is……..

[@Tristin471]

@@jasonmccann257On another note, I wish that there was a way to pay inside with a credit card and set it to just shutoff when full, and not have to prepaid a set amount.

[@RubbingPotatoes]

Another reason to go Team Cash back. Simple. Some offer up to 5% which great.

[@MarkReese]

Simple...and the most flexible 💵👌

[@g4mm4io]

I use credit cards to circumvent my debit card limits, which are very low. Having a high-limit credit card allows me to pay for things when I travel, and using a debit card when you travel is a bad idea for security. I barely even care about the rewards. I want the convenience of paying for large purchases, hotels, and airfare.

[@g4mm4io]

The occasional free hotel stay is nice, but that's ( for me ) a bonus and not the purpose of having the cards.

[@MarkReese]

Great that you found the right use for your needs!

[@juliegreb6859]

My local propane place (we heat the house with propane so $1500/yr) did not code as a utility. Sadly. Using a national company for propane (Amerigas) did code as a utility. Was using the US Bank cash+ card with 5% category on utilities. So missed out $75 by not knowing that they didn’t code as a utility. Lessons learned. However, did price it out this year and local company was currently charging less per gallon so it was better to go with local company and use Venture X at 2 pts/$

[@MarkReese]

Great that you figured out the best path!

[@BobBacheler]

Great clarification. Lessons everyone new to the game needs to know!

[@MarkReese]

🏆

[@juliegreb6859]

Also, our local gas station which has hot food and beer/cigarettes/wine/etc codes as gas for in store convenience purchases. So use my 5% gas card for those kinds of convenience purchases. Luckily.

[@MarkReese]

Gotta love that!

[@_iErik]

Rule 0.5: credit card rewards are not “free”, they’re a rebate of your own money that the merchant is charging you to pay with a credit card. We all pay 2-10% extra in order for the merchants to afford CC processing fees.

[@MarkReese]

While they may not be "free," they're a lot better than a guaranteed nothing via debit card, check, or cash 👌

[@Ljberkow]

The person who pays cash also pays the fee. It’s marketing or cost of doing business for them.

[@Matthewgb204]

Not always, the places I’ve been to don’t charge more for using a credit card

[@neilpatel1914]

@@Matthewgb20499% of merchants don’t tell you they’re charging you more for using a credit card. It’s already priced in, people paying with credit, debit, or cash all pay higher prices today due to compensate for credit card fees.

[@Spinattitude]

This was a refreshingly new topic to cover in the space. Nicely done!

[@MarkReese]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@TheAudioCzar]

Those American Express transactions not coding as dining has started to piss me off. I'm starting to use the saver one for dining, and use the gold card just for restaurants specifically

[@MarkReese]

Have you found the C1S1 to capture more dining spend than the Amex Gold?

[@TheAudioCzar]

@@MarkReese yes. Like Krispy Kreme didn't earn 4x on my gold card. For grocery the savor one covers more to. I feel like amex description of US supermarkets are only the big stores. I've had small corner store grocery stores not warm 4x on the gold but get my 3x on the savor one

[@cfpzona]

My Chase SR card has the same issues. I've had to call them a few times for transactions that didn't award the 3 points for dining and another travel transaction that also should've been 3 points. They added the additional points for the travel expense (train ticket) but not the didn't g because they said the business was listed as a retail center. Frustrating.

[@luci_lol]

what an informative video. calling these uncomfortable truths may even be under-selling it, these are just straight up NEED TO KNOWs before you get deep into this. great video!

[@MarkReese]

Glad you liked it! 🎬

[@nixonwu5079]

I believe Cathay Asia Miles also have the 18 month expiration, like the Wyndham points

[@billlyl3725]

Dustin Hoffman should do a credit card Rain Man. He’d know the merchant codes by heart across all issuers

[@MarkReese]

😄

[@elliottnixon-wq6sp]

This vid is a good argument for a flat rate earner card.

