Southwest card holders

[mccallister84]

We are about to embark on a basement renovation. There is a 3% discount if we pay in cash versus putting it on our southwest card. We are talking about a difference of around $270. We don’t need to put it on the card, but we are trying to figure out if getting the 9000 points is worth more than $270. Does anyone know? Or do you have any ideas where I can figure this out?

Thanks!

[tripleshot]

They’re valued at 1.5 cents each, so 9000 points is $135. thepointsguy.com/guide/monthly-valuations/

[mccallister84]

Thanks tripleshot!

[ohgillian]

If you’re doing a $9k project and like southwest miles, I’d open a new southwest card in the name of whichever spouse doesn’t have one, and do the current signup bonus to get 75,000 miles. Here’s a link:

creditcards.chase.com/a1/southwest/AEP75kPlusJ20?CELL=6PMM&clk=4042032&cbid=4042032

You’d pay $69 for the annual fee but you’d get 75,000 miles.



mccallister84

[biscoffcookies]

Feb 7, 2020 21:30:07 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

If you’re doing a $9k project and like southwest miles, I’d open a new southwest card in the name of whichever spouse doesn’t have one, and do the current signup bonus to get 75,000 miles. Here’s a link:

creditcards.chase.com/a1/southwest/AEP75kPlusJ20?CELL=6PMM&clk=4042032&cbid=4042032

You’d pay $69 for the annual fee but you’d get 75,000 miles.



mccallister84

This.  Plus, if you can earn another 50,000 points through either flying Southwest or additional spending on the card, you'll earn the companion pass for next year (you need 125,000 by 12/31/20).  I don't know how much you travel, but this can be a really valuable perk if you fly a fair amount. 

[sloan]

I agree with opening a second card to get the bonus. SW is a good choice since you use those points. If you wanted cash instead of points a quick google search shows Capital One Savor has a $300 cash back intro bonus with 3k spending- there is an annual fee the second year and on so if it doesn’t make sense to keep you’d want to cancel that before the one year mark.

[mccallister84]

Thanks all. To be perfectly honest we like southwest because they are easy with the kids - family boarding and the free checked bags - and they fly directly to where H’s family is which usually ends up being a surprisingly expensive flight. Neither of us is super happy about spending the money to fly back each year, especially since in less than 6 months we will be paying for 4 tickets, so we basically use our points to cover these flights every year. I did send H the info and I think we are going to open up the new card. I think we can make the points work for the companion pass by the end of the year.