Many hotel rewards programs offer free night and upgrade certificates as a perk, and many of them were set to expire on December 31st. However, many programs are offering a courtesy extension and/or points credit. Some may have quietly extended it automatically, but you may have to ask directly for this courtesy. Here are credit cards that offer free night certificates:

• The World of Hyatt Credit Card
• IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit Card
• Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
• Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card
• Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card
• Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Card
• Radisson Rewards Premier Card

For example, I just received 10,000 Hyatt points for my Cat 1-4 Free Night Award that expired December 31, 2021. I logged into my World of Hyatt account and asked politely via their Live Chat feature. It only took about 5 or 10 minutes, while 10,000 Hyatt points are worth at least $100 to me. If I didn’t ask, the award would have simply expired worthless. Definitely worth the effort. If you are logged out due to inactivity, just log back in and the chat history should be preserved.

I also have a free IHG night certificate with an expiration date that was extended from mid-2022 until the end of 2022 (without asking). You may wish to call in to ask about certificates that expired in 2021.

Hilton also extended many of their free nights certificates, so I’d check that too.

Check again to see if targeted for latest promo. If you have a Citi credit card that earns ThankYou points, you can redeem them to buy eligible items at Amazon.com. The redemption rate is 1 ThankYou points = 0.8 cents to spend at Amazon, which may not be the best value available. However, here are targeted promotions where you can save money after redeeming just 1 single MR point (a penny’s worth). (To see the link, you may need to visit this page on the internet if viewing this via e-mail or RSS.)

• Get 40% or 50% off (max discount $10 or $15), valid on items shipped and sold by Amazon. Must redeem at least 1 Citi ThankYou point. You may be eligible even if you’ve done similar promos before.

Here are some additional tips:

• If you haven’t linked yet, you can link your ThankYou points balance to your Amazon account here.
• If you have already linked your cards and aren’t targeted, you may consider removing your Citi card from your account completely, and then linking it again after a day, and then checking the offer page(s) again after another day.
• Items must be marked as both sold AND shipped by Amazon.com.
• Be sure to select your Citi credit card as your payment method and redeem at least 1 point or $0.01 in value of ThankYou points.
• Savings should be reflected on the final order checkout page, before you commit to purchase.

Notably, the Citi Double Cash card, Citi Custom Cash card, and Citi Rewards+ all now earn ThankYou points. You may want to try linking them to see if you qualify for this promotion now or in the future. For redemptions, I’d probably stick with the 2% cash back option for the Double Cash, and look at the new airline transfer options for the premium travel cards like Citi Premier.

Check again to see if targeted for newest discount. If you have Ultimate Rewards points from Chase credit cards, you can use them to buy eligible items at Amazon.com. The redemption rate is 1 Ultimate Rewards points = 1 cent at Amazon, which is the same rate as their statement credit redemptions. However, here are targeted promotions where you can save money after redeeming just 1 single MR point (a penny’s worth). (To see the link, you may need to visit this page on the internet if viewing this via e-mail or RSS.)

• Get 50% off (max discount $15), valid on items shipped and sold by Amazon. Must redeem at least 1 Chase Ultimate Rewards point. You may be eligible even if you’ve done similar promos before.

Here are some additional tips:

• If you haven’t linked yet, you can link your Ultimate Rewards points balance to your Amazon account here.
• If you have already linked your cards and aren’t targeted, you may consider removing your Chase card from your account completely, and then linking it again after a day, and then checking the offer page(s) again after another day.
• Items must be marked as both sold AND shipped by Amazon.com.
• Be sure to select your Chase credit card as your payment method and redeem at least 1 point or $0.01 in value of Ultimate Rewards points.
• Savings should be reflected on the final order checkout page, before you commit to purchase.

Keep in mind that you have options to earn 25% more value (1.25 cents per Ultimate Rewards point) from travel redemptions via the Chase portal and the Pay Yourself Bank tools if you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred, and 50% more value (1.5 cents per UR point) with the Chase Sapphire Reserve. You can transfer over any UR points earned elsewhere from the Chase Freedom and Chase Freedom Unlimited. You may get even better value by converting them to frequent flier miles like United Airlines or hotel points like Hyatt.