[@MarkReese]

👍👍

[@WeiliXu88]

I have some very similar concerns and have being play the game carefully, especially we take vacations as a family, and sticking to school schedules. So far, I've been redeeming hilton at 1.5-2 cents per point and Hyatt at 2-4 cents per point, which left us many great memories. Toping off rewards depends on timing and scenarios - 1. getting the card takes time, 2. spend money to earn rewards take time, 3. rewards arrival takes time, 4. even free companion ticket takes time (Delta!). So by the time you received the rewards, it could cost you a lot more points/money to claim the ticket. - my suggestion is if gap is small enough, buy miles/points - you would get a lot worse exchange rate but the saving can be significant.

[@MarkReese]

That's why an argument could be made for always having some points ready to go. Having 0's across the board & wanting to do a family vacation in 3 months can be stressful.

[@WeiliXu88]

@@MarkReese indeed

[@flubberghosted2472]

Great vid! All of this stuff is why I am team cash back by default. I shoot my cash back into a high-yield account where I can watch it grow more while I save for trips or whatever. 💰✨ Maybe I’ll play the points & miles travel game more a few cards down the road. 😅

[@MarkReese]

Cash back = highest flexibility of all! 💵

[@chrisv4920]

Wow awesome that you were in Costa Mesa very close by the Experian Headquarters 😁

[@MarkReese]

🤙

[@BrockAAnderson]

Big fan of The Huddle, bummed about the coding, but a good spot!

[@MarkReese]

@@BrockAAnderson 🏆🎱

[@Kevin-vt7ki]

Too much shi in fine print and tired of all the bs conversion rate and all, I'm jus gonna go with my Robinhood credit card. 3% cash back on all the transactions, penny is worth a penny, dime is worth a dime, simple as that.

[@MarkReese]

💯👍

[@EthanCowlbeck]

I have an update from our conversation a couple days ago. Chase discontinued the 5% Gas/Grocery offer, but it’s still available in branch for a bit of time. I told the rep that I was over 5/24 and would have to wait until the middle of the month to get the freedom unlimited, but she was adamant that it was only the case for 5 Chase cards. She said I could go through the application and if it was denied for an internal reason there wouldn’t be a hard pull. I went for it and got approved. Interesting because it went against everything I thought I knew, but was happy to get that result

[@MarkReese]

Great data point, thanks for sharing this! Congrats on the approval, too! 🎉

[@seand99x]

Hey Mark, great video, with uncomfortable rule number four. I have actually found that a combination approach works well at least for me I will use a transferable currency card like my Chase Sapphire preferred For certain things, but then I will use a hotel card like my AMEX Hilton or my Choice card for specifically a high bonus category like groceries. This approach I think it’s a good sweet spot.

[@MarkReese]

A fine way to do it! 💯

[@TheSimpleDollarShow]

The fine print behind the Delta SkyMiles Reserve's companion certificate is WILD 😮

[@MarkReese]

Yep 😁

[@maagjohn]

Mark, I have seen the points valuations you quoted used multiple times but I have never seen anyone explain why the Chase/Amex/etc points are considered more valuable than airline/hotel especially when many times I see a 1:1 transfer ration on the portals. Can you enlighten me?

[@MarkReese]

The transfer ratio (1:1, for example) does not tell you how much value you get. It only means that you start with 10K points and end up with 10K points / miles in another program. However, since each program can have wildly different average point values, 10K points ≠ 10K points in terms of the dollar amount. The bank-issued points tend to have higher values largely because you can transfer them to international airline programs that allow for big-value redemptions. This video may be helpful to you: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l5aUiJSvrteqpKc

[@nicky_rads]

very solid overview! Gotta understand the game and rules, good stuff

[@MarkReese]

Glad you found it beneficial!

[@qahtanalqaysi5116]

I disagree regarding the Hilton 12x cash back, because if you have the Dimond Status plus 10 points which means 22x in this case or even the Gold at least which comes automatically with this card that means additional 8 points without counting any promotion which is running most of the time for 2 to 3X of base spending, and till now I still haven’t counted the 5th days for free with no fees and taxes which can adds up value close to plus 40% to 45% of any hotel booking for 5 days to 20 days in each reservation!

