Buzz
AmEx’s Starwood credit card is highly regarded among those passionate about travel hacking. If you’ve been considering applying, the bonus has now been raised to 35,000 points for new members, valid until April 5th.
We highlight this important note in almost every post about credit card rewards: only use credit cards for rewards when you were already planning to spend the money. Carrying a balance can defeat the purpose of rewards and negatively impact your finances.
However, if you manage your spending wisely, credit card rewards can be a valuable tool. Many travel hackers earn free flights through sign-up bonuses. The Starwood Preferred Guest card has always offered a solid bonus, but they’ve now sweetened the deal by increasing the points given. Here's the breakdown:
New Card Members will earn 25,000 bonus Starpoints after spending $3,000 in the first 3 months with the card.
New Card Members will receive an extra 10,000 bonus Starpoints after spending an additional $2,000 on the Card within the first 6 months.
That’s $5,000 worth of spending over six months. A common strategy to reach a credit card’s bonus requirement is to time your application with a major purchase, like a wedding or a kitchen renovation. Since you’re going to spend the money anyway, it’s a good opportunity to rack up those points. (However, it may be more challenging to do this with this card since the offer ends on April 5th.)
Of course, it’s important to ensure you have enough funds to pay off your card in full and on time. Otherwise, you’ll just be accumulating debt, which undermines any rewards you’ve earned.
To view the offer yourself, click the link below.