The Synchrony Premier World Mastercard is a rewards credit card that earns 2% cash back on every purchase with no annual fee. There are no rotating categories, activation deadlines, no earning caps, or miles/points to redeem. It was previously invite-only, but is now open to public applications subject to credit approval.

Here are a few minor but notable ways that make this 2% cash back card unique from the competition.

Cash back is credited automatically to your statement every month. Other competitors may require you to accrue either a minimum like $25 before you can redeem, or require you to manually request the rewards. With this card, your cash back gets credited to your statement every month, automatically. You don’t have to do anything.

World Mastercard perks. As a “World Mastercard” – a notch above the standard Mastercard – it includes a few unique benefits that most other 2% cash back cards don’t have. These include cell phone protection, DoorDash, Lyft, and Shoprunner benefits. Details at the World Mastercard official page, but here the perks I found most useful:

• Cell phone protection. World Mastercard comes with $1,000 in yearly coverage ($600 max per claim, 2 claims per year) should your cell phone get stolen or need certain repairs. Simply pay for your cell phone bill with your World Mastercard to activate coverage. There is a $50 deductible.
• DoorDash DashPass perks. Get free delivery, reduced fees and exclusive offers with DashPass, the monthly subscription service from DoorDash. New members get 3 free months of membership. In addition, World Mastercard DashPass members get $5 off their first 2 orders per month until 9/30/2022. Details.

If you aren’t into chasing bonuses or maximizing the value of points and miles, I recommend that everyone get some sort of flat 2% cash back credit card. Many people I know who prefer simplicity use a debit card with at most 1% cash back, while they could be earning double the cash back while getting better consumer fraud protections and still paying off the balance each month. For example, $2,000 in credit card spending a month is easily calculated at $40 month in cash back rewards, or $480 a year.

If you do like juggling multiple rewards cards, it’s still good to have a 2% cash back card as your “catch-all” back-up card. Traditional, for me this has been my Citi Double Cash card.

Bottom line. The Synchrony Premier World Mastercard offers 2% cash back on every purchase with no annual fee. This simple, flat structure minimizes any work on your end – even the cash back is automatically credited to your statement every month.

It’s been a while since I’ve redeemed any airline miles or hotel points, so I’m excited to start doing so again. We still had thousands of dollars in airline credit balances from early 2020, and I just booked a flight and two hotel nights in Vancouver, Canada. This also gave me an opportunity to check out the current value of some of my currency. I have to work around school schedules so it’s hard to fully maximize the value of every point.

The cash price for a junior suite during Spring Break at the Hilton Vancouver Airport for our family of 5 was CAD $343, which is US $$277 per night.

The same room with the same cancellation policy costs 50,000 Hilton Honors points per night, which equates to a value of 0.55 cents per Hilton point. This compares well to my standard valuation of 0.5 cents per Hilton point. This is making me take a second look at the current Hilton Honors American Express offer of up to 130,000 Hilton points with no annual fee.

American Express is currently running a transfer bonus to Hilton Honors points, such that 1,000 Membership Rewards points = 2,600 Hilton Honors points. The promo ends soon, but the transferred points posted instantly for me.

This means that 20,000 Membership Rewards points would equal 52,000 Hilton points. That equates to a value of 1.4 cents per Membership Rewards point, much better than my standard valuation of 1.0 cents per MR point. (I would have gotten about 1.1 cents much without the transfer bonus.) Even better, I already had around 30,000 Hilton points lying around, so I only needed another 8,000 Membership Rewards points to reach the first night award. Later, I made another transfer of 19,000 Membership Rewards for the second night since I had about 1,000 Hilton points left over. This ability to “top off” a variety of accounts is why people love the flexible points so much.

In the end, I’m happy to finally convert some points into cash savings (and then into family memories). I’ve still got more planning to do, more hotel nights to book with my IHG/Hyatt stash, and I have a few award night certificates that I hope I can use up as well.

My point is that sure, I’d rather get $1,000 cash than 100,000 Membership Rewards points, but the fact is that it is a lot easier to get a big pile of points and miles for trying out a new credit card while never carrying a balance. I try to value them conservatively, but they definitely still hold value for me. I hope that you all are able to redeem your points and miles for memories soon as well.