[@MarkReese]

I'm comparing the point multipliers ... not the card + broader program.

[@qahtanalqaysi5116]

@@MarkReese I understood your viewpoint, but 99% of the people get those co branded cards for one reason to use tall benefits in one card for one needs, again IMO the comparison doesn’t work between Apple and orange, on the hands we still can compare all hotel vs hotel card, airlines vs airlines card, and big banks points program with their partners vs other big banks, hope you understood my points like i did with yours, and again keep the great job up my man!

[@MarkReese]

@@qahtanalqaysi5116 - For sure. This video was just comparing 1 card product vs. another. Including things like base points made no sense here because those have nothing to do with the card (as you know, you earn those even if you don't have the card) 😁 A topic like the "best / most rewarding hotel program" would be a separate video and would include ALL earning & redemption options (credit card, base points, elite status, partners, and more). In the end though, both perspectives are correct. It just depends on which lens you're looking through 😃

[@qahtanalqaysi5116]

@@MarkReese 99% of the topics we agree more than disagree, I just see those co branded cards have one job to do, and if this job doesn’t apply to your needs then it doesn’t even make sense to have points that can’t be redeemed for cash value, even some websites accept buying co branded cards, but I have not done it because I don’t trust them, even if they have great reputation, and I really use all my active 85 cards that I have accumulated since 2014, you should go over my travel in 6 different countries at three different continents next month to end of August / 2024 lol, everything I have used to cover the hotels, flights, min suite, lounges, upgrading my ticket to extra leg room for A300-1000 with water airline which only has 4 of those huge airplanes lol by using those co branded cards and some chase and AMWX points lol 😂

[@nubianpwr]

Very sagacious advice Mark - TY!! I would only add that these systems are set up to reward Oneself with cash, discounted, or aspirational travel experiences - on occasion😎

[@MarkReese]

😁👍✈️💵

[@billwright2176]

The woh and hilton example. Woh is x4 and x5 =9. The surpass is base 10+ card +12 and card grants gold 80% bonus +8. = 30. The aspire would be 100% bonus and +14 giving 17% if point value is .005. My current booking is point value .012 . Why didnt you include this if you made a percentage example? The hyatt had the +5 membership bonus but the hilton has the same membership bonus but the card added 8 to 10 more points on top. Seems like it changes the outcome .

[@MarkReese]

I'm comparing only the reward multipliers, not the value of the card + broader programs.

[@hnyflvr]

Finally, the TRUTH!!!

[@MarkReese]

🏆

[@B1970T]

Awesome as usual!

[@MarkReese]

Thanks!

[@guadalupeb.]

Very informative! Thank you Mark

[@MarkReese]

You bet!

[@bens1221sop]

Nice informative concise video.

[@MarkReese]

Glad you liked it!

[@MilesAndMayhem]

Mark, where are you sourcing your Wyndham point values? TPG says Wyndham points are worth 1.1 cpp Edit: I now have gotten to the point in the video where you show the OMAT chart. It is interesting to see how far off the OMAT and TPG point valuations are.

[@MarkReese]

Yep 👍 Ever since the Vacasa redemptions via Wyndham were devalued in late 2023, I decided to go with the lower average value for Wyndham points. More info: www.doctorofcredit.com/vacasa-devalues-wyndham-redemptions/

[@MilesAndMayhem]

@@MarkReese interesting. I booked a vacasa rental right after that devaluation without realizing it had happened. Still got around 2cpp but it is a shame that the peak value isn't there. Still feels more valuable than Marriott by a lot and TPG has in theory updated their valuations multiple times after that but it is understandable.

[@Gummb0]

​@@MilesAndMayhem Today Vacasa got devalued again. Now more expensive properties will cost 30K per bedroom per night 😱

[@Peter-wc7dg]

How do the combined transaction fees compare to the amount of value earned in points? In this video, annual card fees were discussed, but I don't remember anything about the impacts of transaction fees on the overall outcome (perhaps 1.1-3% per transaction which are often passed along to consumers, in Australia at least). It would be interesting to hear your views.

