hdporter

The D mertis considerations at some point and has been on the back burner. GN has a hook into me inasmuch as I also play at their properties in Biloxi and Atlantic City, garnering top tier privileges. The gaming offers from Las Vegas aren't too shabby ... I'll have $625 in gaming credits for my 3 night stay (2 days of active play). I'm dabbling at GVR ... property has some nice attributes and I've been casting about for a room comp that requires relatively nominal play in order to bridge Strip promotion dates. MB may be a "one off" or represent a permanent venue change from MGM Grand. The stay is the key impetus for this trip, with an aim to play out the necessary tier to renew for MGM Platinum status. (Tier points are earned 5x faster in LV than in MS.) In any case, I only do one MGM group stay in LV annually. Cosmo is simply a delight. I adore their "terrace" balcony rooms overlooking the Bellagio fountains, some of their restaurants are exquisite, and it's simply a thrill to be there. However, they may be tiring of me (I have a winning record there to date and this quarter, while they continue to extend a primo room, they killed by gaming credit offer -- formerly $350.)

FWIW, there's confusion between Board Pass "bonus credits" and "status credits" ... two very different things: Bonus credits can be redeemed for slot play/cashback or dining. 100,000 points has a nominal value of $100. Status credits have no financial value; they are what earn you tier status. So you get 10,000 status credits upon approval, earning gold tier and providing a jump start toward the Platinum requirement of 40,000 status credits. (Tier status is re-evaluated every 6 mo.) Even if I found myself desperately in need of toilet paper, I don't think I'd reach for this card were it handed to me on a silver platter ...

Here's my personal take: A wholesale dispute of the adverse entries to your credit report might be successful in securing some limited deletions as a consequence of creditors who fail to respond timely. However, you can expect that you creditors will have very detailed records going back at least 3 years and most will validate the information. The bottom line is that with the majority of the adverse information intact on your report, there will be little, if any, credit score improvement. So, I wouldn't encourage the effort (respecting anyone who has a different take on this). In your shoes, I'd keep my focus on what's necessary to ensure that your credit remains clean going forward (a key component of which is building a strong contingency reserve over time). Just to be clear, I've been where you are a couple of times over the years. You just gotta tough things out while your negative entries eventually clear from your report.

OMG! "Like minds ..." and all that: Restless tonight and was just diving into board threads; when I came across this thread, guess what song came immediately to mind?? (Probably because I last heard it 3 days ago and my mind retched) If 10cc were to come back from the grave, this would have been their updated stab at a Top-10 hit. I tend to form certain mental image associations with songs. I've never seen or had treacle, but that's what comes to mind when I hear this song ... something dark, syrupy, molasses-y that's forever going to gum up your mouth and throat ...

Interesting strategy. Depending upon your past success with FC upgrades, I trust that a "buy up" to EXP has been weighed as an alternative to the "buy FC" route. (You have a superior head on your shoulders, so no doubt you've evaluated all the angles ... )

I hear you on the mileage front ... even though I burn 200k+ in redemptions each year (300k+ this year), my balance is holding in right around 1 mil miles. But, then again, the fact that I've got miles to burn keeps them from being far from worthless ... Let's just say that the air travel last week RT Barcelona in Bus/Prem Eco was "priceless" So, yeah, I'm gonna have miles in the hopper for some time to come (and Bev has her own 700k+, plus another 600k+ accumulating on Delta, on which her company flies her BC to Europe 3x-4x per year). Even factoring potential devaluation down the road, I expect to get good value out of them when I travel less actively, have my lifetime Gold (or Plat) status, and reap from yet another "retirement account"!

And you think the alternatives are worthy of sainthood by comparison? Sorry ... but get a life.

[ tell me to nix the subject if you're tired of it ] ... So, cv, are you kicking this card to the curb (sounds like you're no longer putting AA tickets on it after the EQD benefit slash)? For an intrepid AA'er such as yourself, it seems the card still holds strong value (particularly if you're charging $20k+ annually in airfare). I value the 3x miles on AA purchases at 4.2% (a conservative $.014 reward value per mile when redeemed for airline travel). Plus, the $99 companion cert earned w/ $20k in charges is good for an added 2%+ in my book. I call it a 6% rebate card (in kind) on the first $20k in air purchases (assuming that minimum threshold is met).

Please tell me you're a 2-hr jaunt from LV ... for me, Vegas is 100+ hours or bust!! My next run to LV is slated for Sep 21 for 8 nights (Golden Nugget/Green Valley Ranch/Mandalay Bay/Cosmopolitan). "Solo" trip the first 5 nights, Bev joins me at Cosmo for 3 nights to close out the trip.

I'm sitting in the DFW AA lounge, waiting for a flight that will take me to the MS coast where I'll be until Wednesday. Great weather forecast!! (Any bets I book a trip to SD before the trip is out?? )

As suggested by others, paying less than your minimum has close to the same consequences as not paying at all. You still incur delinquencies and if your account goes 3 full months in arrears, closure is likely. The best bet is to handle the situation proactively, call the issuer, and request a temporary hardship payment arrangement, citing temporary financial circumstances. This may result in temporary suspension of your charge privileges (not a bad thing in such circumstances), but in addition to reducing your minimum payment requirement for 3-6 months, they may also temporarily reduce the interest rate being assessed. I realize your circumstances are dire. Bankruptcy is available for those who need a fresh start, however, I suggest you not be quite so resigned to the possibility. Recovering your credit access is a tedious experience, and you're likely underestimating your need for credit access 5+ years down the road.

POC ... aka as T&C mailer in advance of the new C1 Walmart Card.

FWIW, longtime Roboform user here as well. I have unique pw's for each website ... each uses a common "root" with an extension that is URL-based (not the most secure scheme, but modestly obscure enough that I feel sufficiently safe without being totally dependent upon a pw manager). However you secure your login credentials, if you use a common username/pw combo across several websites, you're dead meat come the next security breach.

I doubt Santa Claus sits on the board of the Canadian Chase subsidiary through which these accounts were issued. That leaves me to surmise that the portfolio was deficient in some manner that prevented them from selling it.

The tradeline notation was merely the punctuation mark at the end of the explanation. As stated, the denial was based on their own criteria re number of recent accounts opened rather than any FICO factors. But, Nooo ... you diehards are determined to make it all about INQUIRIES!! You're definitely going to recon this one, right?