As another year of limited travel passes, this is a quick reminder that many credit cards with an annual fee have another version with no annual fee. You’ve already had the temporary ding on your credit report, and this allows you to keep that account history and credit limit. You’ll get less perks, but you still may retain something useful like the ability to keep earning points/miles on demand. Instead of canceling, you simply ask them for a “product change” or switch to another cards that they offer. I’ve recently converted two cards into their no annual fee versions:

• Chase IHG Rewards Club Premier Card ($89) to IHG Traveler Card (no annual fee)
• Chase Sapphire Reserve ($550) to Chase Freedom Unlimited (no annual fee)

The IHG Traveler Card makes it easy to keep earning a few IHG points here and there for keep my large existing points balance from expiring. I also keep the “Fourth Reward Night Free” perk when redeeming points for any 4+ night stay.

I’ve enjoyed having the Sapphire Reserve for years, as the $300 travel credit used to offset much of the previous $450 annual fee. However, the annual fee is now $550 and a couple years ago they removed the ability to bring my entire family including children into airport lounges with the Priority Pass Select (now limited to two guests) and likely also the new Sapphire Lounges. Converting to the Chase Freedom Unlimited preserves my Ultimate Rewards (UR) points balance, and we grabbed the Chase Sapphire Preferred thanks to their new big 100,000 point bonus. As Chase allows UR points transfers between immediate family members, I still maintain the ability to convert all of our combined Ultimate Rewards points to Hyatt hotel points, which are my preferred conversion value. I did convert some points using their Pay Yourself Back tool and cash out some points at 1.5 cents apiece first (I had a lot of points piling up).

Sometimes the no-annual-fee version of a card is not marketed very much, if at all. You can call the number on the back of your card and simply ask about your options. I usually wait until the annual fee charge shows up on my bill, but before the upcoming due date. They should want to keep your business – you often keep the same account number, but you most likely won’t be eligible for a new account sign-up bonus. You usually have to stay within the same “points” type, like Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou points, Capital One miles, Delta miles, American miles, Marriott Bonvoy, etc. Personal cards must stay personal cards, and business cards must stay business cards.

Note: In some rare cases where the only card downgrade options limit their sign-up bonus to once within a certain period, and you haven’t gotten it yet, then you may wish to simply cancel the card. You may consider moving your credit limit over to another card first.

New $200 welcome bonus. Here is a lesser-known card in the world of 5% cash back credit cards. The U.S. Bank Cash+ Visa Signature card actually lets you choose and change the categories in which you can earn 5% and 2% cash back. Here are the highlights:

• $200 bonus after spending $1,000 in eligible purchases within the first 120 days of account opening.
• 5% cash back on your first $2,000 in eligible net purchases each quarter on the combined two categories you choose.
• 5% cash back on prepaid air, hotel and car reservations booked directly in the Rewards Center
• 2% cash back on one everyday category, like Gas Stations/EV Charging Stations, Grocery Stores or Restaurants
• 1% cash back on all other eligible purchases
• 0% Intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 15 billing cycles. After that, a variable APR currently 18.99 – 28.99%
• Terms and conditions apply.
• No annual fee.

Here’s how it works. Each quarter, you MUST enroll to choose one 2% back category from a list of three options: gas stations, grocery stores, or drugstores. You also get to choose the two 5% cash back categories every quarter, out of a preset selection of specific categories;

• Fast Food
• Cell Phone Providers
• Home Utilities
• Ground Transportation
• Select Clothing Stores
• Electronics Stores
• Car Rentals
• Gyms/Fitness Centers
• Sporting Goods Stores
• Department Stores
• Furniture Stores
• Movie Theaters
• TV, Internet, and Streaming Services

You can pick the same categories each quarter, or switch them up once a quarter based on your planned spending. Make sure to choose your categories each quarter! – even if you want them to stay the same. If you do not choose your categories, all purchases revert to only earning 1% cash back for that quarter.

I have added the U.S. Bank Cash+ Visa Signature card to my quarterly-updated list of other 5% cash back cards like the Chase Freedom Flex, Citi Custom Cash, and Discover More cards.

Another new coin deal on Monday, September 13th, 2021. PFS Buyers Club has another coin deal on a limited-edition American Eagle 2021 One Ounce Silver Reverse Proof Two-Coin Set Designer Edition. They will pay you a guaranteed fixed profit of $100.05 plus any credit card rewards. See details below.

On September 13th – at 12:00PM ET the US Mint will release the limited edition American Eagle 2021 One Ounce Silver Reverse Proof Two-Coin Set Designer Edition.