[@MarkReese]

I don't pay attention to transaction fees because the alternative is you pay the same price with a debit card or cash and get $0 in rewards.

[@Peter-wc7dg]

@@MarkReese But you don't pay the same using credit - you pay a percentage more per transaction if the vendor passes along the cost to you (which most do here). Say you spend $100,000 over a period of time paying 3% transaction fees, you spend an additional $3,000 compared to fee-free transaction methods. You need to be beating the transaction fee and the annual fee amounts to make rewards points worth it - and enormous amounts of these points can be required to gain any benefit, and as you say, the points can be devalued at any time by the card company.

[@MarkReese]

@@Peter-wc7dg - That's not how it works here in the U.S. Someone who spends $100K on a credit card will spend the same amount of money as someone who spends $100K on a debit card. Some businesses may discriminate slightly by posting different prices for credit vs. debit / cash, but that is very rare. In fact, out of all the purchases I made in 2023, I can't think of a single business at which I saw different prices for credit vs. debit / cash.

[@hdhdhhehe6709]

If you fool yourself into thinking money isn’t real, and everything is just a video game, you can rationalize all kinds of irresponsible spending. Wow! Thanks wall st bankers! I’m so rEwARddded.

[@MarkReese]

Sounds like you prefer a cash-based approach?

[@Terrance_Lau]

Where's the One Mile at a Time link? I don't see it in the description

[@MarkReese]

Just added it now, thanks 👍 For convenience: onemileatatime.com/guides/value-miles-points/

[@Crossmainst228]

How do non members spend money at Costco, asking for a friend 😅

[@MarkReese]

Here you go 😄 www.businessinsider.com/costco-ways-shop-without-membership-2023-7

[@LK_EBM]

The Amex gold 4x on restaurant is stingy. They need to expand the dining categories. Thanks for exposing this uncomfortable truth

[@MarkReese]

It may not always be an Amex thing. It depends on how the business is set up on the network. I went to a family-owned café for lunch, but they didn't set up their Point of Sale system as "restaurant." So, it coded as something like "online" - they were using Square. I'd bet that even a Visa / MC card would have the same issue. If a business isn't classified with the correct MCC, then the bank can't issue rewards properly.

[@LK_EBM]

@@MarkReese Aside from MCC issuss, Amex Gold terms state "Members also will NOT earn additional points for purchases at bars, nightclubs, cafeterias, supermarkets, grocery stores, caterers, theatre clubs, breweries, bakeries, meeting venues, and convenience stores" While I understand why some aren't eligible, bars, cafeteria, breweries, bakeries count as "Dining" for cards like Chase and Bilt. "Restaurant" is pretty restrictive in my experience.

[@MarkReese]

@@LK_EBM - Yep I hear you. I've actually earned 4X at some bars, but not all. I imagine the backend framework to all this is wild 😂

[@sweetsharie66]

Great info. Thanks 😊

[@MarkReese]

You bet!

[@thejokerspeaks]

I use the Hilton Aspire at hotel, convention, arena venues. You're getting 3X, worst case scenario.

[@MarkReese]

👍👍

[@rambosidi7634]

Yep

[@MarkReese]

👍

[@nineseven420empire3]

Cash back for me......

[@MarkReese]

💵💯

[@MrDubs6000]

Moral of the story. For hotel cards, pick your favorite hotel!

[@newagain9964]

No. Be a free agent. And take advantage of SUBs when u can

[@MarkReese]

That's one approach 👍 Another is to be a free agent (as mentioned by @newagain9964) and earn flexible / transferrable points instead.

[@chrissan6015]

I’m new to the credit card travel game. I currently opened the American Express gold and I am wanting to know where to go from there.