There is a purchase limit of 1 Set per household, so you’re able to buy 1 Set.

The cost of each American Silver Eagle Two-Coin Set is $175.00. After including the $4.95 shipping charge, each order’s total will be $179.95

You will have the box shipped to your own house or office and then ship them to PFS Buyers Club with a prepaid FedEx shipping label that we will provide for you.

We will pay you $280.00 – for a profit of $100.05 per order.

This is also a great opportunity to earn valuable points/miles on your credit cards, as well as meet any spending thresholds.

If you are new to this type of deal please the previous similar (but expired!) deal for more background information and answers to most common questions. I have now done multiple deals with them and been paid as promised with no issues.

If you want to jump on this, you can sign up to join PFS Buyers Club here. PFS will provide *very* detailed instructions. Read them ahead of time, and follow them carefully to help you buy the coin before it sells out. If you use that link as a first-time buyer, I will receive a one-time referral fee the first time you successfully sell your coin for a profit. Thanks for those that use it, and for those that already used it in the past. I will be opting in myself as well.

If you have collected a nice stash of Membership Rewards (MR) points from American Express, you may want to log into your account and check out the many new transfer bonuses available to their airline and hotel partners. Waiting for one of these limited-time transfer promotions is a good way to maximize the value of your AmEx MR points. Note that these transfers are not reversible. Some offers expire September 30th, while others are marked October 31st.

Airlines

• British Airways: 40% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,400 Avios.
• Hawaiian Airlines: 25% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,300 Virgin points.
• Aer Lingus: 40% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,400 Avios.
• Iberia: 40% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,400 Avios.
• Air Canada: 20% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,200 Aeroplan points.
• Aeromexico: 25% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 2,000 Premier points.
• Air France/KLM Flying Blue: 25% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,250 Flying Blue miles.
• Avianca / Lifemiles: 15% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,150 LifeMiles.
• Virgin Atlantic: 30% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,300 Virgin points.
• Qantas: 30% Bonus. 500 MR points = 600 Qantas points.

Hotels

• Hilton Honors: 30% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 2,600 Hilton points.
• Marriott Bonvoy: 30% Bonus. 1,000 MR points = 1,300 Bonvoy points.

Airlines that are currently NOT offering a transfer bonus include Delta, ANA, Emirates, Etihad, and Singapore Airlines. Choice hotels are also not offering any bonuses at this time.

I’m not a big traveler these days, so I don’t have any of the Gold or Platinum cards right now, even though they are offering big bonuses. I do keep one consumer AmEx and one business AmEx that earns Membership Rewards points, both with no annual fee.

• The Amex EveryDay Card doesn’t see a lot of use, but it keeps my Membership Rewards points active with no annual fee and helps qualify for various Amazon promotions.
• The Blue Business Plus from American Express does see a lot of action as my primary small business card, as it earns 2X Membership Rewards points on all purchases on up to $50,000/year with no annual fee. I can always transfer to Delta Skymiles which at least knock off 1 cent per mile off a Delta ticket, which means a MR points is at least worth 1 cent minimum for my situation. Too bad Delta is not participating this time.

Another new coin deal on Thursday, August 12th, 2021. PFS Buyers Club has another coin deal on a limited-edition 2021 American Eagle Silver Coin. They will pay you a guaranteed fixed profit of $61 plus any credit card rewards. See details below.

Tomorrow! August 12th, at 12:00PM ET, the US Mint will be releasing a limited edition American Eagle Silver Coin. There is a purchase limit of three coins per household, so you’re able to buy three coins. The cost of each Silver Eagle coin is $73.00, and when adding the $4.95 shipping charge, each order will total $223.95. PFS will be offering a commission of $61.05 for each order for a total payout of $285.00.

If you are new to this type of deal please the previous similar (but expired!) deal for more background information and answers to most common questions. I have now done multiple deals with them and been paid as promised with no issues.

If you want to jump on this, you can sign up to join PFS Buyers Club here. PFS will provide *very* detailed instructions. Read them ahead of time, and follow them carefully to help you buy the coin before it sells out. If you use that link as a first-time buyer, I will receive a referral fee the first time you successfully sell your coin for a profit. Thanks for those that use it, and for those that already used it in the past. I will be opting in myself as well.