[@Jiggy609]

Cancel it after a year lol

[@newagain9964]

It won’t be long b4 ur sick of the game. ✌️

[@chrissan6015]

Danggggg sounds rough. I’m in 2 player mode so hopefully it’s a little bit better for me

[@Jiggy609]

@@chrissan6015 personally about to cancel the gold..just waiting on elevated Chase Sapphire offers. The dining credit is useless for me, although I definitely use uber credits.

[@nicolethorpe6498]

Don't be discouraged I had the Amex gold for exactly 1 year and racked up over 60k points with my initial 50k bonus for signing up. After 1 year I was offered the platinum card so took it the offer, which was this year. You will be fine

[@siumaka]

Thanks Mark, great video. Can you share the 30 page Citi MCC code pdf? Cheers

[@MarkReese]

Here's the link: www.citibank.com/tts/solutions/commercial-cards/assets/docs/govt/Merchant-Category-Codes.pdf

[@littlelolex11]

Talk about cards not coding correctly. I made a purchase directly with Hilton on my Hilton-branded card for a stay and it still shows up as 3x points. That was very disappointing lol

[@MarkReese]

Did you inquire about it w/ Amex?

[@littlelolex11]

@@MarkReese I just did! They said the "transaction is still unbilled" and check back after March 17th. This is a weird one lol

[@MarkReese]

@@littlelolex11 - Very strange.

[@littlelolex11]

Want to provide an update, after live chatting with Amex, they opened up an investigation and they found that I should have gotten the Hilton points, so they awarded me the difference! The customer service rep was very helpful and said they would have done the same thing too!

[@MarkReese]

@@littlelolex11 - Great to hear! 🌟

[@TheZombaslaya]

US Bank Altitude Reserve looking better every day. I just got the Blue Business Plus as a backup card to keep my Amex Points since at the rate these redemptions are going I'll be canceling my Gold card.

[@MarkReese]

U.S. Bank did something right with their Altitude Reserve. Although I'd like to see the addition of transfer partners + the ability to combine points w/ other cards, having a 1¢ per point value for cash back, 1.5¢ for travel, and 3X earning via mobile wallet is darn good for a flat-value card 👍

[@newagain9964]

On paper it’s a great card, an a+. In reality I give it a c+.

[@flubberghosted2472]

Show me someone who uses the AMEX Equinox credit! 🤣🤣🤣

[@MarkReese]

Me 😬

[@flubberghosted2472]

@@MarkReese ha! That’s dope! I’d like to see your review of Equinox stuff! 💯✨

[@VincentPascual]

I was a member of Equinox for 1 month (right before the pandemic started) and the perks they give you for joining (like a one time discount to the boutique shop) reminded me of the coupon book model on Amex cards. Both the perks and coupon book are designed to force you to spend more money and time there to make the high membership fees worthwhile. Equinox is a very nice gym to be part of if you’re willing to spend the money, time, and effort.

[@khanscombe619]

💯

[@MarkReese]

💯

[@Adiscretefirm]

I am slightly skeptical of some of the "you're going to spend more" theory. If you only order from Amazon 5 or 6 times a year getting Prime doesn't make since if paid for shipping costs less than the paid membership. If you order more often, or order larger items and Prime costs less than shipping would it makes all the sense in the world. Same with my Sams membership, I got the more expensive option because I spend more than $250 a month and that is the break even point where the cashback pays for the upgrade. I do not shop at Whole Foods because I never did before anyway and am not going to start just because I have the Prime card and it has a multiplier there.

[@MarkReese]

The focus isn't on justifying membership costs. The data is simply saying those who have memberships with the likes of Amazon / Walmart / Costco / etc. have higher annual spend (on goods & services) than those without memberships.

[@SOXGATORS]

👍🏻

[@MarkReese]

👊

[@jetski335]

😊

[@MarkReese]

😃

[@wanderingdoc5075]

International rideshare apps (Didi, Grab, Angkas etc.) always code as travel on my CSR.. BUT they only code as 1X on Amex Green and Bilt Mastercard. Nothing beats the CSR and Visa network!

[@MarkReese]

Interesting data point, thanks for providing this! 💯